Why do we dream? - Amy Adkins

翻译人员: Xiyu Zhu 校对人员: Gabriella Hu

In the third millenium BCE,

公元前三千年，

Mesopotamian kings recorded and interpreted their dreams on wax tablets.

美索不达米亚国王在蜡质石板上记录并解释了他们的梦。

A thousand years later,

一千年之后，

Ancient Egyptians wrote a dream book

古埃及人写了一本关于梦的书

listing over a hundred common dreams and their meanings.

列出了超过一百个日常的梦以及它们的解释。

And in the years since,

多年之后，

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

我们从未停止过探索为什么我们会做梦

So, after a great deal of scientific research,

所以，在进行了大量的科学研究，

经历了科技进步，

technological advancement,

and persistence,

以及我们的坚持不懈之后，

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

我们依旧没有任何确切的答案， 但是我们已经发展了一些有趣的理论。

We dream to fulfill our wishes.

我们为了满足自己的愿望而做梦。

In the early 1900s,

在19世纪早期，

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

西格蒙德·佛洛依德提出，虽然我们所有的梦，包括梦魇，

are a collection of images from our daily conscious lives,

都来自日常有意识生活的画面集合，

they also have symbolic meanings,

他们也有一些抽象的意义，

which relate to the fulfillment of our subconscious wishes.

和满足我们潜意识中的愿望有关。

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

佛洛依德提出，我们早上从梦中醒来所记得的所有事情

is a symbolic representation

都是我们无意识中最原始的想法，冲动，以及欲望的

of our unconscious primitive thoughts, urges, and desires.

象征性代表

Freud believed that by analyzing those remembered elements,

弗洛伊德相信，通过分析这些我们记得的元素，

the unconscious content would be revealed to our conscious mind,

那些无意识的内容都可以反映出我们有意思的思想，

and psychological issues stemming from its repression

以及精神上受到的压抑

could be addressed and resolved.

都可以被理解和解答。

We dream to remember.

我们做梦是为了记忆。

To increase performance on certain mental tasks,

为了加强一些脑力工作上的表现，

sleep is good,

睡眠是非常有效的，

but dreaming while sleeping is better.

然而睡觉时做梦效果会更好。

In 2010, researchers found

2010年，研究人员发现

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

如果被试者在第二次尝试穿越迷宫之前小憩一会儿并且做了一会儿梦的话，

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

他们在穿越一个复杂的三维迷宫时会表现更佳。

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

事实上，他们比那些在两次之间醒着思考迷宫的人，

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

以及那些虽然睡了但是没有做梦的人

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

表现要好十倍以上。

Researchers theorize that certain memory processes

研究者推断，特定的记忆过程

can happen only when we are asleep,

只有在我们睡着时才会发生，

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

而我们的梦是一个触发这些过程的信号。

We dream to forget.

我们做梦是为了遗忘。

There are about 10,000 trillion neural connections

在我们的大脑构造里

within the architecture of your brain.

有大约一万兆的神经连接。

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

它们因所有你思考以及所做的事情而形成。

A 1983 neurobiological theory of dreaming, called reverse learning,

1983年，一个关于梦的神经生物学理论提出逆向学习的概念，

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

该理论认为我们在睡觉时，尤其是在快速眼动睡眠周期时，

your neocortex reviews these neural connections

大脑新皮质会回顾这些神经连接

and dumps the unnecessary ones.

并清理掉那些不需要的部分。

Without this unlearning process,

如果没有做梦来产生这种

which results in your dreams,

反学习的过程，

your brain could be overrun by useless connections

你的大脑就会因无用连接而过度运转，

and parasitic thoughts could disrupt the necessary thinking

同时无用的想法会干扰到你醒着的时候

you need to do while you're awake.

所需要进行的必要的的思考。

We dream to keep our brains working.

我们为了保证大脑运转而做梦。

The continual activation theory proposes that your dreams result

持续激活理论提出你做梦是由于

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

你的大脑为了有效运转

in order to function properly.

