Hi everyone! Welcome back to English Pulse, the podcast where we dive into interesting topics while picking up some useful English along the way. I’m Maya, your host, and today we’re exploring something that everyone experiences but few truly understand: dreams. So, let’s get started!

Before we dive into the science and mystery of dreams, let me ask you a fun question. On average, how many years of our lives do we spend dreaming? Is it:

a) 2 years

b) 6 years

c) 10 years

Think about it, and I’ll give you the answer later in the episode.

Dreams have always been a source of fascination. Ancient civilizations thought they were messages from the gods, while modern scientists study them to understand their purpose. One of the interesting things about dreams is that they can reflect our deepest emotions and unresolved issues. This idea was popularized by Sigmund Freud, who believed that dreams are a window into our subconscious.

But dreams aren't just about revealing hidden thoughts. They also help us process our daily experiences and emotions. Think of it as your brain’s way of sorting through everything that happened during the day. For example, if you had a stressful day at work, you might dream about being in a challenging situation, which helps you deal with that stress.

Let’s talk vocabulary for a second. When I say “process,” I mean dealing with and understanding information or emotions. For instance, "Dreams help us process our daily experiences."

Now, have you ever had a dream where you knew you were dreaming and could even control what happened? That’s called a lucid dream. It’s like having a virtual reality adventure in your sleep! Researchers have studied lucid dreaming and found that it can be used to overcome fears and boost creativity.

Speaking of creativity, dreams have inspired some incredible inventions and artworks. For example, the sewing machine was invented by Elias Howe after he dreamed of being attacked by cannibals who had holes in their spears, which gave him the idea for the machine's needle. And who can forget Salvador Dali’s surreal paintings, many of which were influenced by his dreams?

And now, let’s go back to our question. How many years of our lives do we spend dreaming? If you guessed 6 years, you’re right! On average, we spend about 6 years of our lives dreaming. That’s a lot of time in the dream world!

To sum up, today we talked about how dreams help us process emotions and experiences, discussed the phenomenon of lucid dreaming, and learned how dreams have inspired creativity and inventions. Isn’t the world of dreams fascinating?

Before we wrap up, here are a couple of key words from today:

    Process: To deal with and understand information or emotions.
    Lucid dream: A dream where you are aware that you’re dreaming and can control the dream.

Thanks for tuning into English Pulse. I hope you enjoyed learning about dreams as much as I did. I’d love to hear from you! Do you have any questions or topics you’d like me to cover? Send me an email at (englishpulsepodcast@gmail.com). Your ideas and questions could be featured in future episodes!

Join me next time for another intriguing topic and more English learning. Until then, sweet dreams and keep exploring!

[Outro Music Playing]

Host (Maya):
Goodbye for now, and remember to keep dreaming big!