Bio Alarms

SPB Time
Have a Good Time!

The purposes and mechanisms of sleep are only partially clear and are the subject of intense research. There are multiple arguments supporting the restorative function of sleep. We are rested after sleeping, and it is natural to assume that this is a basic purpose of sleep.

Sleep timing is controlled by the circadian clock, sleep-wake homeostasis, and in humans, within certain bounds, willed behavior. The circadian clock — an inner timekeeping, temperature-fluctuating, enzyme-controlling device — works in tandem with adenosine, a neurotransmitter that inhibits many of the bodily processes associated with wakefulness.

It is the circadian rhythm that determines the ideal timing of a correctly structured and restorative sleep episode.

Sleep is divided into two broad types: Rapid Eye Movement (REM) and Non-Rapid Eye Movement (NREM or non-REM) sleep. Each type has a distinct set of associated physiological, neurological, and psychological features. Sleep proceeds in cycles of REM and NREM, there is a greater amount of deep sleep early in the night, while the proportion of REM sleep increases later in the night and just before natural awakening.

The stages of sleep were first described in 1937 by Alfred Lee Loomis and his coworkers, who separated the different EEG features of sleep into five levels (A to E), which represented the spectrum from wakefulness to deep sleep.

Sleep stages and other characteristics of sleep are commonly assessed by polysomnography in a specialized sleep laboratory. Measurements taken include electroencephalography (EEG) of brain waves, electrooculography (EOG) of eye movements, and electromyography (EMG) of skeletal muscle activity. In humans, each sleep cycle lasts from 90 to 110 minutes on average,[10] and each stage may have a distinct physiological function.

The highest arousal thresholds (e.g. difficulty of awakening, such as by a sound of a particular volume) are observed in Stage 3 of a non-REM sleep (NREM). A person will typically feel groggy when awoken from this stage, and indeed, cognitive tests administered after awakening from stage 3 indicate that mental performance is somewhat impaired for periods up to 30 minutes or so, relative to awakenings from other stages.

Rapid eye movement sleep, or REM sleep, is physiologically different from the other phases of sleep, which are collectively referred to as non-REM sleep (NREM).

Rapid eye movement sleep accounts for 20%–25% of total sleep time in most human adults. The criteria for REM sleep include rapid eye movements as well as a rapid low-voltage EEG. Most memorable dreaming occurs in this stage. At least in mammals, a descending muscular atonia is seen. Such paralysis may be necessary to protect organisms from self-damage through physically acting out scenes from the often-vivid dreams that occur during this stage.

Heart rate and breathing rate are irregular during REM sleep, again similar to the waking hours. Body temperature is not well regulated during REM.

In a study published in the journal Human Brain Mapping, participants who were in REM "dream" sleep were also monitored by special MRI imaging designed to visualize brain activity. The researchers found activity in areas of the brain that control sight, hearing, smell, touch, balance, and body movement.

The sentinel hypothesis of REM sleep was put forward by Frederic Snyder in 1966. It is based upon the observation that REM sleep in several mammals (the rat, the hedgehog, the rabbit, and the rhesus monkey) is followed by a brief awakening; this does not occur for either cats or humans, although humans are more likely to wake from REM sleep than from non-REM sleep. Snyder hypothesized that REM sleep activates an animal periodically, to scan the environment for possible predators.

There are devices like aXbo and SleepTracker that are trying to determine REM sleep stage and wake you up in a proper moment. SPB Time covers this feature in a software not hardware manner. This allows you avoid wearing anything on your body while sleeping. SPB Time on your phone will wake you up right on REM stage.

SPB Time supports different alarm types and features one of which is BIO-Alarm. If you want a gentle way to wake you up, the BIO Alarming mode is for you. In this mode you will get a friendly alarm, lights, and ticks before the actual alarm time to get you in the mood of getting up.

Each stage has different screen light, sound volume, device vibration settings that increase slowly by time from almost insensible to normal level to influence you more and more. While you are sleeping in a non-REM sleep (NREM) stage your brain has much less activity and control over sight and hearing so the probability to wake up from quiet sound is less relative to other stages.

Setting up a BIO Alarm you specify not only the time you are going to wake up but also a gap that allows you being waken up. You can also fine-tune all settings of light, ticks, BIO-sound, vibration and specify exact time for each stage.

The default settings are selected to cover with certain probability the stage of REM sleep and therefore wake you up physically and mentally vigorous and cheerful. On the other hand this period is not too long to let you sleep as long as possible.

Waking up fresh and alive to gentle sound of birds or water may just make you want to go right!