The Brain Wave Spectrum and Binaural Beats

What are delta brainwaves?

Delta brainwaves are considered the most relaxing brainwave frequency range. Delta brainwaves are commonly associated with the deepest sleep [stages 3 & 4] and a state of unconscious awareness. Delta brainwaves are the lowest in brainwave frequency: ranging from 0 – 4 Hz, but are the highest in amplitude. Delta brainwaves, like other slower brainwave patterns, are generated in the right hemisphere, though they may be observed in widespread patterns throughout various parts of the brain. The delta brainwave range is associated with empathy, the unconscious mind, and a decreased sense of awareness.

What are theta brain waves?

Theta brainwaves are considered extremely relaxing brainwave activity that is commonly associated with sleep and dreaming. Theta brainwaves are high in amplitude and cycle within the range of 4 – 8 Hz and are usually generated in the brains right hemisphere. Theta waves kick in when we feel emotional, relaxed, daydreamy, unfocused, or are asleep. Theta brainwaves are generally thought of as the brainwaves that are dominant in people with A.D.D., high levels of relaxation, high levels of creativity, and random thinking. The theta brainwave is considered the brainwave pattern that is dominant in deeply relaxed, dream sleep.

What are alpha brain waves?

Alpha brain waves are considered relaxed brainwave activity. Alpha brainwaves are brainwaves that cycle within the range of 8 – 12 Hz and are usually generated in the brains right hemisphere or in a synchronized pattern between both right and left hemispheres. Alpha waves kick in when our mind and body are completely relaxed and free of stress.

Alpha is generally thought of as the normal brainwave that is dominant in people who are relaxed, creative, and have a clear mind. Alpha is considered the “normal” brainwave pattern and is dominant when people close their eyes. Children tend to have much higher levels of alpha brainwaves than adults. Alpha brainwaves are considered the healthiest brainwave range and 10 Hz has widely been accepted as the “safest” brainwave frequency to train.

Most children and younger teenagers have a dominant alpha rhythm. There isn’t a single brain wave pattern is better than the others – so don’t think alpha brainwaves are a “cure all.” If your brain is deficient in the alpha brainwave pattern, increasing them can feel awesome! I can personally testify based on my experience.

What are beta brainwaves?

Beta brainwaves are considered “fast brain wave” activity. Beta brainwaves are brainwaves that cycle within the range of 12 – 38 Hz and are usually generated in the brain’s left-hemisphere.

Beta waves kick in when logically thinking, feeling stressed, and feeling tense. Beta is generally thought of as a “normal” rhythm and is dominant in people who are alert, anxious, or have their eyes open. Beta brainwaves are considered to be the normal brainwave pattern in healthy adults.

Most children and teenagers have dominant theta and alpha brainwave patterns. There isn’t a single brain wave pattern is better than the others – so don’t think beta brainwaves are some sort of miracle that your children need! If you happen to be deficient in the beta brain wave range, increasing them may feel like a miracle!

What are gamma brainwaves?

Gamma brainwaves are considered the brain’s optimal frequency of functioning. Gamma brainwaves are commonly associated with increased levels of compassion, feelings of happiness, and optimal brain functioning. Gamma brainwaves are associated with a conscious awareness of reality and increased mental abilities. Gamma brainwaves range from the frequency of 38 Hz – 70 Hz and have a tiny (virtually unnoticeable) amplitude. Gamma brainwaves can be found in virtually every part of the brain. They serve as a binding mechanism between all parts of the brain and help to improve memory and perception.

Binaural Beats

Binaural beats were discovered in 1839 by a German scientist named Heinrich Dove. Ever since, they have been touted as one of the most popular forms of brainwave entrainment, along with monaural beats and isochronic tones.

However, the some studies now show that the effects of binaural beats are actuallypassive relaxation effects and not true brainwave entrainment. We'll explore precisely what that means in the course of this article.

How Do Binaural Beats Work?

The human brain goes through many frequency cycles every day, each having a different effect on your level of consciousness. It is scientifically proven that we can shape these frequencies through sound, visual and tactile cues. The broad term for this is brainwave entrainment and it is recognized to have physiological effects.

