Skip to Content

Need a little good news today? We've got plenty!
Holidash Blog
AOL Tech

Posts with tag sleep

Engadget

SnorePro Promises to Stop Snoring

by Laura June, posted Dec 4th 2008 at 7:23PM


We'll level with you: the Snore Pro sets off a few snake oil alarms -- it does, after all, claim to fix a problem that has been seemingly incurable from time immemorial. The device (which is not exactly cool looking) apparently has a two-pronged approach to help snorers kick the habit: first, it delivers an "electronic stimulation" to the wearer's skin causing a sleep disturbance (which the company compares to a nudging spouse). Secondly, it claims to record each and every snore. The recorded data theoretically provides the user with feedback about their progress and gives them clues as to why and when they snore. We don't know when it's going to be available or how much it will cost, but we hope it's less expensive than the weight loss pills and the real estate pyramid scheme software we just ordered.
Engadget

Fujitsu's In-Car Safety Tech Senses Drowsiness, Wakes You Up

by Darren Murph, posted Nov 8th 2008 at 11:16AM

Not that we haven't seen similar technology from other outfits before, but we'll take as many in-car safety advancements as we can get. It's bruited that Fujitsu is conjuring up a sophisticated sensor system that can actually detect when a driver gets drowsy or begins to sink into a deep, dark wonder-world of sleep. Put simply, the system would detect specific changes in the motorist's heart rate via the steering wheel, and once it determined that you weren't exactly "with it" any longer, the car could then roll its own windows down, blast the stereo or jolt the wheel in order to get your attention. In our minds, the biggest issue here is to not cause an accident by spooking a sleepy driver out of their slumber, and we presume that's exactly what the company is working on in its R&D labs.

[Image courtesy of MetroHealth]

iPillow Lets You Take a Nap Right at Your Desk

by Peter Mychalcewycz, posted Oct 8th 2008 at 4:25PM
Are you tired of sneaking off to the janitor's closet to get some shut eye? Well, we are too. Fortunately, for all of us beaten down by oppressive bosses and long work weeks, there is someone out there who yearns for sleep enough to actually to do something about the problem. That person, by the way, is Ivonne Dippmann.

A student at the University of Berlin (Germany), Dippman created the a prototype for the i-Sleep, a small pillow that rests right on top of your laptop, inflating and deflating as you close and open it. You see, the pillow is inflated using the warm air exhaust from your computer and is insulated with latex so that it stays toasty. If you think that's cool, you're gonna love this next part.

The i-Sleep actually turns on a special music playlist as soon as the computer is closed. The playlist is completely customizable and elicits a wake-up alarm as soon as the final song finishes (if you so choose).

Ideal for a quick little nap in the middle of your workday, the iPillow could actually be a nice little accent to your cubicle. We will miss that janitor's closet though...Good times... [source: BoingBoing]

Sleepy, Gadget-Crazed Teens May Be at Risk for Heart Attacks

by Tim Stevens, posted Aug 19th 2008 at 2:20PM

Sleepy, Gadget-Crazed Teens At Risk for Heart Attacks
It's been said that today's teenagers are getting "junk sleep" thanks to their gadgets, with 30-percent of students indicating they only get four to seven hours' worth on an average night. Now, some researchers have examined the health implications of such limited sleep in a new study showing that sleepless teens were three-times more likely to have high blood pressure than those dozing for a full eight hours.

Teens are said to be staying up all night texting instead of getting some good Z's, with the net result being a higher incidence of heart attacks down the road. The study was recently published in 'Circulation,' the journal of the American Heart Association, and conducted by Susan Redline from a Cleveland sleep disorder clinic. It followed the habits of 238 teens and is the first such study to have been performed linking kids' lack of sleep to blood pressure. Despite a limited test group, it's no shocker that missing sleep is a bad thing. However, as usual we're not so quick to blame technology for all of the woes of today's kids. We weren't always particularly well rested when we were young, and most of us predate texting by quite a few years -- even decades. [From: textually.org]

Gadget Lights Keeping You Up at Night? Join The Club

by Peter Mychalcewycz, posted Jul 31st 2008 at 3:59PM

Cable modem

These are the lights that never go out. They blink, they flicker and they can be annoying as all heck.

They are your gadget lights, and you'll find them everywhere. Just to name a few, you'll discover lights on your TV, stereo, alarm clock, cell phone, laptop and Internet router. They pay no mind to time of day or your sleep schedule -- wake up in the middle of the night, and you most likely bear witness to an electronic fireworks display, with a mix of different lights flashing, glowing and pulsing away.

People are getting tired of the invasion of blinking devices, and they're finally doing something about it. To make dorm room life more bearable, Rafael Garcia, a Cornell University Student, covers the lights of his electronics with black tape, and he even goes so far as to cover up his desktop. New Yorker Tom Hespos puts a pillow between himself and his alarm clock in order to cut down on the bright lights.

While you can't always turn these gadgets off, save yourself from insomnia and do something about the issue. If you can turn them off, do so and get a good night's sleep. [Source: Newsvine]


Sleep Texting Is Like Sleepwalking, But for Text Messaging

by Tim Stevens, posted Jun 17th 2008 at 9:01AM

Sleep Texting: Modern Epidemic, or Myth?We've all heard of sleepwalkers -- people who wander the house (or neighborhood) at night completely unaware of what they're up to. There have been claims of other similarly motivated sleepers, too, like dozing drivers or even snoozing cooks, but a new supposed disorder has some experts crying foul: sleep texting, the act of sending text messages while asleep and without remembering a thing in the morning.

