A fascinating experiment in polyphasic sleep can be read here. To quote wikipedia:
Polyphasic sleep is a sleep pattern specification intended to reduce sleep time to 2–5 hours daily. This is achieved by spreading out sleep into short naps of around 20–45 minutes throughout the day. This is supposed to allow for more waking hours with relatively high alertness.
The method uses natural human sleep mechanisms to maximize alertness when sleep time needs to be minimized. However, it requires a rigid schedule which makes it unfeasible for most people. It can work well for those engaged in activities which do not permit lengthy periods of sleep.
The author of the article says that his experiments were so successful he decided to sleep that way indefinately. Along with the article is a log of his experimentation which is very interesting.
I can’t quite imagine being awake for just 3.5/4.5 hours at a time. Some things I do every day take longer. Reading a book, working on my computer. The thought of having to work around sleep periods sounds quite intimidating. On the other hand you do gain time as you sleep for 2-5 hours a day, a lot less than normal.
If you do decide to try it out, don’t forget that there is alot of myth and fud surrounding polyphasic sleep. There has been little research into and the effects of doing it wrong are apparently quite bad.
As for me, I’m going to keep practicing my lucid dreaming which I will blog more about soon. Meanwhile check out this very informative lucid-dreaming website.
