[ExI] Armchair Evolutionary Psychology: Larks vs Night Owls

PJ Manney pjmanney at gmail.com
Sun Mar 16 16:15:58 UTC 2008


On Sun, Mar 16, 2008 at 7:26 AM, Stefano Vaj <stefano.vaj at gmail.com> wrote:
> I am very sensitive to this issue, because while I have never been
> insomniac (I usually fall asleep as soon as I hit the bed) it appears
> that my biological clock is regulated on a day of 25 hours, meaning
> that I have to adjust to a one-hour jet-lag each and every day. Not
> too pleasant indeed.
>
> In fact, I love when I travel westward, because for a while my
> suffering is decreased for a while...

You are simply sensitive to how we are really wired.  Without the sun
as a cue, individuals vary in circadian rhythm length, with a median
of a 25 hour cycle:

http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/1999/07.15/bioclock24.html

Without my lark husband and kids to wake me, I would revert to my
usual night owl behavior, about an hour later every night, until I
reach a 2 - 3 am bedtime.  Then I collapse.

PJ



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