January 7, 1984. A schoolboy in San Diego, California, USA, has caused a great uproar. Seventeen-year-old Randy Gardner has set a world record for not sleeping for eleven consecutive days. Today we will talk about the world record for staying awake.
The whole thing started with an idea of what could be done at the school’s science fair. So Randy and his friends decided to run an experiment on human sleep. One of those friends is Bruce McAllister.
They were very creative young people and full of confidence. However, they were thinking of doing something to show at the science fair. First, they wanted to see what will happen if people didn’t sleep. It would create some physical capacity. But, they realized it was hard to do. So, they decided that it would affect their conscious behavior or play basketball or any other activity if people deprived of sleep. So, they were started to create the world record of staying awake.” This story belongs to “The boy who stayed awake for eleven days.” Let’s know more.
World record for staying awake
Bruce and his friend Randy Gardner broke the world record for being constantly awake. At that time, the world record was held by a disc jockey or DJ from Honolulu. He was awake for a continuous 260 hours, a little less than eleven days.
William Dement was then a young researcher at Stanford University in the United States. The news published in the local newspaper caught his eye. He said, “I first read about the incident in the newspaper. The San Diego newspaper ran a story about the boy. He wanted to set a new record for waking up without falling asleep. So I immediately contacted the boy so that I could get involved.” Let’s see how it works. ”
William Dement is now an Emeritus Professor at Stanford University in California. He is considered to be one of the pioneers in the study of sleep in the world. Randy Gardner and his friend Bruce McAllister and others started working on sleeping together.
They were tossing a coin to decide who would set the record for the longest stay awake. Bruce was glad that Randy had the responsibility. He might have fainted much earlier than Randy did. However, Bruce had stay awake to observe Randy, to do all sorts of tests on him. But after three nights of insomnia, he stumbled upon the wall one day. And Bruce was writing notes on that wall, when they realized that someone else was doing it. They asked another friend, Joe Marciano, if he could join us. Joe agreed. ”
At the same time, Stanford University researcher William Dement also joined them. William Dement said that Randy’s parents were relieved.
Bruce was probably the only researcher in the world at the time who had some work to do with this sleep. Randy’s parents were so relieved that he was involved in this work. If you don’t sleep for a long time, the question of whether it can lead to death has not been resolved.
Earlier, he did similar research on cats. Some cats were kept awake for 15 days. But then the cats died.
Bruce McAllister says, however, that their test had a difference from that test.
“But those cats were actually kept awake by applying a variety of chemicals. Little did anyone know then that the cats actually died because of that. Randy occasionally drank coke. But nothing else. Didn’t take. ”
The sleep test was conducted at the parents’ home in San Diego Bruce. When William Dement arrived there, Randy still looked quite excited. “Randy seemed to have a very sociable nature. He was still in very good condition. Until then, he didn’t think he had any problems.” Bruce McLister and his friends are conducting various tests on Randy.
“Research on sleep is still ongoing, but no one has been able to break Randy Gardner’s record”
“What we young scientists, was trying to run as many experiments as possible, such as taste, smell, hearing explain Bruce McLister. Then we slowly saw his ability to be conscious, even his senses.” He may have said, “I don’t like that smell, don’t tell me to dry it. But on the contrary, he was doing well in basketball again.”
William Dement may think that Randy did not have any significant physical problems due to staying awake night after night.
“He was perfect physically. So we would take him to play basketball and bowling. If he had closed his eyes, then he would have fallen asleep immediately. When he closed his eyes, I would say, Randy, open your eyes. When he opened his eyes, I would have stabbed him. But he was upset because I stabbed him like that.
Bruce McAllister said he well received the test in the media. Journalists, of course, were crowding into the homes of many more.
“Then a lot of girls came to see Randy. Randy was very handsome and attractive. Then the journalists came and started crowding. But most of the media coverage showed it as a kind of deception. ”
But did they try to deceive them?
“No, not at all,” said Bruce McLister.
