
Primatologist creates ‘humankind evolution bed’, which simulates a treetop lair - kawera
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jun/21/chimpanzees-bed-sleep-humankind-evolution-bed
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bambax
Because my back hurts with most beds, I've taken to sleep in a hammock. It's
fantastic, and also extremely cheap. A good bed can cost upward of $2000; the
best hammock in the world goes for $50 (add a sleeping bag depending on the
temperature; but no pillows are needed as the shape of the hammock allows your
head to rest at a very normal position).

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nickpsecurity
The ones I tried seemed like some part was always digging into my skin or
scraping it. Have the best ones improved on that? Also, is there a technique
to not waking up on the floor with a nice slam after trying to groggily exit
the hammock? Didn't get enough experience to work out an answer. ;)

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kawera
To avoid both problems, the hammock needs to be really large and made of high
quality, heavy, natural fabric. Small, rustic hammocks are only ok for
recreation, not sleeping.

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nickpsecurity
Appreciate the tip. You got a specific brand of those to recommend that's
comfy and cost-effective?

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cema
I have had good results with more expensive hammocks which are intended for
backpacking. They include (1) a netting attached to the lower portion which
forms a cocoon of sorts and prevents against bugs and mosquitoes and (2) a
rainfly which hangs from the same cable but is not attached to the rest of the
hammock and can be taken out of the way in good weather.

The brand I have had good results with is Hennessy
([http://hennessyhammock.com/](http://hennessyhammock.com/)).

I have not done hammock shopping in a few years, so maybe there are better,
and certainly cheaper, options. For example, you are unlikely to need a bug
protection or rainfly if you intend to use a hammock indoors.

Good luck!

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nickpsecurity
I appreciate all the comments but the Hennessy demo was some brilliant stuff!

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqg4x443RmM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqg4x443RmM)

I like how the entry/exit works along with built-in skeeter protection. Just
wonder if the entry mechanism would let bugs in. Another is how much rain
protection you get. Still need a rain tent or something? Or is it bearable
humidity with what it stops?

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cema
No bugs get in, in my experience, but I do not live in a very bug-infested
place.

Rain protection with the provided rainfly is somewhat inadequate, in my
opinion: I would get a larger sized fly, maybe from a larger hammock
(Expedition?) or simply cut from a large piece of material. The way it is
attached is fine, in my opinion.

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tzs
While Googling for information on something someone mentioned in a comment
here, I came across an interesting article:

Tetley, M. (2000). Instinctive sleeping and resting postures: an
anthropological and zoological approach to treatment of low back and joint
pain. BMJ : British Medical Journal, 321(7276), 1616–1618.

[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1119282/](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1119282/)

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DennisP
He's probably lucky that the chimpanzee who made that treetop bed didn't find
him sleeping in it.

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undersuit
IIRC the nests are made fresh nightly, they don't reuse them often.

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projectramo
What about for people who prefer to sleep on their stomachs? (Which, as far as
I can tell, is most people).

Does this work for us?

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ars
Most? It's about 7% of people.

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projectramo
That small? Wow. Anecdotally I would have guessed it is much higher.

Not that my sample is statistically significant.

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nix0n
> says expert

Koichiro Zamma is a chimpanzee expert, not a sleep expert.

The description of the bed sounds like a hammock, but there are no photos of
it.

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cwp
There's a huge photo right at the top of the page!

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ars
Chimps don't sleep in those beds because they are the ultimate in comfort.

They sleep in them because that's the only thing they can make.

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Semiapies
Not to mention that chimps have a completely different build than human
beings, since _they actually live in trees_ , while our ancestors have been
living on the ground for a few million years.

Also, this bed would be horrible in winter, which seems to be a particular
problem given that Japanese residences tend to be as cold in winter as they
are hot in summer.

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robert_tweed
So basically, a hammock?

Why are people upvoting this? It's not quite spammy enough to flag, but
seriously, is this what the HN front-page has come to?

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kawera
I see this as a pretty good hack, don't you?

~~~
robert_tweed
All I can see is a fluff piece with some pseudoscientific buzzwords,
tangentially related statistics about sleep quality in Japan (nothing to do
with the bed that is the subject of the article) with absolutely no real
science behind it whatsoever. I don't see a hack of any sort, good or bad,
except perhaps the author of the article.

