The study was a small one (only 11 participants), but it hinted at the potential of the neurotechnological market which now adopts these methods.
This enhances neuronal oscillation of the slow wave phase and its associated benefits, such as memory consolidation. A study published in the journal Neuron in 2013 found that sound waves which are in phase with brian waves of this sleep stage induce “auditory closed-loop stimulation” of the brain. The idea is based on experiments which have validated the efficacy of sound waves to modulate the deepest phase of rest, known as slow wave sleep. They are also equipped with microphones that project acoustic waves directly into the skull, to infuse the brain with sounds of a certain frequency at night. The more sophisticated gadgets are flat headbands wrapped in cloth, which contain electrodes to measure brain waves and sensors for movement, heart rate and breathing. In order to improve sleep quality and quantity, technologists have moved on from creating brain-machine interfaces to monitor the sleeping brain-they now design devices to directly control sleepiness. Extreme sleep deprivation, of the sort suffered by patients with a rare genetic disease known as fatal insomnia, causes a certain and early death. The number of people who sleep too little or too poorly is growing, according to global figures this is a public health problem. Studies of sleep deprivation and studies that follow people who suffer insomnia and brain lesions have provided insights into the crucial physiological processes which the body undergoes during each phase, such as muscle repair, hormone release, immune system activation or the reinforcement of neural pathways.ĭuring the 1970s, this body of scientific knowledge was big enough to consolidate a new discipline, sleep medicine, which nowadays makes use of neurotechnological techniques such as polysomnography to diagnose sleep disorders. Hence, we know that sleeping neurons emit brain waves of certain frequencies, which can be classified into four phases of rest, repeated in cycles every night. Use of electroencephalography (EEG) first, and then modern neuroimaging techniques like positron emission tomography and functional magnetic resonance imaging, have revealed how the brain behaves while we sleep, which is an important clue for why we sleep at all.
In 2010, Aserinsky’s fellow sleep researcher, William Dement, who had already retired, joked: “As far as I know, the only reason we need to sleep that is really, really solid is because we get sleepy.” However, what we do know about the process, we know thanks to neurotechnology. The biological reason for sleep is still unknown. Polysomnography is a medical study of sleep that uses brain wave sensors. That was how Aserinsky discovered REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, a phase during which we dream while the mind orders thoughts and consolidates memory. The curvy lines traced by the device’s pens on the graph paper showed a pattern of neuronal activity consistent with that of a fully active brain. During the 50s, researcher Eugene Aserinsky rigged his own son, aged eight, to an old brainwave sensor while he slept. Today, neurotechnology startups are attempting to take the relationship between sleep and tech to the next level, using bidirectional interfaces that not only read the brain, but also try to manipulate it while it rests.įor decades, scientists assumed that the human brain switches off to preserve energy when it isn’t awake, like a household appliance on standby. To this day, sleep is an evolutionary and physiological conundrum, although a clear relationship is now recognised between lack of rest and the onset of disease, as well as reduced life expectancy. Before the development of brain wave sensors, scientists barely knew what the brain does when it sleeps.
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