Is sleep necessary for survival, or is it just a relic of the past left to us by our ancient ancestors? Famous psychologist Roy Wallis from Berkeley suggests that people can do without sleep and plans to prove it experimentally—for the benefit of humanity and to secure his name in the history of science. There’s a rumor that in 1954, in the USSR, an experiment was conducted in which prisoners were made to give up sleep in exchange for a promise of freedom—yet no participant survived. In 2018, Professor Wallis receives permission to conduct a similar experiment with volunteers. What unexpected consequences could this risky experiment have?