Log from #Classroom on Friday, May 24, 2013 at 7PM EDT: “Brain Hacking”, hosted by Baltazaar:
[19:00:39] <Baltazaar> so, let’s begin, shall we?
[19:00:52] <TashRikil> the floor is yours.
[19:00:56] <Little_Dragon> i am here
[19:01:00] <Baltazaar> at first, does anybody of you know anything about ASMR?
[19:01:19] <Little_Dragon> nopers
[19:01:26] <TashRikil> what does the acronym stand for?
[19:01:37] <Baltazaar> It stands for Autonomous sensory Meridian response.
[19:01:45] <Little_Dragon> nope
[19:01:50] <whisperinggirl> nome
[19:01:51] <whisperinggirl> nope
[19:01:55] <TashRikil> i’m afraid not.
[19:02:01] <Baltazaar> now, that the theory part is completed, let’s ditch the doctor hats.
[19:02:26] <Baltazaar> ASMR is, colloquially speaking, attention induced pleasurable effects.
[19:02:45] <Little_Dragon> hmmm :3
[19:03:04] <TashRikil> i have experienced that before.
[19:03:13] <Mothball> I’ve never heard of that, what is it?
[19:03:20] <Baltazaar> for example, you may know some videos, or people speaking, that cause you to pay attention at the same time, and then you feel that little pleasurable tingle
[19:03:35] <Little_Dragon> your voice does that.
[19:03:45] <Baltazaar> a very good example of this is found on youtube, under the name baba the cosmic barber.
[19:04:09] <Baltazaar> now, there is some science behind that
[19:04:23] <Baltazaar> what you have normally going on is not what happens.
[19:04:32] <Baltazaar> kind of like when you have a reflex.
[19:05:01] <Baltazaar> what you see is something flying towards you, what you do is getting out of the way at once.
[19:05:15] <Baltazaar> The same method is used in brain hacking.
[19:05:55] <Baltazaar> Now, if you have questions, pleas4e, blurt them out in , but make sure that they make sense before you start
[19:06:01] <Little_Dragon> I dunno…when i see a dog, ball, frisee or succubus I just stand there and try to catch it.
[19:06:16] <Baltazaar> I agree on the succubus part…..
[19:06:20] <Baltazaar> :3
[19:06:26] <Little_Dragon> Which means certain things can trigger a different response while performing the same action
[19:06:36] <Little_Dragon> the succubus part was a joke
[19:06:39] <Akradai> lol
[19:06:47] * Akradai reminds herself to stir clear of LD 😛
[19:06:49] <Baltazaar> wonderfull. step in the right direction, LD
[19:06:52] <Akradai> *steer
[19:06:56] <Little_Dragon> the rest, objects we know are pleasant to catch, we will try to catch them once they are identified.
[19:07:23] <Baltazaar> now, if you look at the components, it becomes clear what this actually consists of.
[19:07:58] <Baltazaar> a student that tries to learn the lyrics of a song will most likely have the IPod on and play this song many times a day.
[19:08:09] <TashRikil> yup
[19:08:09] <Baltazaar> allways the same way.
[19:08:20] <Baltazaar> now, short question.
[19:09:02] <Baltazaar> how many of you are able to recall the lyrics of the song “happy birthday to you” without recalling the melody as well?
[19:09:19] <TashRikil> idunno if that’s possible
[19:09:26] <TashRikil> it’s so invasive
[19:09:43] <Little_Dragon> I can do that.
[19:09:45] <whisperinggirl> both or nothing for me
[19:09:48] <Baltazaar> there are people that can, but it is very rare to find someone that sideways.
[19:10:04] <Baltazaar> that is, because you have begun brainhacking at that point.
[19:10:16] <Baltazaar> to get to the example, you have a task.
[19:10:18] <Little_Dragon> i do not mind a person listening to the same song over and over again as long as they use headphones, otherwise I will just strangle him with the stereo power cord.
[19:10:42] <DragonAtma> (or it’s a truly awesome song)
[19:10:48] <Baltazaar> ^^
[19:11:00] <Baltazaar> this task is clearly defined.
[19:11:10] <Baltazaar> learn the lyrics of the song.
[19:11:21] <Little_Dragon> My first boyfriend played teh song Bite The Hand over and over again for weeks. The same song, he claimed he was listening to remixes but they were identical.
[19:11:33] <Baltazaar> For that, you have two things.
[19:11:35] <Little_Dragon> needless to say, that did not go well
[19:12:04] <Baltazaar> the first one is the trigger, in this case the melody, the second one is the payload, i.e., the task.