Binaural beats are claimed to be a form of brainwave entrainment; a technology that uses two separate sound cues in an attempt to entrain the brain.

For instance, the THETA brainwave frequency occurs during states of still alertness, and in light sleep and dreaming. It is marked by 3-6 cycles (Hz) per second. The human ear doesn't react to frequencies below 20 Hz - so binaural beats play two separate frequencies into each ear (eg, 130Hz in the left / 136Hz in the right).

What effect does this have? Science and opinion is split...

Brainwave Entrainment vs The Ganzfeld Effect

Proponents of binaural beats say the brain compensates for the difference in frequencies heard in the right and left ear, creating an internal frequency of 6 Hz, and thereby entraining a THETA operating state. It then produces a frequency following response, something that has been demonstrated in other brainwave entrainment technologies.

Because the effect is produced within the brain (not in the ears as with monaural beats) it is critical to wear headphones or earphones to ensure separate frequencies are played into each ear.

Opponents of binaural beats suggest the effect is not one of entrainment but simple relaxation. They argue that binaurals are very quiet, with a 2:1 modulation depth, compared to monaurals and isochronics which have a 100,000:1 depth ratio. This means binaurals are less likely to produce an entrainment effect. Instead, they have more of a Ganzfeld Effect; where the mind quietens due to monotonous sensory input.

In nature, a Ganzfeld effect can be experienced when sitting in a quiet field and looking up at the sky, listening to the wind in the trees. If you live in an urban area or can't get away from the hustle and bustle of city life, binaural beats may achieve a relaxing effect, though not in the way they are often touted (ie, brainwave frequency entrainment).

What Are The Effects of Binaural Beats?

• Physical and mental relaxation

• Increasing focus on the inner world

• Visual hypnagogia (seeing colors, patterns and shapes)

• Audial hypnagogia (hearing voices and snippets of conversation)

• Out-of-body phenomena (floating limbs and bodily dissociation)

• Conscious awareness of emerging dream scenes

Binaural Beats vs Isochronic Tones

Irrespective of how the relaxation effect occurs, there is a general consensus on what types of effects you may feel while listening to binaurals. I have experienced various phenomena usually associated with mediation:

These effects are the result of listening to binaural beats as well as a conscious effort to meditate. With practice this helps prepare my mind for more lucid dreams.

In one blind study of binaural beats and their effect on meditation, scientists found that 7 Hz frequencies enhanced meditative focus, while 15 Hz harmed it. So there is something to be said for listening to binaurals vs nothing at all. Other studies have shown a hypnotic and relaxation effect while listening to binaural beats.

If you are considering using brainwave entrainment as a way to access altered states, you may wonder: which is better, binaural beats or isochronic tones?

Without doubt, isochronics in action are more powerful than binaural beats in action. Indeed, EEG studies have conclusively shown than even monaural beats produce a greater frequency following response in the contralateral hemisphere.

There are some studies in support of binaural beats, such as Le Scouarnec who suggested the effect of a reduction in anxiety with THETA binaurals. However, other studies suggest this is not the result of entrainment, and shouldn't be marketed as such. It is more likely a passive meditation response or placebo effect.

Binaural Beats for Lucid Dreaming

Binaural Beats for Meditation

Isochronic Chakra Balance

Isochronic Deep Sleep

Binaural and Isochronic Focus and Memory

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Top 10 Confucius Quotes

Courtesy of AwakeBlogger.com

Confucius, whose name literally means "Master Kong", lived 551-479 BCE. He was a Chinese thinker and philosopher, whose teachings have deeply influenced not only Asian thought and life. He presented himself as a "transmitter who invented nothing" and he really pointed out the importance of learning, which is one reason he is seen by Chinese people as "The Greatest Master".

One of the best known sources of Confucius are The Analects, a collection of his teachings, which was compiled many years after his death. A fountain of extremely mindful quotes springs from these ancient descriptions.

Many of them are universal and timeless in their beautiful and simple truth and they are as valid today as on the day they left Confucius’ mouth. Here we take a look at 10 of the most inspiring quotes by Confucius.

