Living Biodome

(wind whooshing) (bird screeching) The living biodome is a masterpiece of balance where technology and nature intertwine. Here ecosystems are preserved and allowed to flourish. What makes a Biodome extraordinary is not just its ability to sustain life, (wind whooshing) but our ability to learn from it and to witness the phenomena it holds. (wind whooshing) As we prepare for our visit, let's take a moment for a brief wind-down exercise. (wind whooshing) Tonight's wind-down is an exercise we call noting. (wind whooshing) It helps to soothe the mind, (wind whooshing) and once you've learned it, you can even use it if you wake up during the night. (wind whooshing) We're going to be counting our breaths and then just gently noting thoughts and feelings as they arise. (wind whooshing) We're not trying to change them. (wind whooshing) We're simply labeling thinking as thinking, feeling as feeling. (wind whooshing) It may sound incredibly simple, but it can help to create distance between ourselves and the thought and ourselves and the feeling so we don't get so involved in it. That, in turn, creates a more restful state of mind. In other words, the perfect conditions for gentle, restful sleep. So to begin, just take a moment or two to get comfortable. Make sure you're nice and cool. (wind whooshing) Just starting with some big, deep breaths. (wind whooshing) Breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth. (wind whooshing) And with the next out breath, allow the breath to return to its natural rhythm, in and out through the nose and feeling the weight of the body pressing you down into your bed. (wind whooshing) And in your own time, (wind whooshing) starting to count the breaths as they pass. (wind whooshing) One with the rise, two with the fall, just up to a count of 10. (wind whooshing) When you get to 10, you can stop and start again at 1. (wind whooshing) And remember, anytime you get distracted, the moment you realize you're distracted by thought, simply note it thinking and return to the breath. Or if a feeling arises, note it as feeling and return to the breath. Noting is very gentle, not harsh at all. Think of it like a feather, just gently touching the surface of a crystal glass. (wind whooshing) I'm going to give you a few moments just to keep counting the breath and noting any thoughts and feelings that arise. (wind whooshing) (wind whooshing continues) That's great. (wind whooshing) When night settles over the astral junction desert, the sands turn cool beneath the evening breeze. (wind whooshing) Colossal cacti with spine arms stand tall, keeping watch over the desert's dwellers and its wanderers. (wind whooshing) Beyond the violet pink neon glow of the starlight diner and not far from the faint hum of the desert planetarium, the living biodome rises. (wind whooshing) Its expansive enclosure holding an ecosystem untouched by the world outside. (wind whooshing) A vast dome of tempered glass...