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Sleep Deprivation
Moderators: AmyCowen, kgudger, bfinio, MadelineB, Moderators
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michael.
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Thu Jan 10, 2008 5:51 pm
- Occupation: Student
- Project Question: Sleep Deprivation Experiment. What are some suggestions for this experiment? My partners and me are gonna do things like reactions, but can't think of much other things. HELP! :]
- Project Due Date: 2/1/2008
- Project Status: I am just starting
Sleep Deprivation
Sleep Deprivation Experiment. What are some suggestions for this experiment? My partners and me are gonna do things like reactions, but can't think of much other things. HELP! My project isn't due really for a while. But still, I need some suggestions on things for the experiment, books and websites, and as many other things you can think of.
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deleted-71447
- Former Expert
- Posts: 1019
- Joined: Fri Oct 28, 2005 11:43 am
- Occupation: Research Hydrologist
- Project Question: n/a
- Project Due Date: n/a
- Project Status: Not applicable
Re: Sleep Deprivation
Hi Michael,
Welcome to the Ask and Expert forum. Can you give more information about your planned experiment, and/or give a link to an web page that shows the basic ideas and procedure?
Have you checked with your teacher &/or science fair organizers about this topic? There may be some restrictions about using human subjects, including yourself, in an experiment that could have adverse effects.
If it is ok to test sleep deprivation effects, reaction time with and without sleep deprivation seems like a reasonable topic. The effects of sleep deprivation on short term memory is another topic that comes up often, and would be fairly easy to test. If you do a web search for those terms, you will find many webpages and previous studies with more information. Really, any human mental function could be tested - take your pick!
Chris
Welcome to the Ask and Expert forum. Can you give more information about your planned experiment, and/or give a link to an web page that shows the basic ideas and procedure?
Have you checked with your teacher &/or science fair organizers about this topic? There may be some restrictions about using human subjects, including yourself, in an experiment that could have adverse effects.
If it is ok to test sleep deprivation effects, reaction time with and without sleep deprivation seems like a reasonable topic. The effects of sleep deprivation on short term memory is another topic that comes up often, and would be fairly easy to test. If you do a web search for those terms, you will find many webpages and previous studies with more information. Really, any human mental function could be tested - take your pick!
Chris
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michael.
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Thu Jan 10, 2008 5:51 pm
- Occupation: Student
- Project Question: Sleep Deprivation Experiment. What are some suggestions for this experiment? My partners and me are gonna do things like reactions, but can't think of much other things. HELP! :]
- Project Due Date: 2/1/2008
- Project Status: I am just starting
Re: Sleep Deprivation
Well, this is basically a project my partners and I came up with. I am fairly confident that we can do this project. Our experiment is basically the effects of not sleeping, the good and bad. We are also going to check our pulse and blood pressure during the twenty-four hours we plan to stay awake. Do you suggest we use energy drinks, candy, or soda to keep us awake? Or is that a bad idea?
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deleted-71681
- Former Expert
- Posts: 19
- Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 8:37 pm
Re: Sleep Deprivation
Hi Michael,
I would strongly suggest that you run this by the teacher or science fair organizer at your school. Let us know what he/she says, and then we will be able to guide you more adequately and give you better suggestions.
I would strongly suggest that you run this by the teacher or science fair organizer at your school. Let us know what he/she says, and then we will be able to guide you more adequately and give you better suggestions.
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deleted-71670
- Former Expert
- Posts: 137
- Joined: Tue Sep 18, 2007 5:06 pm
- Occupation: science journalist
- Project Question: n/a
- Project Due Date: n/a
- Project Status: Not applicable
Re: Sleep Deprivation
Hi Michael,
This is a good idea, but I agree with other Experts that you need to make sure it's ok with your teacher and the science fair people. (If it's not, maybe you could scale it back and do staying up for 16 or 20 hours? or get up a few hours early?)
Reaction time and memory are good things to test. Here's an idea: Frame your study in the sense of "What happens to students who pull an all-nighter?" Then think about things you might have to do after staying up all night, and test to see how good you are at them. Then when you analyze your data, you can recommend to your friends whether they should stay up late or not. You should be able to find lots of background research on the Web, as well. You might also test different levels of sleep--instead of just doing one test at the end, see how your reaction time changes over time.
You were considering whether you should use candy/soda/energy drinks to stay awake. Here's the thing--if you eat a lot of candy AND stay awake, how will you know if the results of your tests are because you were sleep-deprived, or because you had a lot of sugar in your system. You would have to compare your results to a time when you were well-rested but had eaten or drunk the same things. Either way would be fine, but you'd have to make sure you do the right control experiments.
Good luck.
This is a good idea, but I agree with other Experts that you need to make sure it's ok with your teacher and the science fair people. (If it's not, maybe you could scale it back and do staying up for 16 or 20 hours? or get up a few hours early?)
Reaction time and memory are good things to test. Here's an idea: Frame your study in the sense of "What happens to students who pull an all-nighter?" Then think about things you might have to do after staying up all night, and test to see how good you are at them. Then when you analyze your data, you can recommend to your friends whether they should stay up late or not. You should be able to find lots of background research on the Web, as well. You might also test different levels of sleep--instead of just doing one test at the end, see how your reaction time changes over time.
You were considering whether you should use candy/soda/energy drinks to stay awake. Here's the thing--if you eat a lot of candy AND stay awake, how will you know if the results of your tests are because you were sleep-deprived, or because you had a lot of sugar in your system. You would have to compare your results to a time when you were well-rested but had eaten or drunk the same things. Either way would be fine, but you'd have to make sure you do the right control experiments.
Good luck.
Amber Dance
Science Buddy
Science Buddy
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deleted-71536
- Former Expert
- Posts: 895
- Joined: Tue Sep 06, 2005 3:59 pm
- Occupation: Professor
- Project Question: How do different animals adapt to their environment?
- Project Due Date: N/A
- Project Status: Not applicable
Re: Sleep Deprivation
Hi Michael,
What an interesting study! There are certainly measurable effects of sleep deprivation, and it's interesting to find out ways to measure them!
I agree with Amber that you have to be careful about controlling your conditions. One interesting thing you can do is to conduct three different experiments: (1) your CONTROL, in which you perform your tests with no sleep deprivation, (2) sleep deprivation alone, and (3) sleep deprivation using energy drinks OR candy to stay awake. One thing I would caution you is to perform your tests at the same time of day each time, because individuals often perform differently at different times of day, due to their "circadian rhythms."
As for your tests, you've gotten some great suggestions already. To simplify your experiment, you should probably choose one kind of test: short-term memory, reaction time, OR some other measure.
Good luck, and keep us posted about your progress!
Cheers,
Heather
What an interesting study! There are certainly measurable effects of sleep deprivation, and it's interesting to find out ways to measure them!
I agree with Amber that you have to be careful about controlling your conditions. One interesting thing you can do is to conduct three different experiments: (1) your CONTROL, in which you perform your tests with no sleep deprivation, (2) sleep deprivation alone, and (3) sleep deprivation using energy drinks OR candy to stay awake. One thing I would caution you is to perform your tests at the same time of day each time, because individuals often perform differently at different times of day, due to their "circadian rhythms."
As for your tests, you've gotten some great suggestions already. To simplify your experiment, you should probably choose one kind of test: short-term memory, reaction time, OR some other measure.
Good luck, and keep us posted about your progress!
Cheers,
Heather