Thaindian News

London, March 27 (IANS) New video evidence suggests that humans are able to repeat learned patterns of behaviour while fast asleep.

Researchers at France’s Universite Pierre et Marie Curie-Paris devised a simple test to explore the brain’s potential while the body is at rest.

The team, led by Delphine Oudiette, taught a motor task to people with sleep behaviour disorders, those who typically move their bodies in tandem with dreams, reports the journal Public Library of Science ONE.

Their belief was that the test subjects might repeat the task while sleeping, providing evidence of what sleep researchers call “replay”, according to the Daily Mail.

“Replay” is the hypothesis that the brain replays the actions of the day while we sleep.

It had traditionally been thought that the brain was a blank canvas for neurological activity in that period, because people tend to better remember facts after a good night’s sleep, rather than when more tired.

However, evidence has increasingly shown that brain activity during sleep is very similar to its activity while learning.

Oudiette’s team took on that grey area, asking subjects to hit a series of coloured buttons when shown the corresponding colours on a TV monitor. They were then asked to simulate the task while lying - awake - in bed.

Further, they were videoed while asleep and the results showed in many instances that their movements during sleep mimicked their movements during the test.