Scientists develop algorithm to display images from dreams in real time

LINK

Dreams have captivated mankind since the beginning of time and have been the subject of countless studies over the years. Case in point: researchers at the ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories in Kyoto, Japan, have been working to visualize the images that a sleeping person sees in real time. Led by Yukiyasu Kamitani, the team appears to be on the brink of success. By using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) which monitors the flow of blood in the brain, the team was able to build an algorithm that can display images in dreams as they happen. This is believed to be the first time that objective data has been captured from dreams. The study consisted of three test subjects that each slept for three hours at a time in an MRI machine while attached to an EEG machine. Subjects exhibited brain activity as they drifted into State 1 non-REM sleep. Researchers would then awake the patients and ask them what they saw, a move that was repeated roughly 200 times over the course of 10 days. Scientists then found images of the 20 most common dream categories and showed them to the test subjects. Then they went back into the machine for more observation. At the end of the study, the algorithm was only able to correctly visualize what the person was dreaming 60 percent of the time – a figure that Kamitani said is too high to be chance.

That's pretty interesting technology.

I am not sure how useful it really is, how what deep, dark secrets they could get from us. Though, it is a step closer to turning thoughts into images...

I find this to be really cool. As a lucid dreamer my dreams are always very vivid. Even though I can remember them I would love to see them come to life in a way of understanding why I have these type of dreams. Teleology is allowing us to display images from our dreams is a cool way in making our dreams come alive.

This is very interesting.

A video from the link, here.
I'm not sure if thats what they came up with or it's just a concept of the idea.

In this way, the scientists were able to glean a rough translation of each subject's brain activity, and fed that data into a learning algorithm that could refine its accuracy based on further data. When the subjects were once again connected, sleeping, to the MRI machine, the algorithm scanned their brain activity, producing visualisations. As it turned out, it was only correct 60 per cent of the time — a number that Kamitani believes is significant, since it is too high to be chance.

So I guess that means it's not 100% proven yet.
Still though, an interesting idea. Hopefully there will be more tests to come.

Originally posted by badconduct
algorithm to display images from dreams in real time

Originally posted by Phoenix267
... allowing us to display images from our dreams is a cool way in making our dreams come alive.

But thats not what is happening in this study.
The "images" referred to here, are just images they grabbed from the internet, that the subjects say look similar to the one in their dream.

eg.
1. The dreamers had a dream about spaghetti.
2. The researchers get a stock photo of spaghetti from the internet.
Although the two may match up somewhat with MRI brain scans, its not exactly "from our dreams".

reply to post by alfa1


I see what you're saying. I read the title and replied. Thanks for correcting me. My mistake. But it is interesting topic.

So I suppose this will put alien abductions to rest?

reply to post by badconduct


But I don't really understand how that is supposed to work. How do you "visualize the images" in someone elses head? I mean, how? Am I understanding it wrong? Am I trying to take it too literal? Is that supposed to be done in a way that someone else then has like a picture of what I dreamt? How? Who drew it? Who filmed it? How can you make a thought/vision be seen to the physical eye?

I am not trying to mock or anything, I am absolutely sincere, because I am just not understanding the HOW. (And am otherwise very interested in dreams and fascinated by them.)

Edit: Because when I wrote my post only two posts had been written in this thread yet and I just read the others and am clearer now )

Just like with the precognitives in the movie Minority Report! The national security state with it's proverbial blue TSA gloves, upon your dreams.

Originally posted by ZetaRediculian
So I suppose this will put alien abductions to rest?

Or not.
Might prove they are real

reply to post by azureskys


Maybe a glimpse into other dimensions?



Regardless, this is very interesting indeed.

reply to post by alfa1


Exactly. It's able to recognise a strong emotional state in the mind, but it can't see what is inside it. It's like a metal detector for emotions, in a way. an emotion detector.

It can recognise when you experience the feelings of intense love, dreaming about someone you love, but it can't see her face, or the smell of the air the first time you saw her, or any of the things that we dream about.

