Overview

This course is designed to help participants explore the fascinating world of brainwaves, meditation, and cutting-edge technologies like brainwave entrainment and Virtual Reality (VR) to enhance focus, relaxation, and mental clarity. By the end of the course, you will not only understand the science behind brainwave patterns and their connection to mental states but also gain hands-on experience in using techniques such as EEG measurement, binaural beats, and VR-based focus exercises to optimize your brain’s performance.

This IAP course introduces participants to the practical measurement and training of mental states for enhanced focus and productivity. Participants will learn how brainwave entrainment, meditation techniques and immersive environments can influence brain activity, and how such claims can be evaluated using consumer EEG and first-person data. Through hands-on experiments, students will compare subjective experience with objective measurements, examine sources of variability and bias, and develop experimental literacy around neurotechnology and meditation. The course emphasizes critical thinking, responsible interpretation, and an understanding of both the capabilities and limitations of current tools.

What You’ll Experience

• Course Outcomes

  By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

  • Define attention-related mental states in operational, testable terms

  • Explain what consumer EEG can and cannot reliably measure

  • Compare subjective experience with objective data and interpret divergences

  • Critically assess claims about meditation, neurofeedback, entrainment, and immersive technologies

  • Get access to VR and EEG tools that participants can use for focus and meditation training

  Course Structure and Format

  The course consists of three in-person sessions (approximately 90 minutes each) that combine short technical briefings with hands-on experimental practice.

  Students will work in rotating small groups, using the provided technology to experiment with understanding and controlling. A subset of participants will be instrumented with EEG during each session, while others observe, log data, and assist with protocol execution. This structure allows all students to gain both experiential and analytical understanding.

  Session Outline

  Session 1 (Jan 26): Measuring Attention and Establishing Baseline 

  • Operational definitions of attention and mental state

  • EEG fundamentals and their limitations

  • Baseline measurements and first focused-attention practice

  • Comparison of subjective experience with recorded data

  Session 2 (Jan 27): Testing Interventions and Context 

  • Focused attention meditation as a trainable skill

  • Evaluation of an additional intervention (e.g., brainwave entrainment or immersive context)

  • Within-person comparisons across conditions

  • Discussion of expectancy effects, variability, and confounds

  Session 3 (Jan 28): Synthesis, Interpretation, and Application 

  • Patterns observed across sessions

  • What claims are supported by the data, and which are not

  • Ethical considerations and limits of generalization

  • How to design responsible follow-on experiments or training programs

Who It’s For

Open to all previous IAP participants and those curious about neurotechnology, meditation, or self-directed focus training. No prior tech or meditation experience required.

Details

📅 January 22nd, 23rd, and 24th

🕠 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM

📍 MIT Campus (location to be announced via email to registrants upon sign up).