Mapping the Darkness: The Visionary Scientists Who Unlocked the Mysteries of Sleep

(Hardback)

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Nathaniel Kleitman arrived in the US as a penniless teenager who could not speak a word of English. Within a decade, he was pioneering the first ever experiments about how we sleep, and why. He stayed up for 115 hours. He tried moving from a 24-hour day to a 48-hour one. As he became a national sensation, students hungered to join him. His protgs Eugene Aserinsky and William Dement uncovered the mysteries of our sleep cycles. Dements lab assistant, Mary Carskadon, went on to create the first diagnostic tests for sleeping problems. Together, these four figures revolutionised the field of sleep science from extreme self-experimentation to careful clinical work. As ever more of us lack a good nights rest, Kenneth Miller unveils the lives of those who dedicated their lives to helping us get one.

Reviews

By profiling the daring pioneers of sleep science, this fascinating, magisterially researched, and brilliantly written book pulls back the covers on one of the great mysteries of being human: why we spend a full third of our lives engaged in an activity that scientists are only beginning to understand. You'll never think about something you do every night the same way again.

-- Steve Silberman, author of Neurotribes

Is there anyone who hasn'tsomewhere in the middle of a lost nightpondered the stubborn mystery of sleep You'll find some of the best answers to that riddle here in Mapping the Darkness: an addictively readable history of the scientists who changed our thinking about the nature and necessity of rest itself.

-- Deborah Blum, author of The Poison Squad

Combining the best of science writing and biography, Kenneth Miller spins a gripping story of how we have come to understand sleep from its basic biology to its impact on personal and public health.

-- Daisy Hernndez, author of The Kissing Bug

Author Bio

Kenneth Miller is a contributing editor for Discover, and his work has appeared in Time, Life, Esquire, Rolling Stone, Mother Jones, Salon,Elle, Los Angeles Times Magazine, and many more. He has appeared on The Today Show, Late Night With Larry King, CNN Newsroom, and other TV and radio programs. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two kids.