Ask HN: Why aren't smartphones in our dreams?

9 points by niceice ↗ HN
Smartphones are omnipresent in our daily life, but rarely show up in dreams.

Why?

12 comments

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Source for this claim?
Saw this question today randomly on twitter, probably that's the source...
Do you, and those you know, see smartphones in dreams anywhere close to congruent with how much they are featured in your daily life?
why would it need to be everyone? is claim of absence valid at sample size one, but claim of presence only valid if all participants respond?

someone really wants to put a bow on an idea. all this needs to reach conspiracy theory is a unified idea as to why. never mind that individuals may have the same symptoms but different causes. surely this is synchronicity.

I eat a lot of vegetables and fruits and those rarely show up in my dreams. Is there a hidden meaning behind that, too?
Most of my dreams involve me being naked so it would be awkward?
Great observation.

I find that while computing hardware of any kind generally doesn't show up in my dreams, computing concepts do. It's more like I'm directly interacting with a piece of code, but not in any particular programming language, and without using any particular computer.

Your dreams are real life; real life is the nightmare.
Kinda hard to give an answer to a question that is based on two questionable claims.

Smartphones are common, not omnipresent. And they do show up in dreams. I'm not sure how often, but "rarely" seems like an odd statement to make without some data behind it. Besides, most dreams are not remembered - how can we be sure what does or does not show up in an experience that is mostly forgotten?

Uh they're not?

I don't really remember most of my dreams, but from what I can tell, the technology in them usually matches real life pretty well minus a few exceptions. Smartphones would be about as common as TVs or computers or cars.

I think it's because smartphones don't exist. I think they're just illusions. Though I wonder if it's common to dream about the content smartphones often carry. Like do you ever dream of listening to music? These days if you're grooving on your favourite jam, it's common to be listening to it on a smartphone. Or if you dream of receiving news? I've dreamt this, but I think I almost always dream that someone is leaning over whispering in my ear. Also... are you younger than 20-something? Maybe kids who grew up seeing adults with smartphones will dream about them more often?
Doors aren't usually in my dreams either.