Sleepless Society

摘要

Americans are loath to say good night to responsibilities and fun. Job and family beckon. Late-night television entices. The Internet seduces. Supermarkets and megastores lure shoppers well into the wee hours. By the millions, Americans succumb to the temptations of the night. They accumulate sleep debt like penny-ante gamblers racking up IOUs. Each weekday night they get an hour and six minutes less, on average, than the eight hours that sleep experts recommend, each weekend night half an hour less. By the end of the year, they are short 338 hours—two full weeks—of rest. They are the great unslept, somnambulating through life on the verge of sleep bankruptcy.