Wednesday, June 30, 2004

had a dream about you, baby

Dreaming is free costs approximately $196:

Tokyo-based Takara Co says its "Dream Workshop" stand - shaped like an oversized mobile phone dock and about 35cm tall - can be programmed to help sleepers choose what to dream. While preparing for bed, the user mounts a photograph on the device of who should appear in the dream, selects music appropriate to the mood - fantasy, comedy, romantic story, nostalgia - and records key word prompts, such as the name of a romantic crush...Several hours later, it plays back the recorded word prompts, timed to coincide with the part of the sleep cycle when dreams most often occur. It then helps coax the sleeper gently out of sleep with more light and music so that the dreams are not forgotten.

Hmm...when you have a crush on someone you don't generally need much help dreaming about them! Kind of happens of its own accord. Still, you could see this kind of thing having potential application in treating people with post-traumatic stress disorder or similar conditions causing nightmares, couldn't you?