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Sweet Dreams Are Made By This 438

Posted by michael from the dreaming-my-dreams-with-you dept.
schnoz writes "From Takara, the folks who brought you Bow-Lingual the dog translator, comes the Dream Workshop. Before going to sleep, all you have to do is stare at a photograph of what you want to dream of (Natalie Portman maybe) and record the dream plot. When you fall asleep, this gadget waits for REM and then uses your voice recording, lights, music and aroma to help direct your dream."
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Sweet Dreams Are Made By This More

Sweet Dreams Are Made By This

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  • Why not... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Ieshan ( 409693 ) <ieshan@g[ ]l.com ['mai' in gap]> on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:17PM (#8011115) Homepage Journal
    Why not just sell these pre-programmed with Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera modules?

    Maybe Thinkgeek could sell a "Natalie Portman in Hot Grits" version?

    • Re:Why not... (Score:5, Funny)

      by iminplaya ( 723125 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:19PM (#8011131) Journal
      I'm getting me a "Linus in speedos" module

    • Re:Why not... (Score:5, Funny)

      by kfg ( 145172 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:27PM (#8011185)
      Maybe Thinkgeek could sell a "Natalie Portman in Hot Grits" version?

      They were workin' on it, but the prototypes kept petrifying.

      KFG

    • Re:Why not... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Ralph Wiggam ( 22354 ) * on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:53PM (#8011329) Homepage
      I would want the 2001 Christina Aguilera. Is anyone else frightened by the 2004 Christina?

      -B

    • Re:Why not... (Score:5, Funny)

      by NanoGator ( 522640 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @11:39PM (#8011536) Homepage Journal
      "Why not just sell these pre-programmed with Britney Spears..."

      Only if it has a mute feature.

    • Re:Why not... (Score:5, Funny)

      by Walt Dismal ( 534799 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @04:26AM (#8012414)
      I went to sleep dreaming of Natalie Portman but I woke up next to Darl McBride. Please kill me now.

  • dreaming (Score:5, Interesting)

    by mjc_w ( 192427 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:17PM (#8011117)
    How bout if I change someone's dream input?

    Hacking dreams???

  • Sounds Tempting! (Score:5, Interesting)

    by MissMarvel ( 723385 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:18PM (#8011119) Journal
    Hey, this thing might work! Back in the dark ages when I was in college I used to tape lectures and listen to them while I was asleep. Amazing results!

    My dreams could use a bit of spicing up, but I think I'll opt for Johnny Depp instead of Natalie Portman. Anyone know how much 14,800 yen is in US Dollars?

    • Re:Sounds Tempting! (Score:5, Funny)

      by radixvir ( 659331 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:19PM (#8011132) Homepage

      Back in the dark ages when I was in college I used to tape lectures and listen to them while I was asleep. Amazing results!

      weird, i fall asleep during lectures all the time, and nothing good has ever come out of it

      • Re:Sounds Tempting! (Score:5, Funny)

        by pantycrickets ( 694774 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:28PM (#8011198)
        weird, i fall asleep during lectures all the time, and nothing good has ever come out of it

        It was me and the professor. Only, he looked different. He had daisy duke shorts on and was carrying a rifle. I approached him, and he spoke.. but I couldn't understand. I think it was another language. When I got closer, I noticed my skin was burning. And then I realized I was covered in fire ants. I jumped off of a cliff towards what looked like a pool of water at the bottom. Only when I hit it, I realized it was a pool of broken glass. I tried as best as I could to swim through the glass, but my skin was literally falling apart.. when I could no longer move, I woke up.

        Needless to say, I failed the exam.

    • Re:Sounds Tempting! (Score:2, Informative)

      by Al-Hala ( 447007 )
      Use a Currency Converter [xe.com]

  • heh (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Linus naked...

    I mean....

