ReWire app

It seemed time to start a thread on the ReWire app that has recently come out because, presumably, a few of you have played with it by now. I know I have and while the programmer in me wants to change some stuff, I think it is pretty innovative, demonstrating some real out-of-the-box thinking.

That Shinzen Young and Vincent Horn endorse it says something (to me). What do you think?

I've downloaded this app but have not yet tried it.

Here are my initial thoughts beyond the "it is cool" comment I lead with.

First, I have only used the audio mode...I can't really conceive of using the video mode and, more importantly, what video should I use? That same comment applies to audio, by the way...that it is not preloaded with some generic "tone" to get you going is odd. And I also wouldn't use just any old music because (a) it is too short, which means that you need to load multiple songs and since the app doesn't remember what you loaded so you need to reload, that is a pain, and (b) any old song could potentially make the vanishings very hard to notice outside of the music.

For me, I happen to have mp3s from "that brain wave inducing company" and they have some 30 minute recordings with more continuous sound that makes it less of a guess at the vanishings, although at the "hard" level it is still somewhat hard.

To Ona's comment about comparing stats, I agree. There is a competitiveness that seems to be engendered by the app which is not very "buddhist". Furthermore, have "easy", "medium", and "hard" levels seems unnecessary. Guys, show of hands...who did not try "hard" from the get go? I think the levels should be adaptive in the sense that the app should simply start at an arbitrary level and as you progress through the session it should figure out how hard to make it based on how well you are doing.

Just my 0.02, but on the whole I think it will be quite useful with the right audio.

Oh, and a tip...make sure you have enough battery power. If you drop below 20% and iOS throws up that alert saying you are running low, the app will not recognize the taps you make until you dismiss the dialog. If you have your eyes closed, you won't notice until you f up a bunch of times...the app will just buzz you down.

To the adaptation comment, it would be easy enough. They already have a notion of what is "easy" and what is "hard", which affects how often, and how short/long the vanishing are. And they are already tracking how well you are doing to enable them to give you a score. Just put the two together and it is a much more effective training tool.

Apropos to the more general topic of using apps to help improve some aspect of your practice, I just listened to a fascinating talk on Buddhist Geeks with Dr. Judson Brewer, using fMRI as feedback to practice. We've talked about some of this before, but the talk is really good and the guest is extremely eloquent and practical about the benefits, and limitations, of such an approach.