>>11910350ok, the brain is always anticipating what will happen next so as to respond in real time. When the brain can't anticipate what will occur next the image will seem to freeze and the sequence will extend itself like hynagogia. This often occurs when something shocking happens. And it usually seems like a dream. Because this is what occurs in sleep. You're deprived of sensory input.
Next time you realize you're dreaming try and interact with the other characters. You will notice they are slow, sometimes appear flat or still with a fixed facial expression. It is usually this point when your realize you're dreaming, because it's been unable to anticipate the next sequence.
The reason why and how your brain does this "anticipating" is still murky. And there is more philosophy than science on the issue. And even prominent PoM like Dennett ("Orwellian revisionism" ) get a lot of the science wrong. And I mean a lot wrong, he denies there is even empirical evidence for the existence of dreams.
There is also metaphysics about backwards referrals in time so you need to go through it carefully.
