The more scientists research how we sleep, the more they discover how important sleeping is to our overall health and wellbeing. But those aren't the only sleep-related discoveries scientists are making. The latest high-profile finding is less about the benefits of sleep and more connected to how the brain behaves during sleep, something that could have wider implications for our understanding of the human body.
The team wanted to find out whether the disconnected part has some form of awareness - or was capable of exhibiting consciousness, says co-author Marcello Massimini, a neurophysiology researcher at the University of Milan in Italy. "The question arises because we have no access" to the disconnected region, he says, adding that it was unclear what happens once part of the brain is isolated.