Yes but not because I hate it. I love sleep But if i could be twice as productive I would be happy

No. Why is everyone intent on overcoming the characteristics of nature? Not to mention the fact that I enjoy sleep, and I would certainly miss the dreams.

While I'm not sure I agree on that last point, the rest is basically what I think.

If I didn't have to sleep, I'd get so much more done, but it seems such an essential part of what makes us human that I wouldn't opt out if I could...

Gladly, but that's mainly because I have allergies and I feel like absolute [censored] every single morning, and I like being up at night.

exactly, I agree

Like mentioned sleeping is a waste of time, I would only occasionally sleep as a way of passing time. I would definitely "give up" necessity to sleep.

I get bored in the 12 hours that I'm awake most of the time. At least sleeping gives me something to do... Not to mention that it's extremely enjoyable.

I'd never sacrifice it.

If you were born with some disability, wouldn't you want to overcome it? If you had a weak immune system, wouldn't you want to make it strong?

Just because it's a natural thing doesn't mean it's the best thing, especially not to all humanity. Not everybody has a great body that never bothers them and not everybody thinks sleep is a productive use of time and wish they could. As it is, we often fight sleep when we need to. Imagine if doctors could work around the clock or scientists working on a cure for AIDS? Surely you see the advantages of not needing sleep.

That said, I'm not so certain I'd take this one, even with the ability to go to sleep when I choose. As mentioned, sleep does have rejuvenate qualities that help keep you younger. If I would age like a normal person who sleeps AND could choose to sleep when I wanted to, then I'd take it.

I sure would! I could get so much more things done. Work would be so easy. No longer would I have to use coffee to support myself in the mornings. Never getting tired, a man can dream.

Except for those of us who are terrible at it, and still waste 2-4 hours every single night laying in bed and trying to fall asleep.

This about sums up my 'lovely sleeping experience I'd never want to give up'. I only sleep as a means to restore my drained senses. I don't make a hobby out of sleeping like some people do. To me sleep is a waste of time, so many better things you could be doing than lying down for eight hours plus at a time.

If there was no biological necessity (recharging the brain, recovering energy, etc)?

Sure. I haven't remembered a dream I've had in decades, so no loss there. I'd love to have more time to do things in.


edit: heh, silly thought... I wonder if there's a correlation between responses and age. (i.e, is it the older people who wish they had more time to do stuff? )

Well if this where the natural thing there would be stuff to do for 24 hours. There would always be stuff open and things moving.

Not "have to" sleep? Well, yeah. There's still the option of sleeping if I wanted to.

So yeah, definitely. If I didn't have to sleep and was still able to sleep when I wanted to, then yeah.

This could be achieved by taking shifts.

Sleep is not a disability. (In reference to the cyborg thread, death, is also not a disability). I'm all for medicines, science, engineering and the rest, but look for example at the American NIH. They've declared a war on death- a war that they will lose. It's a fine line between striving to increase the quality of life and wasting money building a medical bridge to nowhere. Should we spend time and money developing technology to overcome disabilities? Of course. Should we equate disability with inconvenience? No. An infinite amount of time and resources cannot overcome all of the world's obstacles. It's an enlightenment folly to think that the Train of Reason can chug along and bring us to the end of discomfort, and that disease, poverty, and even death will eventually be solved by technological progress.

I believe in the Stoic maxim - "Live according to nature" without buying into Rousseau's Romanticism. I'm not a Luddite. But will being awake 24/7 make me a happier person? A better person? Would I want to end up like the bad guy in 007: Die Another Day? ( )

And while I'm on Stoicism, I see a lot of people lamenting the apparent fact that their time in life is too short. I'll remind you of some words from Seneca's On the Brevity of Life: "Life is not short, but we who make it so."

In a heart beat. So long as I could still go to sleep if I wished it.

Yeah I'd definitely give it up if my body didn't need it, I could get so much done.

I hate the fact that I need to sleep, as I often find myself want to stay awake for longer periods of time. Would be cool if sleeping was a state you could put yourself into if you felt like it, rather than having it as a obligatory part of your life-cycle. This way you could still enjoy sleeping but it wouldn't be a necessity anymore.

I was talking in an anology. Also as said in the cyborg thread cyborgs aren't immortals. By not needing sleep your productivity and capabilities skyrocket to the point it is like you lifted a limitation. The advantage of cyborgs are that you can fix real disabilities and solve diseases (or at least nullify them)

It very well could make the world a better place from a standard of living perspective, and you a better person or at least a more versed person. Imagine what you could achieve, invent, cure, fix, solve if you had another 25% of your time. Now imagine if everyone did. It would make the world a better place

Well yeah, but even if you have trouble sleeping (I know I do!), actually sleeping isn't a waste of time. Just need to fix the inability to fall asleep quickly

I like my sleep. It is a time I can have complete solidtude from other people. I know there are other ways of doing that, but when I am awake I want to go do things, and get bored if I am by myself all the time. If I am sleeping, I can ejoy the solitude without having the feeling of lonliness because I am not conscious.

Just test it. Try to stay awake for 3 days - sleep - 3 days awake - sleep - 3 days awake - ...

At first, I would be, "Definitely." I mean, if it didn't bother you, you would in a sense have lived a life twice as long as most people

But, then I wonder if I would then miss having sleep, then go insane, and destroy the world!

Absolutely. Sleep is a pleasant feeling, but it is essentially a state of unconsciousness unless one remembers a vivid dream of some sort. If I could function energetically and well without sleep, there would be so many possibilities. I could improve myself in ways that I couldn't before, due to the 15 to 17 hour limits of the average day spent awake. However, since this isn't possible, I think I'll enjoy my rest nonetheless.