Latest news with #dreams
Globe and Mail
11 hours ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Breaking Down Barriers, Lighting Up the Stars: Tiens Group's 30-Year Journey of Fulfilling Educational Dreams
In the heart of Mr. Li Jinyuan, founder of Tiens Group, education is not only the warm transmission of one lamp lighting another, but also the cornerstone of a nation's lasting prosperity. For more than thirty years, this globally minded entrepreneur has, with unwavering determination, transformed his personal success into fertile soil for education: from the difficult moment of selling his Mercedes-Benz to pay employees' wages, to investing tens of billions to build a comprehensive educational ecosystem spanning from primary schools to higher education; from the first brick-and-mortar classroom on the Tibetan plateau to the resonant voices of students in an international secondary school in Singapore... Mr. Li, together with Tiens Group, has exemplified what it means to "benefit all people and fulfill responsibilities through action." In his eyes, every child deserves the right to gaze at the stars, and Tiens' mission is precisely to tear down the barriers of geography and birth, allowing the clear stream of knowledge to nourish every inch of land yearning for growth. A Childlike Wish: Ensuring Every Child Has the Right to Pursue Their Dreams Every child is a born dreamer, painting visions of the future with innocent voices—some wish to become scientists, others aspire to be teachers, and some long to soar into space. Yet not all children have equal access to these dreams. Mr. Li Jinyuan deeply understands that education is the key to transforming one's destiny. Since 1996, under his leadership, Tiens Group has used education as a powerful lever to uplift and reshape the futures of countless children. In Nagqu, Tibet, the primary school funded and built by Tiens gave children on the plateau their first bright and welcoming classrooms. In Tianjin, the transformation of Tianshi College from a vocational institution to a full-fledged undergraduate college opened wider starting lines for millions of aspiring students. In Singapore, the international secondary school under the Tiens banner has become a bridge connecting Chinese students to world-renowned universities. These efforts are more than just financial contributions—they are weighty promises: Tiens is committed to ensuring that every child, regardless of background, can pursue their dreams with courage. Footprints of Love: From a Single Classroom to a Fertile Land of Education Tiens' path in education is an epic written with responsibility. In the early days, when the company faced hardships, founder Mr. Li Jinyuan resolutely sold his Mercedes-Benz to pay employees' wages. As the enterprise grew, that same sense of duty evolved into a comprehensive educational commitment—from the first classroom in Nagqu, Tibet, to an educational landscape that spans across China and beyond. Every step Tiens has taken to support children's dreams has been fueled by a heart full of sincerity. In 1996, Mr. Li Jinyuan invested 80 million yuan to establish Tianjin Tianshi College. Over the following two decades, he continued to invest heavily, transforming a barren land into a modern educational park spanning 320 hectares. Today, thanks to Mr. Li's tireless dedication, Tiens Group operates not only a university capable of accommodating more than 40,000 students, but also the Six Forces Primary and Secondary Schools, covering the entire educational spectrum from elementary to high school. The remarkable achievements of Tianshi College have even drawn Nobel laureates and Olympic champions from around the world to visit and exchange ideas. For nearly thirty years, Tiens Group's unwavering commitment to education has demonstrated that education is not a fleeting act of charity, but a flame passed down through generations. Through education, Mr. Li Jinyuan and Tiens Group have nurtured children's dreams with deep care and dedication, bringing the notion of 'social responsibility' to life in the most vivid and concrete way. A Torch of Aspiration: The Entrepreneurial Spirit Illuminates the Future of the Nation and Home "When an enterprise is small, it belongs to individuals; as it grows, it belongs to society, and ultimately to the nation." This humble yet profound remark from Mr. Li Jinyuan reveals the spiritual core of Tiens Group. From launching a patriotic venture amid China's reform and opening-up, to expanding its global footprint across 224 countries and regions; from selling his car to support the company in times of difficulty and setting an example in the real economy, to generously contributing 21 billion yuan to educational philanthropy—Tiens has always closely linked its corporate growth to the destiny of the nation. Amidst the nation's vibrant development and days filled with promise, investing in education takes on even deeper meaning. Over the years, Tiens has not only provided material donations but has also built a comprehensive 'educational ecosystem'—from primary schools to universities, from China to the world, from financial contributions to resource integration. This systematic investment stands as a vivid embodiment of the national strategy of 'Revitalizing the Nation Through Science and Education.' In the Name of Love, Journeying Together Toward the Stars and the Sea When children recite aloud in classrooms built by Tiens, and