Why do we dream? - Amy Adkins

Prevodilac: Milenka Okuka Lektor: Mile Živković

In the third millenium BCE,

U trećem milenijumu p.n.e.

Mesopotamian kings recorded and interpreted their dreams on wax tablets.

mesopotamski kraljevi su beležili i tumačili svoje snove na voštanim pločama.

A thousand years later,

Hiljadu godina kasnije

Ancient Egyptians wrote a dream book

drevni Egipćani su napisali knjigu o snovima,

listing over a hundred common dreams and their meanings.

nabrajajući stotinu uobičajenih snova i njihovih značenja.

And in the years since,

A narednih godina

we haven't paused in our quest to understand why we dream.

nismo napravili predah u našem pohodu na razumevanje zašto sanjamo.

So, after a great deal of scientific research,

Pa, nakon obimnog naučnog istraživanja,

technological advancement,

tehnološkog napretka

and persistence,

i istrajnosti,

we still don't have any definite answers, but we have some interesting theories.

još uvek nemamo nedvosmislene odgovore, ali imamo neke zanimljive teorije.

We dream to fulfill our wishes.

Sanjamo da bismo ostvarili naše želje.

In the early 1900s,

Ranih 1900-ih,

Sigmund Freud proposed that while all of our dreams, including our nightmares,

Sigmund Frojd je pretpostavio da, dok su svi naši snovi, uključujući i noćne more,

are a collection of images from our daily conscious lives,

zbirke prizora iz naših dnevnih, svesnih života,

they also have symbolic meanings,

takođe imaju simbolična značenja,

which relate to the fulfillment of our subconscious wishes.

koja se odnose na ispunjenje naših podsvesnih želja.

Freud theorized that everything we remember when we wake up from a dream

Frojdova teorija je bila da je sve čega se sećamo kad se probudimo iz sna

is a symbolic representation

simbolična predstava

of our unconscious primitive thoughts, urges, and desires.

naših nesvesnih primitivnih misli, poriva i žudnji.

Freud believed that by analyzing those remembered elements,

Frojd je verovao da bi se analizom tih zapamćenih elemenata,

the unconscious content would be revealed to our conscious mind,

nesvesni sadržaj razotkrio našem svesnom umu,

and psychological issues stemming from its repression

a psihološki problemi koji proizlaze iz potiskivanja

could be addressed and resolved.

bi mogli da budu obrađeni i razrešeni.

We dream to remember.

Sanjamo da bismo pamtili.

To increase performance on certain mental tasks,

San je dobar za poboljšanje učinka određenih mentalnih zadataka,

sleep is good,

but dreaming while sleeping is better.

međutim sanjanje uz spavanje je bolje.

In 2010, researchers found

Godine 2011, istraživači su otkrili

that subjects were much better at getting through a complex 3-D maze

da su subjekti mnogo bolji u snalaženju u složenom 3D lavirintu,

if they had napped and dreamed of the maze prior to their second attempt.

ako su dremali i sanjali o lavirintu pred njihov drugi pokušaj.

In fact, they were up to ten times better at it

Zapravo, bili su 10 puta bolji u tome

than those who only thought of the maze while awake between attempts,

od onih koji su između pokušaja samo budni razmišljali o lavirintu

and those who napped but did not dream about the maze.

i onih koji su dremali, ali nisu sanjali o lavirintu.

Researchers theorize that certain memory processes

Istraživači imaju teoriju da se određeni memorijski procesi

can happen only when we are asleep,

jedino mogu desiti dok spavamo,

and our dreams are a signal that these processes are taking place.

a naši snovi su signal da se ovi procesi dešavaju.

We dream to forget.

Sanjamo da bismo zaboravili.

There are about 10,000 trillion neural connections

Postoji oko 10,000 triliona nervnih veza

within the architecture of your brain.

u arhitekturi vašeg mozga.

They are created by everything you think and everything you do.

One nastaju od svega o čemu razmišljamo i svega što radimo.

A 1983 neurobiological theory of dreaming, called reverse learning,

Neurobiološka teorija o snovima iz 1983, nazvana obrnuto učenje,

holds that while sleeping, and mainly during REM sleep cycles,

tvrdi da dok spavamo, a uglavnom tokom REM ciklusa spavanja,

your neocortex reviews these neural connections

vaš neokorteks pregleda ove nervne veze

and dumps the unnecessary ones.

i odbacuje one koje su suvišne.

Without this unlearning process,

Bez ovog procesa odučavanja,

which results in your dreams,

koji proishodi u vašim snovima,

your brain could be overrun by useless connections

vaš mozak bi mogao da bude preplavljen beskorisnim vezama

and parasitic thoughts could disrupt the necessary thinking

i parazitske misli bi mogle da ometu nužno razmišljanje

you need to do while you're awake.

koje vam je neophodno dok ste budni.

We dream to keep our brains working.

Sanjamo da bismo očuvali rad mozga.

