(2026) Sun 8 Nov 92 1:22
By: Don Allen
To: All
Re: Mind FAQ - 1/3
St: 2027>
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Article 503 of alt.consciousness:
Newsgroups: alt.consciousness
From: malcolm@wrs.com (Malcolm Humes)
Subject: Mind Machine & Entrainment FAQ
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Date: Wed, 4 Nov 1992 22:52:35 GMT
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Ok, there's seems to be occasional interest in Mind Machines and entrainment
and biofeedback devices, so I'm posting the mind-l list's FAQ for a little
further info on the subject. mind-l is a mind machines list, fairly inactive
at this time. ftp archives of the list are at asylum.sf.ca.us in the
mind-l directory. mind-l-request@asylum.sf.ca.us is the subscribe address,
but I rarely ever see any posts to the list anymore. But the archives of
old list traffic might offer many pointers to books and other resources
and ideas, so explore away...
Should this be posted semi regularly as a FAQ for this group? I won't
bother, but if other folks want to, go for it...
Author: "J. Brad Hicks"
Release: MM FAQ version 0.1
Date: Mon, 18 Nov 1991 21:44:00 -0500
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is version 0.1 of the FAQ for MIND-L, compiled by J.
Brad Hicks (jbhicks@mcimail.com). The author is not responsible. (grin)
Send clarifications, corrections, and suggested additions to the author.
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Mind Machine Digest "Frequently Asked Questions"
Q: What do you all mean by "mind machines?"
A: The phrase "mind machines" covers a whole range of technologies that
work directly or indirectly on your mind. In broad categories, this
includes HemiSynch tapes, light and sound mind machines, TENS and CES
electrical stimulation hardware, biocircuits, lucid dreaming machinery,
consciousness alteration software, and of course the old classic sensory
deprivation tanks.
Q: What is a HemiSynch tape?
A: HemiSynch
and similar tapes are cassette tapes, meant to be played
over headphones, that play different things into each ear, sometimes to
create a binaural beat frequency. Some use different sythesized
frequencies, and the new Paraliminal tapes use an odd technique of telling
two different stories at the same time, one into each ear, to work directly
onto your subconscious by confusing your conscious mind. And of course,
there are the old classic hypnotic suggestion tapes and subliminal
programming tapes.
Q: What is a binaural beat frequency?
A: The makers of these tapes want to play sounds into your head that are
exactly at the frequencies they want to entrain you to. The catch is,
there isn't a human being alive or dead who can hear a 10 hertz "pitch"
as one continuous sound. So they cheat: they play (for example) 450 Hz
into one ear and 460 Hz into the other; theoretically this sets up a
"beat frequency" of 10 Hz (460 - 450 = 10).
Q: What is a light and sound mind machine?
A: These consist of a pair of opaque goggles with built-in flashing
lights, and normally a pair of headphones with synchronized beeping sounds.
Studies have shown that if the flashing lights and beeping sounds start at
something close to your current "dominant frequency" and then slowly change
the "beat frequency" it "entrains" your brain to the desired frequency. So
for example, if you entrain to alpha frequencies, you experience some of
the same benefits as experienced meditators. Additionally, almost all users
report some kind of hallucinations from the flashing lights; mostly colored
moire patterns, but some people see detailed hallucinatory scenes. And, of
course, many of the same effects as hemisynch can be achieved by the sound
synthesizers in a light and sound mind machine. Alternatively, most of the
better light and sound mind machines include sound inputs so you can mix
the headphone synthesizers with your choice of music, environmental, or
HemiSynch-like tapes or compact disks.
Q: What are these "brain wave frequencies" you've mentioned?
A: While only the most science-ignorant fool thinks that the entire brain
pulses in time to one frequency, EEGs show that at any given time, your
brain produces distinct waveforms in four frequency groupings, called beta
waves (14 to 30 Hz, pronounced hertz, meaning cycles per second), alpha
waves (8 to 13 Hz), theta waves (4 to 7 Hz), and delta waves (1 to 3 Hz).
When we say that you are "in beta state" (which you normally are), what
we're saying is that that's the dominant set of frequencies, the ones with
the highest amplitudes. Beta is associated with alertness, with the highest
frequencies in that range often described as "fight/flight" mode. Alpha
frequencies have long been associated with meditation and relaxation. Theta
waves are considered by some to be associated with a dreamy, creative
states. Delta waves are generally strongest when you're asleep.
Q: What is the Ganzfield Effect?
A: The ganzfield effect is a sort of mini-isolation chamber. It turns out
that the mind reacts better to a blank but steadily-lit field for sensory
deprivation than it does to darkness. Many light and sound mind machines
have a setting to produce the ganzfield effect, and at least one, the
Tranquilite, is just for the ganzfield effect. You can get some of the
effects of this, though, with the cheapest mind-altering technology: cut a
ping-pong ball in half, paint both halves orange or light blue, and tape
them over your eyes, then sit where you can look into a bright light.
Q: What is the Schumann resonance?
A: 7.83 Hz. That's the average "resonance" frequency of the Earth's
magnetic field, and some people think that by entraining your brain to 7.83
Hz, you can be more "in tune with the planet." Whether or not that's true,
it makes sense that it would be a perfectly good alpha meditation
frequency, wouldn't it? The idea started with TENS (see below) hardware,
but many light and sound mind machines have Schumann resonance entrainment
programs.
<<<< Cont >>>>
Don
--- FMail 0.92
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