Confucius says …

1. "Never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself."

It’s the "Golden Rule" and the essence of real compassion . Not compassion as in looking down on someone and have pity for another, this is no real compassion. Compassion means seeing another person 100% equal to yourself (in value, not in differentials on the surface which ultimately do not matter). In fact it is seeing yourself in every other person. And therefore you cannot harm anyone without also harming yourself.

It doesn’t mean to lose individuality or self-worth, on the contrary – but the other person earns the same gift.

2. "Real knowledge is to know the extent of one’s ignorance."

That’s my personal favorite quote since it expresses something very profound which also is very useful to know: Ignorance is a willful neglect or refusal to acquire knowledge. It is not widen one’s own perspective in order to see a broader truth. As an example it would be to have racist thoughts and not realizing that all men are equal.

The ultimate truth therefore is where there is absolutely no ignorance, meaning where the perspective or consciousness has become one with all that there is. In Buddhism ignorance (Avidyā) is seen as the primary cause of suffering. Liberation is Enlightenment. Another quote by Confucius here is "Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon and star."

3. "I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand."

Those quotes are just perfect. What he is expressing here is that we have to experience something ourselves in order to really understand it. If we are hearing something it might be interesting. If we are seeing something it might be beautiful. But only if we feel in happening to ourselves we can really know how it is.

Picture something nice as winning an Olympic gold medal or picture something terrifying as the loss of a loved one. Can you know this by hearing it or by seeing it? Or do you have to do it and experience it yourself to really know it?

Along with this realization comes the awareness that you cannot understand someone or his actions from hearing or seeing it from the outside. You have to feel empathic compassion for him to really know what it is like. To know and not to do is really not to know. Only by applying our knowledge we can validate it’s harmony with reality, it’s truth.

4. "Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it."

Amazing. It calls for dropping the inner mask through which we constantly see and evaluate the world, distorted by our wants and belief-systems. Here we have to look at things as they are. Just like a newborn child would look at things. Then we are able to really see again, without instant labeling of what we see and therefore only really seeing our label. If we become able to do this – just for a second without judgment, we can see that everything in nature is as it should be. And in this natural perfection lies beauty.

5. "The Superior Man is aware of Righteousness, the inferior man is aware of advantage."

Another quote is "The object of the superior man is truth." It is the value of integrity: Do we act to our best knowledge of truth or do we bend ourselves and violate our integrity in order to gain an advantage? Do we play fair game or use perfidious tactics?

To be truthful to ourselves is also important to the development of (good) character. And it is the only straight way to liberation.

6. "Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart."

Whatever you do and whatever you commit to, do it fully, give your all – one hundred percent. It is the essence of Carpe Diem – Seizing the day and it’s surely the best way to be satisfied with what we do and get the best results.

7. "Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we do."

There is no failure, there are only valuable learning experiences. Or as Thomas Edison about inventing the light bulb said: "I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work." The important thing is not giving up, but learning and then improving by using this feedback to get better and ultimately succeed.

A quote expressing the same principle is "A man who has committed a mistake and doesn’t correct it, is committing another mistake."

8. "He who learns but does not think, is lost. He who thinks but does not learn is in great danger."

Confucius explains the connection of learning and reflection. Reflection of that what we learned by thinking or of the results we get by applying the knowledge. "Study without reflection is a waste of time; reflection without study is dangerous" is a similar quote by Confucius. Learning is only useful if we connect the learning within our own minds, with what we already know and what is useful for us. This reflection of any knowledge also saves us from blindly following any knowledge without checking its truthfulness and validity to us.

I think everybody experienced learning when we really want this knowledge and interweave it with what we already know. If there is a need or problem we want to solve, the consume knowledge much more effective than it happens for students in many universities.

9. "He that would perfect his work must first sharpen his tools."

This quote calls for planning and preparation. This includes getting and improving the personal skills we need to be successful. If we want to hold speeches we have to become good with communication skills. If we want to win a race we have to train for it. If we want to do a big project we need knowledge in project management. Steven Covey calls it Sharpening the saw, read about it here.

