Quirky sleep ideas of the future may be nearer to our reality than you think. Check out The Washington Post’s amazing list of things that you might be looking forward to that will change the way you sleep forever:
- Dream management:Films such as “Inception,” may have brought thoughts of dream control to your attention, but researchers have been exploring the possibility for while with lucid dreaming. German researchers found that a low-level electrical impulse delivered to the frontal lobe of the brain as a person is in the REM stage of sleep allows them to experience lucid dreaming, becoming a fully functional part of their dreams. In the future lucid dreaming could be a benefit to people suffering from PTSD, enabling them to change the outcome of painful experiences.
- Creating the perfect snooze:Imagine being able to connect your mattress to the Internet and your bedroom gaining the ability to regulate temperature and lighting on its own. Your pillows and mattress would always give you the perfect comfort levels throughout the night and you’d be woken up at the end of your sleep cycle, never feeling groggy again. According to futurologist Ian Pearson, by 2030 hotel brands will be the first to deliver the perfect sleep experience with guests gaining the ability to plug in sleep preferences.
- Super naps:Neuroscientists have already learned that unique brain activity occurs as we take naps. Also, researchers at Georgetown learned that as we nap, our right hemisphere of the brain, which is where our creativity lies, is extremely active. Utilizing this fact could make us more creative during our work day leading to super naps.
- Genetically modified sleep:Biologists are on the hunt to locate the “sleep gene,” a possible gene within the genome that is responsible for “light sleep.” The recently discovered gene DEC2 may be exactly what they’ve been looking for. In experiments it has been shown to be responsible for significantly reducing the amount of sleep the human body needs. The first to be in line for this sleep bonus of the future would be our military. Super-soldiers wouldn’t suffer the effects of sleep deprivation during missions that take days at a time.
- Red pills and blue pills:Synthetic drugs of the future will be able to target specific areas of the brain, regulating sleep and neural activity. The cure for narcolepsy would be one that many people could appreciate, and “wakefulness,” could last much longer.
- Smart pajamas:Sleep has been linked to restorative functions having to with memory and aging. Smart pajamas would allow our sleep patterns to be monitored in extreme detail, measuring our heart rate, blood pressure, and skin conductivity. We could have our medical conditions diagnosed without going to the hospital.
- Human hibernation:Animals may not be the only ones taking advantage of hibernation. NASA is currently experimenting with prolonged hibernation for their astronauts, cooling their body temperature down to allow for further travel through space. This process would also help trauma victims of battlefield injuries, cardiac arrests and surgeries, survive a lot longer to get to a surgeon and help them heal afterwards.
With all the amazing interest being taken in sleep, new ideas and strides are being revealed every day! What do you think of how we may sleep in the future?
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