American society is not nap-friendly. In fact, says David Dinges, a sleep (36) at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, "There’s even a (37) against admitting we need sleep." Nobody wants to be caught napping or found asleep at work. To quote a proverb: "Some sleep five hours, nature requires seven, laziness nine and (38) eleven."
The way not to fall asleep at work is to take naps when you need them. "We have to totally change our (39) toward napping," says Dr. William Dement of Stanford University, the (40) of sleep research.
Last year a national commission led by Dement (41) an "American sleep debt" which one member said was as important as the national debt. The commission was (42) about the dangers of sleepiness: People causing (43) accidents or falling asleep while driving. This may be why we have a new sleep policy in the White House. According to recent reports, the President is trying to take a half-hour nap every afternoon.
(44) .We seem to have "a mid-afternoon quiet phase", also called "a secondary sleep gate". (45) Clearly, we were born to nap.
We "snack" on sleep, whenever, wherever and at whatever time we feel like it. (46) .