Mindball Levels of Engagement- Juliana

1) Observing parts- Guests press the button, watch the ball move, look at computer screen, or may sit on the stool and read the plaque.

2)  Observing others play- Guests watch other guests play Mindball, learning how to play.

3)  Coming up with a theory- Guests question what is causing the ball to move, and may discuss with another guest or a spark what they think is happening. 

4) Playing Mindball- Guests will play with either another guest or a spark. 

5) Testing variables-  Guests make changes to how they play, which may include focusing on the ball, switching seats, or closing eyes. (Once a guest reaches engagement level 5, they usually will go back and forth between engagement level 4 and 5)

Observing at Mindball:

Observing is done in all levels of engagement, however it may mean different things in the earlier levels compared to higher levels. In the first two levels, observing might mean using senses such as sight, touch, and hearing. Sight includes looking at the different parts of mindball, looking at the computer screen, watching the ball move, and maybe observing the ball above move as well. Touch might include pressing the button or feeling the headrest. Hearing as a sense depends on how busy or loud the second floor is at the time. When it is relatively quiet, you can hear the sound of the large orange ball moving, which causes some people to look around and wonder where the noise is coming from. In levels three through five, observing may include noticing various outcomes of either playing or watching people play Mindball, and starting to notice what might be causing the different outcomes.

Asking questions at Mindball:

When people first approach Mindball, their first question might be: what does it do? This would most likely occur in the very first level of engagement but you would not know for sure what questions they are asking in their head just by observing them. Once the guest gets to the second level of engagement and they are watching others play, you can also guess that they are starting asking questions like: how does it work, what is causing the ball to move, and how do you win or lose? And the third level of engagement, coming up with a theory, you know for sure that they are asking questions, since that is something that has to happen before someone can come up with a theory or explanation for what is happening. These questions might include: what is being measured, and what is being shown in the graphs on the computer screen? And finally once the guest is at the point where they are actually playing Mindball and switching between engagement level 4 and 5, they may be asking questions about different variables like: what can be changed, what happens if the same two players switch seats, what happens if I focus harder, or close my eyes?

Yesterday I was observing Mindball, and an interesting point was brought up while two guests were at engagement level 5. Angela had explained to them that in order to win, you need to be more relaxed, and you will push the ball to the opposite side. She also mentioned that the player on the right side tends to lose more often since there is more going on in the background (BiTiRi) that can keep the player from relaxing, which is why the player on the left usually wins. So after playing one game, the players switched sides and found that in each game, whoever was on the left side was the winner.