Little Sleep

This one is interesting; it is a discovery of a 'gene' that enables (or corresponds with) a lesser need for duration of sleep. Some are already speculating it as the beginning of a day where treated persons would need sleep less: that just tells me underestimation of the difficulty, indeed purposeful obstacles, to genetic safe (relative) modification.

It also tells me an ignorance of genetics and biology; for every perk there is a trade-off. There is a downside, probably many, somewhere in there. There are probably many who also need little sleep, and function (as these two found) with little, and also recover quickly without it, but nevertheless suffer other biological consequences; perhaps there are some with the genes for healing quickly, such as those persistent marathon runners: indeed that might mitigate some of those consequence--yet bring its own. Quick healing usually corresponds with fewer, or defunct, genetic checks, for instance: and should permit reasoning the consequent of higher rates of genetic errors and likelihood of cancer.

I don't know that it's genetic rather than custom, but when my health* is up I can live off about four hours of sleep with little issue: actually it's not just "can live off", but rather I wake without help, and stay wakeful without stimulants, minus those four hours; I go about, studying, working, exercising (heavily). When I was a young kid and teen it was different, but at twenty one I just started waking one day after four hours, on the dot. *(In the past few months I've been sleeping much more than eight hours for cause of antihistamines for hives.) I like this, it gives me a lot more time, and yet knowing what I do could be worrisome to wake knowing the time on the dot will be four hours past leaving wakefulness.

The point is this, that we should meddle with people who aren't broken: I don't care if they need twelve hours a night, so long as their health is well (that can be detrimental if gotten without necessity). In the event someone sleeps far too few hours, however, it could be a good idea to see about ratcheting their hours slept UP! Not too much...naturally the body seems to do worse* when it gets more than it wants naturally, but there could be such a thing as too few hours--the body needs time for its natural cycles and whatnot, for damage repair and healing, and for sorting information in the brain as well as repairing its tissues and connections. *(I, for instance, feel terrible for sleeping more than my usual needs: for doing so I feel drugged when trying to rise, but great if I just get up the first time I wake.)