Incubation Experiment

[Boadicea]

So yesterday I watched Interstellar by Christopher Nolan for the first time. Then a little later I watched it again with my family. Ever since I saw it the first time, my mind has been analyzing it and thinking about it and generally processing it, as happens when I watch a thought-provoking movie. So usually, when my mind is abuzz like this, I have to get it out somehow before I'll feel tired enough to go to sleep. I have to consciously work on it, bounce my ideas off people, and generally exhaust my brain's energy before I'm satisfied enough to go to sleep. This is due mostly to the fact that I have a highly analytical brain, even to a fault sometimes.
So last night I realized, after my family not having the energy to talk about it, that I had a golden opportunity. I decided that I was going to force myself to go to sleep before I'd satisfied my mind's analytical urges. So I went to bed and consciously attempted to not think about Interstellar. It was interesting because I caught myself several times accidentally thinking about it and trying to figure it out. Eventually I got to sleep, thinking very determinedly about other things.

I didn't have any Interstellar-themed dreams, but that was not my goal. I rarely dream about things the night after I've experienced them, and it would've surprised me if I did.
So this morning when I got up, I found that my attitude had changed somewhat regarding the movie. My urge to analyze it is gone, as well as my urge to make something happy out of it, which I think was part of my goal last night, whether I realized it or not. Now when I think about the movie, I feel sadness and exhaustion. But that's not the point.
The point is that obviously my SC did stuff with it overnight. I feel like it did, and I feel like I wouldn't have come to this attitude so quickly had I attempted to come to a conclusion about it with my derpy conscious mind.

So to sum up my novel-esque post; this wasn't about the movie. This was about consciously employing the subconscious mind to work on things, and seeing how it works or doesn't work, and what it might come up with. I'm definitely going to be trying this sort of incubation in the future to see what happens.

Have you guys ever tried this sort of thing? What happened? Feel free to share your stories and thoughts.

[DrTechnical]

I have never purposely tried to do this. But yes ... the SC will continue to chew on stuff if you let it.

I guess the closest story I have, is many years ago when I was doing doctoral research, various concepts and challenges were always on my mind. VERY often, after not determining a solution or not sufficiently analyzing something, I would dream about the challenge and develop a solution or insight while dreaming. Now sometimes it was a good genuine insight, and other times it was crap. But that is rather similar to what you are describing.

Interstellar was one of those bitter sweet movies. I thought it was outstanding. But it's not for everyone. In part, because you DO have to think about it a bit. But not to go too far on a tangent here .. What I liked was the multi-dimensional force transfer where he figured out how to send a message to the watch. On occasion, when I discuss my mind matter interaction experiments (dreamspace to waking reality), I reference that scene, and it makes it easier for people to get the concept.

[Boadicea]

I suppose subject incubation is how the old saying "I'll have to sleep on it" came about. Thanks for sharing, Dr T!

[mentalenforcer]

I always seem to be working on things while I dream.  Of course, my subconscious has its own priorities, so I'm not sure if I can determine what it works on.

What bothered me about Interstellar was all the lies.  To a lesser extent, it also bugged me that they chose to go first to the one place they shouldn't have gone.  And then they were like, "oh snap, gravity!"

[Boadicea]

I always seem to be working on things while I dream.  Of course, my subconscious has its own priorities, so I'm not sure if I can determine what it works on.

What bothered me about Interstellar was all the lies.  To a lesser extent, it also bugged me that they chose to go first to the one place they shouldn't have gone.  And then they were like, "oh snap, gravity!"

Well, they kept getting positive pings from the first planet and it was closer, and they were willing to sacrifice a few years if it would mean finding the one planet that was inhabitable. Sure it was a bad decision, but they knew their mission and with just the four of them there with no outside help they had to make that decision themselves. Remember when TARS and Brand got back into the ship Cooper said that they weren't prepared for this, and he was right. But they couldn't really have known, and would've felt horrible if they had skipped the closest planet when they might've saved the scientist who went there. And the lies... Part of human faults. I really like how real the whole movie was. It just seemed so realistic and not over the top and I feel like that's what would really have happened. It's a fantastic movie but I can only give it a four out of five (or four and a half) because it made me cry so much and I'm really sick of the whole time loop plot twist. It's been done to death.