When things go bump in the night: how our brains trick us into hearing things that aren’t there

It's 3 a.m. You've woken from a dead sleep because you've heard a thud in the darkness or a floorboard creaking downstairs. Or perhaps you've woken because you have the unmistakable sensation you're not alone.

Sometimes our brain plays tricks on us. MAYA LAB/ Shutterstock It’s three in the morning. You’ve woken from a dead sleep because you’ve heard a thud in the darkness or a floorboard creaking downstairs. Or perhaps you’ve woken because you have the unmistakable sensation you’re…