Journal article
Using an academic search engine (Staffordshire university website), a link was found to www.sro.org, which contained many psychology journals on the topic of sleep and dreaming. Many journal articles were found, though the selected journal was ‘Slow wave & REM sleep mentation’ (Cicogna, Natale, Occhionero, Bosinelli 2000), previously used as assessment for the Internet journal assignment.
Identifying hypothesis (10)
The title is clear and straight to the point, highlighting the essential elements of the study. As the abstract shows, the aim of the journal is to compare the characteristics of rapid eye movement (REM) and slow wave sleep (SWS). This would be to accept the hypothesis that dreaming is a continuous act, with allowing the different distributions and levels of REM and SWS to occur at different times during the sleep process.
It has been acknowledged that the sleep process is divided into certain stages of REM and non rapid eye movement (NREM), being a crucial difference and the main point for NREM, i.e., SWS not being a part of the dreaming process. There has been much previous research about whether REM sleep can be connected to dreaming, outlaying different theories both for and against. An example of a study is to test participants on recall of their dreams through extreme controlled situations. It was found that 60-70% of SWS stage (3rd & 4th stage of NREM) could be recalled. Though this has not systematically been researched since 1968, it was argued how SWS could be bracketed as a continuous dreaming act when the recall results were so high, compared with the minimalist recall of REM stages. It has been suggested, therefore, that there are multiple generators dealing with these different stages, with the theory that it must be a discontinuous act, due the change of generators.
However to put a different spin on the issue, most researchers believe there are some realities between REM and NREM s the term ‘dream’ or ‘dreaming’ does not have a uniform definition. The aim of the experiment is to try and find evidence to establish any connection between REM and SWS and infer a continuous dreaming process. This will be done by studying the differential elements between mental experiences collected in REM and NREM, leading to the suggestion that they are all quantitative. If this is proved then the idea of multiple generators may be eliminated, and replace by a single generator, considering dreaming continuously as fantasies & daydreams during sleep and those during wakening hours)
Coates wrote a 176 page long letter to his 14 years old son to explain what the African American society were going through at the time being. In the book, Coates used himself as an example to demonstrate the unjust treatment that had been cast upon him and many other African Americans. Readers can sense a feeling of pessimism towards African American’s future throughout the entire book although he did not pointed it out directly.
Webb, W. B., & Cartwright, R. D. (1978). Sleep and Dreams. Annual Review of Psychology, 29(1), 223-252. doi:10.1146/annurev.ps.29.020178.001255
All mammals exhibit Rapid-Eye-Movement, or REM, sleep, and yet on certain levels this type of sleep would seem to be disadvantageous. During REM sleep, which is when most dreams occur, the brain uses much more energy than during non-REM (NREM) sleep. (1) This "waste" of energy coupled with the increased vulnerability of this state on account of the body's paralysis at this time suggests that there must be a very important reason, or reasons, for the existence of REM sleep and in extension of dreams. Determining the function of dreams, however, has proved very problematic with many arguments which directly oppose each other. Some of the primary functions of dreaming have been tied to is role in development, its production of neuro-proteins, and also to how it may allow for the "rehearsal" of neurons and neuronal pathways. The influence of dreaming on learning is one of the hottest debates. Some argue that dreams aid in learning, others that dreams aid in forgetting, and yet others that dreams have no effect on learning or memory. That REM sleep seems to aid in development might argue that REM sleep may be connected to learning. It seems that most scientists believe that REM sleep aids in certain memory consolidations although some argue that it actually leads to "reverse learning.
In 1977, Drs. Allen Hobson and Robert McCarley of Harvard University presented a neurophysiological model of the dream process called: The Activation- synthesis Model of Dreaming. This paper published in the American Journal of Psychiatry suggested that the occurrence of dreaming sleep is physiologically determined by a "dream state generator" located in the brain stem. The main emphasis of the Activation-synthesis theory is dreaming is not psychological but physiological. This totally contradicts all that Freud preached, however he was absolutely correct about one aspect of dreaming, which is every stage involves sexual arousal. Hobson/ McCarley's extensive research proves dreaming to be physiological on the basis of the predictability of dreaming sleep. The duration of dreaming sleep is also constant, which suggests the dreaming process as not only automatic and periodic but metabolically determined. This find contradicts the classic Freudian theory of a driving force behind all dreams. Hobson and McCarley see our poor ability to recall our dreams as reflecting "a state-dependent amnesia, since a carefully effected state change, to waking, may produce abundant recall even of highly charged dream material." So with that logic in mind if you are rapidly awakened out of REM sleep, you are likely to remember dreams that you would otherwise forget.
