“Intent is a huge thing because it causes a chemical change in our brains,” he said. “When you’re talking about sitting somewhere for 20 minutes or breathing a certain way, obviously you have to go there and work to make it happen.”

Even people who have trouble concentrating can benefit from the ideas in the book, Nestor said.

“There are a number of starter exercises for people who have that problem,” he said. “I’m not telling people to go away for three months and clear their minds; there are some simple procedures.”

Not the new age medicine type, Nestor accidentally stumbled upon a file of old sensory and relaxation methods when cleaning out his uncle’s house in Hollywood Hills, Calif.

In the past, Nestor has written about alternative energy fuel and green home designs for various newspapers; meditation and visual stimulation were new to him. Once he discovered the methods his uncle left behind and tried them out with friends, he was convinced to compile a book and speak to various experts about the exercises.

Some students are especially open to meditation methods because it helps them relax in between a busy work and class schedule. Meghan Baird, an interdisciplinary studies in social science and psychology junior, goes running or reads to reduce stress, but said she’d be open to different tactics such as calming breathing exercises.

“I’ve read up a little about breathing exercises and I think it’s great,” she said. “If I had more time I’d definitely get involved, because I know it would definitely work for me.”

Nestor said there is no particular demographic his sensory tips book is aimed toward because at least half the exercises include neurological and physiological information that will interest anyone, even if they don’t do the exercise.

“Some 90-year-olds are meditating, and there are some 10-year-olds who do it in their own way; it depends on your level of interest,” he said. “There’s plenty for different people.”

In addition to the book, Nestor also has developed an iPhone application that has audio exercises that continuously play to aid in sleep or concentration. The sounds, called Binaural beats, actually cause physiological changes in your brain to help with concentration, Nestor said.

Although Nestor released a book of off-the-wall relax tactics, he said he thinks new age science has ruined spirituality and meditation.

“They’ve turned a real, pragmatic science into a completely subjective memoir approach to science,” he said. “That is specifically why almost all of the claims in the book are backed up with real science and real data, from people who are established and know what they’re talking about.”

At MSU, students find their own ways to get high on life. Journalism senior Tim Weatherhead said he plays video games or watches movies to relax.

“It doesn’t have to be the most tranquil setting,” he said.

Weatherhead even has his own ideas of music to listen to when he needs to wind down.

“I’ll fire up some Enya,” he said.