when students step onto the global stage through Tianshi College's '3+1,' '2+2' undergraduate training models, or the '3+1+1' bachelor-master integrated program, what we see is not merely a charitable act by a corporation, but a national enterprise's heartfelt investment in the future of both individuals and the country. Under the leadership of Mr. Li Jinyuan, Tiens has used education to offer children one of life's most precious gifts—the opportunity for their dreams to blossom. "Feel Love, Create Love, Share Love"—Tiens Group's philanthropic philosophy has taken root like a seed in the hearts of countless children. Behind this vision stands Mr. Li Jinyuan, who, with the resilience of an entrepreneur and the compassion of a patriot, is writing a noble chapter of dedication to both nation and people. Such an enterprise is worthy of every ounce of trust; such a story deserves to be passed down for generations. As the echoes of the exam bell linger, the scroll of life quietly unfolds. Tiens Group firmly believes that education is the finest support for one's journey—letting the starlight of knowledge illuminate the road ahead, empowering the striving youth to reach distant mountains and seas, and building a ladder to lift every young dream toward the skies. Media Contact Company Name: Tiens Group Contact Person: Hefei Li Email: Send Email Country: China Website:
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tyra Banks and her mom break down in tears over model's surprise ice cream shop opening: 'This is dedicated to you'
Supermodel Tyra Banks warmed up her mother's emotions with a sweet treat to a surprise look at her flagship Smize & Dream ice cream shop in Sydney, Australia. The 51-year-old America's Next Top Model creator and fashion icon shared a moving video to Instagram on Tuesday, showing herself surprising mom Carolyn London with a preview of the new location. After London turned around to see the store's facade, she broke down in tears, prompting Banks to cry as well. "Oh my God, it's beautiful," London said, doubling over as Banks held her hand and they walked toward the eatery. London then elaborated on why the moment hit her so deeply. "You worked so hard and I get to see!" she gushed. "It's like a dream. Years and years ago, when I was working so hard as a single mom, I worked more than one job. I worked two jobs. I worked three jobs. I did whatever I could, and the way we would celebrate each week that I got through is I would take her for ice cream in Hollywood." London added, "We would sit in the car and talk about what we wanted out of life and where we wanted to go, and how we wanted to live and her dreams, and try to inspire her to be focused and that ice cream was so special for us." Through tears, Banks told her mother, "It's crazy, mom, because when I look at everything, I can't believe this is real. Yeah, it's my dream, but it's more than what I dreamed," before telling London, "Mama, this is dedicated to you." The video also shows off a handwritten note inside the Smize & Dream store, which is dedicated to London. ANTM winner Nyle DiMarco commented a message of support on the video as well, writing, "I love and miss your mother! Congratulations I'll need to fly to Sydney for your [ice cream]." Banks' mother, who regularly appeared to give pep talks to contestants throughout America's Next Top Model's run, has also worked with her daughter on various professional projects — including a 2018 book, Perfect Is the project, Banks and London discuss their shared affinity for food, and how it served to bond them together when Banks was building her fashion career en route to becoming one of the most influential models in history. Watch Banks and London cry over the Smize & Dream flagship store opening in Australia in Banks' post above. Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
From ageing faster to early death, how nightmares really affect you according to a dream expert
Waking up in a cold sweat, with your heart pounding and your thoughts racing can be an unsettling experience. Anyone that has experienced regular nightmares will know that a night of bad dreams can rattle you for hours after you wake, leaving an eerie feeling that lingers well into the next day. But it's not just your breakfast that a chaotic dream episode might ruin, as a major study has now linked a higher frequency of nightmares to faster biological ageing and earlier death in humans. New findings from scientists at London's Imperial College reveal that adults who report weekly nightmares are more than three times likely to die before the age of 70, compared to those who rarely or never experience them. As unpleasant as bad dreams can be, leading dream psychologist Ian Wallace believes that nightmares are nothing for us to fear. In fact, he reckons they hold vital clues to our deepest emotional states, allowing us to pinpoint anxieties and stresses in our waking life that we need to resolve. We all know that dreaming about contentedly lazing on a desert island feels vastly different from being chased by a predator on the loose, but Wallace says that dreams and nightmares are cut from the same cerebral cloth. "The reality is that a nightmare is still a dream. It's still part of the dreaming process, but it tends to be more vivid, intense, scary and emotional," he explains. "The fundamental reason why we dream, neurologically speaking, is to process emotions. So if you are