Put on your thinking cap when you visit CITB - here you'll find Concepts, Ideas, Thoughts and "Outside The Box" thinking, plus we call Bullsh!t for what it is. Enjoy the ride, and if we stimulate your brain, please tell others about us!
I have often said that one of the greatest joys I receive from writing this blog comes from the discovery of simple thoughts that can be life changing. My friend Cherie' made a difference in my life today by sharing a video with me on Facebook. It's impact was great and I am not ashamed to say I cried as I was reminded of the power a few words could have. Strangely, before I ever saw this video I think I made a difference in Cherie's life today also, by opening up and sharing my honest thoughts and observations. I guess this is the true meaning of 'Pay It Forward". I want to say - Thank You Cherie', you "Made a Difference" in my life today!
Please watch this video and "Make A Difference" In Someone's Life Today!
CITB Quote of the day: "I don't lie because those that lie are afraid! I am not afraid of anything or anyone." - Osho Rajneesh (1931-1990)
Posted by Thom Byxbe | Under Concept, Idea
Sunday Mar 9, 2008
How many times have you wished that you could just connect your computer directly to your brain. Imagine if you had a "Brain Port" that you simply plugged into your computer. Think how fast you could finish that report for work. Think how wonderfully productive you would be. Well your dream connection is one step closer to reality. Three companies are in the final development and initial production stages of bring you a "Mind to Computer" interface.
It's Game On for OCZ Technologies, NeuroSky, and Emotiv
OCZ Technologies is not the first to experiment with direct mind control as an input device for the PC and gaming platforms. They may be first to actually bring a "brain mouse" to market. It's called the "Neural Impulse Actuator", or NIA for short. Two competitors, NeuroSky and Emotiv, are preparing to release their own brain-controlled mice. So, it is "Game On" for all three players in this long fantasized about peripheral market.
OCZ's "Neural Impulse Actuator" Brain Mouse
The OCZ Technologies device makes use of a combination of EEG readings, muscle, and eye movement to control a given application. Currently, the applications are primarily games. However, you'll need a powerful PC, as the NIA has been designed specifically for multi-processor systems. The "Neural Impulse Actuator" brain mouse will not come cheap. Announced pricing is around $300 when it launches in the near future (it's currently in production).
The NIA is calibrated to deal with individual user physiology. You put the device headband around your head at temple level. The calibration GUI allows you to calibrate each of the input types - muscle movement, brain waves, and glandular levels.
For muscle movement input the NIA tracks forehead muscles and those around your eyes. When properly calibrated, these facial muscles provide almost effortless directional movement that is smoother than a keyboard.
Both Alpha and Beta brain waves are monitored by the NIA and assigned multiple inputs. In gaming these inputs are useful for operations like changing weapons. By utilizing what has been dubbed by its creators as a "Tourettes impulse" it has been demonstrated that you can raise beta waves to a high enough plateau to switch guns. The final input channel is glance (eye movement). This is useful for directional movement.
When OCZ releases the NIA, it appears it will be a functional and practical option for gamers looking to "mentally" one-up the competition. Additionally, the NIA can act as a sports and mental conditioning tool. It can help you monitor your brain's alpha and beta wave levels during meditation and visualization. OCZ points out that this makes the device not only good for fragging your friends, but also for visualizing and subsequently beating your friends in tennis, soccer, or any other competitive activity.
Communication between human and machine has always been limited to conscious interaction, with non-conscious communication - expression, intuition, perception - reserved solely for the human realm.
Emotiv Systems device allows players to manipulate the game world utilizing only their mind. Named EPOC , the device functions very much like an EEG. It has the ability to pick up on the subtle electrical impulses the brain fires off. To pick up or move an object on screen, the user need only visualize the act they wish to perform in order to make it happen.
The company has demonstrated that users could also make objects disappear with a simple thought. Much like OTC's device, the EPOC headset detects not only the emotional state of the wearer but also the facial expressions. The headset's sensors are designed to detect conscious thoughts and expressions as well as "non-conscious emotions" by reading electrical signals around the brain. MSNBC interviews Don Clark (Wall Street Journal) about Emotiv
“Being able to control a computer with your mind is the ultimate quest of human-machine interaction” - Nam Do, CEO of Emotiv.
