Learning During Sleep: A Dream Comes True?

Simon Ruch; Katharina Henke

doi:10.1016/j.tics.2019.12.007

Learning During Sleep: A Dream Comes True?

Trends Cogn Sci. 2020 Mar;24(3):170-172. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2019.12.007. Epub 2020 Jan 15.

Authors

Simon Ruch¹, Katharina Henke²

Affiliations

¹ Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory and Consciousness, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
² Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory and Consciousness, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland. Electronic address: henke@psy.unibe.ch.

PMID: 31954628
DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2019.12.007

Abstract

Can information that is processed during sleep influence awake behavior? Recent research demonstrates that learning during sleep is possible, but that sleep-learning invariably produces memory traces that are consciously inaccessible in the awake state. Thus, sleep-learning can likely exert implicit, but not explicit, influences on awake behavior.

Keywords: hippocampus; learning; long-term memory; sleep; slow waves; unconscious.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Humans
Learning*
Memory
Sleep*
Wakefulness