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16.11.09
Dreamlab
I’ve just come back from Beijing where I’ve spent several days helping to judge a science, art and design competition called Dreamlab. A brief was set to Chinese Universities by an alliance of five UK organisations (Kingston University, The Science Museum, Design Museum, Wellcome Trust, Bournemouth University) and the British Council. A cluster of judges were picked to help cull initial entries from throughout China down to the five ideas that were presented at a live final over the weekend. The task was to create interdisciplinary teams to examine the science of sleeping and dreaming, find ways to illustrate theories and discoveries in unusual, informative (and non-sciency) ways, and present them back with slides and films. Each team had just 15 minutes to make their case. The overall standard was pretty high - here are some highlights. 
The team from Hunan University designed an immersive interactive exhibit which would explain the differences between rapid eye moment (REM) sleep, and sleep without REM, and how you would feel when awoken from different sleeping states. 
A team from Southeast University picked the ‘Activation-Synthesis’ theory of dreaming (as you do), which starts to explain how your brain compiles dreams from scattered memories over a few days, how it merrily makes your dreams completely illogical and produces dreams with no actual language in them. 
The team from Xiamen University proposed a vast brain-shaped exhibition stuffed with interactives that would answer these key questions. 
Part of their proposal also involved a random dream generator, which would spit out varying scary stories depending on what buttons you pressed to create your dream cocktail. 
China Academy of Art in Hangzhou (who presented their team photo like this, as you do)... 
...looked at the interrelationship of food and dreams, and designed a three level building dedicated to exhibitions and kitchens and curated displays. This was all topped off with a hotel on the top floor where (presumably) you could test whether pigging out on chocolate and cheese just before bedtime would send you into dream-hell or not. 
The eventual winner, Team 321 from Beijing Institute of Fashion and Technology, decided that they would wage a public campaign to educate people into realising that your body can fight cancers and depression in your sleep by releasing hormones and endorphins. 
They took the unusual decision to dress themselves as various chemicals, both good and bad, and proposed a catwalk show as the central component of their idea. Here are some of the costumes, events and animation stills.
All a bit bonkers, but fun and involving, and the kind of idea you could see on at our own Science Museum here in London. So, a deserved winner. All the entrants get a chance at winning scholarships to UK Universities, and as top prize Team 321 won a week over here in the spring, all expenses paid. Watch out London.
By Michael Johnson
Thanks to the Cultural and Education Section of the British Embassy in Beijing for their hospitality over the judging period. When the video presentations are up on the British Council/Dreamlab website we'll put another link up here.
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