I've written about it before: I'm a napper. The wisdom of napping gets further support.

the findings suggest that a biphasic sleep schedule not only refreshes the mind, but can make you smarter. . .

"Sleep not only rights the wrong of prolonged wakefulness but, at a neurocognitive level, it moves you beyond where you were before you took a nap," . .

In the latest study, Walker and his team have broken new ground in discovering that this memory- refreshing process occurs when nappers are engaged in a specific stage of sleep. Electroencephalogram tests, which measure electrical activity in the brain, indicated that this refreshing of memory capacity is related to Stage 2 non-REM sleep, which takes place between deep sleep (non-REM) and the dream state known as Rapid Eye Movement (REM). Previously, the purpose of this stage was unclear, but the new results offer evidence as to why humans spend at least half their sleeping hours in Stage 2, non-REM, Walker said.

"I can't imagine Mother Nature would have us spend 50 percent of the night going from one sleep stage to another for no reason," Walker said. "Sleep is sophisticated. It acts locally to give us what we need."

That old post cited an article that attempted to be a comprehensive napping guide, a semi-encyclopedic how and why reference. Excerpts:

Most mammals sleep for short periods throughout the day. . . Our bodies are programmed for two periods of sleepiness: in the early morning, from 2 to 4 a.m., and in the afternoon, between 1 and 3 p.m. . .

A short afternoon catnap of 20 minutes . . . enhances alertness and concentration, elevates mood, and sharpens motor skills. To boost alertness on waking you can drink a cup of coffee before you nap. Caffeine requires 20 to 30 minutes to take effect. . .

Limit your nap to 45 minutes or less, if you need to spring into action after dozing. Otherwise you may drift into slow-wave sleep. Waking from this stage results in serious sleep inertia. . .

Naps of 90 to 120 minutes . . . help to clear your mind, improve memory recall, and recoup lost sleep. A nap that is long enough to include a full sleep cycle, at least 90 minutes, will limit sleep inertia . . .

One issue not considered in that old post put included in the cited artcile is that the best time to nap depends in part of your daily schedule. Are you a Lark or an Owl? If you rise at 6:00 AM then your nappy time is best at about 1:00 PM, but if you rise at 9:00 AM then your nap time is best at about 3:00 PM. There are some semi-interesting implications.

So, larks are older, more conformist, more dependable, and so more likely to set official rules. Such rules seem to favor lark-preferred hours of work, school, etc., and to give larks higher school grades even though owls are smarter and eventually richer. Seems some sort of “conspiracy” theory has decent support, though of course conscious collusion isn’t needed here – self-serving biases and signaling distortions seem a sufficient explanation.

So why don’t owls complain more about this repression? Too non-conformist to coordinate a movement? Too busy partying late to show up to meetings?

That's Robin and he has composed a link rich post to support his conclusions. I wonder how he would work napping into his theories, and conspiracy theories? If those larks napped better would they perform better and be less officious? If those owls napped would they get better grades?

I think I'll sleep on it.