Studying While Sleeping?

We have all seen a sitcom or cartoon with this plot line: person needs to study or learn something, so they get a voice recording of their study material and put it on before they go to sleep. They then hope the next morning they will know all the material.

Now it know it is joked about, but do you think this could possibly work? I shall test it for science I say.

Tonight before bed, I am going to have an outline of my study material, and going to use one of those text to voice robot readers. I will let you know if I retain any of the information tomorrow morning. Wish me luck!

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


awesome! ive always wanted to know if that really works

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


The only thing you'll learn using the microsoft sam method, is how an insomniac feels on a daily basis.

Good luck.

i think edgar cayce would just sleep on books or some bs like that lol

I have solved computer problems in dreams. Really. I just think about a problem that I had during the day, and visualize it as much as possible before going to sleep. Oddly enough, I have woken to a solution in the morning.

I do not know how this works, but for me, if I can hold the context of the problem well enough to go to sleep still thinking about it, the more success I get. Sometimes it is truly amazing what your mind can do if not working on anything else.

I actually have an experience of doing something like this, but even stranger, when I was younger.

I had a test the next day. I was absolutely sure I was going to fail it. I went to bed that night, and then became lucid during a dream. I started to think about what I should do, then remembered my test. I wondered if it were possible to study during my dream. I looked around and found my backpack. I reached in and found the book for that class. I went to the chapters that the test was going to be covering, and read it/studied throughout my dream. I got 100% on the test the next day...crazy, but awesome

Originally posted by charlyv
I have solved computer problems in dreams. Really. I just think about a problem that I had during the day, and visualize it as much as possible before going to sleep. Oddly enough, I have woken to a solution in the morning.

I do not know how this works, but for me, if I can hold the context of the problem well enough to go to sleep still thinking about it, the more success I get. Sometimes it is truly amazing what your mind can do if not working on anything else.

I have done that with Trigonometry...As for learning while asleep for scientific purposes I say yes try it. I learned while sleeping a lot at schoold. One day my teacher woke me up and scolded me for not paying attention to his lecture and I said half asleep, I paid attention, he then said yeah then what did I say? I then proceeded to tell him all of what he was lecturing on while I was asleep. LOL. You should have seen the look on his face, needles to say I never got needled for falling asleep in his class again. To this day I don't even truly understand how it is that it can be done, but it can!!!

reply to post by ldyserenity


Also I love that most of my textbooks come with a cd that actually tells speaks what it is you are supposed to know for that course. I think this is what I will use for the Linux...just keep it in mediaplayer on repeat while I sleep!

I have done something like this. The neat thing about the human brain is that it often "bookmarks" whatever it is that one intensely focuses on immediately before sleep. It doesn't matter if the subject is a video game "level" you are trying to beat, or a guitar lick or riff you are trying to master, or an engineering problem you are attempting to solve with little (or no) success. Whatever it is, your brain will continue to work on it, process it, and attempt to play out the next step in the process. I have often gone to bed after struggling with a song for hours, and woke the next morning able to play it effortlessly. It's not 100% reliable, but it works often enough that it has earned a spot in my utility belt.

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


You know ive often wondered the same myself. This is something anyone can try aswell.

I,ll await your results and if theres anything in it i think i,ll give it a go.

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


I have "cracked" fairly challenging problems while in a dream state. And it's odd when I reminisce about this because I distinctly recall experiencing a heightened sense of clarity & focus while dreaming, whereas my conscious thinking does not seem commensurate or as pronounced.

Primarily, I recall experiencing a heightened sense of spatial reasoning, or heightened ability to interrelate & manipulate geometric figures that can be difficult to visualize if I'm just sitting at my desk thinking. It's sort of like experiencing an epiphany, only while dreaming.

Admittedly, a specific problem was on my mind before I went to sleep. Moreover, a solution or solutions such as described above don't occur as often as I'd prefer. As for listening to a tape or a tape's equivalent while sleeping in an effort to learn ... maybe? I have no idea. I doubt it, but you never know until you try. It may just work for you. If so that would be pretty damn amazing.

Originally posted by charlyv
I have solved computer problems in dreams. Really. I just think about a problem that I had during the day, and visualize it as much as possible before going to sleep. Oddly enough, I have woken to a solution in the morning.

I do not know how this works, but for me, if I can hold the context of the problem well enough to go to sleep still thinking about it, the more success I get. Sometimes it is truly amazing what your mind can do if not working on anything else.

When Albert Einstein discovered the Theory of Relativity, he didn't do it sitting in a dark room under a swinging 100-watt light, drinking pot after pot of coffee after 20 straight hours of grinding pencils to their nub. No doubt he put lots of hard work into solving this perplexing problem, but the truth is that he had his "aha" moment while taking a nap. Crazy, you say! This is more common than you may think.

OP. Try looking at the Silva method, or something similar, for learning material. In a nutshell, Silva taught that you could learn faster by studying in the alpha state. You could also use the first 30-60 minutes after you wake to listen to your recording. Because you are in the theta to alpha state automatically when you first wake from sleep.

I sat next to a kid in middle school who did this before a social studies test.
Night before the test, he slept with his cassette walkman on with all the info on it.
Dude failed the test.

I have my results from last night.

I put in my earphones and clicked play on the text to voice reader. I closed my eyes and my mind entered the state right before sleep. About 30 minutes later I manually turned off the reader.

When I woke up this morning and went over my study material, it surprisingly looked really familiar to me and distinctly remember hearing them the night before.

I think this study tactic could be a decent supplement to normal studying, but definitely should not be used as the main way of studying.

Some posters have also mentioned how they solve problems in their sleep.

One of my favorite sayings is "let me sleep on it, and I'll get back to you in the morning."

I don't think so.

Whenever I didn't have time for studying, my father used to tell me that if I put my book under my pillow, I will learn it. I tried that a couple of times, but it never worked for me...

You know how they say, You must work hard if you want a success.
I learned that on the hard way...

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


It will probably be as effective as sleeping with your head in a book for the 'information to soak in' but it's worth a shot for the sake of experimentation.

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


the cartoon u r showing is urself how u mean being totally of fake and for to pretend existing

the idea that u could exist from nothing is a lie, all knowledge and objective realities cant b useful for any but negatively, that is how evil is powerships ends

the irony is what u enjoy picturing knowing all while u know more being nothing and especially to all

it is the essence of evil, ur joy being u the positive futur one

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


In a way it has worked for me.
I have fallen asleep many times while listening to audiobooks.First of all i saw the entire story in a dream and when i tried to listen to it again(awake this time),i realised that i knew every word by heart.Also i remember the stories much better than those i have actually read.

I don't know if it would work with physics or mathematics or other lessons,but it definetely works with sci-fi stories,narrated by William Shatner

reply to post by Phantom traveller


fictions are nothing of knowing but urself insistant pleasure to enjoy pretending existing by inventing anything