experiencing powerful, unresolved emotions in waking life, then you will typically generate more nightmares," he adds. "People think that nightmares are happening to them, but in reality, you happen to the dream – and you create everything that you experience in it. In this way, a nightmare is just a sign of a powerful emotion that you are experiencing in waking life, that your brain is trying to resolve." Ongoing chronic stress in waking life is one of the most common triggers for night terrors, but there are other factors at play too. "Poor sleep quality is another key culprit," Wallace notes. "People often go on holiday and experience lots of nightmares, and that's usually because their brains are adjusting to a different time zone. They might also be drinking more alcohol, which can further disrupt sleep rhythms during the night." If you often nod off on your commute and wake up in a panic, there's a reason why shorter naps can be more nightmarish than a lengthy sleep in bed. "When we take a brief nap, we experience these things called 'hypnogogic hallucinations', which is when dream imagery comes into our mind, but we're not yet processing it in dream sleep," Wallace explains. "Those can be quite unsettling and a bit nightmarish feeling, as we're essentially not tipping over into a deeper type of rest.' Existing unresolved trauma, substance abuse and certain medications, such as antidepressants and beta-blockers, can also trigger a higher frequency of nightmares. Wallace says it's not cheese itself, but instead the effect certain foods can have on the body that can cause strange dreams and nightmares. "The more digestible a food, the more relaxed your body will be when you are asleep," he explains. "Like most other fatty foods, cheese takes quite a bit of effort to digest so it causes our sleep to be restless, making us more likely to drift in and out of wakefulness. "This makes us far more aware of our dream content and, because our body isn't fully relaxed, our dream content is often less than relaxing as well. Other foods, such as hot curries or anything particularly spicy, can also cause similar levels of restlessness, as will any heavy meal eaten just before you go to sleep." Not according to Wallace. He sees nightmares as a symptom of chronic stress, rather than the cause. "If you have unresolved emotions or you're physically tense in some way, then I would imagine that could lead to acceleration in the ageing process, as found in the new research from Imperial College," he notes. As studies have previously revealed, chronic stress can have a seriously negative effect on our health, leading to high blood pressure, a weakened immune system, digestive problems and depression. "But this is why nightmares can actually be useful experiences," Wallace remarks, "as they're your brain alerting you to the fact you're stressed and that you need to take action to resolve it. "What people always say about nightmares is that they feel out of control," he continues. "And if you're in a place where you can't manage your emotions in waking life, you're likely to feel that same helplessness in dreams." Psychologists like Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung have long theorised that the symbols in our dreams hold deeper meaning, but Wallace suggests we should analyse them with more of an abstract lens. "People tend to take dream imagery quite literally, but because it's imaginal, it's more like an analogy for something in waking life," he notes. Dreaming about death doesn't mean someone will die. Instead, Wallace says, it often symbolises an ending of one way of life and the start of a new one. "The death in your dream indicates that an aspect of your life that no longer serves you is being transformed in some way," he explains. "This transformation is often the result of a major change in your waking life where you have the opportunity to let go of old habits and welcome new ways of doing things into your life." He says a death dream is "reassuring" as you are reaching the end of a particular period of activity in your life. "By releasing yourself from your past, you have the freedom to step into a new future," he adds. Take nightmares about intruders, for instance. "If you dream about someone breaking into your house, you're not necessarily dreaming about a real break-in," Wallace says. "In dream language, the house often symbolises the self, because, just like us, it has an inside and an outside." Burglars or attackers in this context can represent internalised fear or emotional violation. "Dreaming of someone entering your home could reflect a sense of being emotionally intruded upon or feeling that your boundaries are being crossed in real life," explains Wallace. Being chased is another common scenario that tends to plague our sleep, he says. "If you're having a nightmare where you're being followed, it usually means there's something you're pursuing in waking life, like an ambition, a goal, something you're striving for. And the figure chasing you symbolises the challenge or pressure you're personally feeling in that pursuit." Finally, the classic nightmare scenario of your teeth falling out might not necessarily mean you've been neglecting the dentist. "In waking life, you tend to show your teeth in two key situations: when you're smiling and feeling confident, or when you're being assertive, like a snarl," Wallace says. "So teeth in dreams often represent personal power and confidence. "When people describe this dream, they often say their teeth are 'crumbling', and that's the same language we use when confidence starts to collapse," he elaborates. "So, dreaming your teeth are falling out could reflect a fear of losing your ability to 'chew over' or handle a situation." Read more about dreams: Dreams more vivid than usual right now? Here's why, and what they could mean (Yahoo Life UK, 8-min read) 12 common dreams and what they could mean, according to experts (Yahoo News UK, 5-min read) Dreaming about your ex? Sleep expert explains what it really means (Yahoo Life UK, 7-min read)
