Does sleeping on an idea work? Here’s what science says.

睡一觉能让灵感迸发吗？来看看科学是怎么说的。

When inventor Thomas Edison would hit a creative block, he would use a trick to help his mind get unstuck.

发明家托马斯·爱迪生遇到创意瓶颈时，他会使用一个小技巧，帮助自己跳脱出思维的僵局。

He would sit in his favorite chair holding steel balls in his hands and begin to doze off. Once his muscles relaxed enough, the balls would slip from his hands into pans on the floor. The loud noise would jar him awake.

他会坐在最喜欢的椅子上，手里握着钢球，之后开始打盹。一旦肌肉放松到一定程度，钢球就会从手中滑落，掉进地板上的盘子里。接着，巨大的声响会将他震醒。

Edison claimed that he would often wake up from these cat naps with new ideas to continue his work.

爱迪生表示，他常在这样的“打盹”中醒来，灵感随之涌现，驱使他继续投入工作。

Salvador Dalí had a similar technique using a heavy key and credited it as one of his secrets to mastering the art of painting.

萨尔瓦多·达利也采用类似的方法，只不过他手里拿的是一把沉重的钥匙，并视其为掌握绘画艺术的秘密之一。（译者注：萨尔瓦多·达利是20世纪最具影响力的西班牙超现实主义艺术家之一，以其怪诞奇幻的画风、标志性的翘胡子和充满象征意味的作品闻名于世。）

The “slumber with a key” process, as detailed in his 1948 book, “50 Secrets of Magic Craftsmanship,” was “a repose which walks in equilibrium on the taut and invisible wire which separates sleeping from waking.” ***

在1948年出版的《魔法技艺的50个秘密》中，他详细描绘了这一“钥匙小憩”法：仿佛行走在一根紧绷却无形的钢丝上，为了维持平衡，在清醒与沉睡之间缓缓穿行。

Now, scientists are finding experimental evidence that supports what Edison and Dalí knew all along — that the transition between wakefulness and sleep is a portal for creative thought.

如今，科学家们正在寻找实验证据，以证实爱迪生与达利早已感知的一种状态——那介于清醒与入睡之间的过渡时刻，正是通往创造性思维的大门。

N1 sleep and creativity

N1阶段睡眠与创造力

This first stage of sleep, called N1 or hypnagogia, lasts only one to seven minutes but can invoke spontaneous, vivid dreams that often incorporate recent wake experiences.