Does the I-Function Control Dreaming? :: Biology Essays Research Papers

Does the I-Function Control Dreaming? Imagine you are in a dream. The world is different from the way it normally appears. Things that would normally be impossible are happening. You have no clue this is a dream. All of a sudden things start falling into place within your brain. You realize you are dreaming. By exerting your will you can alter the scene. You can do all of the things you always wanted to do. With a bounding leap you are flying. You are controlling this and you know no harm can come from it. This is lucid dreaming. Does the I-function control this? It would appear that it does because it is creating everything and you can direct what happens. Everyone dreams. It is a natural part of the sleep cycle. It occurs during the rapid eye movement (REM) stage. Do dreams stem from the brain going through normal activity or do they come from a controlled portion of the brain? This question raises continual debate among people. However, both sides may be correct. Most of the time a person dreams and is not aware of it occurring. There are other times when a person becomes aware they are dreaming and can influence it. This is lucid dreaming. It appears that the I-function plays a more active role during lucid dreaming. This could be a new outlet where the I-function is allowed to run without constraints and produces more influences than it normally does. Regular dreaming occurs without one being aware of it whereas the I-function brings consciousness and control to lucid dreaming that does not occur at any other time during sleep. An introduction to sleep provides important background to understanding when dreaming occurs and the state of the brain. The whole process is initiated by the release of various chemicals in the brain. They cause particular areas to shut down and this is sleep. There are various stages to the sleep cycle. They are NREM, Stages 1-4, and REM. During the first five stages, NREM and 1-4, brain activity continually decreases. An electroencephalogram (EEG) reveals this by measuring all action in the neocortex. However, during REM abnormal activity begins to take place and the brain function resembles that of a person who is awake. The EEG shows fast, random waves indicating increased activity (6). Typically a person goes through many cycles of this process during a normal sleep pattern.