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
17 Of The Most Chill-Inducing, Inexplicable Events That People Have Actually Lived Through
To the absolute detriment of my sleep schedule, I love reading about creepy mysteries in people's lives. So when redditor u/Sean-Witheniand asked the r/AskReddit community to share the most unexplainable event that has happened to them, I scrolled for a while, and put together some of the most terrifying and baffling stories I found. 1."This happened just under six months ago, but I had intense dreams for about two weeks straight of the same man that I had never seen before in my life, and every single instance that I saw him, he was trying to hurt/kill me. Literally, every time I slept, he was suffocating me with a bag, slipping something in a drink, finding my house, stalking me, etc. After dreaming about him for two weeks or so, I met this man in real life at a gas station. We didn't talk to each other. I knew nothing about him, but he was there, and I could immediately tell it was him." "I finished pumping my gas and got in my car, and this man came up in front of it, put his hands on the hood, and stared at me through the windshield. It was extremely creepy, and I couldn't leave. It was late at night, so there weren't many people nearby, and I just got this horrible, gut-wrenching feeling of wanting to puke because something was very wrong. I honked my horn super loud, and he flinched and pulled away from my hood, so I took the opportunity to drive away. I had no idea who he was and had never seen him before in my life, but for some reason, I saw him harming me in my dreams. I genuinely think that my fight-or-flight response at that moment and honking at him saved me from whatever he was going to do while camping out in front of my car." —u/Pluto-Wolf 2."I had sleep paralysis about seven years ago. I had just had surgery and was sore, so I slept on the couch the first night. I opened my eyes and could not move. What I'd guess was a demon or some kind of dark entity was standing over me. Then suddenly, I looked at myself in the mirror and had red glowing eyes. I woke up, and I was so terrified. I didn't give a shit how sore I was; I got into bed with my husband at the time." —u/JinnJuice80 3."There was a huge earthquake in San Francisco in the '80s. My dad was there for a conference. We felt the quake where we were, and I suddenly started screaming, 'Dad! Dad! Look out for the chandelier!' My mom and siblings were understandably freaked out. When we finally got ahold of him, he told us he'd been in a ballroom when the quake hit and had a sudden urge to jump to the side. A chandelier fell right where he was previously standing. My family never talks about it. It freaked everyone out severely." —u/IllustriousPickle657 4."Both of my parents (who were divorced) essentially died on the same day this past December. My dad was in a hospital in Detroit for a double bypass after his fifth heart attack and died from complications late on a Monday. Earlier that same day, around 4 p.m., I found out my mom had unexpectedly died in her home in a tiny town in upstate Michigan, four hours from Detroit. It's about as shitty a situation as you could imagine." —u/acgasp 5."I was working in a lab with skeletal remains, many of which were Native American ancestral remains. I was used to working with skeletons, cataloging and measuring bones, and whatnot, and I had never experienced anything that felt supernatural. This lab was created to repatriate the Native American remains that had been excavated locally and had been severely mishandled by the university for decades. I had a box that contained only a skull, and when I opened the box, I felt anger resonating from this skull." "While it was out of the box, it felt like someone was screaming inside my head. I finished as quickly as I could and returned the skull to its place. I had nightmares for several nights and eventually told the professor in charge about it. She was a descendant of the tribe to which these remains belonged and took me very seriously. She added extra offerings to the altar in the lab and smudged the place (burned white sage), and the nightmares stopped. Never before nor after have I had such a visceral experience." —u/thetiredninja Related: 22 "Harmless" Things From People's Childhoods That Are Extremely Dark In Hindsight 6."I was in high school at a friend's birthday party. Her parents booked us a suite at a resort hotel, the kind with a mini water park you can use free if you're staying in the hotel. It was a pool party/sleepover, and we got the whole suite to ourselves, though her mom was in an adjoining room. We were staying up late watching movies, one was a horror movie about a murderer, and we were doing what teenage girls do: getting scared of nothing. Somehow