  • I'm dreaming of... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by HappyCitizen ( 742844 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:19PM (#8011126) Homepage Journal
    Darl McBride vs. Darth Maul Ok, on a more serious note, could this replace studying in some way shape or form. I mean a book under your pillow is crazy, but what about making it direct you through a dream in which you learn. This could really help self education. Imagine going further, having it teach you programming. Yes, you would need to record a plot and such, but I bet someone smart could have a computer generate one from an online manual or something. Just my 2 cents

    • Re:I'm dreaming of... (Score:4, Interesting)

      by Alan Hicks ( 660661 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:28PM (#8011192) Homepage
      Imagine going further, having it teach you programming

      I don't know about you, but I can't seem to get even the most basic shell scripts right when I dream about computers. I can't verify the truth of the statement, but I've heard it said that the right side of your brain is the side most active during dreams, and it is also the less logical side of your brain. If that's true my first assumption is that dream learning would be mostly worthless for highly logical things like math or programming, but might be useful for art.

    • Imagine going further, having it teach you programming

      I can see it now, a giant curly brace heading towards my ship, no problem all I have to do is evade it with a counter curly brace to close it. What if I see enemy Function ships?? well obviously I have to organize an army of rouge variables that are incompatible with the Functions to destroy it. But what about the moon-sized DeathStar(); function? THe only way to stop it would to use the new OOP cannon to enclose it inside a Class so it becomes usele
    • Yess so all code will end up looking something like this [userfriendly.org].

  • must be user error (Score:5, Funny)

    by poindextrose ( 640377 ) <slideruleNO@SPAMgmail.com> on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:20PM (#8011139) Homepage
    I can't wait to see people who screw this one up. The people with pictures of Grandma on their night table.

  • Mars (Score:5, Funny)

    by owlstead ( 636356 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:21PM (#8011142)
    I want to have a dream about a trip to mars. Oh, wait...

    • Re:Mars (Score:3, Funny)

      by Frisky070802 ( 591229 ) *
      AAhnold already has this puppy on order. Next time he wants to get it right.
    • http://mjt.nysv.org/humor/ArnoldSchwarzenegger/Arn old%20Schwarzenegger%20-%20Total%20Recalling.mp3

      was the first link i could find with google to the song: arnold - total recalling.

      I've been dreaming of going to mars, where mutants drive plastic cars so I go there you know the rest the best part was the girl with three breasts. total recalling, total recalling, recalling!

      and so on. hilarious :)

  • Dammit... (Score:2, Interesting)

    by ttldkns ( 737309 )
    You just know that your alarm clock would go off just as it ogt interesting...

    and how many dreams can u actually remember after you wake up anyway, i always remember for about half an hour before the memories start to fade... i think ive lost some good ones, altho i may have been dreaming

    • i always remember for about half an hour before the memories start to fade

      That's why you have a quick-booting computer by bedside, to type in the plot of your dream. I used to use a Newton PDA with a keyboard for this until I got a new computer that didn't work right with Newton Connection Utilities. Don't suggest a pencil and paper unless you live in an area that teaches shorthand writing; most geeks that touch type can type faster than they can handwrite.

  • To be used for fun...and evil... (Score:5, Funny)

    by idgrad ( 137342 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:21PM (#8011148)
    You could play some nice pranks with this toy after a scary movie.... aliens perhaps...muhahahahaha

  • meh? (Score:5, Funny)

    by devphaeton ( 695736 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:22PM (#8011151)
    "From Takara, the folks who brought you Bow-Lingual the dog translator

    This isn't that email i get 15 times a week proclaiming "Amazing Breakthrough In Software Technology! Turn Woofs into Words! Free Download!" is it?

    stare at a photograph of what you want to dream of (Natalie Portman maybe) and record the dream plot. When you fall asleep, this gadget waits for REM and then uses your voice recording, lights, music and aroma to help direct your dream."

    It's probably not recommended to have a device cooking up some grits when there's no one there to keep an eye on it. But in other news, i did hear that they are selling perfume that smells just like natalie portman!

    • Talking Dog Spam (Score:2, Informative)

      by JThundley ( 631154 )
      I've never gotten any spam of that sort, but I know that it is not the same thing.
      The Bow-Lingual is a plastic rectangle the size of a very big wallet that you can hang around your dog's neck. I saw one on the local news.

  • Flim-flam. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by RyanFenton ( 230700 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:23PM (#8011154)
    Classic flim-flam. Variations of these flashing-light eye-glasses have been around for decades, claiming to be everything from a headache cure to, in this case a dream machine. The nice thing about claiming things about dreams is that most dreams aren't remembered, so there's nothing to be able to go after when it comes to false advertising.

