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The Limits of Dream: A Scientific Exploration of the Mind / Brain Interface

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The Limits of Dreams is scientific discussion of our current knowledge of human dreams, their significance, and the mechanism by which they occur. J.F. Pagel includes an impressive amount of previous studies of sleep, dreaming, and cognition ranging from early 18th and 19th century to the last decade. His main thesis throughout the book is the question of whether or not we should consider the body and mind as separate entities, and also whether or not we should experimentally stick to defining dreaming as occurring only during REM sleep-or Pagel puts it, does REMS = Dreams?

The book is a lot less dramatic and exciting than its title and even front cover may suggest. Pagel takes a somewhat dosile and critical view of our ability to define and understand dreams. He poses questions and provides alternative/opposing arguments on pretty much every facet of the subject. Throughout all the data and propositions, he constantly reminds us of the discrepancy between body and mind, and between REM dreams and non-REM dreams, and in the end we are left with the position that we still don't know much of anything about dreams.

Apart from the spelling errors and humorless scientific writing style, it is not nearly as enjoyable as I had hoped. It is, however, very insightful and thoughtful. I learned a good amount of knowledge I hadn't yet learned from my Intro to Neuroscience class at Georgia Tech. If I had little or no knowledge of neuroscience before I picked up this book, it would be a lot more dense and difficult to follow, though. The organization of the book is adequate, but had room to improve. Pagel did-depending on one's view-either a great job, or an annoying job of repeatedly reminding us of how each section proved or disproved the questions of whether or not REMS = Dreams, or Body = Mind.

Overview and opinion of the specific sections of the book:

1. Introduction/background

The first section does an adequate job of priming you for the rest of the book. It is here that we given several different definitions of ideas. The main two, as I mentioned, are questionable equations Pagel likes to use. They are:
Mind = Body? And REMS = Dreaming?
This critical technique allows you to evaluate for yourself which theory-Cartesian, Gestalt, Monist, Dualist, Freud's psychoanalysis, etc.-you find more plausible. He then later goes on to provide a majority of information leaning towards the Monist theory of body = mind. We also get several theories of cognition and mind. Pagel also gives us a nice table of 14 different definitions of "dream" by 14 different authors-some scientific, some literary.

2. Biological Substrate of Dream

This is where we start to see how little data there is to support the theories of dreams out there. Pagel himself states "There are few scientists that study dreams. It is not an area of study that attracts funding, tenure, or status." This is true and very sad, for I think dreams are possibly the key to understand the very basic functions of human cognition and neuroscience. We know fairly well how we work when we're awake and doing tasks, but when we go to bed at night and let our mind rest and delve into itself, that's where I believe the mind truly manifests its capabilities. But I digress. This section explains the neuroanatomy of dreaming through several experiments and theories-the main focus being on REM dreaming versus non-REM dreaming. We also see about the neurochemistry of dreaming. It is here where one of the most interesting points is made-that the neurotransmitters utilized during dreaming are the same as when we're awake. Pagel also goes into detail about certain medications that affect sleep and, reportedly, dreaming. Another interesting section is about nightmares and the neurotransmitters associated with nightmares. Studies have shown than SSRI medication apparently can induced disordered dreaming-whether that's nightmares or irregular dreaming. Next, Pagel explains some of the electrophysiology of sleep and dreams. This, of course, includes descriptions of the different EEG states and waves. This is where the research I've done for my wikipedia page helped me get through quickly. Pagel also touches on neural networks and some theories of consciousness, including Crick and Mitchinson's that dreams may be a natural result of neural net overloading in the CNS. Pagel concludes this section with a trademark statement that "simple answers and simple models no longer seem to work for the hard sciences addressing CNS structure. Yeah, go figure...

3. Studying the Cognitive Substrate if Dreaming

This section begins with a discussion of the "Substrate Hypothesis" which deals with studies in dream recall with insomniacs. The most interesting finding here is that people with Sleep Apnea tend to have worse dream recall than those who don't, but when compared to sleep apnea patients who had insomnia, their dream recall was better with the insomnia, than just sleep apnea and no insomnia. The main conclusions that were drawn is that OSA (sleep apnea) significantly decreases dream recall, and insomnia can have varying effects.
The next chapter in this section deals with memory and dreaming. The foremost conclusion here is that "dreaming is likely to utilize the same neural processing system as a memory in the integration into conscious thought.

4. The Cognitive Process of Dreaming

As you can imagine, there is an immense amount not known about how the cognitive process of dreaming works, so this section has a mix of information about the neurology of emotions, and theories as to how they tie into dreams. Most of the focus in this chapter is about the strong correlation between PTSD and nightmares/night terrors.
The next chapter explores the visual interface with the mind and dreams. The majority of the chapter explains the neurology behind vision and its functions, then it goes into imagery and dreams. This is where an unexpectedly interesting topic arises. Pagel begins to describe the link between dreams and film. He claims "film is an artificial construct that approximates the same visual imagery utilized cognitively in dreams."
The next chapter discusses thinking and dreaming. In his discussion of the neurological basis of thought, one of the most striking points he gives us is how
"the best evidence for CNS changes produced in the practicioners is electrophysiologic base on the increased frontal gamma activity noted in long-term practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism."

This shows that things like meditation and thought training can actually improve conscious and subconscious cognition.

5. The Cognitive Organization of Dreaming

This section was summed up when Pagel states "one way of viewing the dream is as a demonstration in an unadulterated form how we organize perceptions and memories in order to make sense of the world." I like and agree with this statement, and feel it sufficiently describes our current knowledge and definition of dreaming. This section also discusses hallucinations versus dreams, and the story-like (sometimes) form of dreams.
We are also given an entire chapter about film and its likeness to dreams. Pagel describes some of the research he's done with filmmakers and actors at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, UT. His findings showed that the majority of the participants had at some point used past dreams in the creative process of their filmmaking.

6. Functional Uses of Dreaming

Pagel continues to go into the link between creativity and dream capabilities. The single most interesting conclusion drawn in this chapter is that
"in our own study of non-dreamers we found that psychopathology was more common in dreamers than in non-dreamers," and "frequent, intense dreamers share with artists a psychological characteristic that he [Ernest Hartmann] calls 'thin borders.' Individuals with thin borders see most issues as undefined."
I can agree with this conclusion, and believe I am a good example of its truth.

7. Models of Mind and Brain

This section provides us, in detail, the different theories of Mind and Brain. There are several monist theories, all of which have the central argument that mind = brain, then there are several Cartesian theories that say mind ' brain. The remainder of the book is just opposing arguments for each side of the argument, which is a good strategy by Pagel to allow you to choose your own to believe. There is no great last paragraph, or line, sending us off, so I didn't enjoy that, but what can you expect from a scientific writer?

There is a wonderfully extensive list of references for each chapter, so that's very helpful. Overall, this was an OK book. It is fairly informational, but not exactly compelling. As I mentioned before, Pagel did not have any persuasive argument other than that there is so much more we need to know. This book, because of its lack of personality, did leave me craving more information and explanation, though, so that was effective.

An amazing book. The most important and accessible book on the science of dreaming since Freud.