> [S]hort sleepers may actually have an edge over everyone else. Research is still early, but Fu has found that besides being more efficient at sleep, they tend

> [S]hort sleepers may actually have an edge over everyone else. Research is still early, but Fu has found that besides being more efficient at sleep, they tend to be more energetic and optimistic and have a higher tolerance for pain than people who need to spend more time in bed. They also tend to live longer. And, here I am needing my 8±1 hours every night. Even needing half as much sleep alone would be a real edge. Tack on being naturally more optimistic and having a higher pain tolerance than others, and it starts sounding like a real superpower. Oh, and they live longer, too? This is exciting research, but I can't help but feel either envious or inferior because of it. Yes, it's a personal failing. Sue me. :P My real hope is that this research eventually benefits medicine somehow. Maybe they can put it in a bottle for the rest of us (unlikely!). Or, since lack of sleep is linked to so many conditions, including systemic inflammation, maybe we'll get some insight into what the relationship is between sleep and inflammation? Maybe a "sleep gene panel" will become a standard test and guide how we treat certain conditions? Who knows.