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November 5, 2010

Strange But True!

Q. How might you be awake and asleep at the same time?

A. By waking up in your dreams, which is how researchers describe “lucid dreaming,” where the dreamer becomes aware it's only a dream even as the dream unfolds, says New Scientist magazine. It appears that lucid dreamers' brains are in a penumbral state between waking and sleeping, affording opportunities for the study of consciousness. Perhaps confronting our demons in lucid dreams could help us overcome phobias; further, practicing a motor task in a dream, such as dancing or playing an instrument, may hone skills for the waking world. The lucid dream amounts to a sort of secondary consciousness — not only aware of events but aware that we are aware — a quality thought to be unique to humans, says journalist Jessica Hamzelou.


 
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