we got it in our heads there was a killer outside waiting to break in and murder us." "Me, having to be the brave little skeptic, decided I would prove to my friends we were safe by opening the curtains. There was a man standing right outside looking in through the window. I closed the curtains quickly, and we were all screaming. Her mom came rushing in. We told her what happened, and she checked outside, but there was no man. To this day, I wonder what that man was doing. Was he really a murderer who got scared away by our screaming? Was he some guy passing by that happened to look over at the exact moment the curtains opened? Did we just imagine the whole thing from sitting up and talking about how scared we were? Was he a peeping Tom trying to catch a glimpse of 14-year-old girls in pajamas? Did he overhear our conversation and think it would be funny to play a prank on us? Spooky." —u/Faith-Family-Fish 7."I was at home after hanging out with my family all day. It was about 11 p.m. when I came in. I heard a low, creepy voice say, 'Fire, there is going to be danger.' I was so scared I thought my dad was messing with me, but no one was in the house, absolutely no one. The next day, we hung out again. It was midnight when we came in to get more drinks. We all smelled this horrible stench of smoke." "We checked every usual place: microwave, oven, fireplace — nothing. We ran downstairs and could not find the fire. The smell was getting worse and was in the basement by the density of smoke. We called the fire department, and they found an electrical fire in our wall. It would have burned our house down if we went to bed and thought it was fine. Yeah, $12,000 in damages, and it's all fixed. Never heard the voice again." —u/countrykidincarhartt 8."I used to visit my grandmother every couple of months or so — it wasn't a far drive, about 30 minutes. One day, I was at Walmart and randomly thought of her. Walmart was about halfway to her house, and I didn't buy perishables, so I figured, why not stop and see her? As I pull into her driveway, she is sitting on her front porch; she looks up at me and looks back down. I immediately knew something was wrong because she always jumped up to greet me. As I approached, I noticed her lips were blue, and I started calling 911. Her lungs were 80% filled with fluid, and she had two collapsed heart valves. The paramedics told me if I got caught at a red light, she'd probably be dead. She was around 80 years old at the time. She passed away at 95 a year ago." —u/blindkiller770 Related: My Entire View Of The World Was Just Completely Shattered By These 27 Absolutely Mind-Blowing Photos 9."I have no idea how I got home from a bar one night. I was living on my own and went out with some childhood friends and my brother. The next thing I remember was waking up in my childhood bedroom in my parents' house. My brother and friends were freaking out because they had no idea what happened to me. They didn't really understand what happened. They said I had two, maybe three drinks that got me really drunk, then started making plans to leave when I disappeared. I drove to the bar that night, and they went outside to see if my car was still there, which it was. My parents said four guys they had never seen carried me to the door and helped take me upstairs. My parents knew the people I was out with, but these were different people." "About an hour later, I woke up at my parents' house. I got a message from one of the bartenders there with whom I was friendly. She told me she thought I was drugged. She said I had like two or maybe three drinks when I suddenly looked like I was black-out drunk. The next thing she knew, four guys she didn't know were helping me out the door. The weird part was that the bar and my apartment were a solid 45 minutes from my parents' house. I have no idea who the guys were, what (if anything) was given to me, why something would have been given to me, or how they even knew where my parents lived. I don't believe anything was stolen, nor was I injured in any way. My mom said the guys who took me to the door were normal-looking guys about my age and perfectly polite to her. In the years since that's happened, nobody has said, 'Bro, you were wasted that night we took you home.' I just have no idea what happened." —u/[deleted] 10."When I was 21, my boyfriend (now my husband) had moved to the outskirts of Pittsburgh. I was in the process of preparing to move there myself and came down for a visit. When we were sleeping the first night, I was grabbed by the arm and pulled out of bed by a black figure. I screamed and fought, and when I came to or woke up, or whatever you call it, I was standing out of the bed right where I had been dragged to. Everyone convinced me it was a nightmare, and I put it out of my mind until I moved into the house." "I lived there for about a year, and in that year, I had this same black figure come to me in my sleep multiple times. Sometimes, they would stand on the other side of the room, standing right over or grabbing me. Once, they spoke and told me they wanted to bring me to hell. Eventually, we did move, and once we did, I never had those 'nightmares' again. No matter how illogical, I cannot figure out how I would have only night terrors in one house without some supernatural explanation." —u/BitchesBeSnacking 11."I was still living at my parents' house, and at around 2:30 a.m., our Rottweiler was sitting at the