Why do we dream?
我們為什麼會作夢?
[Sleeping with Science]
〔從科學看睡眠〕
Well, we dream for at least several different reasons. One key benefit is creativity. Sleep, including dream sleep, is associated with an enhanced ability to solve next-day problems. It's almost as though we go to sleep with the pieces of the jigsaw, but we wake up with the puzzle complete.
我們會作夢的理由至少有好幾個。 其中一項重要益處是創意。 睡眠,包括邊有作夢的睡眠, 和增強隔天解決問題的能力有關係。 就好像我們帶著拼圖入睡, 但我們醒來時,拼圖就拼好了。
The second benefit of REM-sleep dreaming is emotional first aid.
快速動眼期睡眠作夢的第二個益處
REM sleep takes the painful sting out of difficult emotional experiences so that when we come back the next day, we feel better about those painful events. You can almost think of dreaming as a form of overnight therapy. It's not time that heals all wounds, but it's time during dream sleep that provides emotional convalescence.
是情緒急救。 快速動眼期睡眠能把痛死人的刺 從難過的情緒經歷中拔出來。 隔天我們再回來時, 我們對那些痛苦事件的感受會好些。 你幾乎可以把作夢 想成是某種形式的一夜治療。 治癒所有傷口的並不是時間, 而是有作夢的睡眠時間, 能協助情緒康復。
Now, it's not just that you dream. It's also what you dream about that seems to make a difference. Scientists have discovered that after learning a virtual maze, for example, those individuals who slept but critically also dreamed about the maze were the only ones who ended up being better at navigating the maze when they woke up. And this same principle is true for our mental health. For example, people going through a difficult or traumatic experience such as a divorce, and who are dreaming about that event, go on to gain resolution to their depression relative to those who were dreaming but not dreaming about the events themselves.
不只是要作夢, 作什麼樣的夢似乎也會有差別。 科學家發現,比如, 在學習了虛擬迷宮之後, 不只是睡覺,重要的是, 睡覺同時還有夢到迷宮的人, 最後是唯一醒來之後 還能夠在迷宮中找到方向的人。 同樣的原則對我們的 心理健康也適用。 比如,當一個人經歷了很難過 或創傷性的事件,如離婚, 若有夢見這個事件, 接下來能想辦法解決他們的沮喪, 相對之下,有作夢, 但沒有夢見該事件的人就沒辦法。
All of which means that sleep and the very act of dreaming itself appears to be an essential ingredient to so much of our waking lives.
上述這一切意味著, 睡眠以及作夢這個動作本身, 顯然是構成我們 清醒生活的重要元素。
We dream, therefore we are.
我們作夢, 故我們在。