    Yes, I'm a skeptic. I suppose I should want to try this product beforhand to be scientifically valid... but testimonial "evidence" with this sort of product does not give me any motivation to hand out money so I can reward these people to test their wild theory.

    Ryan Fenton
    • Just a side note - a good way to remember dreams is to ask yourself what you were just thinking when you wake up in the morning. The next step, of course, is to write it down in a journal. The more you do this, the easier it will be to remember.

    • Re:Flim-flam. (Score:5, Informative)

      by Ieshan ( 409693 ) <ieshan@g[ ]l.com ['mai' in gap]> on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:31PM (#8011218) Homepage Journal
      I love it when Psychologists tout products / services with testimonials. As someone aspiring to be a real-life research psychologist some day, it seems particularly ironic that none of these guys have ever heard of the Availability Heuristic.(that, or they have, and they're just trying to exploit it, but it doesn't really look good to anyone who's taken Psych 101.)

      Example: The Wigetmobile is the best selling car in america because it's super-cheap and super-reliable, according to statistics. Your uncle says he drove his into a tree and it nearly killed him, so you don't buy it, because his vivid description of his near-death incident (probably on account of his own stupidity) "outweighs" statistical evidence that the product is good. This is the same thing, only in *reverse* of the product advertising.

      Alex Chiu is a big fan of this kind of marketing exploitation. He's also a complete idiot.
    • One model [toolsforwellness.com]

      New and improved - no flashing lights! [toolsforwellness.com]

      If anything, this is just a translation of a much older concept, throwing in pop-psychology in the form of staring at a picture, and self-fullfilling prophesies about dreaming something. It's still flim-flam though - no better than psychic surgery or magic lottery numbers.

      Ryan Fenton

    • Re:Flim-flam. (Score:3, Informative)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Uh.... despite the loudness of the claim you are making, you don't seem to have many facts at hand to support you.

      Guided dreaming of one sort or another has been around for a long time. Sometimes it is done with a volunteer who is willing to speak to the dreamer as the dream is occurring. Other times, mental exercises before falling asleep can have a major impact on what the dreams will be about. People who attempt to have lucid dreams [lucidity.com] are occasionally known to use such devices and/or techniques, and many

  • Wet Dreams (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:24PM (#8011159)
    But wouldn't it be embarrasing if you died in your sleep and the coroner came to pick up your body a week later with a picture of Oprah beside you, while your voice described your dream date, bow-chicka-bow-bow music played, and musky perfume poured out of this thing?

    • Re:Wet Dreams (Score:3, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward
      What would really be embarrassing is if they found you with a picture of Dr. Phil.
  • if this really works. I used to sleep with the radio tuned to a news station, and I never got the urge to buy any Preparation H or that itch powder (Gold Bond was it?)

  • This dream brought to you by... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by TyrranzzX ( 617713 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:24PM (#8011165) Journal
    Coca-cola, happy subconscience suggestion!

    Combine this with sound rifles, through-wall sonics and lasers...mmm scarrry.
  • Just stare at the code or architecture diagram and have a recording of your computer reading the code aloud to you. By morning you should have it all debugged.

    • Re:Great for those tough bugs problems (Score:4, Interesting)

      by Jerf ( 17166 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @11:52PM (#8011588) Journal
      Many times, I have solved The Problem in my sleep. I have also composed some bitching music (music composition being a former hobby of mine).

      Of the many times I have solved The Problem, only once was it actually a solution, and even then it was more like a thought that actually put me on the right track when I awoke, more out of coincidence I think then anything else.

      Many times I have awoken with the semantic equivalent of "My code will be fixed if I just pick a purple lilac and feed it to my dog.", only much, much wierder in a way that I can not just summon up while awake to provide a good example for. And it all makes such sense at the time.

      I'm sure some people really do solve problems in their dreams, and goodness knows a good night's sleep always does help me. But I wonder how many people really solve problems in their dream, and how many people just think they've solved problems. I've managed to drag several ideas from my dreams back into the waking world, including quite a few semi-interesting sci-fi plots, but none of them are worth anything when examined in the light of the sun, except perhaps some entertainment value.

