Evidence-Based Spiritual Technology

GettingStoned is built on a foundation of rigorous academic research spanning neuroscience, Buddhist philosophy, machine learning, and behavioral modeling. Below are the key scientific papers that inform our approach to quantifying and supporting spiritual practice.

🎯 Predicting Karma: Models of Reputation, Ethics, and Game Theory

These papers explore how past actions can be mathematically modeled to predict future behavior and assess trustworthiness—a direct parallel to a karmic ledger or reputation system.

A Computational Model of Trust and Reputation

Al-Ajlan, A. Journal of Computer and Communications (2015)

This paper provides a formal mathematical model for trust and reputation, which are secular equivalents of karma. It discusses how an "agent's" reputation is updated based on past interactions, much like our system updates a user's karma score based on white and black stones.

Connection to GettingStoned: Provides academic foundation for our business review system and karma leaderboard calculations.

Game Theory and the Evolution of Morality

Gintis, H. Analyzing Moral Issues (2020)

This chapter explores how game theory—a mathematical study of strategic decision-making—can explain the emergence of moral behavior (virtue). It models how cooperation and altruism can be rational choices.

Connection to GettingStoned: Provides mathematical basis for why rewarding "white stones" (pro-social actions) leads to stable, beneficial community behavior.

🧠 Quantifying Enlightenment: Modeling Meditative & Cognitive States

These articles discuss using technology and computational models to classify and understand mental states associated with meditation, similar to our Muse EEG integration and enlightenment probability calculations.

Increased Theta and Alpha EEG Activity During Nondirective Meditation

Lagopoulos, J., et al. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (2009)

This classic study uses EEG to find quantifiable evidence of meditative states. The research found that meditation produced statistically significant increases in theta and alpha brainwave activity—the exact kind of data our Muse EEG integration captures.

Connection to GettingStoned: Demonstrates how we scientifically validate that a user is in a meditative state using real-time EEG data.

The Bayesian Brain, Self-Consciousness and the Delirium

Lombo, J. A., et al. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (2022)

This paper delves into the "Bayesian Brain" hypothesis, which posits that the brain is a prediction machine that constantly updates its model of the world. Altered states of consciousness, like those in deep meditation, can be understood as changes in the brain's "priors" or core beliefs.

Connection to GettingStoned: Provides theoretical framework for our "Bayesian Enlightenment Probability"—modeling a user's journey as updating their core model of reality through virtuous actions.

📿 Analysis of Buddhist Prasangika Logic

These sources focus on the rigorous, logical methods of the Prasangika school, providing academic validation for the philosophical structure behind our "Emptiness Analysis" feature.

Prasaṅga and Deconstruction: Tibetan and Modern Theories of Meaning

Garfield, J. L. Philosophy East and West (1990)

This paper directly analyzes the prasaṅga (reductio ad absurdum) method central to the Prasangika school. It compares this ancient Buddhist logical framework to modern Western philosophical deconstruction.

Connection to GettingStoned: Provides academic basis for our six-step emptiness analysis, showing it is a form of rigorous logical inquiry, not just simple reflection.

The Five Great Madhyamaka Arguments

Tillemans, T. The Oxford Handbook of Buddhist Philosophy (2017)

This chapter details the specific logical arguments used in Madhyamaka philosophy to demonstrate emptiness, including "the reasoning from dependent arising".

Connection to GettingStoned: Directly connects to our app's integration of the Dependent Origination chain as a core part of transformation analysis.

📊 Actuarial & Monte Carlo Methods in Behavioral Modeling

These papers show how methods from finance and risk analysis are used to predict human behavior over time, analogous to our goal of predicting future stone counts and spiritual progress.

A tutorial on the use of survival analysis for predicting customers' purchasing behavior

Pérez-Pérez, M., et al. Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing (2021)

This paper uses survival analysis—a core actuarial method—to model the "time until a customer makes their next purchase". This exact methodology can model the "time until a user logs their next white stone" or the "time until the next black stone risk event."

Connection to GettingStoned: Gives our predictions a foundation in established statistical practice used in finance and behavioral economics.

Applications of Monte Carlo methods in biology, medicine and other fields of science

Ulam, S., et al. Los Alamos Science (1987)

This foundational text explains how Monte Carlo simulations can be used to explore the range of outcomes in any system governed by probabilities. By treating a user's daily practice as a probabilistic event, we can simulate thousands of possible "future spiritual paths."

Connection to GettingStoned: Allows us to provide rich, probabilistic forecasts of spiritual progress, just as is done in financial risk modeling.

Building on Scientific Foundations

GettingStoned represents the intersection of ancient wisdom and modern science. By grounding our approach in peer-reviewed research, we ensure that our technology is both spiritually authentic and scientifically rigorous.

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