I had a theory whilst commuting into work this morning:
Sleep is an evolutionary remnant from when it was too difficult to acquire food at night. Therefore, we slept to conserve energy as we could not easily obtain that additional nightime meal.
Thus, considering our first-world supply of sustenance, sleep has become unnecessary.
I am seriously thinking of trying to give up sleep for a week just to see how it goes. My last attempt consisted of me keeping awake via computer/TV radiation and Turkey Hill Iced Tea, ultimately leading to insanity after 5 days. This time around, I expect to keep myself busy by working. If the test succeeds, I may pickup a second job and work at night.