The continual activation theory proposes that your dreams result

Teorija o trajnoj aktivaciji pretpostavlja da vaši snovi proishode

from your brain's need to constantly consolidate and create long-term memories

iz potrebe vašeg mozga da stalno učvršćuje i stvara dugoročna pamćenja

in order to function properly.

kako bi radio kako treba.

So when external input falls below a certain level,

Dakle, kada uticaj spolja padne ispod određenog nivoa,

like when you're asleep,

kao kad spavate,

your brain automatically triggers

vaš mozak automatski pokreće

the generation of data from its memory storages,

proizvodnju podataka iz memorijskih skladišta,

which appear to you in the form of the thoughts and feelings

koji vam se prikazuju u vidu misli i osećanja

you experience in your dreams.

koje doživljavate u svojim snovima.

In other words,

Drugim rečima,

your dreams might be a random screen saver your brain turns on

vaši snovi bi mogli da budu nasumični skrin sejver koji vaš mozak uključuje

so it doesn't completely shut down.

kako se ne bi potpuno isključio.

We dream to rehearse.

Sanjamo da bismo vežbali.

Dreams involving dangerous and threatening situations are very common,

Prilično su česti snovi o opasnim i pretećim situacijama,

and the primitive instinct rehearsal theory

a teorija o vežbanju primitivnih instikata

holds that the content of a dream is significant to its purpose.

tvrdi da sadržaj sna ima važnu svrsishodnost.

Whether it's an anxiety-filled night of being chased through the woods by a bear

Bilo da se radi o nespokojnoj noći u kojoj vas medved juri kroz šumu

or fighting off a ninja in a dark alley,

ili o sukobu s nindžom u mračnoj ulici,

these dreams allow you to practice your fight or flight instincts

ovi snovi vam omogućuju da vežbate svoje instinkte za borbu i beg

and keep them sharp and dependable in case you'll need them in real life.

i da ih održavate izoštrenim i pouzdanim u slučaju da vam zatrebaju u stvarnosti.

But it doesn't always have to be unpleasant.

No, snovi ne moraju uvek da budu neprijatni.

For instance, dreams about your attractive neighbor

Na primer, snovi o vašem zgodnom komšiji

could actually give your reproductive instinct some practice, too.

mogu takođe da uvežbavaju vaš reproduktivni instinkt.

We dream to heal.

Sanjamo da bismo se izlečili.

Stress neurotransmitters in the brain are much less active

Neurotransmiteri stresa u mozgu su daleko manje aktivni

during the REM stage of sleep,

tokom REM faze sna,

even during dreams of traumatic experiences,

čak i tokom snova o traumatičnim iskustvima,

leading some researchers to theorize

zato neki istraživači imaju teoriju

that one purpose of dreaming is to take the edge off painful experiences

da je jedna od svrha snova da ublaže bolna iskustva,

to allow for psychological healing.

da omoguće psihološko iscelenje.

Reviewing traumatic events in your dreams with less mental stress

Revizija traumatičnih događaja u snovima, uz manje mentalnog stresa,

may grant you a clearer perspective

može da vam obezbedi jasniji pogled

and enhanced ability to process them in psychologically healthy ways.

i veću sposobnost njihove obrade na psihološki zdravije načine.

People with certain mood disorders and PTSD often have difficulty sleeping,

Ljudi s nekim poremećajima raspoloženja i PTSP, često imaju problema sa snom,

leading some scientists to believe that lack of dreaming

zbog čega neki naučnici veruju da bi nedostatak sna

may be a contributing factor to their illnesses.

mogao da bude dodatni razlog za njihove bolesti.

We dream to solve problems.

Sanjamo da bismo rešavali probeleme.

Unconstrained by reality and the rules of conventional logic,

Bez stega stvarnosti i pravila konvencionalne logike,

in your dreams, your mind can create limitless scenarios

u vašim snovima, vaš mozak može da stvara bezgranična scenarija

to help you grasp problems

kako bi vam pomogao u shvatanju problema

and formulate solutions that you may not consider while awake.

i u osmišljanju rešenja koja ne biste razmatrali budni.

John Steinbeck called it the committee of sleep,

Džon Stajnbek je to zvao komitetom iz snova,

and research has demonstrated

a istraživač je pokazao

the effectiveness of dreaming on problem solving.

učinkovitost snova u rešavanju problema.

It's also how renowned chemist August Kekule

Na taj način je i renomirani hemičar Avgust Kekule

discovered the structure of the benzene molecule,

otkrio strukturu molekula benzena

and it's the reason that sometimes the best solution for a problem

i to je razlog zašto je ponekad najbolje rešenje za problem

is to sleep on it.

da ga pustite da odleži.

And those are just a few of the more prominent theories.

A ovo su samo neke od istaknutijih teorija.

As technology increases our capability for understanding the brain,

Kako tehnologija uvećava našu sposobnost razumevanja mozga,

it's possible that one day

moguće je da ćemo jednog dana

we will discover the definitive reason for them.

otkriti nedvosmislen razlog za njih.

But until that time arrives, we'll just have to keep on dreaming.

No dok to vreme stigne, moraćemo prosto da nastavimo da sanjamo.