The 15 Most Important Ideas That Came From Dreams

Your average dream has about as much meaning as a particularly lackluster fart. We’re not even totally sure what dreams are, or why our stupid brains create these formless exercises in nonlinear surrealism that you wouldn’t pay to see at your local arthouse theater even if your smartest friend insisted they were modern classics, and it’s entirely possible you’re having a dream just because you heard of someone else having it. Our brains are a frightening mess of symbols, shaky memories, and what we had for lunch.

Every so often, though, you have a dream that makes you go, “Hey. Wait. Is that anything?” Depending on how you express yourself, it might be a more-or-less fully formed screenplay, a melody that won’t leave you alone, or a really good latte recipe. For some of the most important thinkers, it can be (and has been) a scientific formula, a new invention, or something else that completely changes the world (or at least the bookstore shelves).