Entraining Tones and Binaural Beats
Entraining Tones and Binaural Beats
- by Dave Siever of Mind Alive Inc.
Sound can have profound effects on people. Although sounds appear to be a personal experience, humans around the world are hard-wired to have similar experiences to certain sounds. The sound of chirping birds in a forest produces even harmonics and will be more relaxing than the sounds from a factory (odd harmonics), not just because of the associations people make with sounds of nature versus factories, but also because of the harmonic content. However, if a person has a fear of birds (ornithophobia), then chirping birds might be quite distressing. Skilled musicians today continue to purchase vacuum-tube pre-amplifiers because vacuum-tube amps generate even-harmonic distortion that is enjoyable to listen to, whereas transistors generate odd-harmonic distortion, which often “gets on the nerves.” Spooky sounds can make people feel anxious and scared, whereas up-tempo sounds can make people feel energetic and lively. Rock music has been shown to reduce an ADD child’s hyperactivity and improve the child’s ability to pay attention while studying (Cripe, 1986).
Dissociation
Dissociation is traditionally associated with pathology. However, dissociation can also have a good side to it. Dissociation occurs when we meditate, exercise, go biking, hiking, read a good book, take in a movie or enjoy a sporting event, because we get drawn into the present moment and dissociate from all of our daily worries, anxieties and the resulting unhealthy mental chatter. Several techniques such as dot staring and stimulus depression have been shown to induce dissociation (Leonard, Telch, & Harrington, 1999). Audioanalgesia using white noise and/or music has been shown to effectively increase pain threshold and pain tolerance during a dental procedure (Gardner & Licklider, 1959; Gardner, Licklider, & Weisz, 1960; Schermer, 1960; Monsey, 1960; Sidney, 1962; Morosko & Simmons, 1966). Regardless of the activity,
- by Dave Siever of Mind Alive Inc.
Sound can have profound effects on people. Although sounds appear to be a personal experience, humans around the world are hard-wired to have similar experiences to certain sounds. The sound of chirping birds in a forest produces even harmonics and will be more relaxing than the sounds from a factory (odd harmonics), not just because of the associations people make with sounds of nature versus factories, but also because of the harmonic content. However, if a person has a fear of birds (ornithophobia), then chirping birds might be quite distressing. Skilled musicians today continue to purchase vacuum-tube pre-amplifiers because vacuum-tube amps generate even-harmonic distortion that is enjoyable to listen to, whereas transistors generate odd-harmonic distortion, which often “gets on the nerves.” Spooky sounds can make people feel anxious and scared, whereas up-tempo sounds can make people feel energetic and lively. Rock music has been shown to reduce an ADD child’s hyperactivity and improve the child’s ability to pay attention while studying (Cripe, 1986).
Dissociation
Dissociation is traditionally associated with pathology. However, dissociation can also have a good side to it. Dissociation occurs when we meditate, exercise, go biking, hiking, read a good book, take in a movie or enjoy a sporting event, because we get drawn into the present moment and dissociate from all of our daily worries, anxieties and the resulting unhealthy mental chatter. Several techniques such as dot staring and stimulus depression have been shown to induce dissociation (Leonard, Telch, & Harrington, 1999). Audioanalgesia using white noise and/or music has been shown to effectively increase pain threshold and pain tolerance during a dental procedure (Gardner & Licklider, 1959; Gardner, Licklider, & Weisz, 1960; Schermer, 1960; Monsey, 1960; Sidney, 1962; Morosko & Simmons, 1966). Regardless of the activity,
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