What are Mind Machines?

Mind machines are tools that help you enter altered states of consciousness (also called neurotechnology, or psychotechnology). Primarily, the term "mind machine" refers to light & sound machines, but also includes a broader range of tools like biofeedback devices, sleep & lucid dreaming tools, and binaural beat technology like Hemi-Sync. These cutting edge devices are rapidly becoming tools of choice to explore beginning or advanced meditation, self hypnosis, sleep and dream enhancement, learning, consciousness expansion, or stress management and more. nnINTROnnHumans have an innate response to light and sound. Past cultures used chants and torches to enter trances...we go to rock concerts and get revved by strobing lights and thumping bass...and we are lulled by the gentle flicker and crackling coming from the fireplace. nnAnd, our brains need stimulation like light and sound to make new neuronal connections. Our visual cortex is highly integrated with the rest of our brain, and translates flickering light into energy for learning, relaxation, creativity, focus, or whatever the stimulation and intent direct. nnLight and sound stimulation (also called audio visual stimulation, or AVS) is a controlled form of this energy - a primitive ceremony, or concert, or a cozy holiday fire in a box! Much time and research has gone into the design of light and sound technology, giving us affordable, hi-grade, effective tools for functioning. nnLight and sound machines produce specific, rhythmic stimulation and energy based on this research. We know the human brain has a certain rhythm when relaxed, another rhythm when focused, and so on. During a session, your overall brain rhythms, or frequencies, begin to follow the type of stimulation you choose. In this way, you are able to go to go past all your mental chatter from a busy day and enjoy profound relaxation, focus, sleep, meditation, and dazzling entertainment!nnHOW DOES LIGHT & SOUND STIMULATION WORK?nnOur brain is an electrical organ. It functions according to electrical potentials and frequencies just like our heart. And just as different heart rates relate to different states of your body, different brain rhythms relate to different states of mind. These rhythms, or brainwaves, are read by an electroencephalograph (EEG) machine and are generally grouped into four main classifications: Beta, Alpha, Theta, and Delta. Furthermore, each brainwave category is associated with certain mental states, like focus, relaxation, meditation and sleep, respectively. nnLight and sound stimulation is a way to externally influence your ability to enter a desired mental state. And it does so in a stunning, cosmic way. The stimulation provided by a light and sound machine is predetermined by the type of session you choose. If you want to relax for example, the lights will gently pulsate at a frequency in the alpha range - as that is the frequency of a relaxed human brain. When stimulated as such, your brain begins to actually enter that mental state. The session types can be quite elaborate, including those for specific meditations, energizing, visualization, right or left hemisphere stimulation, breath pacing, and peak performance! That's just to name a few.nnThere are 4 parts to the light and sound experience: 1) The control unit, 2) The headphones, 3) The light-emitting glasses, and 4) Your intent. nnThe control units are about the size of a Walkman and have only a few, simple buttons. They vary in capability. 3PoundUniverse.com carries a full selection of machines ranging from basic one-person "select and play", to complex two-person, fully programmable. All control units allow the user to adjust the light and sound levels. Some of the machines can connect to a computer, allowing you to download more sessions and allowing you to create your own with included software.nThe headphones transmit the advanced sound technology that the control unit produces. During a session, the rhythm, pitch, musical effect, and timing with the light is elaborately orchestrated. Much of the sound in these devices is based on the concept of binaural beats. Binaural beats result when the headphones emit two tones of nearly identical frequencies at the same time - one in each ear. Our cortex perceives the difference between the tones as a third frequency (a binaural beat), which feels like it is being generated in the core of the brain. nnAside from this being an amazing sensation, the binaural beat is actually guiding your brain toward the target state you chose in your session because it is perceived as an alpha frequency, or a beta, and so on. If the difference between the tones in each earphone is an alpha frequency of 10 Hz, and the light frames are pulsing at 10 Hz, then our brain will begin to follow, and enter an alpha state of relaxation. As you experience light and sound stimulation more often, your brain begins to enter a desired state more easily, and functions more efficiently.nnThe light-emitting glasses resemble sunglasses, with 3-4 LEDs mounted inside the "lens". Glasses are available with different colors of LEDs, and are divided into Standard and Premium, according to LED brightness and how hard it is to manufacture a certain color. Scroll down for information about the different colors of glasses.nnWHAT CAN LIGHT & SOUND STIMULATION DO FOR ME?nnLight and sound stimulation can help people achieve many things! It is a powerful relaxation and stress management tool. Meditation becomes immensely improved - it takes people a fraction of the time to reach and maintain deep meditative states than before. The light and sound frequencies gently urge the user to remain in the "zone" of mental alertness and physical relaxation. Users of light and sound often report feelings of balance, connectedness and even sensations of floating. Visions with deeply personal meaning sometimes surface. Alone, or combined with hypnosis CDs or favorite music, profoundly deep states of consciousness can be attained. Adept meditators reach states much deeper with light and sound - and for longer periods of time - than ever before.nnMany users report vivid dreams when using a light and sound machines. Building upon that, some specifically practice letting their bodies drift off into deep relaxation while keeping their minds focused and aware. Spending time in this state can increase one's ability to lucid dream - especially if they program, or repeat to themselves that they will remember their dreams when asleep and try to re-enter this mind awake/body asleep state at night. Light and sound machines also have sessions included to help guide it's user into sleep. The frequencies of the light and sound progressively slow until they are operating in the delta range, the range of deep sleep. In this way, many use their machines as a sleeping aid and a tool to help them overcome nights of insomnia.nnLight and sound stimulation is documented to promote learning and concentration as well. By entering a relaxed state of focus, learning and memory become much more efficient. Many individuals with attention deficits can benefit by actually doing sessions in the beta, or low-beta range (or using a pre-programmed session for learning or focus). Individuals with test anxiety enjoy huge improvements by doing such a session before testing, as they find their minds primed to perform, instead of caught in a fog of panic.nnUse it or lose it! You've heard this term many times in relation to mental acuity. Light and sound stimulation is a fantastic way to exercise your brain. Visual and auditory stimulation act across a huge neural network. Keeping these neurons firing on a regular basis gently act as 'neuronal aerobics'!nnFinally, if you're into psychedelia, than light and sound machines are for you. An otherwordly array of colors dance around your field of vision. Our machines also have built-in entertainment sessions that give the user a sense of spinning, spiraling, flying, etc. Individual perceptions are different from person to person, but always a trip!nnUSING YOUR OWN MACHINEnnOnce you have a unit of your own, the use of it is really quite simple. The user manual covers all the details, and provides a list of the pre-loaded sessions grouped by type (i.e. Relaxation, Energize, Meditations, etc.). Select a specific session, get comfortable, don the headphones and glasses, hit "Play", CLOSE YOUR EYES (the LEDs flash through your closed eyelids), and enjoy. During your experience, don't do anything! Don't try to force relaxation or focus - just "go with the flow". You'll soon realize the swirling colors and sounds have swept you off to a different place within your mind - one more peaceful and alert. A light & sound machine is a very effective tool for helping to overcome insomnia, as each of the machines available here have pre-loaded sessions for sleep enhancement. A beginning user should experience a session regularly (every day or close to that) for the first few weeks. Don't overdo it -- an hour a day is a lot. nnENJOY!nnWhen you begin using a light and sound machine, you willfind an unlimited number of "layers" in your mind to explore and ways to relax deeply. Where you "go" during a session is completely up to you. These machines are merely tools to help you get there. Visit www.3PoundUniverse.com for more information and a full selection of these and related products.