Reserve a Emotiv EPOC
Soon Emotiv will begin shipping the EPOC neuroheadset. As with all hot new products, initial supplies will be limited. To ensure that users can be guaranteed delivery of the EPOC, Emotiv is allowing consumers to reserve one to be delivered before the product arrives in retail locations. These limited edition neuroheadsets will be shipping in late 2008. If you don't want to miss out on being one of the first to experience the first direct human-computer interaction you can reserve your EPOC neuroheadset here! Emotiv is only able to accept reservations for customers in the United States.
NeuroSky's Wearable Technology
The last century of neurological research has demonstrated that brainwaves of different wavelengths can be indicative of unique emotional and mental states, like a focused awareness, a meditative state, or drowsiness. Brainwaves have been used in medical research and therapy for years. Now NeuroSky is bringing this neurological research to consumers.
What makes NeuroSky different from its competitors is in their focus. Unlike OCZ and Emotiv, their primary focus is not gaming. NeuroSky has developed a non-invasive, dry, bio-sensor family of products. Their wearable technology translates your mental state into digital signals for a variety of Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI). The ultimate purpose of NeuroSky is to build core bio-sensor technology. They are focused on providing the necessary tools to enable others to develop entirely new realms of consumer and industrial products.
The ThinkGear-EMTM provides the newest and most powerful EEG-based features for consumer and industrial applications. Based upon their original ThinkGear platform, which operates in conjunction with dry electrodes, NeuroSky's second generation ThinkGear-EM offers cost and wearability improvements from its earlier cousin due to better optimization of components and physical size reductions.
eSense-EMTM (Algorithm Library)
The eSense-EMTM translates the brainwave signals (EEG) into different mental state levels, for example, Attention and Meditation. These mental "algorithms" must be tested over a wide population, and under different environmental conditions, to work across a wide spectrum of individuals and locations. The eSense-EM is delivered fully-embedded within the 3V ThinkGear-EM . The results of the eSense-EM Library are passed through the output data stream of the ThinkGear-EM to the end-platform.
MindKit-EMTM (SDK: Software Development Kit)
The MindKit-EMTM is NeuroSky's second generation development tool. MindKit-EM is a PC-based development platform used to extract, filter and amplify brainwave (EEG) signals and convert that information into digital mental state outputs for Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) applications. MindKit-EM can be used for monitoring and analysis of human brainwaves, mental training for the development of consumer and industrial end-applications.
MindSetTM (Commercial Neural Headset)
The MindSetTM is the first commercially available, "consumer-ready", brainwave-controlled headset for the mass consumer market. Utilizing NeuroSky's fully-embedded, ThinkGear-EM technology, which manages the brainwave acquisition and interpretation chores, the MindSet communicates equally well with game consoles, PC's and mobile platforms, including cell phones. The MindSet is currently available to NeuroSky's OEM customers only.
"You mean you have to use your hands? That's like a baby's toy." - Back to the Future Part II - 1989
The Future Is NOW!
At CITB our slogan is "We Call Them As They Are" and this story is the kind we LOVE. This story is about products we have always dreamed would become reality. We applaud these innovative companies, and hope that the marketplace will support them also. Ultimately, it will be the quality of the products that they bring to market that will make or break them. CITB believes that more of this kind of "out of the box" thinking is needed. These companies prove when you Get Your Mind Right... Your Cursor Will Follow...
CITB Quote of the day: "Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds!" - Prophet Mohamed (c. 570 Mecca - June 8, 632 Medina)
We all have stress sometimes. For some people, it happens before having to speak in public. For other people, it might be before a first date. What causes stress for you may not be stressful for someone else.
Sometimes stress is helpful - it can encourage you to meet a deadline or get things done. But long-term stress can increase the risk of diseases like depression, heart disease and a variety of other problems.
Yoga, Meditation, and Other Relaxation Techniques
Yoga can be an effective tool for dealing with work related stress. This video offers short exercises that can be done at your desk for stress relief and relaxation.
This is a video featuring Dr. Jon Kabal-Zinn. He describes the revolution in medicine that has occurred over the past 30 years that has integrated the mind back into the body and developed a remarkable range of practices for integrating one's experience, reducing stress, healing the body, coping more effectively with emotions such as anxiety, anger, and depression, and cultivating greater well-being and happiness.