back door barking, wanting to go out to use the bathroom. I threw on a hoodie and sweatpants and walked to the back door, where I found her growling and staring out the window. It was a little unnerving, but because of the dog, I felt safe enough to step out with her for a minute or two. As soon as I opened the door, she bolted to the corner of our property. On the side of the lawn she chose, we had one standalone lamp post that provided just enough light to get a rough idea of the landscape." "I started making my way over to the dog, thinking that she didn't need to use the bathroom at all and just had the zoomies or something like that, so my plan was just to grab her and go back inside. Suddenly, the dog does a complete 180 and hauls ass down our property line in the direction opposite of what I was facing. I turned around to follow her again and stopped dead in my tracks. This tall, thin, white figure was levitating probably five or six feet off the ground in our yard. The fear flooded my body instantly. It didn't appear to have any limbs (from what I saw in a panic), and it almost looked like it was moving in the wind. The dog was following it, jumping and barking aggressively. The adrenaline and fear coursing through my body gave me the strength to sprint over, scoop up this 80–90 lb dog, and sprint to the back door. I told my family the next morning, and they seemed pretty spooked, but they also weren't taking it super seriously. I have no idea what I saw." —u/NSFWthrowaway0305 12."I was sitting on the couch with my then-girlfriend, and an adjacent wall covered the stairs to the second floor. Suddenly, we hear what sounds like someone stomping/running down the stairs. Naturally, I jumped up, assuming someone had broken in, but there was nobody there. We checked every room upstairs, every closet, under every bed — nothing. We then went on to have a bunch of other weird and unexplained shit happen during the three years we lived in that house." —u/Sawoodster 13."When I was a teenager, I almost died. I was on a cross-country team. I was running through a forest and suddenly got a cramp, which made me stop moving for a second. At that exact moment, I stopped running, and a tree landed exactly where I would've been. That cramp saved my life." —u/Mental_wolf1247 14."This isn't exactly easy to talk about, and people don't always believe me when I tell them, but here it is: I died. I got drunk and decided to go for a drive to clear my head (don't do that). It was a cool night, just perfect to have the windows down, and I wanted to hear the turbo whistle. It was about 11 p.m., so not too many people out in my area. I took a sharp turn in a 25mph zone at about 60mph about a mile from my house and rolled my truck. It was noisy; I was bloody almost instantly from hitting my nose/head, and I rolled, I'd say, probably four to five times." "At the end of the rolls, I was stopped by a loud crashing sound that was very metallic. The path I took was through someone's driveway and into their garage. I was hanging out of the passenger window with broken bones, blood everywhere, and missing extremities; you can imagine the scene at this point. Some part of the door, or fender, or something had pierced my chest. All I know is it was metal. I looked down at it, heard the people in the house scream to call an ambulance, and everything went black. The next thing I remember was waking up in my bed, wearing the same clothes, and immediately running outside to see my truck parked in the driveway, completely intact. I walked up to it and touched the hood, and it was warm. I hadn't driven since that morning around 8 a.m. It scared me shitless, and I ran back inside and checked my phone, then proceeded to sit in silence and stare at the floor for about three hours. No police reports, no newspaper articles, nothing. I felt it, I saw it, I heard it. It wasn't a dream, and I don't do drugs or have any kind of condition where I hallucinate. I talked to a shaman about it, and she pretty much told me I died but got a second chance in another dimension/universe because it wasn't my time yet. I've had chills the whole time typing this; it really freaks me out." —u/Onlypipes 15."It's not so much unexplainable, but by far the freakiest interaction I've had with a stranger. It was 2001. I was 14. I walked to McDonald's since it was five minutes from my house. I waited in line, got my bag of food, and walked over to the soda machine to fill my cup, and I realized they didn't give me a lid (this was one of those plastic souvenir cups, so I couldn't use a lid in the dispenser near the machine). I walked back to the counter and waited for the worker to turn and help me when a guy waiting in line next to me said, 'You better do something tomorrow.'" "He was fair-haired, cleanly dressed, and wearing a T-shirt and shorts. He wore a Mets baseball hat and big, thick eyeglasses. He was a young guy, probably in his mid-30s or early 40s. The McDonald's was crowded, so I didn't feel so isolated that if I had to, I would make a scene either verbally or physically. I was jarred because he was speaking forward but clearly talking to me. I said, 'Excuse me? Do what?' He then turned to me and said, 'He's on the way out.' I was now creeped out because, like, who the fuck was he talking about? I then said, 'What the fuck are you saying? Who?' I'll never forget the seriousness on his face before he said, 'Run.' Well, I left that cup on the