      One of the things I remember dragging back was a music melody that was going to make me famous... I don't recall the specifics but I do recall it only involved two notes a whole step apart in some entirely uninspired rhythm; in the waking world it was terminally dull, as you might imagine a two-note melody would be. (I have on the other hand written some music I rather enjoyed based on the wierd feeling I sometimes get after having wierd dreams, but the music did not come to me in my sleep.)

      • I'm sure some people really do solve problems in their dreams, and goodness knows a good night's sleep always does help me. But I wonder how many people really solve problems in their dream, and how many people just think they've solved problems. I've managed to drag several ideas from my dreams back into the waking world, including quite a few semi-interesting sci-fi plots, but none of them are worth anything when examined in the light of the sun, except perhaps some entertainment value.

        I was irritated b

  • Wim Wenders's Until the End of the World came up immediately when I saw the article... though this machine doesn't come close to the device in the movie, you'll have to see the movie!, I do recall that once I got a handle on my dreams many of my day-time 'stuff', 'issues', 'problems' were somehow clarified and easier to manage. I kept a dream journal for about six months and those six months were the sanest of my life. I'd be curious to try the dream machine only to see if I could get that kind of clarity b

  • Lucid Dreaming is Cheaper (Score:5, Interesting)

    by GuyMannDude ( 574364 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:27PM (#8011184) Journal

    Although lucid dreaming [lucidity.com] is not exactly the same as dream control [lucidity.com], it does give you the ability to control your OWN ACTIONS in a dream. The advantage of lucid dreaming is that you don't have to buy any gizmos to make it work (although some people do sell things to help you achieve lucidity). The disadvantages are, as I mentioned, the fact that you only control yourself and not necessarily your surroundings and it takes some time to learn the skill of becoming lucid in a dream.

    Lucid dreaming is basically a technique for becoming conscious that you are in a dream without actually waking from that dream. It takes some work, believe me. We're talking months here. But it is kinda cool. Once I realize that I'm dreaming, I usually take advantage of that fact by blasting any enemies around me with a Godzilla [godzilla.co.jp]-like breath weapon! While this is admittedly pretty geeky, I can say that here without being laughed at (right?) because we're all geeks. Plus, it's pretty neat to see Bill Gates go up in flames!

    Another advantage of lucid dreaming is that it's a proven technique whereas this new gizmo is just something that someone is trying to sell you.

    GMD

    • Re:Lucid Dreaming is Cheaper (Score:5, Interesting)

      by Leeji ( 521631 ) <slashdot@@@leeholmes...com> on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:52PM (#8011322) Homepage

      One interesting thing about your point is that this device could assist lucid dreaming. In fact, the Lucidity Institute that you link to sells a similar device called the NovaDreamer. [lucidity.com] The NovaDreamer detects REM sleep, then uses flashing lights to hopefully introduce dream signs into your dream. At $138 USD, this device is much cheaper than the NovaDreamer, which costs $395 USD. [128.121.104.103]

      I've been experimenting with a home-brew solution (a web page that flashes and talks at random intervals throughout the night,) but I've had very limited success with it.

      While we're on the topic, I wrote a very long piece [geocities.com] about Lucid Dreaming in 1996 -- many people have put it on their own sites

    • Re:Lucid Dreaming is Cheaper (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      in case youre not familiar with lucid dreaming techniques, the first step is of course to recognize that youre in a dream. one thing to help you do that is to build up habits that you do in real life and thus hopefully do from time to time in your dreams too.

      for example, every so often ask yourself "what was i just doing? do my surroundings really make sense?" etc. and when the answers surprise you then you can recognize that you're in a dream.

      my technique is different. every few minutes i just think
    • "While this is admittedly pretty geeky, I can say that here without being laughed at (right?) because we're all geeks. "

      No.....no you can't.

  • Comment removed (Score:4, Funny)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:29PM (#8011206)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • Reviewed In Consumer Reports! (Score:5, Informative)

    by the eric conspiracy ( 20178 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:31PM (#8011216)
    LOL. It got mention on the "selling it" page in the back, where CR publishes small items showing misleading, maybe fradulent ads.

