Suprachiasmatic nucleus (was: The r-word)

[James A. Landau <JJJRLandau@netscape.com>]

On Fri, 24 Feb 2012 00:19:09 -0500  Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
Subject: Re: _The r-word_ (UNCLASSIFIED)

<quote>
Speaking of savant-like tricks, I can't STAND to be awakened, to an
extent that I can't possibly describe. So, if I know what time it is
when I go to sleep, then I simply wake up at the required time, be it
one hour later or twelve.
</quote>

Hardly unique to savants, autistic or otherwise.

The brain contains a clock. It is in th region of the brain known as the "Suprachiasmatic nucleus".

It is this part of the brain that controls the circadian rhythm in humans.

According to Wikipedia  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm
<quote>
More recent research has shown that: adults have a built-in day, which averages about 24 hours; indoor lighting does affect circadian rhythms; and most people attain their best-quality sleep during their chronotype-determined sleep periods. A study by Czeisler et al. at Harvard found the range for normal, healthy adults of all ages to be quite narrow: 24 hours and 11 minutes ± 16 minutes. The "clock" resets itself daily to the 24-hour cycle of the Earth's rotation.
</quote>

There are easy tricks to access the time from one's suprachiasmatic nucleus.  One is to repeat to oneself before going to sleep "wake up at xx o'clock".  Wilson Gray has been doing this for so long that he no longer has to consciously specify a wake-up time.

     - James A. Landau

_____________________________________________________________
Netscape.  Just the Net You Need.

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org