Ever wondered what’s happening in your brain while you sleep and why you need sleep?  

QBI researchers Professor Bruno van Swinderen and Dr Sally Staton approach sleep from different ends of the scientific spectrum, but both are fascinated by how sleep helps us learn and respond to the world.  

In this conversation, they delve into thought-provoking topics like:  

  • how sleep impacts a child’s brain development 
  • the different functions of sleep 
  • the value of REM sleep 
  • why study sleep in fruit flies  
  • how consciousness may have evolved  

 

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Related papers and resources  

Many naps, one nap, none: A systematic review and meta-analysis of napping patterns in children 0–12 years 

Sleep and Society: Continuity and chaos across the life course 

A Paradoxical Kind of Sleep in Drosophila melanogaster 

Balancing Prediction and Surprise: A Role for Active Sleep at the Dawn of Consciousness?