Dream:ON Is Not Exactly Inception But It Could Very Well Work Like A Dream
April 10, 2012
Do you want to dictate what your subconscious dreams up when you go to sleep tonight? With the new Dream:ON app for iPhone, you might just be able to.
In collaboration with app developer Yuza, Professor Richard Wiseman, a psychologist from the University of Hertfordshire, created Dream:ON in hopes of letting people influence what they dream about. The app also serves as a data-gathering tool for Wiseman, who is working to further the science of dreams.
To activate Dream:ON, begin by setting your alarm time and tone and choosing your desired dream "soundscape." Then, place your iPhone face down on your bed, preferably on a spot close to your head while you're asleep. Finally, go to sleep. The app will then monitor your movement and consequently sense when you're dreaming, at which point it will start playing your chosen soundscape. You can watch Wiseman's walk-through video below for a demonstration of the steps.
If you can't see the video embedded above, please click here.
Upon waking up, you can proceed by checking in to the app's "Dream Diary." There you can write about your dream in detail and even tag your Facebook friends who appeared in your dream. You can also view graphs of your sleeping pattern in the diary. Provided that you have granted permission for the app to send anonymous data to the app's "Dream Catcher," your notes will be used by Wiseman and his colleagues for their global dream experiment.
Dream:ON is free to download in the App Store. It comes with a free smart alarm clock to wake you at the optimum moment and two free soundscapes, namely, Into The City and Peaceful Garden. Into The City will try to make you dream about the hustle and bustle of urban life, while Peaceful Garden will attempt to put you in the company of flower beds. Many more soundscapes, including Space Shuttle and A Trip to Tokyo, are available in the in-app "Dream Store." I wonder if there's a soundscape that can make me dream about being an Internet entrepreneur wealthy enough to acquire Facebook.
