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Episode 2726 min

Why Do We Dream?

Wake at 3:38 in the morning from a dream so vivid you can still feel it — and know that nobody on Earth can fully tell you why it happened. Tonight: the oldest dream ever written down, pressed into clay four thousand years ago; the Egyptian dream dictionary; Plato's wild beast and Aristotle's startlingly modern answer; the night in 1953 when dreaming became a science — and the weird edges, where dreams come in black and white, an octopus dreams in camouflage, and a dreamer sends a signal out of the dream itself. Just long enough to fall asleep to. 🌙

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Take your time. The story starts when you’re ready.

Settle in. There’s nothing you need to remember.

Episode artwork for Why Do We Dream?

A note before you listen

Welcome back, my sleepy friends. Get comfortable, let your breathing slow, and follow along for as long as you like. If you drift off somewhere along the way, the story will keep you company.

Whenever you're ready

Something to wonder about.
Nothing to keep you up.

Find a comfortable corner. Let the day get a little quieter.
We’ll take it from here.