Our biological clock, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), sets the pace of our life: it provides
a rhythmic function to our sleep–wake cycle. In order to do so properly the SCN
synchronizes our physiology to behavioral patterns by directing the autonomic and
hormonal output of the hypothalamus to the different organs of the body that require a
different setting–activity or inactivity–during particular phases of the day or night. In this
chapter we show that this delicate balance requires that the SCN should not only provide an …