Dreams that appear to predict future events that could not have been anticipated through any known inferential processes have been reported for centuries, and dreams that appear to anticipate the death of an acquaintance or loved one are particularly common. Such reports become more suggestive of genuine precognition if there are no natural cues (such as an illness) to an impending death and if the time interval between the dream and the subsequent death is brief. Most reports are difficult to evaluate because we dream many times each night but typically remember and report only a salient subset of our dreams. Thus we cannot assess whether the time interval between a death-related dream and the death of the dream character is brief or lengthy because we have no control set of non-death-related dreams to which its time interval can be compared. The study reported here provides just such a control set by comparing deathrelated and non-death-related dreams featuring the same set of dream characters who died after the dreams occurred. These were drawn from the author's own dream journal in which he has recorded his nightly dreams for nearly twenty-five years. The mean time interval between death-related dreams and the person's subsequent death was significantly shorter than the time interval between non-death-related dreams and his or her death, t(11) = 3.30, p =.004, one-tailed. Cases in which death-related dreams occurred after the characters had died are also considered. Seven of the cases are discussed in detail.
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Conceptual design for The Rock Your Dream Chair. This is a collaborative intervention with Tim van den Burg, a creative maker from Breda, the Urban Living Lab Breda, and THE SPACE, which aims to give a voice to local communities in voicing their dreams for the future (of the places where they live).
This paper is a response to articles in the literature regarding symbols in dreams. While some neurology-based dream studies reject dream symbols altogether, the preponderance of material available for review accepts that dreams are frequently populated by symbols that require interpretation to be understood. In this study of my own extensive dream journals, the presence of veridical psi dreams makes it possible to rule out symbolic content in some cases. The results of this study show that-at least from the 11,850 dream scenes reviewed here-unambiguous symbolic content is extremely rare. For this paper, it was assumed that no dreams contained any symbolically presented information unless the dreams contained unambiguous indications that symbols were present. Following this method, a distinction may be made between dream content that clearly contains symbols and dreams that are assumed to be symbolic by default. Symbols that met the criteria used here can be shown to be di?erent from conventionally accepted symbols in that they clarify-rather than obfuscate-the communication of complex ideas.
Evaluating player game experiences through biometric measurementsThe BD4CG (Biometric Design for Casual Games project) worked in a highly interdisciplinary context with several international partners. The aim of our project was to popularize the biometric method, which is a neuro-scientific approach to evaluating the player experience. We specifically aimed at the casual games sector, where casual games can be defined as video or web-based games with simple and accessible game mechanics, non threatening themes and generally short play sessions. Popular examples of casual games are Angry Birds and FarmVille. We focussed on this sector because it is growing fast, but its methodologies have not grown with it yet. Especially the biometrics method has so far been almost exclusively used domain by the very large game developers (such as Valve and EA). The insights and scientific output of this project have been enthusiastically embraced by the international academic arena. The aim of the grant was to focus on game producers in the casual sector, and we have done so but we also established further contacts with the game sector in general. Thirty-one outputs were generated, in the form of presentations, workshops, and accepted papers in prominent academic and industry journals in the field of game studies and game user research. Partners: University of Antwerpen, RANJ, Forward Games, Double Jungle, Realgames, Dreams of Danu, Codemasters, Dezzel, Truimph Studios, Golabi Studios
Codarts, as a University of the Arts, develops practice-oriented research to enhance artistic development, the arts practice and arts education. Performing arts, specifically dance, music and circus, enable us to communicate beyond geographical, cultural, linguistic and religious boundaries and helps us connect our common values and dreams. The performing arts are universal in their capacity to unite and inspire, providing an excellent opportunity for us to expand our research to an international level. However, the current research strategy at Codarts does not sufficiently match our European research ambitions, even though our education is inherently international and there are multiple strong connections to relevant themes in the European Research Area. Accordingly, with this project, we aim to bridge the gap between our current national research activities and our European ambitions by aligning our research focus with the European Research Area. The aim is to develop a strategy that enriches the arts practice, arts education and our research, creating a stronger connection to the European Research Area and to relevant European networks. Expanding the scope of our practice-oriented research towards European projects is essential to increase research opportunities, improve the applicability and societal impact of our research outcomes and provide more opportunities for students, teachers and researchers to learn and exchange knowledge and insights. Additionally, it is necessary to create a sustainable future for our institution. Strategic brainstorm sessions, benchmark studies, detailed action plans and viability assessments need to make sure that we become aware of our current position in the European research field, as well as identify potential partners and networks to collaborate with. This project will eventually work towards participation in a relevant European project proposal as the first step towards strengthening our position as a leading University of the Arts in Europe.
Met dit project brengen we teamcompetenties in kaart bij het effectief en vitaal samenwerken op afstand door teams in het mkb. Een dergelijk overzicht is dringend gewenst vanwege de nieuwe realiteit die is ontstaan door de gevolgen van de coronapandemie voor de manier waarop mensen samenwerken. In de nieuwe realiteit wordt meer op afstand samengewerkt (Hamersma, De Haas en Faber 2020). Daarnaast blijkt uit internationaal onderzoek dat een aanzienlijk deel van de thuiswerkers verwacht na de pandemie vaker thuis te werken dan daarvoor (Barrero, Bloom & Davis 2020, McCarthy et al. 2020). Hoe blijven medewerkers na de pandemie hybride (deels op locatie en deels op afstand) op een goede manier met elkaar samenwerken? Welke vaardigheden vraagt dat? Samenwerken op afstand doet bijna vanzelfsprekend een nadrukkelijk beroep op digitale vaardigheden, maar ook andere vaardigheden zijn belangrijk, zoals die gericht op de teamprestatie, strategie en het verwerven en op peil houden van noodzakelijke kennis (vgl. Hackman & Wageman 2005). Inzicht in de huidige en gewenste samenwerkingsvaardigheden is noodzakelijk om teams (in het mkb) op afstand blijvend effectief en vitaal te kunnen laten functioneren. Medewerkers in teams (in het mkb) moeten hun vaardigheden ontwikkelen om op een goede en gezonde manier effectief met elkaar te kunnen blijven samenwerken. Gebeurt dit niet, dan kan dat leiden tot een verminderde effectiviteit van teams en daardoor tot verlies van werkgelegenheid en extra kosten. Het projectconsortium verkent en inventariseert in een learning community deze vaardigheden en maakt de ontwikkelbehoefte van de betrokkenen in de nieuwe situatie duidelijk. Uitgangspunt daarbij is de leerbehoefte per team en van de medewerkers in het team. Ook maakt het project duidelijk hoe deze behoefte (later) kan worden vormgegeven, aansluitend bij de manier van leren van het team.