Ta-Nehisi Coates’ award winning work Between the World and Me addressed the many issues that the black community faces. A memorable part of the book was the idea that the American Dream was unattainable for African-Americans. The former Howard student stated that the Dream was built on the backs of black bodies. To have African Americans achieve the Dream would mean that the system that it was built upon would be overturned. The Dream required institutions such as the prison-industrial complex, slavery, Jim Crow, etc. Had these institutions not been a part of the history of America, its history would be totally different, thus making the Dream just that, a dream. The most impactful message that Coates’ book left was that America, throughout
... to conduct the experiments. We also see that sleep deprivation of SWS in relation to rapid eye movement in combination with biomarkers for primary depression (Kupfer, 1976)(Riemann 2001). Palagini uses polysomnographic research includes sleep continuity, depression, and altered sleep architecture to also detect symptoms of disturbed rapid eye movement and (SWS). Renunciation of search causes an increase in REM sleep in subsequent sleep. Depression is accompanied by the increased REM seen in REM sleep latency, is decreased while the initial REM occurrences are amplified. V.S. Rotenberg and Treuer use neuroendocrine research in ghrelin and sleep deprivation as therapeutic intervention for depression activates a mental heightening effect. These topics show how various discoveries in research lead to different symptoms or variables in correlation to sleep deprivation.
Hirshkowitz, M., & Smith, P. B. (2004). Sleep disorders for dummies. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Pub.
into how different parts of the brain are behaving during sleep and how to influence those parts to give us the best or worst
In his book “Between the World and Me”, Ta-Nehisi Coates explores what it means to be a black body living in the white world of the United States. Fashioned as a letter to his son, the book recounts Coates’ own experiences as a black man as well as his observations of the present and past treatment of the black body in the United States. Weaving together history, present, and personal, Coates ruminates about how to live in a black body in the United States. It is the wisdom that Coates finds within his own quest of self-discovery that Coates imparts to his son.
Exploringn a Neurobiological Theory of Dreaming Neurobiological theory of dreaming focuses on the brain and the nervous system. The activation synthesis theory which is one of the theories put forward by Hobson and Mcarley (1998) said sleep is controlled by mechanism in the brainstem. When activated this inhibits activity in the skeletal muscles and increases activity in the forebrain. This theory seems dreaming as an automatic part of the sleep process that may have no significance beyond the need to organize the material into coherent forms. Hobson points out that injection of a drug that increases the action of acetylcholine both increases REM sleep and dreaming.
Dreams have been thought to contain significant messages throughout many cultures. A dream is an unfolding sequence of perceptions, thoughts, and emotions that is experienced as a series of real-life events during sleep. The definitions of dreams are different among studies, which can also lead to quite different results. Perhaps, the dream interpretation has becoming increasingly popular. In this paper, I will talk about what I have learned about three different views of dream interpretations. One theory made by Sigmund Freud who believed that dreams are triggered by unacceptable repressed wishes, often of a sexual nature. He argued that because dreams we experience are merely disguised versions of people real dreams. The other theory called activation–synthesis theory, made by Allan Hobson and Robert McCarley, based on the observation that during REM sleep, many brain-stem circuits become active and bombard the cerebral cortex with neural signals. The last theory, proposed by William Domhoff, is called the neurocognitive theory of dreaming, which demonstrates that dream content in general is continuous with waking conceptions and emotional preoccupations. Thus, dreaming is best understood as a developmental cognitive achievement that depends upon the maintenance of a specific network of forebrain structures. While each theory has different belief system and approach method, it is a great opportunity to know how former psychologists contributed to the field of dream interpretation.
...esults. One interesting thing found, is that although it is though that dreams happen in a blink of an eye that they actually happen in a realistic time span (General Information). Another is that dreams generally take place in familiar settings and are random leftover thoughts from the previous day. What’s interesting though, is that during studies in which participants were woken on a regular basis, scientists found that the dreams remembered the following morning were “more coherent, sexier, and generally more interesting” than the dream descriptions that were collected in data for research. Most participants remembered very little of their dreams and only about the last fifteen minutes of dreaming before awoken.
Cartwright, R.D. (1978) A primer on Sleep and Dreaming. Massachusetts : Addison - Wesley, Publishing, Company
For thousands of years humans have experienced a phenomenon which we describe today as dreaming. It has puzzled and sparked interest to all whom experience it. For as long as people have been dreaming, there have been people trying to understand and interpret them. This research paper examines the causation and deeper meaning of dreams. It will compare and contrast the differentiating ideas on the subject by famous psychologists and also examine first-hand accounts from real individuals. The objective of paper is to shed some light on this complex and bizarre behavior.
In this Forum on Sleep and Dreams, we will see how the diversity of academic disciplines can help to answer important questions about sleep and dreaming—questions that may touch the basis of human intellect. The Forum is fortunate in...