MAS.S65: Engineering Sleep and Dreams

Instructors:

Pattie Maes, Professor of Media, Arts and Sciences <pattie@media.mit.edu>

Adam Haar, PhD Student, Fluid Interfaces <adamjhh@mit.edu>

Robert Stickgold, Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School <rstickgo@bidmc.harvard.edu>

Lab Instructors

Dr. Michelle Carr, Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Sleep and Neurophysiology Research Laboratory <mcarr4@u.rochester.edu>

Abhinandan Jain, PhD Student, Fluid Interfaces, MIT <abyjain@mit.edu>

Eyal Perry, PhD Student, Molecular Machines <eyalp@mit.edu>

Time: Tuesday 11:00-1:00 Units: 2-0-10 Location: E15-341

Grading: 50% projects, 30% weekly assignments, 20% class participation.

Note: Prior application and approval of instructors required

Course Description There is a new class of technological interventions emerging which aim to change how we sleep, how we dream, and how we think when we wake up. This course will rapidly introduce you to the nascent field of Engineering Sleep and Dreams, primarily from the vantage point of the Brain Sciences and Human-Computer-Interaction. How can sounds, smells, and other sensory stimulation given to sleepers change what information processing is happening in the mind overnight and consequently impact daytime behavior? How can we improve sleep, change nightmares, and how can we ethically build and apply these interventions? Our aim is to make you a proficient reader and designer of technologies which interface across levels of consciousness.

We will touch on lucid dreaming, targeted memory reactivation in sleep, dream incubation, altering sleep onset and improving sleep quality, sleep disparities across the socioeconomic spectrum, varied religious dreaming practices, clinical nightmare therapies and more.

Students will be asked to read and comment on 1-2 papers every week, participate in class discussions, and design and implement an original project (in a small group). This project will be supported by access to Sleep Science Lab office hours (led by Dr. Michelle Carr) and Engineering Lab office hours (led by Abhinandan Jain, Eyal Perry). Technological platforms from the Fluid Interfaces research group will be available for experiencing and use in class projects, including some sleep tracking devices. The class will be limited to 12 highly motivated, qualified students.

Applying: Candidates should fill out the application linked here by Wednesday Jan 26th to be considered. They will be notified by Wednesday February 2nd. Priority will be given to people taking the class for credit.