101-nights -sleep and dream study night 031

The research project presented aims at putting the personal perception of Nathalie’s dreams through an objective, quantitative analysis using electroencephalography (EEG), in an attempt to establish a linkage between the two dimensions. 

During sleep periods, brain activity is similar to that of an awakened state, yet the thalamus, a phylogenetically ancient structure in the nervous system, isolates us from the environment. But this isolation is not total, and sometimes external stimuli are incorporated into the plot of our dreams. To establish a bridge between the record (EEG) and Nathalie’s dream narrative, we experiment with auditory stimuli as a possible mechanism of interference. 

The 101 Nights is a longitudinal dataset. At the core of the study is the concordance of two divergent fields of knowledge to record and represent the dream experience. For 101 nights physiological and behavioral data are continuously paired with the dreamer’s inner life, geared towards a dialogue.

A unique dataset for scientific analyses, methodological developments as well artistic projects, including cognitive science and multiple modalities of art. The unprecedented project allows an internal and external perspective on Nathalie’s dreams, containing extensive data for 101 consecutive nights and days.

the project produced four immediate results:

1. 952 GB of brain data was produced by the registry of 256 sensors over the period of 101 nights in continuity, including her body movement (actimetry and infrared camera).
2. the audio logs of the words triggered by the computer system, each night with their exact time.
3. Nathalie’s daily dream diary entries.
4. day-by-day activity.