Re: Peace prize
"I'd have thought that was pretty self-evident - no sleep, so no sleep apnoea for anyone within a hundred yards,"
You might think that, and there is some justice in the implied accusation, but...
There's actually a practical aspect to it: there's some evidence that among the causes of sleep apnoea, you'll find poor muscle tone in various parts of the airway, and playing ... difficult wind instruments, especially e.g. harmonicas and didgeridoos, where a great deal of muscular control is required(1), helps develop better muscle tone in those areas, and may, therefore, act to mitigate the sleep apnoea.
(1) The key is that for both these instruments the airway helps shape the sound of the instrument, so the musician must learn better control over his airway in order to get better control of the instrument. This is especially true of 10-hole diatonic harmonicas, where there are missing notes in the "nominal" range of the instrument, especially in the bottom octave, but these notes can be played by getting both reeds of the relevant hole to sound. *That* requires the musician to manipulate the shape of his mouth and throat, and *that* requires increased muscle control and tone.(2)
(2) I actually damaged a reed in my harmonica when I was trying to learn how to do this.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
