Date: March 2, 2017
Source: University of the
Witwatersrand
Why we sleep is one of the
enduring unanswered mysteries of modern science. Along with such activities as eating,
protecting oneself and reproducing, sleep is one of the major biological
imperatives of existence.
Although being asleep precludes
these other activities, all animals do sleep. Some, like whales, dolphins,
seals and certain birds, do it in a very unusual manner, sleeping with only
half their brain at a time, while some sleep quite a lot and others less so.
"While there are many
hypotheses regarding the function of sleep, the ultimate purpose of sleep is
yet to be discovered," says Prof. Paul Manger, from the School of
Anatomical Sciences at Wits University.
The lack of sleep can -- even
over a relatively short term -- lead to brain damage, and in the longer term
death, as can be seen in the human conditions fatal familial insomnia and
sporadic fatal insomnia.
Generally, larger animals tend to
sleep less than smaller animals, but do elephants fit this trend?
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