One such supposed sufferer is 24-year-old frequent texter Jessica Castillo, who, in the middle of the night, sent her boyfriend a text message that said "Baby u there? Need to tell somethin ...," then included a number of random digits and letters. The Italy, Texas resident sent a second similar message after the first one, but in the morning had zero knowledge of either. Others have reported similar incidents, leaving some to think that texting has become as innate an activity as walking to many.

Navigating through the menus on many phones to send a text is hardly an intuitive thing, and doing it without being awake is quite impressive, leaving many incredulous, thinking that people are simply lying to cover up for sending inadvertent messages at night.

It sounds believable enough to us, much more-so than some other claimed sleeping disorders, at least. [Source: TheStar.com]

Cell Phones Increasingly Replacing Alarm Clocks

by Tim Stevens, posted May 21st 2008 at 5:41PMBreaking News

Cell Phones Replacing Alarm Clocks
When it's time to drag your groggy head out of sleepy land in the morning, what do you rely on: a classic beeping or blaring alarm clock, or your mobile phone's built-in alarm instead? More and more people are depending on the alarm functions on their phones, over a third of the respondents in a recent British poll, in fact. A more impressive-sized 71-percent of the respondents indicated that they found alarm clocks to be completely obsolete. Still, considering the findings earlier this year that cell phones can actually mess up your sleeping patterns, it might be a little premature to throw out that alarm clock just yet. [Source: textually]

Blue LEDs Could Keep Drivers Awake at the Wheel

by Tim Stevens, posted Mar 20th 2008 at 2:12PM

Blue LEDOver the past couple of years, we've seen a number of automated systems that are designed to keep drivers awake. The latest and currently most advanced, from Toyota, uses cameras to monitor whether drivers' heads are up and their eyes are open. Start to doze off in the latest models from Lexus and an alarm will sound, which should help to save lives. However, it's not exactly what we'd call proactive. That's the sort of system researchers at RPI hope to provide in the future, using blue LEDs to prevent drowsiness in the first place.

The researchers have found that light at a particular wavelength, one that appears blue to us, can actually help to "reset" our internal clock, making our bodies subconsciously believe it's morning or some other time than it really is. This could help prevent drowsiness and, potentially, reduce a scary statistic: 30-percent of all fatal accidents involve large trucks and a lack of sleep.

LEDs are extremely energy efficient and effectively never burn out, so they're perfect for installation in cars and trucks. Additionally, "showers" of these LEDs could be installed at truck stops to help rejuvenate drowsy drivers when they make a pit stop. It certainly sounds healthier than swilling some caffeine-infused and obnoxiously-named energy drink every few hours.

From Slashdot and New Scientist Tech

Related Links:

Cell Phones Blamed for Disrupted Sleep

by Tim Stevens, posted Jan 18th 2008 at 8:58AM

Not Sleeping Well? Blame Your Cell Phone!

There have been many claims and supposed findings about the impacts of electromagnetic radiation from cell phones and your health. So far, none of these studies have come up with hard proof that shows any real negative link. Now, a new study -- which found that the amount of radiation given off by a cell phone can disrupt your sleep -- is adding a little more gas to the fire,

The study, which was conducted at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), showed that exposure to electromagnetic radiation resulted in disturbed sleep patterns, potentially affecting your body's ability to recover from a day of stress. This news is an eye-opening finding for gadget fans who have trouble nodding off at night, especially those who use the alarm clock function on their phones.

The study only involved 71 men and women, so we'd like to see some further testing performed with a somewhat larger pool of participants. Nevertheless, you can be sure we will be shutting off our phones before nodding off for the evening -- or maybe just leave them in the other room.

From textually.org

Related Links:

IT Workers Like Sleep and Hanky Panky on the Job

by Tim Stevens, posted Sep 28th 2007 at 12:02PM

Half of IT-Workers Sleep, Make Out at Work

Is your computer still on the fritz and that helpdesk worker you called a week ago still hasn't shown up? We know what's keeping him.

A new online survey indicates that nearly half of IT workers have fallen asleep on the job. About the same number have kissed a co-worker -- on the job. That first statistic should be no surprise to any techie who has pulled an all-nighter or come in at an ungodly hour of the morning to get some software release completed. However, that second statistic is a bit surprising. Perhaps that lends a little more credence to the theory that geeks do it better.

From Slashdot

Related Links:

Most Commented On (7 days)

Switched Video

 



Featured Galleries

BlackBerry Storm
Death of Print
30 Reasons a Girl Should Call It A Night - Facebook Group

Switched Photo Galleries

AOL Tech Network


Latest Reviews from CNET.com

CNET provides the latest tech news, unbiased reviews, videos, podcasts, software, and downloads, making tech products easy to find, understand and use.

Top Product Reviews

Weblogs, Inc. Network

AOL News

Other Weblogs Inc. Network blogs you might be interested in:

Joystiq
Download Squad
The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)
BloggingStocks
Xbox 360 Fanboy
Autoblog
Big Download Blog
Fanhouse NFL Blog