How to communicate with people while they sleep | New Scientist Weekly podcast 220

TL;DR

Researchers have discovered evidence that it is possible to communicate with people who are asleep, evoking reactions such as smiles or frowns, opening up new possibilities for learning during sleep.

Transcript

hello and welcome back to New Scientist weekly your curated selection of the week's science stories I'm Christy Taylor in New York and I'm Timothy Revel also in New York this week some Extremes in outer space from the biggest M Quakes to the oldest fast radio bursts we'll also look at the changing epicenters of bird flu outbreaks the world's tinies... Read More

Key Insights

• 😴 Establishing communication with sleeping individuals is a significant development that opens up new possibilities for learning during sleep.
• 🤯 The ability to evoke reactions from the unconscious mind without the individuals' awareness suggests direct communication with the subconscious.
• 😪 The physical responses observed during sleep, although small, can still be detected accurately using EEG devices.
• 👨‍🔬 Further research aims to refine the method and detect brainwave changes during periods of communication.
• 😪 This development could have applications in understanding dreams, assisting sleep disorder patients, and improving overall communication with unconscious individuals.
• 😪 The research is an impressive achievement as sleep was previously considered an altered state of consciousness, disconnected from the outside world.
• 😪 The study highlights the potential for people to have periods during sleep when they can take in signals from the outside world and make responses back.
• 😷 The communication method used in the study could be useful in medical applications and has the potential to be more convenient and energy-efficient compared to traditional particle accelerators.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did the researchers establish communication with sleeping individuals?

The researchers played quiet recordings of words while monitoring the subjects' brainwaves using EEG devices. This allowed them to observe if the words affected the subjects' sleep and if they could evoke smiles or frowns.

Q: Did the volunteers remember making these responses when questioned afterward?

No, the volunteers had no memory of the smiles or frowns they made in response to the words during sleep. This suggests that the researchers were communicating directly with their subconscious minds.

Q: How significant is the physical response from the sleeping individuals?

The physical response, such as a twitch of the muscles, was detected using electrical sensors on the subjects' faces. While the responses were small, they were accurately recorded and marked progress in establishing communication during sleep.

Q: What are the potential applications of this research?

Apart from the possibility of learning during sleep, the researchers hope to refine their method and detect signature changes in brainwaves during periods of communication. This could aid in understanding dreams, helping people with sleep disorders, and improving overall communication with unconscious individuals.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Researchers have successfully established basic communication with sleeping individuals by asking them to smile or frown in response to certain words.

• The communication method involves playing quiet recordings of words while monitoring the subjects' brainwaves with EEG devices, ensuring the words do not interfere with their sleep.

• Although the volunteers only responded with smiles or frowns some of the time, the researchers believe this development is significant and marks progress in communicating with the unconscious mind.