Technology to control your dreams

Science and techno world topic: Psychology

Several products promise to help you have lucid dreams

By BBC

In recent years, increased enthusiasm for what is known as 'lucid dreaming', ie where the protagonist dreams know they are dreaming.

But lucid dreaming means the ability to control dreams.

Although it sounds like fantasy, the fact is that with the advance of technology, many different devices that are showing up with the idea, despite the redundancy, make the dream of controlling dreams come true.

Applications

'The wave of interest is led by technology, "explains Richard Wiseman, a psychologist who created the application to cellular Dream: ON, which in just six weeks was downloaded over half a million times worldwide.

This application claims to allow the user to decide what they dream of making a selection through the application so that it reproduces, for example, sounds of birds, which in theory would make one dream of nature.

There are many devices similar to this application, such as Singularity Experience, Dreamz, Sigmund and Lucid Dream Brainwave. But this is not exactly what would be considered a lucid dream, since the user does not really have control of sleep.

 

The mask Remee

On the other hand, there are devices like Remee, a sleep mask that promises an experience akin to lucid dreaming.

Designed by Duncan Frazier and Steve McGuigan, inventors based in Brooklyn, United States, is to activate a series of LED lights over the eyes of the sleeper, which serves to ensure that the user remember you can regain control.

It is the first of its kind. In the 70's a 'dream machine' similar was developed by Keith Hearne.

Hearne, also a lucid dreamer, tested the system in a series of experiments at the University of Liverpool, UK.

From a bench, tied to a polygraph, a sleeping person was able to move their eyes in a predetermined, from left to right many times in succession.

Steve LaBerge, California, United States, repeated the experiment and Allan Hobson, a neuroscientist at Harvard School Medican confirmed this theory.'For the first time we can show that there were correlations between dreams and the outside world'.

An old dream

The references to lucid dreaming back to the eighth century Buddhist Tibet, where he practiced the so-called 'dream yoga'.

In 1867 Marquis d'Hervey de Saint-Denys even wrote a manual entitled 'Dreams and how to guide', shortly before the Dutch Frederick Van Eeden mention the term 'lucid dreaming' in early twentieth century.

But the twenty-first century technology lucid dreaming ... Does it really work?

Unfortunately, according to Hobson, 'lucid dreaming is difficult and does not happen to everyone. "

There is no guarantee that applications also serve as few claim to have succeeded.

But those who believe in it say they do require discipline and practice, and that the key is to distinguish quickly between reality and dream.

One step they recommend is to regularly test: hold your nose, close your mouth and try to breathe. If you can breathe, is a sign that you're in a dream you can handle.