“The discovery of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, a mentally active period during which dreaming occurs, provided a biological explanation for this phenomenon. It also inspired interest in sleep research by giving scientists a marker for changes in the brain during sleep. From this knowledge, they have begun to understand and develop treatments for major sleep disorders such as insomnia and sleep apnea.      Everyone sleeps. This fundamental activity consumes one-third of our lifetimes and can overpower all other needs. But what does sleep do for us? What happens when you are sleep deprived? What are sleep disorders?
Much of what is known about sleep stems from the groundbreaking 1953 discovery of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. This is an active period of sleep marked in humans by intense activity in the brain and rapid bursts of eye movements. At the same time, scientists discovered that REM sleep is when dreaming occurs.
Before the 1950s, most scientists thought of sleep as an unchanging, dormant period of little interest. Hardly anything was known about sleep or dreaming.”

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