[19:12:06] <MoonWind> i can recall it with or without melody, but then again i can swap singers, instraments change the style etc. My head is a mixing console
[19:12:28] <TashRikil> why do you call this brain hacking? it’s an exercise in association
[19:12:38] <Baltazaar> allmost right.
[19:12:45] <Baltazaar> brain hackjing starts there.
[19:13:04] <Baltazaar> at first, you learn to crawl and goo, before you actually walk
[19:13:07] <MoonWind> TashRikil: it got you into the classroom. If it were just called “associations” no one would have shown up.
[19:13:38] <Baltazaar> now, to give you the most simple of definitions.
[19:13:52] <Baltazaar> You start by fusing the payload with a trigger.
[19:14:10] <Baltazaar> in this case, listen to the music, hear the words.
[19:14:26] <Baltazaar> then, you repeat it over and over again.
[19:15:03] <Baltazaar> then, at a very specific point, you have the edge that when you hear the first few notes of happy bvirthday, you know what is happening.
[19:15:21] <Baltazaar> and this is where it becomes different from association.
[19:15:25] <TashRikil> mhmm
[19:15:42] <DragonAtma> mmhmm
[19:15:42] <Baltazaar> because an association is purely, thing one reminds me of thing two.
[19:15:53] <Baltazaar> however, we take this one step further.
[19:15:55] <Little_Dragon> yes, either somebody is about to blow out candles or the restaurant staff is singing and somebody is about to get cake in the face for the embarrassment.
[19:16:22] <Baltazaar> in general, this is the only time when you wish for hysterically screaming children 😉
[19:16:33] <TashRikil> amusing
[19:17:06] <Baltazaar> now, when you do true brain hack8ing, you take something that is already there, and start to use it in a new and slightly innovative way.
[19:17:42] <Baltazaar> like, in brain hacking, you generally do not tend to go all out and just remember stuff, you create mental reflexes.
[19:18:02] <whisperinggirl> someone walked out of class
[19:18:11] <TashRikil> i think i understand what you’re getting at. can you provide a concrete example?
[19:18:26] <TashRikil> ping timeouts dont count as walking out
[19:18:38] <Baltazaar> I was just about to say that this would end the theory portion of the class.
[19:18:48] <whisperinggirl> like conditioning from psyc 101?
[19:18:49] <Baltazaar> Any more questions up to here?
[19:18:54] <TashRikil> i’m sorry. i’m leaping ahead
[19:19:13] <Baltazaar> no problem, and yes, quite likely like that, but a bit more general.
[19:19:22] <whisperinggirl> ok
[19:19:28] <Baltazaar> now, questions up to here, or continue?
[19:19:36] <whisperinggirl> not leaping ahead…reading the teacher’s mind
[19:19:41] <TashRikil> by all means continue.
[19:19:41] <whisperinggirl> i’m good to continue
[19:20:15] <Baltazaar> wonderfull, and if tash was reading my mind, he would be on the floor in the foetal position, crying for help.
[19:20:25] <Baltazaar> now, practical examples.
[19:21:00] <Baltazaar> I first realised the versatility of brain hacking when I noticed it helped with meditation.
[19:21:26] <Baltazaar> you see, generally, I have stuff to do during the day, and I can not meditate as much as I would like to.
[19:21:46] <TashRikil> thats true for many of us
[19:21:55] <Baltazaar> now, the few times I was free to meditate, I had to share the same time with my breaks at work, and other things.
[19:22:21] <Baltazaar> so, in my case, I usually had a smoke while meditating, to be more efficiant.
[19:22:39] <Baltazaar> Now, I did this for allmost 2 weeks, and I began to see some changes.
[19:23:12] <Baltazaar> whenever I would sit down, and light my pipe, my mind yould start to go blank, and I was pretty close to a meditative state.
[19:23:48] <TashRikil> i do a similar thing with a beer bottle, actually.
[19:24:10] <Baltazaar> So, of course, like a sane person, I did not stop and watch what I was doing, or check my pipe for anything else then tobacco, but continued, and toyed.
[19:25:03] <Baltazaar> it got to the point where I am now. If I just sit down, and smoke my pipe, I am just inches away from meditating, and do no longer have to use any “focus” to do so.
[19:25:18] <TashRikil> an impressive achievement
[19:25:52] <Baltazaar> in fact, I could even be at home and on the computer, if that pipe is lit and in my mouth, I am as close to meditation as I get, and actually have to fight it.
[19:25:53] <Little_Dragon> yet one that we all do whether we realize it or not.
[19:26:09] <Baltazaar> and that is the truie definition of a hacker.
[19:26:38] <TashRikil> a conditioned response, like pavlov’s dog?
