Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1904-04-29
THE BRAIN IN SLEEP
WITH SOME IL NOTES TIME BETTER
THAN WHEN They ARE AWAKE.
One OF the d Facts Connected
With the ceaseless Operations Of
MS Most Wonderful Of All the Or
gans Of the Human nody.

With the C~easeleSs Operations Of
This Most Wonderful 81 All the Or
gans Of the Human Rody.
That a Il may haze Il better idea
of tie time Of night when lie awakens
from u good sleep than he world have
Of The time Of day, provided he were
working unusually hard, with unusual
i%ntentness Of purpose. is u Of the
odd facts connected with the operation
Of the human brain.
But ca the other hand, II a man may
woik with such intensity of purpose as
TO f0f@eI the lapse Of two or three
hours " daylight. 50 he may sleep with
d s~otnaness that prevents the little
tinlekeeper Of the brain from making
~subconscious note OF fhe hour hand or
the clock in the night. As between the
two conditions, however. il is the opin-
ion of a professor of V diseases
that the awakened sleeper usually has
i better idea Of the flight Of the night
than the other may have Of the flight
Of the day.
Under ordinary circumstances the
person who is in normal sleep is not
asleep said the doctor. 'eThat one
clock of the brain which takes c0gni-
zance Of time is alert to an extent not
ann,.aaia tal 40 tha 1urtuan txvoynn
ing ut any time in the night. the per.
son in good health and condition knows
pretty closely whether it is midnight on
after or whether it be nearer ? o'clock
in the morning than it is to 4 o'clock.
Many persons have the faculty so cul-
tivated that they know within the
quarter hours of the exact time.
.On the other hand. it is a common
expression with persons in all lines of
work suddenly to look at the clock and
express the keenest surprise that 1t Is
so late In the afternoon or the even.
ing. and occasionally one who has been
working to poor advantage and under
difficulties will be surprised on looking
at his watch that it is so early.
THAT the brain in sleep keeps this
tally upon the time is proved by the in
f1uence Of an@sthetics. A person who
has been profoundly under the influ-
ence Of any drug used for the purpose
will be rs utterly unconscious of the
passing Of ten minutes rs he will be I'M
conscious Of the passing OF an hour. He
may be forgetful Of all conditions lead
ing mp to the state of anesthesia. and
for the time being he may have forgot
ten the day Of the week.
"As 10 the time measurement in
sleep. It is best represented in the per-
o used to travel and to the catching
of trains in the night. Many Of these
persons will be able TO awaken at an
hour giving them just the margin need
ed for preparation for the train.
.0he Of the pecullarities Of a persons
waking for a train or for any such
emergency Is that the awakening al
ways is sudden. There is none OF the
preliminary yawning and stretching
and slowly returning sense Of luxuri-
u rest and comfort felt by the man
who has slept a full sleep. In this
awakening to a certain time the per-
son frequently feels that impression Of
a sudden sound which he knows carnot
have been made or uttered. Not intse-
quently he has the sense that some one
has called his name. He may be almost
certain that he has heard his first name
-George-caIlcd with the character.
istic rising infection. In almost any
cas- his awakening is without any pre-.
monitory symptoms. 1t Is with n sort
of jolt that he comes into full fiedged
consciousness. In such eases as those
where the sleep is profound beyond any
consciousness OF the time the dream
period Of sleep is left far behind. the
sleep has approached the depth of an
asthesia.n
One Of the oddities of sleep was re.
ferred TO In which a person may lie
down for rest without intending to
sleep. 1t may be morning or after.
NOON. Dut tue ldtlSuc TIA pfOuipts the
person to lie down overeomes him,
and after n sound sleep he awakens
without any knowledge OF time In any
sense. He does not realize whether 1t
is morning or afternoon, whether he
has had luncheon OF whether he may
not have slept through a day and a
night and awakened into another day.
II is the opinion Of the professor that
In such q case the person experiencing
the sensations probably Is not in d
normal state OF health.
As an example Of sleep that should
be natural and close to the design Of
nature and OF an awakening that
should be normal without the effect Of
an artificial civilization crowding It.
the babe which has rested to the full
and begins to arouse itself from slum-
Der Is an interesting study.
With its little face on the pillow, I'M.
marked by a line, and its breath com.
ing with a silent regularity. Its hands
ilstless and still at Its sides. the on.
locker is assured OF the absolute re-
pose that Is upon the child. As the
hour for awakening approaches there
may be just a little tremor shaking the
whole body OF the sleeper and perhaps