William C. Dement facts for kids

William Charles Dement (born July 29, 1928 – died June 17, 2020) was an American scientist. He studied sleep and founded the Sleep Research Center at Stanford University. He was a top expert on sleep, not getting enough sleep (sleep deprivation), and how to find and treat sleep disorders. These disorders include sleep apnea and narcolepsy. Because he was a pioneer in this new field, some people call him the "American father of sleep medicine".

Early Life and Discoveries

William Dement was born in Wenatchee, Washington, in 1928. In the 1950s, he studied at the University of Chicago. He was the first to deeply study the link between rapid eye movement (REM) and dreaming.

His fellow student, Eugene Aserinsky, and their teacher, Nathaniel Kleitman, had noticed this link. But they did not think it was very important. Dement was interested in psychiatry, which thought dreams were very important. So, he was excited by this discovery and wanted to learn more.

He earned his medical degree (MD) in 1955. He also got a PhD in neurophysiology in 1957. His PhD work was about eye movements during sleep and how they relate to remembering dreams.

Studying Sleep

Dement began studying sleep at Mount Sinai Hospital. This was in the late 1950s and early 1960s. In 1964, he helped Randy Gardner try to stay awake for a very long time. Randy successfully broke the record for the longest time without sleep.

Dement was one of the first scientists to use the electroencephalogram (EEG) to study people sleeping. An EEG measures brain and eye activity. He said that sleep became a true science in 1953. This was when he could record brain and eye activity all night long.

By studying these recordings, he found and named the five stages of sleep. He also worked with Dr. Christian Guilleminault. Together, they suggested a way to measure sleep apnea. This measure, called the Apnea Hypopnea Index (AHI), is still used today. It helps doctors understand how serious a person's sleep apnea is.

Teaching and Leadership

Dement was a professor at the Stanford University School of Medicine. He taught a very popular course called "Sleep and Dreams." This course started in 1971.

In 1975, he started the American Sleep Disorders Association. This group is now called the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. He was its first president for 12 years. In the same year, he and Mary Carskadon created the Multiple Sleep Latency Test. This test measures how sleepy someone is. It checks how quickly people fall asleep during the day.

He also led the National Commission on Sleep Disorders Research. Their final report helped create a new agency. This agency, the National Center on Sleep Disorders Research, is part of the National Institutes of Health.

Books and Hobbies

Dement wrote several books about sleep. These include The Promise of Sleep and The Sleepwatchers. He also wrote the first textbook about sleep for college students. His book The Promise of Sleep was even shown in a movie called Sleepwalk with Me. Dement himself had a small role in the film.

Before he became a scientist, Dement was a jazz musician. He played the bass. When he was at the University of Washington, he played with Quincy Jones. He also became friends with Ray Charles during that time. Later, in the 1980s, he sometimes played with another famous musician, Stan Getz, at Stanford.

William Dement lived with his family in northern California. He passed away in Stanford, California, on June 17, 2020. He was 91 years old.

See also

• Sleep
• Sleep disorder
• Sleep onset latency