December 1, 2007

Science Daily/St. Lawrence University

With end-of-semester finals looming, here's an exam question: Will pulling an all-nighter actually help you score well?

"You can't do your best work when you're sleep-deprived," Thacher says of her findings, which were that two-thirds of the students reported that they had pulled at least one all-nighter during a semester and that those who did it regularly had lower GPAs. Short-term side effects of sleep deprivation include delayed reactions and tendencies to make mistakes.

Many students believe that it's a "rite of passage" to stay up all night during college and that "it's kind of fun," Thacher says. But, she adds, "Pulling all-nighters compromises your sleep overall " and makes it difficult to reach full academic potential. Short-term side effects of sleep deprivation include delayed reactions and tendencies to make mistakes.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071130162518.htm