Thread: What dreams are made of

I like that model of dreaming. "Threat simulation." It's catchy. It fails to explain the brighter side of the dream, but that's not what it's trying to prove. With this article, one could assume that the dream's primary function is threat simulation, and the positives of the dream were secondarily evolved (Freud's emotional fulfillment stuff, non-lethal problem-solving).

As far as how this relates to lucid dreaming... Gee, do I have to do all the work for you, westonci? I'd take a gamble and say that lucid dreaming would enhance the processes described in the article. If we are aware of/in our dreams, we should reap even more of the benefits than those who aren't, mimicking the success of the Mehinaku tribe.

i actually never have nightmares, im 20 and the last time i had a nightmare was 3 years ago or something like that.

Most of my dreams are mundane and boring. As for lucid dreams i think the reason why we dont have lucid dreams naturally is because if we knew everything was just a dream it would screw up the whole "Threat simulation"

Interesting read.
some plausible theories presented there.

Dreams are my dojo

"The idea that dreams are a dojo for perfecting waking activities."

Nice read.

I think I disagree that LDs would hurt the process. Although the typical modern LD might involve kamihamehas or altering the fabric of the dream itself, ancient dreams probably did not have such functions. They are modern ideas that come with a highly progressed intellectual heritage. Not to mention in the modern world these "threats" simply aren't realistic, but they would be in an ancient world. My point is that although today we easily cast aside the odd monster and go on to do other things (or smash it into the next dimension), we do so because we don't see the point of addressing it realistically.

In the past, upon becoming lucid, the dreamer probably would have used the opportunity to problemsolve more realistically. When those monsters are hunting you on a daily basis, you're a lot less likely to dismiss them in your dreams. Instead they could practice their skills in a safe environment, or even innovate new ones consciously.

Not to mention the dreamworld doesn't necessarily cease being innovative just because the dreamer is lucid, nor is lucidity an all or nothing sort of event. Mixed states could have been very useful.

I imagine as our ancestors would mature and hone their skills, automatic responses would become less important and more conscious and calculated responses would be the approach. Likewise, as their waking mindset shifted, their dreaming mindsets may have likewise shifted towards lucidity. If you're used to takling a problem by stepping away and assessing the situation from a detached position, you're effectively training yourself in lucidity. In this sense it is important for the dream self to mirror the waking self to take full advantage of the system, although non-lucid automatic skills would still be necessary. Necessary, but readily supplemented with lucid approaches as well.

I think dreams are just a regurgitation of our experience nothing more. I am able to dream things that I did if I try so that means a threat?

IMJ

Very informative, slightly unsetling though

Imo this is the best theory of dreams out there, scientific experiments have shown that just thinking about an activity will improve your skills.

After reading all that, I didn't really think I learned much... Other than instincts stop working without REM xO

I dunno, maybe I've just always thinked about it that way.
But anyways, I just caught a thought.

If you got Lucid, you could change your enviroment to a nightmare of something you would like to train.
For example, your brain might think you need chase nightmares.
But perhaps you think you need to train something else? Then you could change it to that.

But still, that's the way I've always been looking at nightmares

Hehe I guess nightmares serve as a defensive mechanism which trains you how to handle certain situations that trouble you in real life. I know have all the reasons to believe this is true, especially through past experiences.

Ahaha be so cool if you like dream about something (eg. martial arts) then be a pro at it just from dreaming. Im guessing it dosent work that way though

Originally Posted by imj

I think dreams are just a regurgitation of our experience nothing more. I am able to dream things that I did if I try so that means a threat?

IMJ

How would that explain scenarios in your dreams that you've never even thought about before, let alone experienced?

It's true that dreaming can be and often is heavily influenced by our daily experiences, but...well, I doubt anyone has ever been actually chased by a monster, so why would it be such a common dream? The answer - to prep us for a time when such danger does represent itself.

I think this is a really interesting take on the purpose of dreaming...this explanation would give it a legitimate evolutionary purpose.

It might not be a threat simulation at all, just an uncertainty simulation. I would guess that the Stone Age people had a lot more to worry about than we do today, and were probably a little more paranoid too. Assume that REM sleep developed as the threat simulator.

Fast forward to modern times. The human race as a whole has gotten smarter, and most of the planet is a good bit safer now. There aren't that many threats around to deal with. No sabertooth tigers stalking you, no prey to catch for fear of going hungry. The threat mechanism probably got more sensitive. Now you have dreams about things you are uncertain of.

Lets say you are planning to buy a new car tomorrow. Tonight, you might have a dream of you using that new car. Scary? Hardly. But you are uncertain how driving it will feel. The threat-simulation mechanism sees this uncertainty as fear, and gives you a dream about it to keep itself busy.


But what about those completely weird dreams that have nothing to do with anything? It may be symbolism. Dream interpretation might reveal a few things. Either that, or maybe the threat-simulation got the hiccups.

Amazing read. But dreams are as complex, if not more so, than waking life. And just like our lives, and the world around us, there is no way to know every aspect of it. So I believe instead of this article being "the answer", it is simply just another piece of a very complex and intriguing puzzle.