counter, turned around very calmly, walked out of McDonald's, and proceeded to sprint home. I lived in that town for another four years and never saw this guy again. (It was a big but small town, so I'm surprised.) The only thing I can think of is that he just decided to mess with some random kid that day, and it ended up being me." —u/HouseofEl1987 16."Many years ago, I woke up sick and couldn't go to school. It was the only time I had ever been sick for school. Anyway, I had a small black-and-white TV in my bedroom, and I turned it on and watched live as a space shuttle took off and then suddenly blew up. Many years later, I phoned in sick from work, something I had never done before. I turned on the TV just in time to watch live as an airplane flew into a tower." —u/SixFootSnipe 17."This happened 25 years ago before everyone had access to cell phones and you couldn't find personal information online. My friend and I were driving when she decided to take a shortcut through an alley. Suddenly, I heard my cellphone ring, which I had just bought the week before. There was a lot of static, and a woman on the other end said, 'You need to get out of there, turn around, and go the other way.'" "I just looked at my friend, confused, when all of a sudden, we saw a man standing in the middle of the alley with a knife in his hands. My friend and I panicked and started screaming as she put the car in reverse and got out of there. To this day, I have no clue who called me or how they knew my number since I hadn't given it to anyone besides my friend." —u/Humble-Tourist-3278 Did you ever have an inexplicable event happen in your life? Let us know in the comments, or you can fill out this anonymous form. Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity. Also in Internet Finds: Holy Crap, I Can't Stop Laughing At These 28 Painfully Awkward And Embarrassing Conversations Also in Internet Finds: 23 Cute, Happy, And Wholesome Posts I Saw On The Internet This Week That You Absolutely Need To See Also in Internet Finds: I'm Gonna Have To Log Off For A Bit After Learning About These Terrible, Shocking, And Horrifying Things
Yahoo
19-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientists unite with AI to record dreams
Dreaming is a fascinating state where creativity runs wild, crafting vivid, cinematic scenes that can feel as real as everyday life—until you wake up and they vanish into memory or disappear from your recollection altogether. But what if there were a way to capture, record, and playback your dreams in the real world? At ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories in Kyoto, Japan, a group of scientists unveiled a complex system that uses functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and AI to 'record' people's dreams and play them back in a rough, estimated form. The experiment focused on closely observing the brain's electrical and blood flow activity in a select group of volunteers as they slept. To achieve this, researchers combined an electroencephalogram (EEG) with an fMRI machine, allowing participants to spend several nights sleeping while their brain activity was recorded. During the REM stage of sleep—when brain activity surges and dreams unfold—participants were gently awakened and asked to recount their dreams. This process was repeated hundreds of times, creating a rich database that linked distinct brain-scan patterns to specific dream imagery. Using this carefully constructed database, scientists employed deep learning algorithms to attempt to reconstruct visual content while the volunteers slept. During the tests, the system achieved approximately 60% accuracy, rising to over 70% on more specific categories like people or objects. Professor Yukiyasu Kamitani stated, 'We were able to reveal dream content from brain activity during sleep, which was consistent with the subjects' verbal reports.' The idea of watching your dreams play out like a vintage film is undeniably captivating, but the implications for neuroscience and mental health are equally remarkable. In the future, this innovative approach could be harnessed to explore emotional and cognitive patterns in various mental health conditions, providing a non-verbal and impartial glimpse into the subconscious. As the technology advances, it holds the potential to deepen our understanding of both human consciousness and the subconscious mind. However, while the technology is still in its early stages, the results it produces are often blurry and indistinct. Key elements such as colour, motion, narrative structure, and emotion remain largely elusive for now. Currently, dreams can only be captured in retrospect, after the subject has awakened, rather than in real-time. Dr. Mark Stokes points out that "all of this would have to be done within individual subjects," meaning that a universal classifier capable of interpreting anyone's dreams is not feasible. In essence, a dream-reading machine is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Nonetheless, this experiment represents a significant leap forward in the field of "oneirography," which involves the recording and documentation of dreams. As advancements in fMRI, EEG, and AI continue, the boundary between our internal mental experiences and external observation is starting to blur. "Scientists unite with AI to record dreams" was originally created and published by Verdict, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
