Sleep and Dreaming: Scientific Advances and Reconsiderations

Theories on why we dream are varied and many. There are credible scientists who say dreams have no functional purpose, but rather are byproducts of unrelated processes that occur during sleep, such as memory consolidation. Meanwhile, there are equally credible scientists who assert that dreams perform important functions that restructure the mind, helping us navigate our waking lives. A problem with most scientific books on dreaming is that they argue for one of these two extremes, resulting in a lop-sided argument. "Sleep and Dreaming" takes a much different approach. It presents five very approachable papers (e.g., you don't need to be a scientist to understand them) that cover the gamut in current scientific dream research. It then solicits opinions from the best minds in the field on the ideas presented. The end result is a comprehensive cross-section of the scientific community's understanding and thoughts on this important topic.