Sleep seems so simple to us that any kind of weird trivia involving it is quite amusing. What we know to be the process of lying in bed and closing our eyes for eight hours is not always as cut and dry as this. Here are seven of the most unusual facts about sleeping habits in humans and other creatures:

1. Alcohol makes you snore louder. Alcohol can cause the relaxing of the tissue in the back of the throat. Since it will now fold gently into the airway and vibrate with greater ease, the snoring sound will take effect and reverberate through the mouth and nose.

2. The longest period without sleep is just over eighteen hours. The actual record is 18 days, 21 hours, 40 minutes, to be exact. This occurred during a rocking chair marathon. After a few days into the competition, the winner reported severe bouts of paranoia as well as several hallucinations, trouble seeing, and the inability to speak properly.

3. Fish do not close their eyes when they sleep. While it is still not quite clear to what extent fish even sleep at all, they keep their eyes open when they do get some rest. The reason for this is because they simply do not have any eyelids at all!

4. It is possible to sleep with your eyes open. People who meditate can relax into a semi-conscious state that resembles sleeping, keeping their eyes somewhat open. Also, newborn babies sometimes lack the ability to close their eyelids properly, yet are still in a state of complete rest. And finally, sleepwalkers sometimes open their eyes, but are totally unaware of their surroundings.

5. The average person should be experiencing about four to five 90-minute sleep cycles per night. A sleeping cycle occurs initially when rapid eye movement is achieved. This means that the body is finally in a complete state of rest, and has entered the dream phase. This would explain why people often think they have multiple dreams each night.

6. Cows sleep standing up, but dream lying down. There is really no known evidence why this is the case, but many animals do have sleep characteristics that greatly differ from humans. But a cow will not achieve rapid eye movement until they are on their sides. Perhaps the added level of comfort accounts for the ability to drift into dreamland.

7. Dolphins only sleep using only half their brain at a time. Dolphins, unlike humans, can only breathe if they are awake and truly recognizing the breathing motions. When sleeping they need to be semi-conscious in order to ensure they are having respirations. So half of the brain goes into sleep mode, while the other half controls the breathing.

It is important to note that these facts listed above are just for fun and certain things are not recommended. For example, even though the record for going without sleep is eighteen days, it does not make it a healthy practice. Doctors advise a full eight hours of sleep every night in order to be at full functioning capacity.

BlueWaterArticles.com: - Top Seven Most Bizarre Sleeping Facts

About the Author

Sherry Harris used to have insomnia. Now she gets a good night sleep with aromatic sleeping mist fragrances. If you are tired of insomnia go to http://www.ScentToSleep.com. Why don't you bookmark the article you are reading right now? You know you will want to find it again soon.