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Dolphins Can Sleep One-half of Their Brain At a Time Say Researchers

Posted by samzenpus on from the we-don't-need-no-stinking-sleep dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Looks like the evolution in multi-core computing is something nature has already figured out. Dolphins will sleep one core while the other remains vigilant, running background tasks necessary for survival. From the article: 'The scientists wrote: "From an anthropomorphic viewpoint, the ability of the dolphin to continuously monitor its environment for days without interruption seems extreme. However, the biological, sensory and cognitive ecology of these animals is relatively unique and demanding. If dolphins sleep like terrestrial animals, they might drown. If dolphins fail to maintain vigilance, they become susceptible to predation. As a result, the apparent 'extreme' capabilities these animals possess are likely to be quite normal, unspectacular, and necessary for survival from the dolphin's perspective."'"

7 of 139 comments (clear)

  1. That's nothing by matunos · · Score: 3, Funny

    Republicans have been doing that for years.

    *rimshot*

    1. Re:That's nothing by marcle · · Score: 4, Funny

      Republicans, hell. I'm a hippie, and most of my brain is asleep most of the... What were we talking about?

  2. Re:why is this new? by cvtan · · Score: 5, Funny

    Blonde listening to tape saying, "Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale..."

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    Sorry, but gray text on gray background is making my eyes bleed.
  3. Re:Wrong headline by Mikkeles · · Score: 4, Funny

    Hell, that's better than your average software developer!

    --
    Great minds think alike; fools seldom differ.
  4. I have to tell my wife about this. by cvtan · · Score: 3, Funny

    Now when she asks why I don't listen to her, I can just explain that the half of my brain running the audio is shut down to conserve energy.

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    Sorry, but gray text on gray background is making my eyes bleed.
  5. Re:Evolution by girlintraining · · Score: 4, Funny

    I don't know what gay marriage, the FDA, mail-order girlfriends, and violations of space-time causality, and sandcastles by the beach have to do with the importance of sleep... but I can say with a fair degree of certainty that having read your post, you are a case study in what happens when someone doesn't get any. Please man, go to bed. The internet, such as it is, will not want for a missed opportunity for you to post to slashdot.

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    #fuckbeta #iamslashdot #dicemustdie
  6. Joke in there somewhere. by fox171171 · · Score: 4, Funny

    I'm pretty sure there's a joke in there somewhere.

    Only a half brain operating? I know people who...
    ...drive like that.
    ...talk like that.
    ...code like that.
    ...make decisions at Microsoft like that.
    ...decide to buy Apple products like that.

    and so on...