There is something simple about the human mind that blinds itself to any signs of life other than the most obvious ones. So, when we heard of an experiment with bio-sonification in the city, it piqued our interest. Bio-sonification refers to the technology to turn bio-rhythms of natural objects into sound. “The science dates back to the 1960s, when an American scientist, Cleve Backster, used the polygraph on plants. The technology has evolved from studying natural sounds to the sounds emitted by the sun,” explains Rajesh Sundararajan, cluster lead of horticulture for Mindspace Business Parks.

The writer and Sundararajan (centre) test how touch affects the plant’s soundwaves