  • Device not needed... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by LostCluster ( 625375 ) * on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:32PM (#8011225)
    It's been known for quite a while that what you dream about is usually whatever you were thinking about just before you went to sleep. Staring at a photograph is one way to make sure you're thinking about the person you want to dream about... so who needs the gadget?

  • LotR (Score:5, Funny)

    by Arc04 ( 601196 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:34PM (#8011241)
    Dream about Lord of the Rings, before you wake up and realise you have just been Tolkien in your sleep.

  • Dream Instigation (Score:3, Insightful)

    by pipingguy ( 566974 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:35PM (#8011246)

    Isn't this similar to the phenomenon of waking up and realizing that your dream contained bits and pieces of what was on TV/radio while you slept (eg, your radio or TV is set as a wake-up alarm)? I.E., your subconcious mind picked-up on cues while you were sleeping and inserted them into the dream.
  • You are now entering a deep sleep [Buy Bowlingual]... you are completely at rest... [Bowlingual is NOT funny]... Natalie portman is coming to you... she is smiling [SCO is in Linux]... she would like you to touch her... [she would like you to make her wear a Bowlingual collar]
  • Well likely not this particular thing, but the whole fantasy/porn/dreams thing it's going to be the drug of the future.

    Keeps people distracted like nothing else.

  • "We are still experimenting, mainly with company employees,"

    what can they be doing? overtime work without overtime pay?

  • Choice quote from article... (Score:3, Funny)

    by mbessey ( 304651 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:49PM (#8011305) Homepage Journal
    "We are still experimenting, mainly with company employees," Takara marketing executive Kenji Hattori told reporters in Tokyo yesterday.

    I mean, after all, it's just a device to program your unconscious mind. What could possibly go wrong?

    Quick, somebody call Michael Crichton!

    -Mark
  • In "The Lathe of Heaven" (a book by Ursula K. LeGuin [amazon.com], later made into a movie [imdb.com]) the main character ("George Orr") is cursed by the fact that whatever he dreams of becomes truly real.

    He is tormented by the knowledge that his dreams, which he cannot control, are destructively altering other peoples' lives, often retroactively. I won't give away the plot, but lets just say that someone tormented by their own unlimited power is probably a better person than someone thrilled by it.

    In any case, George would hav

  • Ethical Concerns (Score:3, Funny)

    by Becho62282 ( 172807 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @10:54PM (#8011332)
    Has any one thought of the ethical issues that could arise from this. Directing ones dreams sounds neat and all, but what if the person that you direct in your dreams has told you not to, or they have some kind of restraining order on you.

    Sure these are your dreams and controlling them I guess should be your option, but when do you cross the line? Do you need to get permission from people to use them in your dream if it's directed. I don't think they can do anything in a normal dream, but when things are pre meditated does that change things?

    I would honestly think that if the average person got a hold of this they could use it for ill. I know that I don't want people dreaming about me without my permission.

    One final thought, how would this work if a person has purposefully violent dreams. Has a dream about killing people for instance, would this be allowed into court, and if so would it count as premeditation.

    As techs we may think it cool to make our dreams be what we want them to be, but we do have to worry about this at the ethical / legal level.

    Oh and for the person wanting to know how much that is in dollars 138.486.

    • that is so f***ing stupid (Score:2, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward

      This has got to be the most idiotic thing I've ever read on slashdot. Or, anywhere.

      I know that I don't want people dreaming about me without my permission.

  • I just hope it's not powered by windows ce.net... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Stevyn ( 691306 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @11:01PM (#8011374)
    ...or whatever the hell it's called now. I'll end up patching it in my dreams. Imagine, my perfect dream is about to come true and just before it does, "windows update is ready to install..." Then again, if it were run by linux, I'd get an error message of "this dreams requires the package lib.so.4.508 to continue." Either way, this ain't going to work the way it's advertised.

    On a serious note, google up lucid dreaming and read about it. It actually works. Years ago I tried to make one of these things by having a bunch of LED's blink rapidly. It didn't work, but it was a neat form of meditation. But seriously, there's nothing like a lucid dream.
  • "Time to slowly, painfully ease yourself back into consciousness."

