Dream hacking technology is a fascinating topic which has been both praised as innovation, and slammed as an unproven gimmick. Well, which is it? Let’s take a look…
We all dream. Those nightly mashups of images and jumbled storylines take up a huge part of our time on the earth, as we spent a third of our lives in slumber. Dreaming could actually be a major part of how we process emotions and subsequently how we perceive the world when we are awake.
So – what if there was technology that could allow you to tap into your unconscious mind and make, for example, lucid dreaming more within reach?
While some might say it’s pure fantasy, there are communities out there which are claiming to have the technology available to make dreams come true (pardon the expression).
Take Tech for Dreaming, for example, an online group which claims they can unlock lucid dreaming for all. They claim you can tap into the dreamworld by taking supplements that “prime” our minds and bodies for it, and by using devices with sensors which characterise physiology and stimulations modalities to, as they put it, “effectively and safely induce” an intense dreaming experience.
Dream on, techies
“Lucid dreaming has profound potential, but it is difficult to access. Through the application of technology and community collaboration, we believe lucid dreaming will become accessible to all, “ says Brian Gilan, founder of Tech for Dreaming.
“To stimulate progress, we openly share our projects, insights, and research focused on applying tech for dreaming.
“We collaborate across disciplines. We prioritise scientific evidence over anecdotal examples and empty marketing hype.
He added: We invite a healthy mix of openness and skepticism.”
Tech is “totally unproven” to help
And skepticism on dream tech is not hard to come by. In fact, Dr Rachel Taylor, Neuropsychologist and founder of UNBroken said that all lucid dreaming technology is “snake oil” and that it’s totally unproven to help.
She added: It’s all extremely gimmicky, and comes with a hefty price tag.
“As with all ‘hacks’ it is attempting to bypass having to put effort into learning and promising the earth with no real empirical results.
“The sites themselves state that there are no current or past devices that have been routinely demonstrated to routinely induce lucid dreams.
She continued: “At best perhaps they could have a placebo effect where the mind is convinced that they will work and at worst they are going to interrupt sleep cycles.
“Human beings love shiny, and they also love to be ‘different’ in terms of maybe they would convince themselves that the device is working for them.
“It can take years to develop the mental discipline to start to control dreaming, in our current instant gratification model of living not many will dedicate themselves to that.”
Tech will tell
In 2020, it was reported that an MIT lab is building devices which can hack dreams and improve your mood, your creativity and potentially your mental health.
Their dream lab is populated by researchers who thinks technology can, and will be able to mine the unconscious and change the way we dream for good.
Rubin Naiman, PhD, a psychologist and sleep and dream expert with the University of Arizona’s Center for Integrative Medicine, believes dreams should develop on their own and should be left un-tampered with.
He said: “The thing with hacking dreams is that it’s based on a presumption that the subconscious is unintelligent, that it doesn’t have a life.”
“The unconscious, it’s another kind of intelligence. We can learn from it. We can be in dialogue with it rather than dominate it, rather than ‘tap in’ and try to steer it in directions we want.”
