Natural Technology – Music that can only be played in the woods

Posted on by chrisbpowell

Can you use technology to enhance a natural experience? Or are natural and technological experiences mutually exclusive? John Moose (The band) say they can compliment each other, by allowing their album to only be sampled in the woods.

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to go on a trip to the Blue mountains and experience the awe inspiring natural beauty which is there. It is not until you are literally standing on the edge of a cliff face overlooking a waterfall that travels hundreds of meters before it reaches it’s base that you start to appreciate how incredible it really is. On the many walking tracks that we completed we were continually astounded by the diversity of the natural landscape and how the tracks (which were made over 100 years ago) allow us to explore so easily without ruining what is naturally there.

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It was nice to have a weekend away where we hardly used any digital device for entertainment. We used no computers, watched no movies and in fact didn’t even have a television where we stayed. Instead, we had a cabin which sat hidden in the bush with large glass windows for two of the four walls, a fireplace in the centre of the room and walking tracks which lead straight to the mountains.

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Despite my passion and interest for technology and the future, I am always fascinated by natural landscape and the incredible experiences our planet has to offer. I find the common debate between people on the extremities of each the nature / technology camps (that often tend to present them as mutually exclusive) both frustrating and ineffective. The natural environment and the intimate company of others is a beautiful thing, but so are the wondrous human creations and tools we use to better connect, enhance, collaborate and share what is inside our minds. Read More

Making Sense of Our Senses – the deaf ‘hearing’ through vibration vest

Posted on by chrisbpowell

Before getting too far into the product itself, I would like to take you back to the moment I first really began to realise how we, as humans, perceive the world. My first real light bulb moment was when I was watching a documentary about animals and their abilities (similar to the below video). I recall the specific moment when they were talking about a scorpion and how it hunts it’s prey by feeling incredibly small vibrations (such as a grain of sand moving) with tiny, incredibly sensitive hairs all over it’s body. My first thoughts were, how can it possibly make sense of the world with a sense like that and how weird it must be. After sitting on this thought for a while I realised it actually wasn’t as strange as it sounds. When you think about it, how we hear is ultimately just vibrations as well, and we can deliver quite complex messages through this sense.

I was then set on a path of starting to understand how we perceive our world and that what we think the environment around us is, is merely how we perceive it with the senses which are available to us. We really only see (feel, hear, smell) a fraction of the world that actually exists, and make up our perception of what this is in our mind, in order to best interact with it. Ultimately, what we think is reality is merely our perception of it, constructed by the limited senses which are available to us. Read More

Thyncing about the future.

Posted on by chrisbpowell

I have been following news about a product called “Thync” for some time now, and recently it was made available to the public. Ultimately, it is a small, external, electronic device which can “Shift your state of mind”.

They claim that by sticking it onto your temple and elsewhere on your head and choosing your setting, you can either ‘calm’ or ‘energise’ at various levels of intensity. Here is a trial review which Gizmag did on it, which closely aligns with other reviews I have found.

Ultimately, it is not an earth shattering change in mood, but the general consensus is – it works!

They liken the effect to what a cup of coffee may do. Personally, I am a big believer in achieving natural energy levels without the necessity of artificial stimulation, whether it be for a workout or to get through the day. I primarily like to be able to depend on myself and my state of mind to influence my physical body, but don’t condemn others doing so in moderation.

You might then question why this product interests me so much? Well to me, this is a real breakthrough in how we approach technology and how it can influence how we live our lives. I see this as not only inspiration for further technological advances in this space, but also to completely alter how we understand ourselves and the role technology plays in this. Read More

A place to record my thoughts.

Posted on by chrisbpowell

I decided to start this blog primarily as a tool for self expression and reflection.

This has almost come about as a form of necessity, drawn from my desire to record and express ideas that spark my interest. I found Facebook sharing and direct linking to my friends falling short in both exploring ideas and having a method to record and reflect.

With the realisation that the fundamental themes of ideas that interest me quite commonly have consistencies, I am lead to give them a home of their own. I don’t plan to share or promote this page, but if others find interest in what I record, I encourage them to challenge and contribute to my views.

I once felt the need to protect my ideas and values, as I had worked so hard to create them. It is only now my views have been growing at an increasingly rapid rate, that I realised differing views and new concepts are the fuel to the creative fire. Some people may perceive me to have an argumentative nature, but this stems from my natural curiosity. I am motivated by understanding, and through exploring unknown and opposing ideas I believe true progression is made.

I struggle to ignore realities that exist outside our narrow task driven lives, and find excitement in really understanding what makes us work. I am driven by the two worlds which are often seen as conflicting, but are becoming ever increasingly combined; the physical (and mental) self and the technological world.

I am appreciative of the perspective that my studies and interests have allowed me to have. As a Personal Trainer and Martial Artist I have grown to appreciate our physical selves and how vital our physical bodies are as our only tool to interact with our perception of the world. Through this, the importance of our mind, attitudes, education, and how we perceive what is around us has become increasingly apparent. A close relationship between how (physically / bio-mechanically) and why (mentally / psychologically / philosophically) everything happens the way it does, constantly occupies my mind.

As a cooperative contrast to this idea I am intrigued by technology and the business landscape. Business being how we progress and maintain the world, as well as how we meet our evolving needs and desires. I see Technology as our tool for this and is the accelerated evolution of our world. How technology changes our lives and how it increasingly becomes part of who and what we are fascinates me, and I am excited to see where it leads.

I love how the areas once thought to be mythical or unexplainable are being increasingly rationalised and extend our creative reach. With reflection throughout history, it is clearly apparent how we attempt to make sense of what we know at that particular time of our evolution, and how it leads to seemingly obvious common knowledge in the future.

It may become apparent through what I write, that I find myself to be a positive (and possibly philosophical) realist. I have faith and find joy in the future and seeing what comes next, but find truth and realities impossible to ignore.

I hope that this space allows me to record some of the things which capture my interest, and I am able to further understand, see parallels and reflect on what I find.