Researcher
Matthew Walker
Last updated Sat May 30 2026 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Background
Matthew Walker is Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, and director of the Center for Human Sleep Science. Trained in psychology at Nottingham then neuropsychology at Newcastle.
Lines of work
- Sleep and memory consolidation: established the role of REM and slow-wave sleep in different memory types.
- Sleep and emotional regulation: how sleep deprivation amplifies amygdala responses to negative stimuli.
- Sleep and Alzheimer’s: glymphatic clearance of amyloid-β during deep sleep.
- Sleep and metabolism: how chronic short sleep drives insulin resistance.
Books and outreach
Why We Sleep (2017) became the most-discussed popular sleep book of the past decade. Some specific claims in the book have been criticised for over-stating effect sizes; the broader thesis (sleep is central to health) is well-supported.
Related entries
Sleep optimization, Alzheimer's disease, Sleep apnea, Circadian rhythm.
References
- Walker, M. P. The role of sleep in cognition and emotion. Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 1156, 168–197 (2009).