greggt at strauss.udel.edu (Thomas R. Gregg) writes:
>>I am interested in gathering ideas about the purpose of sleep.Can anyone
>>suggest why sleep may have evolved, or what physiological functions it
>>serves? Does sleep serve the same purpose in all animals?
>One theory (Buzsaki, Buzsaki & Chrobak) says that sharp waves, which occur in
>the cortical and hippocampal EEGs of asleep animals, help to consolidate
>memory.
>Tom.N
Very true, however, be careful of not putting the cart before the
horse. It should be worth noting that such activity (memory
consolidation) is presumably not the impetus behind the evolution of
sleep, merely an example of the CNS taking advantage of the body's
physical need to sleep.
If the cellular repair theory mentioned above is true, (something I've
heard before), it would probably take a long while (weeks) for the acculumated
damage of sleep-dep to affect the body noticeably. However, now the
CNS has become even more sleep dependent than the cellular mechanisms
with noticeable impairments after a single day.
-bradw at cs.brandeis.edu
Brandeis U.
