# Key Points from IRC Discussions

• A DIY light-based brain stimulation project was discussed, with participants debating appropriate LED brightness (28 lumens) and sharing experiences with SAD lamps that reportedly increase thyroid output.

• Zack Hoeken, co-founder who left MakerBot Industries, has launched new ventures including Hoektronics, with open-source projects like BotQueue and a CNC controller available on GitHub.

• Participants criticized a talk on "LSDNA" as scientifically unsound, describing it as "English majors listening to a bigger English major talk about scientific sounding ideas," highlighting concerns about scientific literacy in some transhumanist circles.

• A commercial 32-channel digital EEG and mapping system with ECG and SPO2 capabilities was spotted on eBay, showing the community's interest in accessible neuroimaging technology.

• Concerns were raised about Marcin Jakubowski (likely of Open Source Ecology) making questionable claims about accessing "universal wisdom" and "growing faster than most people" during meditation.

• A significant discussion addressed how the American Chemical Society's journal pricing has become prohibitively expensive for smaller universities, despite being required for ACS-accredited chemistry programs, highlighting tensions between open science and traditional publishing models.

• The Mensa organization was critiqued for its low membership (110,000) relative to potential qualified members (estimated 140 million globally), with participants questioning its value and describing meetings as "cliqueish."