AmbiScience improves on brainwave iPhone apps
We've previously covered brainwave entrainment apps with mindWave, and since then a slew of brainwave apps have been coming out -- and almost without exception have been gaudy, rushed, and not offering any more functionality than simply playing a binaural beat track with the iPod.
AmbiScience ($0.99, App Store) has been the first to take the plunge into dynamics and do more than just pipe canned binaural beats. AmbiScience allows users to mix a number of ambient recordings alongside tones, mixing and matching in whatever combination you like.
For instance, you can mix a tone for meditation alongside "High Plains Asia," and once done can slowly mix that into a tone that (reportedly) promotes focus. Or you could have two tones at once. Or change the background track to something else altogether.
The recordings are supposedly "CD-quality" and are perfectly looped, while the tones themselves swap binaural beats for isochronic tones, which apparently lets owners rely on audio systems beyond headphones for the sounds to take full effect.
The problem seems to be in the presentation, though. The interface is nice enough, but the labeling and descriptions give the impression of pseudoscience. Apps like this should educate people on the science and realistic potential behind the method, rather than potentially misrepresenting the intent to make it sound like a cure-all.
This is a step up in iPhone entrainment apps for now, but there is still some time to wait before an honest and fully featured brainwave generator surfaces at the App Store.
AmbiScience ($0.99, App Store) has been the first to take the plunge into dynamics and do more than just pipe canned binaural beats. AmbiScience allows users to mix a number of ambient recordings alongside tones, mixing and matching in whatever combination you like.
For instance, you can mix a tone for meditation alongside "High Plains Asia," and once done can slowly mix that into a tone that (reportedly) promotes focus. Or you could have two tones at once. Or change the background track to something else altogether.
The recordings are supposedly "CD-quality" and are perfectly looped, while the tones themselves swap binaural beats for isochronic tones, which apparently lets owners rely on audio systems beyond headphones for the sounds to take full effect.
The problem seems to be in the presentation, though. The interface is nice enough, but the labeling and descriptions give the impression of pseudoscience. Apps like this should educate people on the science and realistic potential behind the method, rather than potentially misrepresenting the intent to make it sound like a cure-all.
This is a step up in iPhone entrainment apps for now, but there is still some time to wait before an honest and fully featured brainwave generator surfaces at the App Store.
Comments
Quick question: Is there a separate archive of these iPhone-oriented posts? I couldn't find it on appleinsider.com.
Hmm, maybe the problem is not that the labeling and descriptions give the impression of pseudoscience, but that it actually IS pseudoscience? If it's not, can someone provide some information about these techniques?
Quick question: Is there a separate archive of these iPhone-oriented posts? I couldn't find it on appleinsider.com.
I can really understand somebody thinking that this is pseudoscience, because I mean - sounds affecting mindstates? Pah! But in actuality there are a number of studies which have observed this effect on the mind.
I think the effects are partly real, and can <i>help</i> you get into mindstates which you might not usually get into by yourself, but the idea of an app saying "press this button to focus harder!!" is just dishonest.
Try looking it up on wikipedia, or if you're up for a heady read, try this:
http://www.stanford.edu/group/brainw...ndandlight.pdf
I can really understand somebody thinking that this is pseudoscience, because I mean - sounds affecting mindstates? Pah! But in actuality there are a number of studies which have observed this effect on the mind.
I think the effects are partly real, and can <i>help</i> you get into mindstates which you might not usually get into by yourself, but the idea of an app saying "press this button to focus harder!!" is just dishonest.
Try looking it up on wikipedia, or if you're up for a heady read, try this:
http://www.stanford.edu/group/brainw...ndandlight.pdf
I bought it along with MindWave -- both have their respective advantages; however, both lack the ability to play while surfing the internet or checking email, for example, like one can with the iPod portion of my iPhone 3G
And the other thing is that when you close and re-open in view of the forgoing limitation, the setting for duration, etc. need to be reset all over again -- getting that together would be great