10. "If you look into your own heart, and you find nothing wrong there, what is there to worry about? What is there to fear?"

It shows that our primary work lies within ourselves: to work on ourselves and improve will automatically take care of the outside world if we use our abilities then. "When we see men of a contrary character, we should turn inwards and examine ourselves." The solution to problems is not "out there". It is the Inside-Out approach: success and happiness can only be found by working on ourselves. It also entails the spiritual message to look inside and to discover ourselves fully.

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7 Steps to Think Like a Genius

At this very moment, you are holding unbound potential. You hold within your possession the most powerful learning and creative problem-solving system known to man, far superior to any supercomputer ever invented. It is your brain.

There are 100 billion neurons in your 3-pound brain.

By its very design, the human brain stores vast potential for memory, learning, and creativity. However, your capacity for learning and achievement must be unlocked. Although everyone holds this incredible power, the brain does not give of its powers away freely.

Geniuses of this world have successfully tapped into this unlimited power, including Einstein, Galileo, Newton, and Mozart.

Within the rest of this article, we will turn to these same revolutionary minds in order to unlock the genius that is hiding in the tapestry of our own minds.

1. The first step is to expand your consciousness as well as your perspectives.

The genius mind will look at a problem from many different perspectives. They are literally able to place themselves completely in someone else’s shoes in order to experience a new way of looking at things. By doing this, they expand their knowledge and consciousness of the world around them.

Look at problems from a variety of different perspectives. Most people only rely on their own perspective, and therefore always have a very narrow view of the world.

Leonardo da Vinci believed that, to gain knowledge about the form of a problem, you must begin by learning how to restructure it in many different ways. He believed that the first way you look at a problem is entirely too biased. You are only seeing the problem from one perspective: yours.

You can find new solutions to the problem by looking at it from a variety of different perspectives. According to Einstein, “You cannot solve a problem with the same type of thinking that is creating it.”

Einstein insisted that the secret of his genius was his ability to look at problems in a childlike, imaginative way.

To expand his view of the world, Einstein developed a mastermind group that he called the Olympiad. This group held intensive discussions on topics ranging from mathematics and physics to philosophy and literature.

These forums provided the stimulus needed for higher-level thinking and were often combine with camping trips involving hiking, swimming, and a good dose of humor.

The genius lives at a high level of consciousness about the world around them. They are receptive to new ideas, which provide them with even greater opportunity. The person who clings to their comfort zone is living in a low level of consciousness. Their experiences each day are often a repetition of the previous day.

You reach a higher level of consciousness when you reach new levels of understanding, experience a major growth experience, or embrace new ways of thinking.

When you were eight years old, you had a different view of the world than you do today. This is because you are now living in a higher consciousness/awareness of the world around you. You must constantly seek to expand your awareness if you want to grow.

Your consciousness determines how you experience life.

To expand your awareness, you must consistently seek opportunities for growth. Look for new relationships. Expand your knowledge. Step out of your comfort zone. Experience life to the fullest.

2. Once you have begun seeking your greatest aims in life, you must also persist…

The most successful people in life are the ones who are the most persistent. Interestingly, enough the most successful people in life are also the ones who have experienced the most failure.

The rest are too afraid to try and therefore never experience success or failure.

In fact, I would argue that failure is the quickest path to success. The greatest success is always preceded by a long list of failures.

Think of Thomas Edison, who after 10,000 attempts at creating the electric lightbulb, said, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”

Failure is a prerequisite for success; embrace it as a learning experience that brings you one step closer to your ultimate goal.

To truly be great, you must not be afraid of failing.

The leaders in life don’t fear failure. Like most, you probably learned in elementary school about the accomplishments of Christopher Columbus. However, you probably don’t know that the likely result of his journey was humiliation, financial ruin, or even death. He was making a journey, which most people believed would cause him to fall off the edge of the Earth.

All previous efforts to cross the Atlantic had been made by sailors who clung to the European coast in order to ensure a means of return. Columbus, however, sailed perpendicular to the shoreline. He was venturing into the unknown, without knowing what, if anything, lay ahead.

