I am reading The Books of Jacob, by Olga Tokarczuk. Not loving it but it’s a big book and perhaps I need to persevere a little longer. Also reading Time of the Magicians, by Wolfram Eilenberger, with the subtitle The Decade that Reinvented Philosophy.

Last night I watched Lakota Nation vs United States. Amazing people and amazing documentary film. Highly recommended. 

Uploaded a new hybrid mix to Backstage. I call it a hybrid mix because only a few of the tracks were encoded binaurally and the majority of the tracks were in stereo. I like the sound of it and will do more such hybrid mixes. 

Uploaded the last entry I wrote during my cave retreat. I’m already contemplating my next visit.  :-)

Reasons to be Cheerful posted about the Miyawaki Method. Brilliant!

Founded in 2017, Boomforest is taking an approach to reforestation known as the Miyawaki method. Developed by the Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki in the 1970s, the concept is to plant tree species that are native to the area in a very dense and layered manner — three per square meter — in order to recreate the richly fertile conditions of the natural primitive forests that once covered the planet. It is in contrast to the slower, more orderly and homogeneous processes of traditional reforestation.

Dense Micro-Forests Are Thriving in France

Ted Gioia wrote about a new study of music and well being:

So I was intrigued by a new study from the British Academy of Sound Therapy—which looked at how people use music to improve their mood and physical well being.

They studied 7,581 people and learned that:

• 89% of people believe music supports health and well-being.
• Music creates an optimal state of relaxation in about 13 minutes.
• The best music for relaxation has a “slow tempo, simple melody and no lyrics.”
• Music can alleviate sadness, and 13 minutes is an optimum time for achieving this.

All these results converged on a time frame of 9-13 minutes before music demonstrates desired levels of efficacy.

Half of Waking Hours Are Now Devoted to Entertainment

Maybe I should make some extended versions of slow pieces. Which ones should I work on?