Tuesday 15 January 2013

alterFACT: The average person has over 1,460 dreams a year


And you thought your bed was uncomfortable

Dreams are still largely unexplored by modern science. There is no reasonable explanation for dreams from the point of view of evolution. It is thought that dreams are just random firings of neurons in the brain, although the purpose for such activity is unknown as well. One of the very few things that scientists can tell you about your dreams is that they come during the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) phase of your sleep. The often quoted fact that dreams only last for a few seconds is not true as dreams can range anywhere from a few seconds to 20 minutes.  

Scientists are just as clueless about sleep as they are about dreaming. It is still unknown whether or not lack of sleep can kill or cause other serious harm. It is thought that sleep deprivation can lead to depression and eventually suicide. FFI (Fatal Familial Disease) is a very rare and little known hereditary genetic mutation, it involves an increasingly worsening insomnia, which eventually leads to hallucinations, dementia and delirium. There is no cure for it. The age of onset ranges between 18 and 65, with the average being 50. The average survival span after the onset is merely 18 months and the mutation has a 100% death rate. While on the other hand there are rare cases like that of Thai Ngoc claims to have not slept for 33 years and the only side effect is that he feels "like a plant without water".

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