A series of special programs are provided for postdoctoral trainees. There is a Survey Course on Sleep, a Sleep Seminar Series and a Training Program in Sleep Disorders. Participation in the annual meeting of the Association of Professional Sleep Societies and attendance at an annual one-week Summer Sleep Workshop at Lake Arrowhead, California, are also required.
Laboratory Visitation Program
At some time during the first two-year period of their training, all predoctoral students will be provided with the opportunity to visit laboratories participating in this Training Program in order to determine the most appropriate site to carry out their doctoral research. It is important that great care be taken in this selection process, that both the student and mentor are in full accord, and that the ancillary training activities at the host institution be appropriate.
Sleep Seminar Series and Sleep Survey Course
A seminar series entitled "Perspectives in Sleep Research" is held around a new or historically important paper, with readings from related papers in order to provide a comprehensive critical review of a selected area of basic sleep research. In addition, guest lecturers host special seminars; an informal discussion is held with the pre- and postdoctoral trainees of this Training Program following the formal presentations. An in-depth course on sleep covering all aspects of sleep behavior is presented every other year.
National Sleeping Meeting
A key aspect of the education of young researchers is attendance and participation in national scientific meetings. Accordingly, all pre- and postdoctoral trainees attend the annual meeting of the Association of Professional Sleep Societies. At these meetings, they have an opportunity to derive all of the traditional benefits that accrue from attendance, with a number of special ones as well. For example, student "get-togethers" are arranged so that all pre- and postdoctoral trainees will have an opportunity to meet informally. A series of special breakfasts are organized in round tables of six to eight individuals; one or two senior researchers "break bread" with groups of students and all have an opportunity to get to know each other on a personal level. No discussion topics are scheduled; rather, the intent is to encourage interactions among those attending.
Sleep Disorders Program
A comprehensive understanding of sleep disorders is an important component of the knowledge that must be assimilated by basic sleep researchers. Accordingly, all pre- and postdoctoral students receive intensive training, for a three-week period, in sleep disorders medicine at the Stanford Sleep Disorders Center. For predoctoral trainees, this specialized training in sleep disorders medicine takes place sometime during their third year of study, when they have the knowledge of basic sleep behaviors that is necessary to benefit fully from this experience; training for postdoctoral trainees may be arranged at any time during their period of study.
Two formal courses that are presented annually by the Stanford Sleep Disorders Center are attended by the Training Program trainees. One is a course oriented for the training of the skilled technical position of polysomnographic technologist. The other is a course for physicians who are interested in the practice of sleep disorders medicine. Stanford University routinely reserves the requisite number of slots in these courses for pre- and postdoctoral trainees of the Training Program.
Trainees take either course depending on their level of expertise. In general, predoctoral trainees attend the polysomnographic technicians' course. Postdoctoral trainees attend either the technicians' course or the physicians' course. The physicians' course is a little more advanced, and has less emphasis on technical competence. Those postdoctoral trainees who do not have the basic technical competence in human sleep physiology may elect to take the technicians' course. In addition to participating in these well-organized two-week courses, the Training Program trainees are provided with special personalized instruction to fill in whatever gaps may exist in their knowledge.
Each trainee also attends an additional week in a special program in the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford in which they participate in clinical exercises and read and discuss issues in seminars relating sleep to mental health. They are also provided with an overview of the inpatient and outpatient psychiatric facilities.
Summer Sleep Workshop
A Summer Sleep Workshop is held each summer at the UCLA Lake Arrowhead Conference Center, California, for a period of one week. The following is a programmatic overview of the Workshop's agenda.
MORNING SESSIONS: Sleep Reviews by Senior Researchers
Senior researchers present reviews of the history and current status of selected areas of sleep research. Each review consists of a short, half-hour presentation and a half-hour of discussion. Numerous subjects are surveyed; the following are representative examples:
a. Phylogeny of Sleep
b. Ontogeny of Sleep
c. Anatomical Basis of Sleep
d. Autonomic Functions during Sleep
e. Pharmacology of Sleep
f. Sleep and Genetics
g. Sensory Activity during Sleep
h. Motor Activity during Sleep
i. Metabolism and Sleep
j. Circadian and Ultradian Rhythms
These review sessions are designed to provide a broad overview of key areas in the field. Students have ample opportunity to pursue in-depth discussion of these topics with the Faculty at unscheduled times during the week.
AFTERNOON SESSIONS: Techniques in Sleep Research
Reviews of the history and current status of selected techniques used in sleep research are presented. Consultants are also employed in these sessions to provide expertise in new techniques that have the potential to be exploited by basic sleep researchers. The following are representative examples of the areas in which techniques are surveyed.
a. Neuropharmacological Studies
b. Biochemical Studies
c. Molecular Biological Studies
d. Psychoneuroimmunological Studies
e. Anatomic Tracing Studies
f. Intracellular and Unit Recording Studies
These sessions are of short duration. Emphasis is placed on discussion of the strengths of each technique and on its limitations. New techniques that are being introduced into sleep research, such as those involving various molecular biological paradigms, immunology, and genetics, are highlighted in these presentations.
EVENING SESSIONS: Presentation by Students of their Ongoing Research
Informal discussion is directed to provide the trainees with the best thinking of the congregated group of sleep researchers as well as consultants representing areas of interest to sleep researchers which have not yet been integrated into sleep studies. The mood that is developed is one in which critical thought is expressed within the context of a "family" of supportive fellow scientists.
SPECIAL SESSIONS
Sleep and Mental Health
There is a rather intimate relationship between mental health and sleep behavior. Each can influence the other and both may be affected by other medical disorders. The purpose of these sessions is to examine the bases of problems of mental health, such as depression and schizophrenia, and to provide formal training with respect to their interactions with normal and abnormal sleep behaviors.
The Peer Review Process
If the Training Program is to meet its objectives, the trainees must be able to compete successfully for grant support. Accordingly, these sessions are divided into two parts. In the first part, the peer review process is discussed in depth. In the second part, the students and faculty are reconstituted as a PHS Division of Research Grants Study Section. The postdoctoral students have previously prepared a prototype grant dealing with their current or proposed research, which is evaluated by this ad hoc Study Section. A unique feature is that the "applicants" are present during the discussion of their "grants", but only to listen. (They are prohibited from talking, no matter how painful their silence may be). Only after priority scores have been tabulated is discussion with the "applicants" permitted.
Careers in Sleep Research
The careers of various leaders in the field, such as Nathaniel Kleitman, Michel Jouvet, and Raul Hernandez-Peon, are surveyed. Their research and theories form the basis for informal discussion.