5 ms·

So, the brain is an electro-chemical engine, and like other engines, it must be shut down to perform regular maintenance so the engine lasts longer, and is less

So, the brain is an electro-chemical engine, and like other engines, it must be shut down to perform regular maintenance so the engine lasts longer, and is less prone to error conditions.

jacobolus 10y ago
Not just the brain, but the whole body. If I go without enough sleep, my hair and skin start getting greasy, my immune system is weakened, my muscles start feeling tired, etc.
- Retra 10y ago
  Your hair and skin get greasy because you aren't bathing, not because you aren't sleeping.
  - jacobolus 10y ago
    You are incorrect, as you can trivially verify yourself with a few days’ first-hand observation. Even if you don’t bathe at all for a few days, or just rinse yourself with water (skip the oil-stripping soap for this experiment), the greasiness of hair/skin fluctuates noticeably throughout the day, and increases substantially after a day or two of insufficient sleep. (That’s right, the greasiness will go up and then subsequently go down, without your doing anything special in between.) [Side note: it’s pretty disappointing when people make confident sounding assertions about things they clearly don’t know anything about and didn’t bother to do the tiniest trivial bit of study. I find this happens quite commonly even in discussion venues where there’s ostensibly a cultural value placed on reasoning and evidence.]
    - debatem1 10y ago
      I've been sleep deprived for extended periods before and never noticed the difference. Is there sample size > 1 evidence for this you're aware of?
    - Retra 10y ago
      You want to casually study myself while sleep-deprived? That sounds like a recipe for trustworthy results, I'm sure. Of course I'm going to get more greasy after two days of not using soap. I don't see how that would verify anything that you are claiming.

5 ms·

So, the brain is an electro-chemical engine, and like other engines, it must be shut down to perform regular maintenance so the engine lasts longer, and is less

by 24gttghh 10y ago

So, the brain is an electro-chemical engine, and like other engines, it must be shut down to perform regular maintenance so the engine lasts longer, and is less prone to error conditions.

jacobolus 10y ago
Not just the brain, but the whole body. If I go without enough sleep, my hair and skin start getting greasy, my immune system is weakened, my muscles start feeling tired, etc.
- Retra 10y ago
  Your hair and skin get greasy because you aren't bathing, not because you aren't sleeping.
  - jacobolus 10y ago
    You are incorrect, as you can trivially verify yourself with a few days’ first-hand observation. Even if you don’t bathe at all for a few days, or just rinse yourself with water (skip the oil-stripping soap for this experiment), the greasiness of hair/skin fluctuates noticeably throughout the day, and increases substantially after a day or two of insufficient sleep. (That’s right, the greasiness will go up and then subsequently go down, without your doing anything special in between.) [Side note: it’s pretty disappointing when people make confident sounding assertions about things they clearly don’t know anything about and didn’t bother to do the tiniest trivial bit of study. I find this happens quite commonly even in discussion venues where there’s ostensibly a cultural value placed on reasoning and evidence.]
    - debatem1 10y ago
      I've been sleep deprived for extended periods before and never noticed the difference. Is there sample size > 1 evidence for this you're aware of?
    - Retra 10y ago
      You want to casually study myself while sleep-deprived? That sounds like a recipe for trustworthy results, I'm sure. Of course I'm going to get more greasy after two days of not using soap. I don't see how that would verify anything that you are claiming.