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I have to admit that I, also, am unable to see the practical value of dreams. I would like to know if they serve a purpose. The idea of dreams being a venue for working out things that are worrying you.... that interests me. And, I hate to admit it, but Freud's unconscious, etc. also seems plausible. I like the idea. (Although I'm not so sure about some of the desires that he talks about, or the idea that particular dreams symbolize certain things).

I heard once that this guy claimed he never dreamed, and that it was the belief of his (religious? spiritual? ethnic? group... I can't remember) that those who didn't dream were those who were at peace with themselves. I don't know if this has any kind of basis in fact, but I thought it was interesting.

And on an entirely practical note, I have wondered about naps for a while. Why are power naps considered useful? How many minutes are good for a nap? What's the least amount of sleep you can get in a night, and still be able to function the next day? (I think in class we said 70 minutes.... someone else told me that it was 1 1/2 hrs... 3 hrs...  4 1/2.... 6.... you get the idea). I guess from a college student's point of view, all of this would be pretty useful information, particularly since finals are coming up and I anticipate a few days with very little or no sleep.