Firmware update 1.0.1 is now available 🌱
Below is a quick and easy step by step guide of how to update your Pocket Scíon. A video guide is also available by clicking the link in our Instruomodular bio.
1 - Download the latest firmware from instruomodular.com/firmware
2 - Connect one end of a compatible USB cable to your computer (Don’t connect the Pocket Scíon yet)
3 - Press and hold the button on the inside of the Pocket Scíon (see video for exact location)
4 - While still holding the button, connect the USB cable to the Pocket Scíon The Pocket Scíon will now appear as a mass storage device on your computer named “RPI-RP2”
5 - Drag the downloaded uf2 firmware file to “RPI-RP2”
6 - Do not disconnect
7 - Wait for 3ish minutes until the Pocket Scíon reboots (Perhaps have a cup of tea)
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Hoorah! You are up to date.
#pocketscion #update #instruo #modernbiology101
Comment ‘connect’ for more info 🌱🍄🎶 The Pocket Scíon is back in stock! Our first run sold out almost immediately, this next batch is here just in time for the holidays. Pocket-sized and affordable, this instrument converts small changes in electrical activity into sound. Plug into your favorite plants and mushrooms and play music using the 4 onboard instruments or connect via MIDI / USB to your computer, modular, or other synthesizers for endless possibilities.
The Pocket Scíon is an active project - you’ll find new beta firmware on our discord and an active community of users exploring art and science.
We can’t wait to see what you create!
A collaboration between Scottish Instruō Specialist Synthesizers and Canadian musician and biologist Modern Biology
#synth #mushroom #fungi #plantmusic #pocketscion
I had the immense luck of having my booth at NAMM this year next-door to the @modernbiology101 booth for the @pocketscion . We were both really busy, but we found chances to chat and also to check out each other's products. Tarun is just the nicest guy you could hope to meet!
I immediately loved the Pocket Scion. The built-in sounds are really beautiful, but of course I immediately wanted to plug it into Anukari as a MIDI controller. After NAMM, I bought one, and it pairs wonderfully with Anukari. To me it's an arpeggiator where I'm not completely in control, allowing interesting and unexpected things to happen.
If people like this idea, I might set up a 24x7 live stream where the Pocket Scion controls Anukari, which is hooked up to a plant in my house. Let me know!
This isn't a sponsored post or anything, I just really like what Tarun is doing and had a lot of fun experimenting with plant music. :)
Mushroom Tech House Magic from @adomaslp
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Mushroom biofeedback experiment with the @pocketscion trying to use it as a 303 trigger on some wiggy noughties-inspired tech house 🍄🎹
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What will you plug into next? 🌱
Mushroom Music created by @modernbiology101 at @arcadiaearth in Toronto powered by the Pocket Scíon🍄🟫🎵
Giant amanitas from @myco_motion
Surging hyphal networks from @spununderground
A mandala of the 5 divisions of fungi from @caro.arevalo
And you get to create the soundtrack!
Touch the pads and you complete the circuit. Your bioelectricity meets the living mushroom’s bioelectric signals, and the Pocket Scíon reads that connection in real time, translating it into notes and rhythms unique to you.
No two people sound the same.
No two moments sound the same.
This is biosonification. Living organisms, speaking in frequency. And you’re part of the conversation.
The whole installation runs on the Pocket Scíon, also modded to trigger the lighting as well. We’re so excited by the endless capabilities of this magical little device.
If you’re in Toronto, come feel it for yourself before May 24.
📍 @arcadiaearth
To us, every day is Earth Day 🌎
The universe is vast. And yet, some of the most profound signals are happening right here, in the bioelectric hum of the living world around us.
Pausing to tune in is an act of curiosity.
Of connection.
Of presence.
The Pocket Scíon lets you deepen your relationship with the organisms that share our world, from microscopic soil life to ancient old-growth trees, and everything in between.
What will you plug into next? 🌱
One of the most beautiful parts of this project is getting to see how YOU use your device.
We’ve been getting content from all over the world, from a boat in the middle of the water in Chiang Mai, to a farm in India and the forests of Brazil.
We love seeing the weird, wild and wonderful ways you use your Pocket Scíon.
Be sure to tag us so we can see the magic you create.
P.s. we’ve extended our group experiment until Saturday. Head to the link in our bio to learn more and participate!
All you need is a device, a pothos plant, a laptop that can run on battery, wifi, curiosity and 20 minutes of your time 🌱💫
Happy Earth Day 🌎
Here we are getting involved in the @modernbiology101 pocket scíon citizen science experiment!
We had a lot of fun.
#instruo #pocketscion #scienceexperiments
Happy Earth Month 🌱
We’re so excited to be opening up our first global citizen science experiment with Modern Biology.
On April 15, Pocket Scion owners around the world will run the same 15-minute plant biology experiment
using a pothos plant, simple interactions, and a shared protocol.
Together, we’ll create the largest distributed dataset ever collected on a single plant species in one day.
The Pocket Scion translates electrical changes in plants + mushrooms into music giving us a way to listen to subtle biological responses that are usually invisible.
All you need is a plant, a device, and curiosity.
If you feel the pull to be part of something collective and meaningful this is your invitation.
Head to the link in our bio to sign up + learn more.
Let’s see what we can discover together 🌀
Sound on 🔊 The soundtrack in this video comes from a real fungus.
Using a biofeedback instrument (@pocketscion ), I recorded bioelectric signals from the scurfy twiglet and used them as part of the soundscape for this timelapse. The full piece is about 3 minutes long, and I plan to release it together with more timelapses of this species.
What you hear is not a conventional melody, but a translation of hidden activity inside a living organism.
This was not sponsored - I bought the device myself because I genuinely wanted to explore what this might sound like. I have also been fascinated by modernbiology ever since I saw him perform live in the forest almost two years ago.
Biofeedback music is fascinating to me. It has a way of drawing you into the present moment.
#biofeedback #mycology #timelapseart #biofeedbackmusic #ambientmusic
Comment ‘earth’ for more info 🌎. Fifteen minutes of your time on April 15 could lead to a scientific discovery ✨ So excited to be working together to bring you our first group project. And celebrating Earth Month by bringing together art and science to reconnect with nature.
What is citizen science and why would we want to do this together? Citizen science is a growing movement that speaks to this idea that science doesn’t have to exist in the ivory tower of universities and academia. It recognizes that science is really about intense curiosity, wonder, and fascination with the natural world. And we, as citizens, can ask questions too. We don’t need huge research grants. We don’t need tons of money to do it. We can just be curious about our everyday lives.
When we created this device back in August of 2025, really the goal was to create something so simple, affordable, transparent that anyone could use it to do group projects. This is our first big group project together. Very excited to have you along for the ride.
#earthmonth #earthday #plantmusic #pocketscion #citizenscience