That's a fascinating topic, and I must admit I haven't given much thought as to which animals dream and for what reasons. Thanks for sharing the studies and current assumptions.
That octopus video is incredible!
But I wonder if octopuses are like us, so when one wakes up from a dream, it hurries off to its friends to tell them all about it, but by the time it gets there it can only sort of barely do just one vague color and the friends are like "Cool story, dude," and simply move on with their lives. Someone should research THAT!
I think animal research is a very underrated field in its ability to provide insights beyond closely related research fields. I was reading about how some researchers even built a fly to understand more about the flight of these animals. The connection with different scientific fields is broad, and I think it can be an inspiration for numerous authors and researchers. Thanks for sharing!
Someone built a fly!? Amazing. I need to know more about this.
Thanks Riccardo, and I completely agree, animal research is full of wonderful insights. I'm looking forward to exploring more topics on animal research. Let me know if you have read anything that piqued your interest lately.
Totally agree! Octopuses/octopi are amazing. So amazing they have two plurals!
Yes! I became fascinated with sleep a few years ago. I bought an Oura ring, listened and read everything I could find out about sleep and read his book, Why We Sleep. A funny thing happened — I become so interested in sleep, that my interest in sleep started affecting my sleep. I worried about not getting enough and not getting the right type, I found it more difficult to fall asleep because I was thinking about sleep as I was trying to get to sleep 🙄 I even started dreaming about sleeping — like sleep inception. Yeah, they were weird dreams. How about you?
It helped me make lifestyle changes like pretty much cutting out hard alcohol all together and improving my sleep hygiene. And yes I agree, sometimes when you know you need to sleep because you have work tomorrow or something you can create anxiety about sleeping and then can’t sleep. A vicious cycle! Meditation sometimes helps but sometimes you just have to get up and do something until you feel tired again.
That's so great to hear! Books that help motivate positive lifestyle changes are great. And Why We Sleep is definitely one of those books. I never realised how much alcohol affects sleep, but now that I know it, it seems really obvious. I love your suggestion to meditate -- that's another one of those things that is life-changing, but you don't know how much until you do it consistently. I must admit, I haven't been the best at being consistent with meditation lately, but whenever I am, I notice such a positive impact.
I've watched dogs dream and, exactly as described for the octopus, it seems as if you can narrate what they're doing. Coordinated running motions, barking or growing motions, and REM. Bentley sometimes sleeps with her eyes open but rolled up. Kinda weird, that one.
That's a fascinating topic, and I must admit I haven't given much thought as to which animals dream and for what reasons. Thanks for sharing the studies and current assumptions.
That octopus video is incredible!
But I wonder if octopuses are like us, so when one wakes up from a dream, it hurries off to its friends to tell them all about it, but by the time it gets there it can only sort of barely do just one vague color and the friends are like "Cool story, dude," and simply move on with their lives. Someone should research THAT!
Thanks, Daniel!
Someone should research that! It's an interesting question :)
There's a reason we tend to forget our dreams -- something tells me someone is probably looking at whether octopus have those same mechanisms.
I think animal research is a very underrated field in its ability to provide insights beyond closely related research fields. I was reading about how some researchers even built a fly to understand more about the flight of these animals. The connection with different scientific fields is broad, and I think it can be an inspiration for numerous authors and researchers. Thanks for sharing!
Someone built a fly!? Amazing. I need to know more about this.
Thanks Riccardo, and I completely agree, animal research is full of wonderful insights. I'm looking forward to exploring more topics on animal research. Let me know if you have read anything that piqued your interest lately.
Suzi, I think you should check this article about insect flight and Machine Learning! https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01122-4 I hope this can help with your next issues!
Thank you! I will do.
Incredible article as always Suzi. Octopi continue to impress me more and more every day. Have you read and of Dr Matthew Walkers work?
Totally agree! Octopuses/octopi are amazing. So amazing they have two plurals!
Yes! I became fascinated with sleep a few years ago. I bought an Oura ring, listened and read everything I could find out about sleep and read his book, Why We Sleep. A funny thing happened — I become so interested in sleep, that my interest in sleep started affecting my sleep. I worried about not getting enough and not getting the right type, I found it more difficult to fall asleep because I was thinking about sleep as I was trying to get to sleep 🙄 I even started dreaming about sleeping — like sleep inception. Yeah, they were weird dreams. How about you?
It helped me make lifestyle changes like pretty much cutting out hard alcohol all together and improving my sleep hygiene. And yes I agree, sometimes when you know you need to sleep because you have work tomorrow or something you can create anxiety about sleeping and then can’t sleep. A vicious cycle! Meditation sometimes helps but sometimes you just have to get up and do something until you feel tired again.
That's so great to hear! Books that help motivate positive lifestyle changes are great. And Why We Sleep is definitely one of those books. I never realised how much alcohol affects sleep, but now that I know it, it seems really obvious. I love your suggestion to meditate -- that's another one of those things that is life-changing, but you don't know how much until you do it consistently. I must admit, I haven't been the best at being consistent with meditation lately, but whenever I am, I notice such a positive impact.
It’s been a consistent practice with me for a while and I can tell when I don’t, I can almost feel the effects in real time.
Glad to chat as always, cheers to the weekend!
I've watched dogs dream and, exactly as described for the octopus, it seems as if you can narrate what they're doing. Coordinated running motions, barking or growing motions, and REM. Bentley sometimes sleeps with her eyes open but rolled up. Kinda weird, that one.
Aren’t dogs the best! Bentley seems like a gem.