  • Interesting... (Score:3, Funny)

    by Gojira Shipi-Taro ( 465802 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @11:17PM (#8011449) Homepage


    this gadget waits for REM


    I was unaware that Michael Stipe was an afficianado of hot grits.

  • Lucid Dreaming (Score:5, Informative)

    by localman ( 111171 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @11:18PM (#8011450) Homepage
    You know, I don't know why lucid dreaming [lucidity.com] isn't a bigger thing. Given all the effort people put into altered conciousness, that is. No hardware required.

    I've never been a big one for altered conciousness, but I did do some lucid dreaming for a while. Basically you just get good at recognizing when you're dreaming, and then you can start controlling what happens. Yes, Natalie Portman is an option.

    It does take some dedication, though. Keeping a dream journal is essential. There's some basic info out there that will help get you started.

    The only downside I found is I sometimes felt I wasn't sleeping as deeply. But it is a great way to explore altered conciousness without worrying about killing brain cells or geting addicted to anything.

    Cheers.

    • Re:Lucid Dreaming (Score:5, Interesting)

      by pongo000 ( 97357 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @12:03AM (#8011625)
      Interesting you bring this up...for several years I suffered from episodic sleep paralysis. During dream states, your body is semi-paralyzed as a defense mechanism against acting out your dreams. People with episodic SP wake up from vivid nightmares still paralyzed. It's an extremely spooky and gut-wrenching experience. Think about your worst nightmare, and how you thought it was real. Now imagine lying in bed, eyes open, cognizant that you are awake, and your nightmare still continues. But you cannot move, and oftentimes you have great difficulty breathing, shouting out, or otherwise defending yourself from whatever horror you've cooked up. That's what episodic sleep paralysis is about.

      One of the methods used to treat the condition is a form of lucid dreaming in which you train yourself to recognize, in your nightmare, that you are in control of the situation. By moving a finger or something similar to "break" the paralysis, you can then wake up fully.

      For a long time sleep paralysis was treated with SSRI's, usually tricyclic antidepressants that, in light doses, would keep REM light enough to fully emerge from the paralysis stage. But if you've ever been on an SSRI, the side effects can be pretty miserable.

      It's an interesting subject that has a study all its own here. [uwaterloo.ca]
      • Random loosely related fact: Several researches seem to believe that this state is respobsible for many people who claim to have been abducted by aliens. The "grey" alien that most people seem to point toward was actually originally used in an NBC miniseries in the late 70's and has sort of snowballed from that point.

        Researchers theorize the people continue to see images of this alien representation on television and in print, and that it is incorporated into their stories. Their tales of being paralyze

      • Re:Lucid Dreaming (Score:3, Interesting)

        by CTachyon ( 412849 )

        For a long time sleep paralysis was treated with SSRI's, usually tricyclic antidepressants that, in light doses, would keep REM light enough to fully emerge from the paralysis stage. But if you've ever been on an SSRI, the side effects can be pretty miserable.

        Um, SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors -- the new generation of antidepressants, of which Prozac [nih.gov] is the most famous) are a completely different beast from the older generation of tricyclic antidepressants [nih.gov]. I've previously been on Paxil [nih.gov]

  • Monroe Institute (Score:4, Interesting)

    by forevermore ( 582201 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @11:19PM (#8011456) Homepage
    The Monroe Institute [monroeinstitute.org] has something a lot cheaper that will do the same thing. By using sound to alter brain waves, they can induce something that works like mild hypnosis, but give you control over yourself. I researched their "Sweet Dreams" audio suite while I was in college, and though I didn't have enough subjects (only had 4 or so) to have any significant results, there was a very visible trend to suggest that the cassettes (no cd's available at the time) were doing just what they said they would. Personally, I had my dream recall rates go from virtually none to 2-4 long dreams per night. It's a little new-agey, but this stuff is all based in science with lab results, etc. Worth checking out.

  • lucid dreaming (Score:3, Informative)

    by ajagci ( 737734 ) on Saturday January 17, 2004 @11:42PM (#8011548)
    Or, alternatively, just learn lucid dreaming [stanford.edu] and become master of your dream world.

