Science & Technology

Study achieves communication through dreams

By T.K. Randall
February 20, 2021

Image: AI-generated (Midjourney) We don't often remember the details of what we dream, but for some people, it is not only possible to recall every detail of a dream, but also to control the narrative while they are asleep.

Now scientists collaborating across multiple universities have demonstrated that it is even possible to communicate in real-time with a person who is lucid dreaming by asking them questions and receiving informed responses, despite that person being unsconcscious.

This extends to having the sleeper perform simple maths, follow instructions or answer yes/no questions with the responses coming in the form of eye movements or facial twitches.

"We found that individuals in REM sleep can interact with an experimenter and engage in real-time communication," said senior study author Ken Paller of Northwestern University."We also showed that dreamers are capable of comprehending questions, engaging in working-memory operations, and producing answers."

"Most people might predict that this would not be possible - that people would either wake up when asked a question or fail to answer, and certainly not comprehend a question without misconstruing it."

The research could teach us much about the way dreams and memories actually work.

"Most people might predict that this would not be possible - that people would either wake up when asked a question or fail to answer, and certainly not comprehend a question without misconstruing it," the study authors wrote.

The findings have been published in the journal Current Biology.

Source: Medical Xpress

Tags: Dreams