"Why Do We...?" topic Post your questions here

[Dagoth Nereviar 0]

I've always wondered why we do/why certain things happen...Of course when I finally decide to ask I go and forget them all However, I do have one...Why do we sneeze? I can understand we get snot because of all the crap our noses collect, but why sneeze? =SAlso, if anyone else has any "Why do we..." or "Why does it..." or anything like that, then just ask here....beats making loads of topics

[master_bacarra 0]

it's a natural body reflex. the nostrils move and send information through the nerve endings in the nose. then the information is relayed to the brain, thus the sneezing.there are some myths about sneezing. in some countries, people believed that the soul is detached from the body when they sneeze, that's why they say that "god bless you" or "bless you" to bring your soul back. some believe that the soul might get snatched by evil once they are "detached"i would rather have asked "why do we close our eyes when we sneeze?". i don't know if there's a scientific explanation for this but i believe it's part of the entire reflex caused by sneezing. i think i have joked before to someone that the reason for this is to keep your eyes intact when you sneeze. because if you have your eyes open, it will pop out

[TypoMage 0]

Hmm well sneezing is a natural reflex. It is done so we can clear our breath passage or when any foreign object enters our nose. Like the old classic feather. So it does not just happen there is a reason for everything. :)Hmm Mb but I have sneezed with my eyes open or not really sneeze but it is when you try to hold in the sneeze and there is alot of pressure on your eyes? Maybe that is true that your eyes could pop out of your head?

[master_bacarra 0]

well if you try and prevent yourself from sneezing, the pressure would be built up inside your face and it would find other paths so it could be released, two of which are the eyes and the ears. that's why you would feel like your ears have popped or you feel sort of a compression on your eyes.

[arza1 0]

i would like to know why we dream. why does our brain fell like it need to replay mixed memories. this never made much sense. i mean sometimes i don't dream. but i want to know why i do when i do.

[TypoMage 0]

Yea me too I would want to know why we dream too. Why do we scare ourselves as children? Like when we watch a scary movie and instead of the main character getting killed we would. It is all really weird to think of but I guess it just does.

[velma 6]

Hey,Nice topic..I would say about the dreams that It is a projection of your thoughts when your sleeping. As we know that the brain does not sleep but still keeps processing information even when we are sleeping physically.If you keep thinking about a particular thing like a scary movie or something you tend to project is as images in your mind when you are sleeping hence dreams are created. Now about the scary movies...When you watch a scary movie you are sub consciously thinking about you in the place of the victim and as the movie progresses you are still scared and the images stuck in your head and the thought that it could happen to you can also trigger nightmares :)When I had joined my current job 3 months ago, I had dreams of NON EXISTENT clients and I was handling their problems in my mind It was hilarious for I went to my office the next day and asked my boss about the client and all that I got was a stare

[Jimmy 0]

Hey I've always wondered about dreaming... it's fascinating!I believe it's because the mind is still sorting all your recent experiences... The mind can never fully shut off; so for some reason when it's processing these thoughs / memories you can "see" them, or parts of them.I think (remembering biology) the memories are held in organic parts of the brain, where links and new organic parts are made whenever a new memory is made. Over time these could fade or be built up to become more of a "permanent memory". I think it is the brain building up the organic "memory" parts overnight, and since it's going through them all to build the memories up, you see some of this brain sorting activity..Just an idea!

[truefusion 3]

On the subject of dreams, they don't necessarily have to be about what you've recently experienced. It could also deal with the past (i.e. further back than recent), future or just some random compilation. The random compilations are interesting, for you may find it difficult to figure out why you had that dream or there may be no connection to your life whatsoever but just so happened to be included in your own dream. Dreams may also help you answer questions which you yourself can't answer, you just have to ask.

[Jimmy 0]

Dreams may also help you answer questions which you yourself can't answer, you just have to ask.

Hmm... well that depends on what you call yourself. Surely everything in your brain and you body is yourself and the dreams are just a part of you. Dreams DO make up some of your character and reflect the way you think...