In the end, it turned out that Columbus, was, in fact, a visionary genius.

Even after six weeks at sea with no sight of land, he maintained unwavering belief in his goal. Most people would have given up at this point, but Columbus kept going. This was one of the most important factors in determining his success.

Most of what people refer to as failure is simply a lack of persistence.

How many times do we hug the coastline in our own lives, latching onto the familiar? Growth is always preceded by change. For us to improve and grow, we must embrace change and constantly step out of our old familiar comfort zones. When we do, we will find that we begin to live a life full of adventure and increased opportunity.

3. The third step to thinking like a genius is to Visualize!

Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, Walt Disney, Nikola Tesla, and even Mozart all ascribed their creative genius to their ability to visualize.

Einstein said that all of his most important and productive thinking was done by “combinatory play” with “images” in his mind. Einstein used images, visual patterns and associations to discover more about the world around him.

Einstein believed that the spirit of learning and creative thought were lost in strict rote learning. Instead, he turned to his own imagination and visualization.

Visualization is an incredibly powerful tool in solving problems. Often times much more powerful that simply using words or numbers.

Visual thinking is done in the right side of the brain, presenting new problem solving and big-picture thinking. Visualization goes hand in hand with our next genius principle…

4. Imagination

Einstein was well acquainted with the childlike sense of play, possibility, and humor. His ability to remain in a childlike state of wonder and curiosity is the essence of his genius.

Dr. Jacques Hadmard spent much of his life studying the thought processes of great scientists and mathematicians. He found that their thinking process was characterized not by words or standard mathematical symbols, but instead by visual imagery.

The same was true for Einstein, who said, “The words of the language, as they are written or spoken, do not seem to play any role in my mechanisms of thought.”

He also wrote that his thought processes instead “rely, more or less, on clear images of a visual and some of a muscular type.”

These few sentences give us a rare insight into one of the greatest minds. Einstein teaches us the importance of thinking visually.

Dr. Marian Diamond and her colleagues at the University of California at Berkeley published a paper entitled “On the Brain of a Scientist: Albert Einstein.” Their research showed that Einstein’s brain contained 400 percent more “glial” cells per neuron than average. They also found that his brain was especially well developed in the area of the brain used for association.

However, we will never know whether Einstein’s brain was highly developed as a result of his thought processes and stimulating environment or from an extraordinary neuro-anatomical gift?

Much of our brainpower is due to the interconnection between brain cells. We know now that these interconnections - glial cells, dendrites, axons, and synapses - can continue to increase in number throughout the course of an individual’s life.

Dr. Diamond’s research suggests that combinatory play and a stimulus-rich environment are two of the keys to increasing the minds to make these internal connections within the mind from which genius is born.

Much of Einstein’s creativity was found in his ability to make unfamiliar and unexpected relationships.

Einstein coined the term, “combinatory play”. Although it had always existed, Einstein used this powerful way of thinking in his daily thought processes.

According to Einstein, combinatory play is sifting through data, perceptions, and materials to come up with combinations that are new and useful.

Einstein himself believed that you could stimulate ingenious thought by allowing the imagination to run freely, forming associations at will.

Einstein also performed what’s referred to as thought experiments.

As a young man, Einstein imagined himself running alongside a beam of light. He then asked himself what it would look like. This was one of his first thought experiments.

A thought experiment is carried out in the mind. It requires you to ask yourself a question. You then visualize a situation and perform some kind of experimental action and see what happens. These types of thought experiments provide a method for understanding nature without performing a direct experiment on it.

Try this out in your own life by asking yourself the following questions:

• What would happen if we found a way to use 100% of our brain potential?
• What are the possible solutions to world hunger?
• How would Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, or Newton approach this problem?
• What if I could hold infinity in the palm of my hand? (This has been a popular thought question among poets as well as quantum physicists.)

5. The next key, and one of the most important elements, to genius thinking is that of curiosity: the courage to ask questions.

Why do kids ask so many questions? They are naturally curious about the world around them. They discover the world through questioning others as well as themselves. In the process, they are creating neuro-associations that will guide their futures.

