I'm having a really hard time making sense of the whole enterprise of Qualia Computing/Qualia Research Institute. Like this particular subject (the nature of conciousness!) is rife with cranks, so they're starting at a disadvantage. They cite some real research published in Nature Communications, that seems at least somewhat related to their ideas, so that's promising. But then they're really (really!) focused on DMT and other hallucinogenic drugs. That's not crank-ish in and of itself, there's plenty of real research to be done on altered mental states. But, they <i>seem</i> a bit too excited about the altered states themselves. My general impression of the research focus and the way they write is a bit too close to like the overly excited tripping guy in your dorm room. Then the simulation is of a standing wave on a square plate, which is plainly so far from what's happening in the brain that it's a bit baffling why this would be considered relevant. Also the QRI page is really well designed and organized, which is generally not a feature of people who aren't thinking straight.<p>I'll concede that maybe I'm being too harsh and there's something real but unconventional here. That said, the whole presentation is like the perfect uncanny valley for real scientific inquiry. Very unsettling.
If our attention was based on the shape of magnetic fields, then shouldn't fMRI studies basically not work? Our attention modulation mechanisms would be swamped by a much larger field right? But people have normal attention near powerful magnets so this seems like a nonstarter?
Some few years ago I did a YouTube dive into earthing/grounding tech setups, but never created a grounded mat to use while sleeping or programming. We don't use wifi for our computers (chips removed from machines and cable modem's wifi turned off) and spend very little time on cellphones in our residence, so we experience very little locally-generated EMF radiation (AFAIK), but I've not measured it for a very long time (I have a ~$200 EMF and magnetic field measurement device).<p>I'm curious if anyone around here has tried grounding themself while working or sleeping and noticed any difference. From a naturalistic standpoint, it seems like a valid concept to test as our pre-, say, 100ya bodies' environment had very low ambient EMF radiation. Then, before the vulcanization of rubber, our transportation when on foot, at least, was spent grounded to the earth through leather (or other natural fabric) shoes (AFAIU).<p>Anyway, I do notice that going to a park and spending a chunk of time leaning on a living tree or just plopping down on the ground on our cotton blanket does seem to confer a pleasant bodily result. Or maybe it's just Placebo. I don't <i>know</i> yet.<p>From what I remember or understand, grounding oneself to the Earth causes our body to be flooded with electrons from the Earth's natural resevoir, but I'm no EE, so I would appreciate some folks leveling me up by sharing their expertise with those reading this.<p>Perhaps grounding oneself will help harmonize our internal electical waves in a way that helps improve our concentration.<p>I'm also curious how grounding oneself would affect the alkalization of our body. I'm sensitive to acidic foods such as tomato paste or marinara or jalapeno. I'm no chemist, so I wonder if there would be an effect in that dimension as well.<p>"Nothing ventured, nothing gained." --Unknown<p>Thanks in advance.