Chronic Stress is stress that lasts a long time or occurs frequently. Chronic stress is potentially damaging. Family problems, a difficult class at school, a schedule that is too busy, or a long illness can cause chronic stress.
Symptoms of chronic stress can be:
eating disorder
upset stomach
headache
backache
insomnia
anxiety
depression
anger
In the most severe cases it can lead to panic attacks or a panic disorder.
If you have chronic stress, the best way to deal with it is to take care of the underlying problem. Counseling can help you find ways to relax and calm down. Medicines may also help. There are a variety of methods to control chronic stress, including exercise, healthy diet, stress management, relaxation techniques, adequate rest, and relaxing hobbies.
Ensuring a healthy diet containing magnesium may help control or eliminate stress, in those individuals with lower levels of magnesium or those who have a magnesium deficiency. Chronic stress can also lead to a magnesium deficiency, which can be a factor in continued chronic stress.
Having personally experienced the effects of stress. How stress effects your life varies from person to person. Here is a collection of links to help you and your loved ones with this issue.
Major Life Changes: This list is a handy tool to keep available at all times. Anytime you’re faced with major changes, you experience physical and emotional stress. This list will help you make choices about how many stressful situations you’re willing to juggle at one time. For instance, if you’re expecting a child, it might not be the best time to consider relocation, a new job, or to decide to head back for that college degree.
Major Life Change: Chaos Could Be a Good Sign: Although this article is brief and to-the-point, life coach Laura Young looks at the positive side of stress. When you deal with crises, you can develop inner strength and confidence in your abilities. Read on to learn more positives!
Stress at Work: NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) provides a comprehensive yet concise list of tools and information where you can learn all angles about work-related stress and relief from that stress.
Stress Management: This is an About.com site that focuses on stress management in all areas of life. This is one of the most comprehensive sites we’ve encountered on this topic, as it provides a blog, articles, and tools to help recognize and deal with stress issues.
Stress Relief: Relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, visualization, progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, and yoga can help you activate this relaxation response to stress. This site shows you how to plan for and achieve a level of relaxation that may help you to cope with everyday stress triggers.
Stress Relief Exercises: Unlike exercises for physical strength, these tools will help you learn how to relax so you don’t hurt your body or shorten your lifespan.
Top 10 Steps to Making Life Changes: This PDF file was created by life coach Steve Davis, and he provides some sound advice on how to alleviate many stressful situations. For instance, if the bank forecloses on your apartment building, the stress won’t be half as bad on you if you have money set aside to handle a blow like this.
Work-Related Stress: Health & Safety Executive (HSE) provides a four-pronged approach to work-related stress. Learn how to tackle stress, about management’s role in this issue, about good practices, and advice for individuals.
CITB Quote of the day: "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover" - Mark Twain
Posted by Thom Byxbe | Under Concept, Idea
Tuesday Mar 11, 2008
In the course of writing CITB we read and research a LOT of web sites. While surfing the web today I saw a link to VistaRewired.com. I no longer am a Microsoft Windows user having made the move to Linux several months ago. But, in my humble opinion, no Microsoft operating system is more bloated and convoluted than Vista. When I visited Vista Rewired I knew I had found a site that was a gold mine of simple, easy to use, solutions to the mysteries of Windows Vista.
Vista Rewired was created by two aspiring young entrepreneurs with the intent of solving the headaches of Windows Vista users, and to educate them on the operating system. The easy to use tips and tricks will help Vista users so they can use the operating system to its full potential.
Here is a LIMITED selection of links to Vista Rewired articles that I felt many users would find helpful.
The complete index of articles on the site can be found HERE. Remember that this site is adding important information and growing daily. Be sure to bookmark it or subscribe to their RSS feed to stay updated on this VALUABLE resource to Windows Vista.
We give this site our HIGHEST recommendation. We think it such a valuable resource that we have added it to our permanent list of Important Blogs on CITB's sidebar.
CITB Quote of the day: "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work!"- Thomas Edison
Posted by Thom Byxbe | Under Idea, Thought
Wednesday Feb 27, 2008
Remember the film of the Hindenburg disaster? Even if you are much too young to have been alive when it happened, you've doubtless seen the dramatic (and tragic) newsreel footage. After seeing those images in their local theaters (back in the days before television, when you got to see the news in motion pictures before you saw the feature film), an awful lot of people decided that there was no way in hell they wanted to travel by Zeppelin. And, since there were alternatives (planes, which might crash but at least didn't put one in the position of having to choose between being burned alive or jumping to one's death), the Zeppelin all but disappeared. Which, in a way, is a real shame, because it was probably a much more elegant way to travel (no, I am not old enough to remember).
