Gin Lane (click for more)

A new study by American scientists has discovered that lonely fruit flies who fail to find romance drown their sorrows in alcohol.

Though study chief Troy Zars of the University of Missouri said the findings weren’t yet totally conclusive the BBC said reported that the ‘sex-starved’ flies’ actions matched the behaviour of similarly frustrated ‘hard-drinking mice’ (http://bbc.in/xSuHiY ). The Guardian was more empathetic.

“Male fruit flies, when rejected by females, turn to alcohol. They are far more likely to booze than their happy, consummated peers,” said the paper (in a feature headlined ‘in praise of fruit flies.’

“How poignant to discover that humans and Drosophila melanogastershare . . . react to disappointment in love in the same sad, time-honoured way,” the paper added. (http://bit.ly/GG2xZC )

Details of the fruit flies’ tragic lives were revealed weeks after scientists published research on honeybees which suggested that scout bees are more adventurous than stay at home hive bees, sharing genetic traits with humans who are thrill-seekers.

Entomologist Gene Robinson of the University of Illinois said they discovered ‘massive differences’ in gene structures between bees and compared them to the ‘same molecular pathways implicated in novelty-seeking in humans’.

“In people, for example, dopamine has been linked to the reward system,” Science News reported, “reinforcing the pleasure of doing certain activities.” http://bit.ly/xv358j

The journal said evidence suggests squids also have highly developed personalities like honeybees, having uncovered individual members of each species who consistently seek new experiences more than their risk-averse kin.

“In animals, scientists call that “novelty-seeking,” Science News noted, “While people who exhibit similar traits get labels like “extrovert.”

http://bit.ly/xv358j

Jonty Skrufff: http://listn.to/JontySkrufff

Kris Menace (click for more)

Historians and leading psychologists said the concept of pursuing an eight-hour undisturbed sleep cycle for staying healthy is a myth, this week, and suggested that historically humans typically slept for two four-hour shifts, with an hour or two in between.

Sleep psychologist Gregg Jacobs said people would typically meditate, copulate, chat and relax in-between sleep sessions, a pattern he said was both prevalent and positive before technological developments brought lighting and industrialisation from the 18^th century.

“For most of evolution we slept a certain way,” he told the BBC. “Waking up during the night is part of normal human physiology.”

“It’s not a coincidence that, in modern life, the number of people who report anxiety, stress, depression, alcoholism and drug abuse has gone up,” he added. (BBC: http://bbc.in/zPiQrO )

International DJs Kris Menace, Paolo Mojo and Way Out West’s Jody Wisternoff chatted to Skrufff about their own erratic sleep patterns, with all three admitting they rarely sleep straight through, whether DJing or not.

Paolo Mojo looking tired? (click for more)

“The 4am wake-up is a classic,” said Paulo Mojo.

“I’ve done that so many times, usually with some half baked idea in your head that you can’t act on at that time anyway. So I usually end up turning the laptop on, waking up properly, not achieving what I tried to do then finding myself much too awake to fall back asleep again,” he shuddered.

“That’s actually my biggest sleep loser- composing things in my head,” he said.

Jody Wisternoff (click for more)

Jody Wisternoff similarly said he wakes up in the early hours ‘every night without fail.’

“Partially because we have an 7 month old who feeds at 3am, and also I think because of my gradually diminishing bladder,” he laughed.

“I also get hungry during the night and usually find myself raiding the fridge in a semi conscious state. But honestly, I cannot remember the last time I got 8 hours uninterrupted sleep.”

“8 hours a night is rare.” Kris Menace concurred, “I’m mostly working during the night and when I go to bed everybody else is awake.”

US historian Roger Ekirch and British researcher Craig Koslofsky (author of Evening’s Empire) told the BBC that up until the 18^th century respectable people had stayed indoors from dusk ‘til dawn enjoying two sleeps, which shrunk to one as people started meeting after dark. Before that, he told the BBC, ‘the night had belonged to reprobates’.

“The night was a place populated by people of disrepute – criminals, prostitutes and drunks,” he added, “Even the wealthy, who could afford candlelight, had better things to spend their money on. There was no prestige or social value associated with staying up all night.”

Kris Menace recalled sleeping just two or three hours a night when touring a few years ago though said his worst incident of sleep deprivation came when he was working as a festival promoter in Germany in the 90s.

“One of my runners dropped out so I ended up having to drive one of the artists to the airport. We got there fine, but I almost fell asleep driving and woke up 300km from home, heading in the wrong direction,” he recalled.

“Of course that was very dangerous and since then I always try to be totally fit whenever I drive. If I’m not, I’ll book a hotel and chill the fuck out before driving home.”

“But I don’t care at all about lack of sleep damaging my health or performance,” Kris added.

“I tried to get a normal routine going one once, but gave up, it just didn’t work out for me. If I happen to sleep overnight and wake up at 6am and work all day then I can’t do any music; and I find office work the most boring thing to do anyway.”

Paolo Mojo said he’s gone the other way.

“My sleeping patterns used to be more erratic. Nowadays if I’m not up and about on a normal day by 7am-ish I tend to feel crap. That’s definitely something that’s changed,” said Paolo.

“I’ve done a few days without sleep in the past. I think about 3 was the most. Sleep deprivation in of itself is one of the most potent mind alterers I know.”

“Generally I like to have enough sleep ,but in the real world as a family man and a touring DJ this just isn’t possible or realistic,” Jody Wisternoff added.

“6 broken hours seems to have become the norm. But hey, there will be enough time to sleep once dead,” he pointed out.

Jonty Skrufff: http://listn.to/JontySkrufff

Cocaine using clubbers are typically 18-45 year old white male owners who own their own homes, police drug test expert PC Adrian Parsons told a Home Office enquiry on Britain’s cocaine culture, last week.

The Kent police drugs expert scans clubbers’ hands outside clubs and pubs and said he can usually spot users long before he tests them based on their belligerence and ‘extreme paranoia’ (‘especially if you try to look up their nose’).

“They are louder than normal people. They are non-stop talkers. They are arrogant and feel invincible,” PC Parsons continued, “They are happy to ridicule bystanders who are not part of their group, particularly police officers.” (Guardian; http://bit.ly/uhiF1x )

And possibly Australian; at least judging by Sydney Morning Herald reporter David Marr, who this week outed himself as an enthusiastic drug user.

“I’ve had a lot of fun on drugs,” the respected commentator admitted (in an article headlined “A nation of junkies … drug use is common in Australia’s clubs’.)

“I’ve had a lot of marvellous experiences. I’ve danced a lot. I’ve had a great time,” he continued. “I’m not ashamed of it. And I don’t see what’s wrong with it.” (Sydney Morning Herald; http://bit.ly/tq3PXg )

In the same article he also quoted Melbourne University drugs expert Professor Craig Fry, on the hypocrisy that many users also exhibit.

“Privately, we are a nation of drunks, junkies and pill-poppers and we always have been,” Professor Fry declared.

“Publicly, the dominant community attitude on drugs in Australia is disapproval and fear, and this feeling seems to be growing.”

Jonty Skrufff: http://listn.to/JontySkrufff