[master_bacarra 0]

i would like to know why we dream. why does our brain fell like it need to replay mixed memories. this never made much sense. i mean sometimes i don't dream. but i want to know why i do when i do.

dreaming is a way for the mind to process information we gathered through our waking state. i think i've mentioned it before that it's also a way for the mind to resolve issues we've encountered when we're awake. it's also a way of dwelling into your subconscious because some of the information are transferred there. i think i've mentioned this before somewhere in the forum. i think that was the topic about blind being able to see dreams and about someone who mentioned that he hated dreams with a passion.

anyway, everyone dreams everyday. it's just that we're not able to recall our dream due to the fact that the information made from our dream doesn't register. dreams usually happen during the last few hours of sleep, in the REM (rapid-eye movement) stage. a person may dream of events that had happened during the day or something as vague as "running through a field and all of the sudden flying in air". i believe someone asked before that he hates dreams because it gives you what you want and when you wake up you realize it's just a dream. it's because it's how dream works. that "need" causes you to get anxious in your waking state and probably make you stressed. your mind creates the dream that would "hopefully" somehow resolve that "need" thus, allowing you to relax during your sleeping state.

there are actually techniques in allowing yourself to remember your dream. i've done this quite a few times during the christmas vacation (one proof is i've made a dream diary and if you look at the dates, they're close to each other---usually one or two days). one way is to not make any sudden movements, usually caused by external sounds such as alarm clocks. and if you're on that part where it seems you're half-awake, don't force yourself to fully wake up, just lie on your bed for a few more minutes, and if successful, you could recall your dream. and in the case you do recall it, write it down, not only for reference, but you could also figure out some stuff that you don't know about yourself. i actually use a dream dictionary to interpret those dreams, and it makes me laugh because most of it is true. although i have one dream that i really don't understand. it was about a giant trying to chase my after i plucked a petal from a very small flower. actually it's so vivid that i totally remember the feeling i had when i was dreaming that.

Why do we scare ourselves as children?

really? i thought it was the old people who like to scare children through horror stories. i think it's part of the kids' fascination. some kids know that it's probably not true and to some it may be. scaring other kids would be more like of a "bullying" of other kids.

[Dagoth Nereviar 0]

Ahhhh I thought it would be something like that. And I've heard that myth about the soul trying to escape.On dreams: Some people (don't know if this has been mentioned) believe that it's to "test your mind", incase it was put in a scenario like it. Of course, not just like it, because some dreams involve very weird things But some of the parts of the dream. Some people think it's to help you understand your problems. And of course there's the odd person or two (Ie, me ) who believes dreams can sometimes give us insight into the future.(Don't know if anyone asked this, but) Also, according to Stephen Fry, the reason why you "jerk" or "jump" when you have a dream where you're falling is because it's a reflex, from when we used to sleep in trees, to, again, test yourself incase you do actually fall...Sorta so your body is prepared to grab onto something.On scaring yourself as a kid: I'm guessing you mean in dreams? Well in life or dreams it's an over-active imaginaiton...We can't really tell the difference between reality and fiction, so we think it's true, thus scaring ourselves

[master_bacarra 0]

(Don't know if anyone asked this, but) Also, according to Stephen Fry, the reason why you "jerk" or "jump" when you have a dream where you're falling is because it's a reflex, from when we used to sleep in trees, to, again, test yourself incase you do actually fall...Sorta so your body is prepared to grab onto something.

i'm thinking this is more related to astral projection where your "astral body" is returning to your physical body. then it's followed by a gasping of air, which is caused by drainage of energy during the astral travel and the whole process of returning to the body.
if this is about falling from your bed after dreaming of "falling", well i think it's maybe because the body moves too much while sleeping

[arza1 0]

If you keep thinking about a particular thing like a scary movie or something you tend to project is as images in your mind when you are sleeping hence dreams are created.

i don't know about you guys but when i dream i never dream about past or recent expierences. when i dream all kinds of new images that i have never seen before(something i think my mind has created) gets mixed with things i have seen. the dreams are never important or have any reasonable sequence. hlf the time when i have these off the wall dreams i don't remeber them.

what i also want to know is why our brain chooses to remeber a dream if it is just a replay itself. or why does our brain choose to forget these dreams we have.

[master_bacarra 0]

when i dream all kinds of new images that i have never seen before(something i think my mind has created) gets mixed with things i have seen. the dreams are never important or have any reasonable sequence. hlf the time when i have these off the wall dreams i don't remeber them.

the dreams you see are the representations of your subconscious. it's not really something that could've happened before in your life. the mind "sugarcoats" these informations from the subconscious and is left for us to know what it means. that's why there are a lot of dream interpreters out there to interpret such.

what i also want to know is why our brain chooses to remeber a dream if it is just a replay itself. or why does our brain choose to forget these dreams we have.

our brain doesn't "choose" what to remember. it's part of the process of storing information in our brain. the reason why you don't remember some dreams is that they don't "register" to your brain compared to some. the more the dream gets "played" during a sleep, the more it gets remembered easily. it's not the brain doesn't remember or chooses to forget, it's just that it doesn't "register" to the memory.