“Randy, Joe and I interviewed by a few people, including a Life magazine reporter. The principal at our school thought it was a hoax. He said we would punish if we didn’t go back to school after the Christmas holidays.” This journalist told us, “Don’t worry about your principal’s warning. If he does anything against you, tell us.”
It was the hot cake of the American national press when it was the most talked-about news item after the assassination of John F. Kennedy and the visit of the pop band Beatles. But for those who were experimenting with sleep, the biggest challenge was how to keep Randy awake.
“William Dement said they had to wake up at night with their troubles”
“We used to play music to him in the middle of the night to keep him awake said Bruce. Because there is not much to do in the middle of the night. We can do a lot during the day. But the night was terrible. Not only sound but his alertness and dedication too are most required. ”
Despite the hardships, they continued this test. At the end of the 11-day test, Randy held a press conference outside his parents’ home. Bruce explained, “There was a huge crowd. They were asking Randy a lot of questions. How did Randy do this? What kind of help did he get? Then someone asked, ‘What does this whole test mean?’ Randy answered, proving that the mind is better than the human body.” Much stronger. ”
Randy was awake for 264 hours, about eleven days, without sleeping at all. But what did Randy do after taking part in this horrific ordeal?
“Then Randy slept for 14 hours straight. We weren’t surprised, said Bruce. He had to wake up because he had a bathroom. The kind of sleep we call Rapid Eye Movement, or ‘Rem,’ was the stage at which we still dreaming.” He found it to increase considerably during Randy. But it decreased from the following night. At one point, this ‘rem’ sleep returned to normal.”
What happen to Randy Gardner after this world record of staying awake?
After waking up for the first 14 hours, Randy went to school. By then, he had broken the world record for not sleeping. In the years that followed, many tried to break his record. But the Guinness Book of Records does not want to acknowledge any such attempt. Because they think that not sleeping for long periods can endanger their lives.
This experiment by Bruce McAllister, and Randy, provided valuable information for those who study sleep. Also, Bruce explained that “The biggest thing we learned from this study was which parts of Randy’s brain were actually sleeping during the test. A supercomputer in Arizona analyzed the data from this study and came to this conclusion. That means one part of Randy’s brain was asleep, the other part was awake again. Maybe the conscious part was going to sleep, and the sleeping part was waking up. If we think about our evolutionary process, it’s not very difficult to understand, that is, it is possible to adapt our brain in this way. Maybe that’s why nothing bad happened during this test. ”
FAQ on world record for staying awake
1. What happens to Randy after staying awake for 11 days?
Randy didn’t feel any immediate reaction after not sleeping 264 hours. But much later, he realizes that he can’t sleep well. He had had insomnia for a long time after making the world record.
2. What if you haven’t slept for a long time?
With these hours of sleep deprivation, high levels of inflammatory markers in the bloodstream. They can eventually lead to cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure. As a result, attention and concentration are minimal. And the body activates an automatic pilot.
3. Can anyone beat Randy Gardner till now?
Not at all. No one can beat Randy Gardner’s record still now. Randy and his friend Bruce broke the world record for being constantly awake. At that time, the world record was held by a disc jockey or DJ from Honolulu. He was awake for a continuous 260 hours, a little less than eleven days.
4. What happens if I don’t sleep more than three days?
After a day or two, the body stops metabolizing glucose properly, and the immune system begins to fail. As Morrison recalls, from the second day, there may also be a general worsening of memory. Three days without sleep have caused hallucinations in some cases.
Conclusion on world record for staying awake
Finally, here is the story of the world record of staying awake, which took place in the Guinness book of world record. After this world record, many people were curious to know Randy had any side effects? No, there was no immediate reaction to Randy Gardner’s for not sleeping for 11 days. Although much later, he complained of suffering from insomnia for a long time.
After that, Randy’s friend Bruce McAllister later became a science fiction writer. And William Dement made his name of the world’s most famous sleep researcher. So, how long can you stay awake? Let us know your story in the comment section.
Leave a Reply