PSAT 1-11

Questions 1-11 are based on the following passage. 

A Nod to Nodding Off 

     With 30 percent of United States workers not getting enough sleep at night, according to the Wall Street Journal, US companies  1  lose a yearly sum of $63.2 billion annually due to the drop in employee productivity resulting from sleep deprivation. Sleep-deprived workers generally have lower morale and are less able to retain information than their better-rested colleagues. 

       [1] One of the  2  big reasons behind workers' lack of sleep is the work itself. [2] To combat the problem of sleep deprivation in a demanding work environment, some companies have begun allowing workers to take naps. [3] The hours the average American  3  spend working have increased dramatically since the 1970s, making it hard for many workers to get a good night's sleep. [4] Although employees who sleep on the job are often considered lazy and unproductive, napping in the workplace has been shown to improve workers' efficiency and quality of life. [5] As long as companies continue to demand long hours from  4  workers, and mangers should champion napping as a means to keep employees happy, healthy, and functional.  5 

       Such a proposition may seem counterintuitive, but, in fact, allowing employees to nap could save companies hours of lost productivity. Studies reveal that napping improves memory and boosts wakefulness for the remainder of the day.  6  Napping can also have a positive effect on mood and overall job satisfaction, while constant drowsiness reduces reaction time and hampers one's ability to concentrate. Employee naps might also lead to reduced health care costs for companies, since regular napping leads to long-term health benefits,  7  and it improves workers' average weekly attendance.

         Napping at work has already won corporate advocates in the worlds of technology, finance, and news media, and some businesses are beginning to set aside special nap rooms. A few companies, such as Google, have even invested in high-tech nap pods that block out light, playing soothing music, and  8  gently waking nappers.

          Zephrin Lasker, CEO of the mobile-advertising firm Pontiflex, has observed that employees are happier and more productive since he created a nap room in the company's Brooklyn headquarters. Ryan Hodson of Kodiak Capital Group and Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post Media Group have promoted napping  9  throughout their workers and have been effusive about the results. In light of the benefits not only to employees' efficiency  10  and again to their health and sense of well-being, these executives' enthusiasm is not surprsing.  11  These executives are among the most sucessful leaders in their respective fields.