Leonardo da Vinci had a lot going for him, what with the still-unmatched talent and cultural importance and, you know. Mona Lisa. But he was a weird mix of perfectionist and procrastinator, and sometimes he’d work for hours on one minuscule detail while leaving the larger scope of a project untouched. To keep himself going for as long as possible, he practiced polyphasic sleep — short naps every four hours, for a total of around two hours of sleep per day. Probably not for everyone.Of course you already knew this thanks to Seinfeld:
KRAMER: Hey everybody. (to Jerry) Listen, uh, do me a favour, will you? I got a hot date tonight with Connie. Knock on my door, wake me up in twenty minutes, alright?
JERRY: Catnap?
KRAMER: No, no, no, no. (comes in) This is evolutionary. I been reading this book, on Leonardo de Vinci. See, that means 'from Vinci', d'you know that?
JERRY: (deadpan) That must be some book.
KRAMER: Yeah, well, turns out that the master slept only twenty minutes every three hours. Now, that works out to two and a half extra days, that I'm awake per week, every week. Which means, if I live to be eighty, I will have lived the equivalent of a hundred and five years.
JERRY: Just imagine how much more you'll accomplish.
Also in the episode is this:
JERRY: So this Da Vinci sleep is working out?
KRAMER: (enthusiastic) Oh, I'm percolating, Jerry. I'm telling you, I have never felt so fertile. I'm mossy, Jerry. My brain is mossy. Listen to this idea. (fetches a spoon from the drawer) A restaurant that serves only peanut butter and jelly. (clicks tongue)
JERRY: What d'you call it?
KRAMER: P B and J's. What d'you think?
JERRY: (deadpan) I think you need more sleep.
KRAMER: (dismissive) Ahh.
JERRY: So, how'd your date work out with the mysterious Connie?
Kramer stops, with the door open, and turns back to Jerry.
KRAMER: I am telling you, this woman is strange. She never wants to leave the apartment. It's almost like she doesn't wanna be seen with me.
JERRY: Oh, now you're being ridiculous.
The episode aired March 7, 1996. Two years later, look what opened.
A rare instance of real life not being Costanzian!
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