Sleep Inspires Insight

Several famous scientists have reported that remarkable insights during sleep led to their scientific breakthroughs. For example, Mendeleyev, who designed the periodic table of elements, stated that his understanding of the critical rule underlying the table’s organization resulted from a dream he had after struggling with how to arrange the elements. Similarly, Nobel prize winner Loewi revealed that he woke up with the idea for designing an experiment that could confirm his theory of neurotransmission.