The goal is "simulated experiences," Ashton wrote in an e-mail. Some say they can be used for improving sleep or intensifying alertness, while others are aimed at improving performance in role-playing video games.
Not all I-Doser branded sounds are drug related. It also has links to sites selling marijuana - "legal bud," "legal hash" - and mood enhancement pills. The site encourages users to spread the word - "become a dealer" - and get 20 percent of sales. Yet 's site maintains its binaural beats simulate the effects of drugs, alcohol and other feelings, such as "first love" and "orgasm," the site's bestseller.įounded in 2005, I-Doser audio sequences have been downloaded more than 1 million times, according to founder Nick Ashton of New York. Though articles about binaural beats appeared in Scientific American as early as 1975, the rhythms' effects on the brain remains hazy.īinaural beats were the basis of a 2005 University of South Florida study on whether the sounds could improve focus among children and young adults with ADHD. The mind creates a hum that's a balance between the two. The basic concept is similar to a tuning fork: One frequency plays in the right ear and a second, slightly different frequency plays in the left ear. I-Dosers and other "digital drugs" typically sound like a low hum, some punctuated with ocean sounds. The bestseller Musicophila: Tales of Music and the Brain (Vintage, 2008) by Columbia University neurologist and psychiatrist Oliver Sacks documents the benefits of music therapy on individuals with brain disorders, including stroke, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Chants and waves have long been used in relaxation and meditation. It's no secret that sound can affect moods. Parents in the town of Mustang, Okla., were warned about I-Dosers in March when the school superintendent there sent a letter saying some students at Mustang High who listened to the sounds "exhibited the same physical effects as if they were under the effects of drugs or alcohol," including increased blood pressure, rapid pulse and involuntary eye movements.
"I can't say I believe it or not unless I were to actually try it," Gonzalez said. Though the teen told his mother the sounds had no effect, she isn't sure what to think. Parent Maria Christina Gonzalez of Kendall found the I-Doser program on her 15-year-old son's laptop.