[_ak]

Interesting detail: look at where they authors are working. This is military research. And I'm not surprised. The problem of having to keep soldiers alert during long phases of sleep deprivation has been around since the early days of modern warfare.

[inetsee]

I can't find the link right now, but I remember reading a study (also funded by the military) about using sleep masks with ear plugs to improve the quality of soldier's sleep when they do have the opportunity of sleeping. Deployed soldiers frequently don't have the luxury of a regular sleep schedule. This study, combined with the other one, seems to be an effort to deal with the problems of sleep deprivation. Soldiers can get relatively good quality sleep when they can, and be alert when they must.

[mkirklions]

Yes, this didnt seem like it was useful for daily use.

48 hours without sleep isnt realistic for most cases, and I dont think these results have anything to say about daily caffeine.

Also, I think the best advice is to learn your body. I cycle caffeine every few months. 2 cups all at once before I need 5 hours of productivity.

[jadedhacker]

Yea, I think the 48 hr sleep deprivation is not applicable to most people. The task also is a kind of "vigilance" task. I don't know if it applies to any kind of productive thinking. They also studied chronic sleep deprivation, maybe that would be helpful for people.