The British Science Festival is taking place right now at the University of Surrey in Guildford. This yearly event, one of Europe’s largest science festivals, sees people from all areas of science come together to discuss latest research, put on demonstrations, and generally engage the public with accessible events and displays.

Sleep research has been a popular theme of this year’s festival, with several of the presentations making the national news. In particular, one story has received great attention. Based on his research at Surrey’s sleep laboratory, Dr Neil Stanley has made the controversial (to some) pronouncement that couples should sleep apart. Sleeping in the same bed, he argues, is a modern tradition that results in poorer sleep – and consequently poorer health for both parties. Whether or not people take his advice remains to be seen, but it’s a powerful reminder both of the importance of a good night’s sleep and the many levels of social context surrounding this activity.

The full BBC article can be found here, along with lots of links to the latest news about sleep research.

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