As we grow older, however, we become passive to the world around us. We stop asking questions, lose our much of our curiosity, and the learning comes to a screeching halt.

Without questions, we cannot grow.

Albert Einstein once said,

“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of the mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiosity.”

Socrates, Aristotle and Plato were some of the first great minds to develop the importance of questions. The entire Socratic method, which is a way of teaching that dates back to the Ancient Greeks, is based upon the teacher asking nothing but questions. These questions direct the students’ focus, enabling them to discover their own answers to life’s questions.

Successful people are simply those who have asked better questions. Instead of asking, “How will I ever get out of debt?” They asked themselves, “How can I learn from this experience?”

When computers were still taking up entire rooms, Bill Gates asked himself, “How can I get a computer in every household?”

When the automobile first emerged on the scene, hundreds of people started to build them, but Henry Ford asked, “How can I mass-produce them?”

As a young boy, Albert Einstein asked himself, “”What would it be like to run beside a light beam at the speed of light?”

Plato believed that skilled questions could lead not only to the discovery of geometry, science, and philosophy, but also to the realization of virtue, justice, beauty and truth.

Start to ask yourself and others empowering questions. Develop an unbound curiosity. Practice wonder.

6. You become what you think about.

Pay close attention now as we come upon the sixth principle that leads to genius. It is the Law of Attraction, which says you become what you think about.

The Law of Attraction says that what you think about, you bring about. Therefore, you become what you think about most. In addition, you also attract what you think about most.

In other words, Thoughts Become Things.

Your life is a physical manifestation of the thoughts that go on in your head.

Michael Jordan focused on perfecting every aspect of his game. This definite desire turned his weaknesses into strengths and made him one of the greatest leaders in basketball.

Wrigley concentrated his mind on the production and sale of a five-cent package of chewing gum and turned this one idea in to millions of dollars.

Edwin C. Barnes had a burning desire to go into business with Thomas Edison. He focused himself completely on this desire until it finally came to fruiting and he retired, while still a young man, with more money than he needs.

Lincoln concentrated his mind on freeing the slaves and became our greatest American President while doing it. Gillette concentrated on a safety razor, gave the entire world a “close shave” and made himself a multimillionaire.

George Eastman concentrated on the Kodak and made the idea yield him a fortune while bringing much pleasure to millions of people.

The Wright Brothers concentrated on the airplane and mastered the air.

Bill Gates concentrated on the personal computer, now a PC is found in nearly every home to help educate, entertain and enrich people’s lives.

All of these people were well adept in the Law of Attraction.

There is evidence that the law of attraction was also used by Einstein, Beethoven, and even Jesus. This same power is available to you. In fact, you are experiencing the Law of Attraction at this very moment whether you know it or not. This is because the law of attraction is always at work. Your life experience is in line with the thoughts that reside in your mind.

You create your own reality. What you think about, you bring about. What you emotionalize in thought, you bring about in reality.

Recent research is in support of this law. For example, research on optimism has shown that optimists enjoy better health, greater happiness, more success in life, and a longer life. The optimist focuses on success and minimizes their failures.

Pessimists, on the other hand, experience far more disease, depression, and a shorter life span.

What you focus on with thought and feeling is what you attract into your life.

The genius exercises this same law in their everyday life. The genius expects success and puts complete faith in their goal. They expect more out of life and therefore, they receive it.

You can do the same. Expect success and persist until you have found it.

7. The last and final step in thinking like a genius is to Have Fun!

No person has achieved massive success by doing what they hate. Pablo Picasso once said, “When I work I relax; doing nothing or entertaining visitors makes me tired.”

In addition, Dale Carnegie said, “People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing.”

The most successful people in life find work that inspires and excites them.

I’ll leave you with a fitting poem Christain D. Larson:

When you work simply for yourself or for your own personal gain your mind will seldom rise above the limitations of the undeveloped personal life; but when you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break bounds; your mind transcends limitations; your consciousness expands in every direction; and you find yourself in a new world, a great world, a wonderful world; dormant powers, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a larger man by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.” -- Christian D. Larson, Business Psychology, 1912

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