[19:26:54] <Little_Dragon> Association is used in dog training for that reason. You associate a pipe with meditation, dogs learn to associate treats with good behaviour.
[19:26:54] <Baltazaar> a hacker is not an inventor, oir somebody who likes to screw stuff together, he looks at already existing stuff, and goes, what else could I use this for.
[19:27:04] <Baltazaar> exactly.
[19:27:15] <Baltazaar> now, this is only the start.
[19:27:24] <Baltazaar> that is what I have been givemn.
[19:27:38] <TashRikil> very well
[19:28:08] <Baltazaar> what I make out of this, and what each of you gets out of this, is entirely up to you and ghow much you like to experiment.
[19:28:43] <Baltazaar> for example, there are triggers we have not even begun to understand, but which are there
[19:29:18] <Baltazaar> I can cite medical studies which have linked looking at pictures of sick people with a 20 % increas3e in white bloodcells.
[19:29:42] <Baltazaar> we have studies that say that anger issues disappear when you write with the non dominant hand.
[19:30:19] <whisperinggirl> ^seriously?
[19:30:25] <Little_Dragon> so, would that mean overblown and rediculous flu scares are the best thing for preventing colds and other illnesses?…
[19:30:37] <TashRikil> hmmm…. there are many psychic applications to this sort of thing. do you have any defined triggers we could begin teaching ourselves to use?
[19:31:08] <whisperinggirl> or stick a list on the chat logs later for the class?
[19:31:24] <Little_Dragon> a suggestion: for developing the senses, say you ride a bus to and from work, use the bus as a trigger for scanning and telepathic practice.
[19:31:31] <Baltazaar> 1. Yes, if I were to fully agree with this study, I could say that watching fox news and their 24/7 health scare channel actually makes you healthy.
[19:31:46] <TashRikil> lol
[19:31:54] <Little_Dragon> if you associate a bus with developing an ability, every time you get on the bus you are surrounded by people and will practice it
[19:32:12] <Baltazaar> exactly.
[19:32:52] <Baltazaar> however, the real fun starts when you realise that you can use two different triggers for different reflexes, and can get both of the effects.
[19:34:05] <Little_Dragon> Ritual magic does that.
[19:34:25] <Baltazaar> as an example, imagine having linked your meditation that you use to get more energy with trigger 1, and the mental exercise that normally uses all of your focus to trigger 2.
[19:35:06] <Baltazaar> you can use trigger 1 to get the energy, trigger 2 to herd the mental energy to do your bidding, and make a tasty sammich, all at the same time.
[19:35:12] <Little_Dragon> You learn to associate certain arrangements and items with something done in ritual magic consciously, by setting up the proper arrangement after practice with it you trigger mind sets and energy workings and you do them as a result while focusing on other things you do in that area.
[19:36:09] <TashRikil> ritual magic would be another topic that may be taught later.
[19:36:24] <Little_Dragon> yep, in response to what balt said, that is why symbols and sigils are used by some.
[19:36:47] <Baltazaar> now, the point is not to point out how many different traditions use the same kind of hacks, the point is to go out and say, hey, I have explained the basics, and now, each of you, go out and actually experiment.
[19:36:53] <Little_Dragon> You can use one to associate with a series of steps in energy working and other things.
[19:37:43] <Baltazaar> if anybody of you actually gets motivated enough to go out any do something nifty with this, my time here was wellspent.
[19:38:01] <Baltazaar> now, any more questions?
[19:38:11] <TashRikil> i agree with seeing what we can find on our own. a couple of well experimented on things to practice might help those who are still struggling with the theory. some people learn by getting their hands dirty
[19:38:37] <Baltazaar> you can only teach so much theory, but you learn from actually doing it
[19:38:48] <TashRikil> exactly.
[19:38:55] <Little_Dragon> so let’s try an exercise here now.
[19:39:07] <Baltazaar> perfect idea.
[19:39:35] <Baltazaar> would anybody here agree that it would be kind of nifty to meditate while doing other things?
[19:39:54] <TashRikil> yes. it’s generally called focused meditation.
[19:40:11] <whisperinggirl> sure
[19:40:20] <Taetarthe> I’d like to think all meditation were focussed.
[19:40:24] <Taetarthe> but allright.
[19:40:29] <Little_Dragon> i started doing that with gardening, mainly as a coping mechanism when it gets tedious
[19:40:39] <Baltazaar> Now, how would you go about mechanically setting this up, after what I told you in the beginning?
[19:41:14] <TashRikil> i would set this up by performing the desired task as i am trying to meditate
[19:41:24] <Baltazaar> and please, don’t be shy about saying silly things.
