Comment by quietbritishjim
9 hours ago
> Do you think our ancestors slept exactly 8 hours a night from 10pm to 6am?
Yeah I pretty much do expect that (but more like 6 or 7). They were awake a few hours after sunset by fire light, then get up fairly early. I certainly don't imagine them napping during the day, when they could be working together to get food, unless it's a climate where it's too hot to do anything in the middle of the day.
Studies of modern hunter gatherers seem to back this up e.g. [1]
It's widely known that Victorians would have two sleeps over night, with a productive period in the middle, but this seems to be a misconception based on a passing remark in one court case. Even if true, this is a post-industrial society with unhealthily long working hours and I don't think we should be copying their sleep patterns.
[1] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S096098221...
Nearly all predators spend large portions of their day sleeping, why would humans have been different?
Bears sleep about 7-8 hours/day, similar to humans.
Watch male lions they sleep when they want, laze about all day until they need to eat. Or you can be a deer caught in the corporate wage slave, alarm clock prisoner headlights.
Artificial light has a huge effect on drowsiness for me. This is quite noticable when I am out in the woods, camping in a tent. After sundown, I have about an hour left before I get so drowsy that I cannot keep my eyes open. Back home, indoors, I can stay awake almost indefinitely.
What about female lions?
Watch birds they fly when they want. Or you can be a slave worm bound to the earth. The choice is yours
If you watch birds you will see they don't use alarm clocks nor go to work, but still find food each day.