Are you worn out by work? Strung out by the frenetic pace of social media? Pleasantly stimulated by highly specific ambient sounds? If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” congratulations: ...

I’m sitting on a futon in a stranger’s apartment with my friend Ashley. In front of us, Melinda Lauw—a slender, wide-eyed Singaporean woman—is crouched in a squat, holding a small flickering candle, ...