Sleep is typically considered as a state of behavioral disconnection from the outside world. Recordings of brain activity and facial muscle tone during sleep reveal that humans can respond to external stimuli across most sleep stages. These windows of behavioral responsiveness reveal transient episodes of high-cognitive states with electrophysiological signatures suggestive of a conscious state.
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This is a summary of: Türker, B. et al. Behavioral and brain responses to verbal stimuli reveal transient periods of cognitive integration of the external world during sleep. Nat. Neurosci. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-023-01449-7 (2023).
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Humans can intermittently respond to verbal stimuli when sleeping. Nat Neurosci 26, 1840–1841 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-023-01450-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-023-01450-0
