What happened to taking a nap under a tree? Or finding an abandoned couch in an old liberal arts building to catch a few between-class zzzz’s? Now students will get to relax in nap pods that, “allow users to have 20 minutes of rest with ambient music and lighting to maximise relaxation.”

Higher education’s ability to delay adolescence seems to know no bounds.

The Telegraph reports:

University of Manchester unveils student sleeping pod

It’s time to bid farewell to exam time tiredness. Last week, the University of Manchester unveiled a new sleeping pod where students can take a break away from their desks.

The nap pod, stationed in the aptly named Zzz Zone, allows users to have 20 minutes of rest with ambient music and lighting to maximise relaxation. It was installed at the university’s 24/7 access Alan Gilbert Learning Commons, where students often spend the night, especially during the exam period.

So far the sleeping pod has been extremely popular, according to Martin O’Dwyer who works in the building. “Peak usage seems to be around early mornings up to around 10 or 11am and again in late afternoons around 3 to 5pm,” Mr O’Dwyer said.

The idea for a sleeping pod was brought to the university’s attention by Grace Bamber, a second year psychology student who entered the library innovation challenge Eureka! last year.

Miss Bamber thought her university could follow the lead of companies like Virgin Active and offer an alternative to uncomfortable desk snoozes and double shot lattes.