The next replacement for websockets, UDP.

If you're a dev, please like this post, and "star" the issue below, it's pretty far reaching for the internet. https://bugs.chromium.org/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=1069742

Is oxidative stress, during sleep, killing you?

Can't sleep? Suffer from insomnia? Get agitated when lying in bed?

Ever heard of Pavlov and how he trained his dogs to salivate at the sound of a bell? He managed to train the dogs involuntary response, where they associated food with the ring of a bell, and the unconscious mind would trigger salivation.

Ponder another scenario. If every night, during sleep, someone grabbed your neck and started restricting airflow. A fight/flight response would be created, right? Question, if this happened every night, would the unconcious mind associate your bed with the fight/flight response. And you, the sleeper, have no idea this involuntary association is being created in the unconscious mind.

Oxidative stress, UARS (upper airway restriction), etc. are very real phenomenon. Unconscious conditioning/training is also very real.

Detecting and measuring snoring issues is pretty easy, $10 will get a copy of snorelab. Snorelab measurements are coming in high? Check out Alaxolita nasal stents. They take a month or two to get used too, pretty uncomfortable at first, but your snorelab score will collapse into single digits. From my experience, Alaxolito stents will change your life, in a big way, for the better.

UARS is harder to detect/measure, see this blog for the details.

To learn more about unconscious associations/training we unwittingly do, buy a Dreem2 EEG headset and take the advanced course.

Happy sleeping!

Software development, are we doing something wrong? Check out the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE Pillar.

At risk of oversimplifying, something worth noting. Since the beginning of man, from an engineering perspective, we have made the biggest jumps when building tools which are used to build other tools. Why shouldn't the same thing apply to software. Why not write systems which generate other systems, etc. etc.?
NYSE Pillar, arguably one of the most critical systems on the planet, was built this way. The brains behind it? Alexei Lebedev. I had the privilege of observing this feat while working at Intercontinental Exchange, when it purchased the New York Stock Exchange.
Interested in seeing the goodies? Think we should have an open source framework? Merry Christmas, see OpenACR

Sleep study technology is getting better and cheaper

Oxidative stress during sleep, some make a compelling case, bad breathing during sleep is what causes a good number of diseases. If we can detect it cheaply, hopefully lives can be saved. The folks at Dreem2 are doing some incredible work.

Beta breath tracking.

Another option is snorelab

AF_XDP and the linux kernel, this is gonna be big

I've been talking about kernel bypass for a long time. Now, it's being distributed with the linux kernel. It's now possible to intercept packets before they hit the kernel. Xilinx is now taking advantage of the feature. Amazing times!

See the github repo here.

Covid happens

Coronavirus, I thought everyone was overreacting, then it happened to my dad. Think of a panicked person yelling/drowning, trying to catch a breath. That's what it looked like on zoom, for days, before finally passing. He was 76.

I can't help but think, these are very early days, and we still have a lot to learn/discover. Our FDA is the gold standard, with respect to quality and testing, second to none on the planet. And with that being said, the FDA says "oops" via recalls thousands of times per year.

The coming era of Neurofeedback

Decided to start meditating? Bought a Muse? Feel like throwing it out the window? Gonna put it on Ebay?

You're not alone, and I'd like to share my experience learning to meditate with Muse, the funny little headband one can purchase on ChooseMuse

For those who don't want to read a lengthy description of my journey, and just want to learn the "trick", here's the scoop. For the first couple weeks of using your Muse, DO NOT close your eyes during the calibration phase. Use the "Rain Forest" soundscape. And calibrate with eyes open until being able to maintain the "bird chirping" for at least thirty minutes per session, over five consecutive days, showing 80% calm or better. Then, start half closing your eyes during calibration, and repeat the above cycle. Eventually there will be enough "mental muscle" to calibrate with your eyes closed, and still find "the birds".

Now I'm sure your saying, what good is the "percent calm" reading if the calibration from which it is derived can change? For those familiar with weight lifting, the best way to view your Muse is as a fantastic barbell. The calibration phase is where the user places weight on the barbell. Keeping ones eyes open during calibration is the equivalent of placing minimal weight on the barbell, so squeezing out eight reps is easy (ie hitting 80%). Closing your eyes during calibration is the equivalent of placing 200 lbs on the barbell, so hitting 80% will be much harder. To throw 1000 lbs on the barbell, an advanced meditation session will involve doing a "warm-up" meditation to enter an increased "calm" state for calibration, end the warm-up session, and then start a new session to enable re-calibration at an increased difficulty level, ie placing more weight on the barbell.

Luckily, I'm part mongoose, might be why my wife claims I've got Aspergers. Once I get my teeth in something, letting go simply isn't an option. The cobra must die! (see Riki Tiki Tavi) Needless to say, I've stuck it out with my Muse.

My first couple months trying to get somewhere with my Muse. Think about trying to "push a cat into the toilet" or trying to "nail Jello to a tree". Both being extremely frustrating activities. But after substantial repeated effort I started "sensing" something going on in my head. Sometimes it would start on the right side, move around a bit, and then go to the left side. As time progressed, going into three to four months, the feeling became much more focused resulting in a very "tight" sensation between both my eyes and up a bit. Some might mistake it for a light headache, but it's not. After getting "Muse Direct" to observe all my brain waves, I've come to realize the presence of prodigious "alpha waves" at the front, right/left sides, and back of my head. This is a state typically only achieved by "advanced" meditation gurus after decades of preparation/training.

Neural bridging. In the same way muscles get larger when lifting weights, neural bridging is the strengthening of the "calm" muscle in your brain. See The Automatic Self on Amazon. Continuing with Muse training, I am sensing an increased ability to enter into a "calm" state with minimal effort. Soon I suspect it'll be easy as "falling off a log".

One other tip, another discovery with Muse has been how important "breath" can be to entering a calm state. Research "belly breathing" on google, this is very key to focused meditation. And will accelerate your journey with Muse.

At this point, all I can say is Namaste! Hang in there, it's worth making the commitment to visit the gym and exercise your brain every day. I actually do it twice a day if I can pull it off. Currently, my Muse points stand at 1,462,616. After all the frustration, I'm glad I stuck with it. This quirky little headband is changing my life experience. In the same way physical training, can be uncomfortable, meditation can be the same. "Lean" into it. In the way muscles get stronger, your brain does the same.

Neurofeedback/biofeedback is for real. I've been humming under trees, etc. for a couple decades now, only to find myself holding an empty bag. With Muse I now know 100%, I'm meditating. The experience is clear as "getting hit in the head with a brick", no doubt whatsoever.

Remember learning to ride a bike? Incredibly frustrating at first, but once that first ten to twenty feet is traversed without your feet touching the ground, the notion is born, "I can do this thing!". My journey with Muse has turned me into a curious playful kid again. And just like I could learn to ride a bike, thanks to Muse, I can meditate as well!

Feeling a bit sad lately, in the realization many of today's health issues are "rooted" in one having anxiety, fear, etc. Mind, composed of the nervous system and brain is what "drives" everything in the body. Many people are needlessly suffering. Pretty soon, I fully expect Neurofeedback will be getting prescribed as a treatment for anything ranging from insomnia to erectile dysfunction and obesity. No more need for Lunesta, Viagra, Cialis, etc. A golden age for humanity is just beginning.

I'll try and report back again in a few months. Stay strong and "hum" my friends!