‘Is there anyone who hasn't—somewhere in the middle of a lost night—pondered 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.’
Mapping the Darkness
The Visionary Scientists Who Unlocked the Mysteries of Sleep
Kenneth MillerThirty-two days underground. No heat. No sunlight.
4 June 1938. Nathaniel Kleitman and his research student make their way down the seventy-one steps leading to the mouth of Mammoth Cave. They are about to embark on one of the most intrepid and bizarre experiments in medical history, one which will change our understanding of sleep forever. Undisturbed by natural light, they will investigate what happens when you overturn one of the fundamental rhythms of the human body. Together, they enter the darkness.
When Kleitman first arrived in New York, a penniless twenty-year-old refugee, few would have guessed that in just a few decades he would revolutionise the field of sleep science. In Mapping the Darkness, Kenneth Miller weaves science and history to tell the story of the outsider scientists who took sleep science from the fringes to a mainstream obsession. Reliving the spectacular experiments, technological innovation, imaginative leaps and single-minded commitment of these early pioneers, Miller provides a tantalising glimpse into the most mysterious third of our lives.
Reviews
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 Hernández, author of The Kissing Bug
‘Is there anyone who hasn't—somewhere in the middle of a lost night—pondered 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
Kenneth Miller
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.
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