[19:42:12] <Baltazaar> exactly. Trigger: doing your thangs. payload: meditating. repeat.
[19:42:20] <Taetarthe> Generally, I would start with a walking meditation. go out and try meditating while doing something relatively autonomous.
[19:42:41] <Taetarthe> and then moving on to more complex things once these triggers were in place.
[19:43:08] <Baltazaar> and this opens up an other nice concept…. chain up your effects.
[19:43:38] <Baltazaar> after all, i have already told you that you can do the little things like this.
[19:44:06] <Baltazaar> when you do the little things by repeating this trigger again and again and again, you also reap the benefits.
[19:44:42] <Baltazaar> freeing you up to do whatever crazy thing you want to do which you previously couldn’t do because you lacked the ressources.
[19:44:46] <Taetarthe> The walking meditation makes me think of the mindfulness concept circa Zen.
[19:44:51] <TashRikil> is it worth pointing out that negative effects can also be triggered and stacked the same way?
[19:45:20] <Baltazaar> what would be negative effects worth stacking, if you don’t mind me asking?
[19:46:04] <TashRikil> if for example you slap your hand against your forehead when you begin to become stressed and unfocused… guess what happens when you slap your head against your forehead?
[19:46:17] <TashRikil> *hand against
[19:46:31] <Baltazaar> most likely, you feel pain:3
[19:46:48] <TashRikil> it will begin to make you feel stressed and unfocused, even if you didnt start that way
[19:46:51] <Taetarthe> She only smokes when she drinks, and she only drinks when she’s pissed off about her lovelife.
[19:47:37] <Baltazaar> now, that is basically the last part, and the last concept that I have comne across.
[19:48:00] <Baltazaar> which I am not totally comfortable with, becqause I understand too little of it.
[19:48:21] <Baltazaar> you can do this brain hacking without meaning to.
[19:48:48] <Baltazaar> and most likely, without realising you brainhacked yourself.
[19:48:52] <TashRikil> my point is only that we have triggers, both good and bad, in our coding already. it may pay off to notice these things, and when we notice the bad triggers, retrain ourselves into good triggers
[19:49:22] <Baltazaar> exactly. Being aware of yourself never hurt.
[19:49:46] <TashRikil> skinner was good at that sort of thing
[19:50:06] <Baltazaar> now, more questions, comments, examples, exercises, crude jokes or jabs at long dead horses?
[19:50:20] <Taetarthe> I’m good.
[19:50:39] <whisperinggirl> so…grounding during a shower automatically?
[19:50:59] <Baltazaar> That sounds like a very good idea.
[19:51:41] <whisperinggirl> i did it when i was younger…and it auto happens now
[19:51:42] <Taetarthe> It’s something a lot of people do.
[19:51:48] <TashRikil> it is, actually. grounding is a lot like an energy cleaning.
[19:52:19] <Taetarthe> It’s part of the reason (Japanese?) monks would emphasize cleanliness and meditating under waterfalls.
[19:52:45] <Baltazaar> I may change what I do in the shower, but I will definitively try this out.
[19:52:48] <Little_Dragon> baltazaar: how about a questioning comment about a long dead horse from the crusades?
[19:53:22] <Baltazaar> go for it, LD. After all, you have held back so nicely.
[19:53:39] <Little_Dragon> if what somebody suggests changes what you do in the shower, it has to be good :3
[19:54:12] * Baltazaar does german things in the shower;-)
[19:54:36] <Taetarthe> So be hairy, drink beer, and eat sausages?
[19:54:39] <Little_Dragon> anyway, i prefer to associate the shower with cleansing my system of bad energies and associate using the toilet with dumping negative links and baggage that no longer serve me.
[19:55:54] <Baltazaar> so, since I did start a bit early, and you guys have taken to this like wombats to being cute, I would end this here, and leave you to your own devices, if noone has objections. And yes, tae, germany invented the showerbeer.
[19:56:12] <Taetarthe> Wombats shit cubes don’t they>
[19:56:14] <Taetarthe> ?
[19:56:32] <Little_Dragon> so, when i wake up, i can ground as i step onto the floor from the bed, while showering do some reiki to clean and fix up my energy system, and remove any negative links or baggage from other people as I deficate…
[19:56:45] <Akradai> heya Dragalion
[19:56:46] <whisperinggirl> so…we are dismissed so i can go fail at atma’s training now?
[19:57:00] <TashRikil> mhmm
[19:57:00] <Baltazaar> http://www.quantum-conservation.org/EEP/WOMBAT.jpg
[19:57:00] <Dragalion> hey
[19:57:20] <Baltazaar> a wombat so you don’t get too lonely, and yes, you are dismissed.

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