A mind machine (aka brain machine, in some countries called a psychowalkman) uses pulsing rhythmic sound and/or flashing light to alter the brainwave frequency of the user. Mind machines are said to induce deep states of relaxation, concentration, and in some cases altered states of consciousness that have been compared to those obtained from meditation and shamanic exploration.
The process applied by these machines is also known as brainwave synchronisation or entrainment.
Mind machines work by creating a flickering ganzfeld. Since a flickering ganzfeld produces different effects from a static one, mind machines can often also produce a static ganzfeld.
A mind machine is similar to a dreamachine in that both produce a flickering ganzfeld. The difference is that a dreamachine can be used by several people at once, but generally has less technical features than a mind machine.
Famous quotes containing the words mind and/or machine:
“The great danger of conversion in all ages has been that when the religion of the high mind is offered to the lower mind, the lower mind, feeling its fascination without understanding it, and being incapable of rising to it, drags it down to its level by degrading it.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
“Above all, however, the machine has no feelings, it feels no fear and no hope ... it operates according to the pure logic of probability. For this reason I assert that the robot perceives more accurately than man.”
—Max Frisch (1911–1991)