It seems they are able to detect complex combinations of these feelings by the regions of the brains that light up, and when we associate some things in a sort of mass consciousness where certain things relate to certain negative fears or positive desires, a pattern is likely to form. Like reciting the alphabet, I would imagine that would spark up specific regions of the brain if they checked for it.

It's all a little bit clockwork orangy though, if they can detect when someone is feeling desire to murder, off goes their thinking cap and rings the police.

That is more scary to me, really, as a potential problem than being able to record someone's dreams or memories.

Originally posted by winofiend
reply to post by alfa1

 

Exactly. It's able to recognise a strong emotional state in the mind, but it can't see what is inside it. It's like a metal detector for emotions, in a way. an emotion detector.

It can recognise when you experience the feelings of intense love, dreaming about someone you love, but it can't see her face, or the smell of the air the first time you saw her, or any of the things that we dream about.

It seems they are able to detect complex combinations of these feelings by the regions of the brains that light up, and when we associate some things in a sort of mass consciousness where certain things relate to certain negative fears or positive desires, a pattern is likely to form. Like reciting the alphabet, I would imagine that would spark up specific regions of the brain if they checked for it.

It's all a little bit clockwork orangy though, if they can detect when someone is feeling desire to murder, off goes their thinking cap and rings the police.

That is more scary to me, really, as a potential problem than being able to record someone's dreams or memories.

I agree and think this is the most important observation in your thread. I also think just being able to see which areas of the brain are activated and trying to apply some algorythm to that as though this gives an accurate set of data for a computer to then interpret a picture is not exactly accuracy in any scientific way, anyway.

Plus, where this is going is exactly what you allude to above. Does anyone really want their thoughts visualized by everyone or anyone? And really, I am not convinced about the machine interpreting with the method described, and certainly 60% accuracy isn't all that great, especially when you think how this may be applied.

A line out of your brain, accurate or not in what a computer interprets is going on while trying to interface with it computationally to produce what it interprets with 0s and 1s as a data set, is also a line into your brain.....
If it can read your brain, it can give your brain what it wants it to read as.

I am very surprised that the more I read about things like this, that so few are concerned about the plundering of their minds possible, the implications of this, the lies possible out of it, and that no one feels their mind should be their own last private place, for the reasons above just as TSA putting their hands all over you before you get on a plane, and doing everything they can to assess your motives just to travel.....Not the best analogy but it's late, and I am sleepy. Sorry. I'll come up with a better analogy at some point.

This is pretty cool, I could imagine in the future were you are able to actually record your dreams visually. I usually write down my dreams in a journal. this would definetly come in handy. they need to start selling these in small boxes and marketing it. lol idream.

reply to post by badconduct


I'm curious about using the algorithm as a cipher for all sorts of biorhythms. Like, placing a holographic display above an orchestra that responds to the sound waves or to a plant with it's minute movements.

What I also want to know is if this could be perfected while conscious, much like your idiomotor muscles work to make a pendulum swing in the direction you want it to.

Interesting news, but why's it in this forum?

Misleading title because they aren't displaying dream imagery in real time, but like you say it is a step closer i guess.

Being a natural lucid dreamer I would love being able to record all my dreams in such a way, can you imagine how cool it would be to watch other people's dreams on youtube?! You could even make lucid ones where you say hi to your audience LOL!

I've had a lot of transcendental dreams too along with AP/OBE some have been completely out of this world and totally indescribable with immense beauty. If I could record these types of dreams and experiences it would open up a whole new world of exploration and excitement.

reply to post by badconduct


Thats very interesting. Lately ive been really curious as to how memories,thoughts,dreams,language, information in general is stored in the brain, what form and format. I guess they are saying our imagination and mind works by having, using, creating images that are physical representations of physically external information. Is it molecules, specific or general that is, like clay, formed into a little dog every time I imagine a dog?