Finally, back in New York. One cactus almost died, but I will bring the cactus back to life.
After taking care of my cactus I had dinner with the scientists who will measure my brain activities in the next couple of weeks:

"Dutch author Arnon Grunberg and his publishing house, Nijgh & Van Ditmar, initiated the formation of a top class research team that will investigate the physiological processes governing the production and perception of art in a unique collaboration between scientists, an artist and the public.
The team plans to take detailed measurements of the brain activity and the physical signals recorded from the author as he writes his new novel. This will take place in New York, where Grunberg lives, starting November 19th and lasting two weeks. The next phase, in the fall of 2014, will be to study members of public (n=~50) reading the new novel in a controlled situation. On top of this, and using a limited set of parameters, the team will study brain activation in several thousand readers."

(See also here.)

A young man will be in my apartment for the next two weeks to take care of the measurements. As one of the scientists said to me: “You give up your privacy.”
We all do, some of us more consciously than others.