Partial sleep loss, known as sleep restriction, makes it difficult to think clearly, and can make driving a car or operating machinery dangerous. In this video clip, watch firsthand as two scientists test their wits following a terrible night's sleep.

Even though many experts recommend eight hours of sleep a night, getting that much rest often seems impossible. This program offers ten scientific ways to get quality sleep, and more of it. These techniques include sleep restriction programs for people with insomnia, explained by Professor Colin Espie of the University of Glasgow's Sleep Centre; fasting to beat jet lag, presented by Harvard's Dr. Patrick Fuller; and simple, full-body relaxation techniques,...

The average adult spends more than 220,000 hours - or roughly 25 years - in bed sleeping. That's one-third of your life spent in slumber! But what exactly is sleep? Why do you spend so much of your time doing it? And what happens to your brain and body if you don't get a full night's rest? In what could be our most ambitious Brain Games experiment ever, we keep three volunteers awake for 36 hours in order to test the effects of sleep deprivation on...

Over 19 million Americans have obstructive sleep apnea. But the potentially fatal disorder only presents during sleep-so a large number of sufferers remain unaware of the danger. This program explores the causes of OSA and the treatments available for it. Two instructive case studies will help viewers understand and feel comfortable about current diagnostic approaches, including the completion of a polysomnogram or sleep study. With the expertise...

Sleep has been the subject of extensive research for many years, and while our understanding of sleep and its role in good health has advanced considerably over the past few decades, there is still much we don't know about it. Presented by psychologist Steve Taylor and other experts, this program examines sleep, covering its four stages, common sleep disorders, impacts of sleep deprivation, and several theories about why humans sleep in the first...

Sleeping sickness is one of the most deadly of the forgotten diseases. Experts thought it had been destroyed decades ago. But it’s back with a vengeance, and as we see in this documentary, mobile field teams are out in the African bush carrying out blood tests and lumbar punctures to beat the disease. Even so, for many of its victims, the drugs used to treat the disease are fatal in up to 10 percent of cases.

Virtually every animal sleeps. But why? Why do we need to spend nearly a third of our lives in such a defenseless state? Scientists are peering more deeply into the sleeping brain than ever before, discovering just how powerful sleep can be, playing a role in everything from memory retention and emotional regulation to removing waste from our brains. So why are we getting so little of it?

Sleep deprivation can cause serious health and cognitive problems in humans. PBS NewsHour correspondent science correspondent Miles O'Brien talks to scientists on the cutting edge of sleep research and asks if there's any way humans might evolve to get by with less sleep.

A good night's sleep sets the stage for a successful day. Whether you're taking a big test, hitting the field for a championship game, or just going to your regular classes, being alert and energetic goes a long way toward doing well and getting good grades. Many things can interfere with sleep, but one very common sleep disruptor is technology. Smartphones and tablets keep teens preoccupied and in-touch with their friends and social networks 24/7....

In this episode of Whatever! The Science of Teens, host Steve Cannane discovers that teen brains are wired to stay up late, sleep in, and sleep more. But over a million Australian adolescents are struggling with this basic human process. With the assistance of five teen night owls we discover why, and what can be done to help them. We uncover the biological basis for adolescent sleep problems, undertake a series of tests to determine the damage sleep...