What if you could control what happens in your dreams? Turns out you can by doing something called lucid dreaming. Science journalist Alice Robb digs into the phenomenon in her book Why We Dream. The book discusses the ways ancient Greeks and modern research alike have tried to explain the purpose behind dreams, as well as why we should even pay attention to them. On the pod, Alice talks about her journey to becoming an experienced lucid dreamer and gives tips on how you can also control your dreamstate. We get into what modern research and academics are doing to understand dreams and lucid dreaming, and how the existence of new practices like dream retreats and dream groups are helping people form meaning from their unconscious. Plus, we talk about why we all seem to have those weird dreams about losing our teeth and failing an exam, and what they even mean in the first place.