  • Cheaper alternative - Do it yourself project (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Tolvor ( 579446 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @12:01AM (#8011615)
    I also am a big fan of dream control via lucid dreaming, and if I'm maintaining the dream/reality checks and am in practice, I can usually achieve about 3 remembered and controlled long dreams a week, all for free. It took me about four months to get to that level, and I couldn't afford a NovaDreamer (a similiar (and expensive device) for aiding dreamers). I found this link (http://brindefalk.solarbotics.net) which detailed the Kvaser dreammask. If you know your electronics its easy enough to do. You'd have to modify the circuit (to add the extended audio cues) and modify the coding for the additional logic. When people advertise nice electronic doodads that are simple enough, I usually see whether or not I can do it simpler and cheaper, with all the custom additions that I want. If the device is a Mhz or Ghz microprocessor, I'm not likely to get far, but a nice project in the back of a electronics magazine, certainly. And this device certainly falls into that category.

  • I'm sure they would find higher demand for... (Score:3, Funny)

    by RhettLivingston ( 544140 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @12:25AM (#8011709) Journal
    a wife translator :o)

  • Obligatory Simpsons Quote (Score:4, Funny)

    by ath0mic ( 519762 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @12:41AM (#8011747)

    Marge: Homer, has the weight loss tape reduced your appetite?

    Homer: Ah, lamentably no. My gastronomic rapacity knows no satieties.

  • Barring anything else... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Thedalek ( 473015 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @01:39AM (#8011970)
    I'd like to see a movie based on the development of this product. According to the article, they are experimenting on a number of company employees, which means a Takara employee's journal could easily read like a crash course in the Twilight Zone.

    Then again, the employees already live in Japan, home of used panty vending machines. For the curious, the cost is supposedly 1000 per pair.

    I now await a slew of replies from pseudo-clever /.ers saying "That's it, I'm moving to Japan!" or equivalent phrases.

  • Wouldn't use one of this (Score:3, Interesting)

    by m4g02 ( 541882 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @06:03AM (#8012585)
    Dreams are used by the unconscious to express its inner preoccupations, I dont think forcing dreams to be something is a good idea for human psyche health.

    And I dont know about you but I find strange chaotic dreams way funnier then dreaming about a girl I can dream of while awake. That is if you like to find the meaning of your dreams (or are in therapy).

  • dangerous? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by luckyguesser ( 699385 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @08:33AM (#8012797)
    As we all know, the subconscious is a powerful thing. Of course, this power is what facilitates stimuli becoming a collective dream. However, the subconscious also directs much of our decision-making process during the day. I'm not suggesting that this company would abuse that power, but it's always possible. Even if it wasn't with malicious intent, but a product of unpredictable circumstances in combination with the "life toy", what happens when a person's mind is altered for the worse?

  • Just do lucid dreaming (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Pedrito ( 94783 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @09:42AM (#8012958)
    You can train yourself to become aware and even control your dreams. It's simple, though not particularly easy. It takes a lot of practice. The hardest part is to avoid what I'd call "newbie" mistakes, such as, suddenly you become aware, so you conjure, say Natalie P. or whomever you seek. Because the moment they appear, you realize you're in complete control. This causes you a great deal of excitement which in turn, wakes you up.

    You CAN conjure these images, but you have to work up to it, and you need to be a bit more subtle about it so that you don't get the overexcitement that wakes you.

    I did a lot of this in high school and my first two years of college. I began simply by waking up at 3:00am every morning and recording my dreams, then going back to sleep and then recording them again when I woke up again.

    After a while, you'll begin becoming more aware of your dreams. At that point, you need to start thinking about taking control. This is usually a few weeks after you've started recording the dreams.

    I wish I could still do it. It was a lot of fun. It takes a lot of work to get there, though.

  • Better yet... save your money (Score:3, Interesting)

    by eth1 ( 94901 ) on Sunday January 18, 2004 @12:58PM (#8013650)
    And learn to control your dreams on your own. I found this site [totse.com] the other day, and have been doing the first exercise for 3 days now. I've managed to have lucid dreams (or at least semi-lucid) twice already. (lucid meaning you realize that you're dreaming) Once you're in a lucid dream, it's sort of like the Matrix... you know anything is possible, and can do anything you want.

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