需要持续不断地巩固和创造长期记忆

So when external input falls below a certain level,

因此，当外界的输入低于一个特定水平时，

like when you're asleep,

例如你在睡觉时，

your brain automatically triggers

你的大脑会自动地触发

the generation of data from its memory storages,

它的记忆库里的数据形成，

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

而这些在你看来就是

you experience in your dreams.

你在梦里的想法和感受。

In other words,

换句话说，

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

你的梦也许是一个大脑运转时的随机保护程序

so it doesn't completely shut down.

所以大脑并不会完全停止运转。

We dream to rehearse.

我们为了预演而做梦。

Dreams involving dangerous and threatening situations are very common,

梦经常包含了危险和恐怖的情景，

and the primitive instinct rehearsal theory

而原始本能理论认为

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

梦的内容对于它的目的来说非常重要。

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

无论是一个在森林中被熊追着跑的紧张的夜晚

or fighting off a ninja in a dark alley,

还是在幽暗的山谷中击退一个日本武士，

these dreams allow you to practice your fight or flight instincts

这些梦允许你锻炼战斗或逃跑的本能，

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

而且保证万一在现实中需要它们时，能保持一定的敏锐度和可靠性。

But it doesn't always have to be unpleasant.

不过梦也不一定总是是非常不愉快的啦。

For instance, dreams about your attractive neighbor

比如，梦到你魅力无限的邻居

could actually give your reproductive instinct some practice, too.

可能也会给你的生殖本能带来一定的锻炼。

We dream to heal.

我们为了治愈而做梦。

Stress neurotransmitters in the brain are much less active

压力神经传导物质在快速眼动睡眠时期

during the REM stage of sleep,

会表现得非常不活跃。

even during dreams of traumatic experiences,

即使是梦到关于受伤的经历，

leading some researchers to theorize

这一现象导致研究人员推测

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

梦的一个目的是减弱不悦的经历所带来的痛苦

to allow for psychological healing.

以达到心理治疗的目的。

Reviewing traumatic events in your dreams with less mental stress

在梦中以更小的精神压力回顾创伤性事件

may grant you a clearer perspective

可能会给你一个更加清晰透彻的看法

and enhanced ability to process them in psychologically healthy ways.

以及增强你积极乐观地面对它们的能力。

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

有特定的情绪失常和创伤后精神紧张性精神障碍病症的人可能很难入睡，

leading some scientists to believe that lack of dreaming

这一现象导致一些科学家开始相信缺乏睡眠

may be a contributing factor to their illnesses.

可能是加重他们病情的一个因素。

We dream to solve problems.

我们为了解决问题而做梦。

Unconstrained by reality and the rules of conventional logic,

在梦中，不受现实生活和常规逻辑的约束下，

in your dreams, your mind can create limitless scenarios

你的梦可能会产生无限的场景

to help you grasp problems

来帮助你把握问题

and formulate solutions that you may not consider while awake.

以及形成你醒着的时候完全不会考虑到的解决方法。

John Steinbeck called it the committee of sleep,

约翰·斯坦贝克把它称为睡眠委员会，

and research has demonstrated

而研究人员也已证实

the effectiveness of dreaming on problem solving.

做梦在解决问题上的有效性。

It's also how renowned chemist August Kekule

这也就是为什么著名的化学家奥古斯特·凯库勒

discovered the structure of the benzene molecule,

发现了苯分子的结构，

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

也是为什么有些时候解决一个问题的最好办法

is to sleep on it.

就是睡一觉的缘故了。

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

这里也有一些更为突出的理论。

As technology increases our capability for understanding the brain,

当科技增强了我们理解大脑的能力之后，

it's possible that one day

有一天有可能

we will discover the definitive reason for them.

我们会发现梦存在的真正原因。

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

但是直到那一天到来之前，我们仍旧需要不停地做梦。