Anyway, my point is that a dramatic video can bring out the worst in people's fears. Today we have companies wanting to put wind turbines along the shore of Lake Michigan, and of course there is local opposition. Well, just wait until that opposition sees this video from Denmark:
Now, I'm not saying that wind power is totally dead - I'd love to see any type of energy production developed that doesn't involve the use of petroleum or other fossil fuels. But, I have to tell you, I'd rather live next to a nuclear power plant than in the shadow of one of these wind turbines (not that living next to either would be my first choice). I can see all sorts of problems with those massive blades whirling in the wind, and the video just confirmed my suspicions that things can go very wrong. This video will probably be played at every local council meeting where the idea of putting wind turbines near residential areas is being explored.
As an aside, why isn't anyone exploring the use of wave energy in Lake Michigan? On the west side of the lake, we have gentle waves even on days when the wind is relatively calm, and when the wind kicks up a bit there is a massive amount of energy in those waves. And, anything that captures the energy in the waves probably isn't going to throw huge chunks of metal into someone's home (I suppose it could happen in a really nasty storm, but the probability is seriously low, and a large log or other chunk of driftwood could probably cause similar damage). I know, there are probably a three or four months where the lake is frozen over to the point that there are no waves, but still, for the other eight or nine months of the year - and particularly during the summer, when air conditioning usage is high - I suspect that a significant amount of power could be derived from wave energy!
Posted by Thom Byxbe | Under Opinion, Video
Tuesday May 27, 2008
Sometimes someone really gets it right. Keith Olbermann of MSNBC got it right in this "Special Comment" on his show "Countdown with Keith Olbermann".
It's time for a reality check so "Pay Attention Mr. Bush"
CITB Quote of the day: "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover" - Mark Twain
The rich, powerful and mesmerizing voice of rising star Paul Potts has touched the hearts of millions since his win on the hot new UK talent show, "Britain's Got Talent," last year. Watched by 13.5 million in the finals, his hauntingly beautiful rendition of Puccini's Nessun Dorma stunned the show's judges and audiences alike, leaving many moved to tears.
Like the audience of this video, I found his performance moving. His posture on stage makes it clear that he had mastered his craft. But the real truth in this video is how small-minded the three judges are. Even when they are surprised by his performance, they act as if they somehow deserve to sit in judgment of him. They don't! Critics rarely do...
In a interview that was broadcast before his performance in the semifinal, Potts said that he had been bullied in school, and that experience may have had an influence on his lack of self-confidence. He made a similar remark in 1999 — that his voice had always been a source of solace in the past when bullied.
He performed a full-length "Nessun Dorma" for his finale on June 17, 2007 as well as an encore after he won the competition. Potts defeated co-favorite, Connie Talbot and received the highest public vote out of two million votes cast to win "Britain's Got Talent," winning the right to perform at the Royal Variety Performance on December 3, 2007, in front of Her Majesty, The Queen.
In December 2007, Prime Minister Gordon Brown presented Potts with a discography plaque for having sold 2,000,000 copies of his album "One Chance" and for showing that "Britain really does have huge amounts of talent."
Potts was on a six-month sabbatical as manager at Carphone Warehouse in Bridgend, a mobile phone store some eight miles from his hometown. On March 5, 2008, he resigned from his management position via email.
So when the great male opera singers are listed in the history books i think it shall read "Placido, Pavarotti, Carerras and um.. Paul Potts!"
CITB Quote of the day: "Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is usually more important than the outcome." - Arthur Ashe
This is a video about the game TETRIS. Right now you are probably sarcastically saying to yourself "Great... A video about TETRIS. " BUT, what if the TETRIS game used real people as bricks?
The Original Human TETRIS Performance
by Guillaume Reymond
TETRIS is the 4th video performance of the GAME OVER Project, directed by the Swiss artist Guillaume REYMOND.
This stop-motion video was shot and played for "LES URBAINES" festival at the Palais de Rumine (Lausanne, Switzerland) on November 24th 2007.
CITB Quote of the day: "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work!"- Thomas Edison
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