Early parapsychological research employed the use of Zener cards in experiments designed to test for possible telepathic communication.

Parapsychology (from the Greek: παρά para, "alongside" + psychology) is the study of ostensibly paranormal psychological phenomena. Phenomena studied include extra-sensory perception, psychokinesis, and survival of consciousness after death; parapsychologists call these phenomena psi, a neutral term non-suggestive of what causes the phenomena or experiences.^[1] Image File history File links Cartas_Zener. ... Image File history File links Cartas_Zener. ... Zener cards are cards used to conduct experiments for extra-sensory perception, most often clairvoyance. ... Telepathy, from the Greek τῆλε, tele, remote; and πάθεια, patheia, to be effected by, describes the hypothetical transfer of information on thoughts or feelings between individuals by means other than the five classical senses. ... Psychological science redirects here. ... Paranormal is an umbrella term used to describe a wide variety of reported anomalous phenomena. ... Extra-Sensory Perception (ESP) is defined as ability to acquire information by paranormal means independent of any known physical senses or deduction from previous experience. ... The term psychokinesis (from the Greek ψυχή, psyche, meaning mind, soul, or breath; and κίνησις, kinesis, meaning motion; literally movement from the mind)[1][2] or PK, also known as telekinesis[3] (Greek + , literally distant-movement referring to telekinesis) or TK, denotes the paranormal ability of the mind to influence matter, time... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... In parapsychology, psi is defined as the active agent by which mind influences matter and is able to receive ESP impressions. ...

Parapsychological research involves a variety of methodologies, including laboratory research and fieldwork, which is conducted at a number of universities and privately funded laboratories around the world.^[2] Such research usually appears in specialized publications such as the Journal of Parapsychology and the European Journal of Parapsychology, though research articles on parapsychological topics have appeared in journals such as Psychological Bulletin, Foundations of Physics, and the British Journal of Psychology. Experiments conducted by parapsychologists have included the use of random number generators to test for evidence of psychokinesis, sensory-deprivation Ganzfeld experiments to test for extra-sensory perception, and research trials conducted under contract to the United States government to investigate the possibility of remote viewing. Parapsychologists have generated a number of meta-analytical studies based on this research, which combine the data from previous experiments into one large data set. Several of these statistical analyses have been presented to wider academic community in the pages of mainstream scientific journals ^{[3] [4] [5]} and have attracted discussion and debate. The Journal of Parapsychology is a quarterly publication devoted primarily to the original publication of experimental results and other research findings in extrasensory perception and psychokinesis. ... Psychological Bulletin is a scholarly journal specializing in literature reviews. ... Foundations of Physics is the most prestigious journal in physics on the subject of foundational problems facing modern physics. ... A random number generator is a computational or physical device designed to generate a sequence of numbers that does not have any easily discernable pattern, so that the sequence can be treated as being random. ... Participant of a Ganzfeld telepathy experiment. ... Extra-Sensory Perception (ESP) is defined as ability to acquire information by paranormal means independent of any known physical senses or deduction from previous experience. ... Remote viewing (RV) is a broad term for a variety of techniques or protocols employed to produce and control extra-sensory perception (ESP). ... In statistics, a meta-analysis combines the results of several studies that address a set of related research hypotheses. ...

Parapsychology is a fringe science because it involves research that does not fit within standard theoretical models accepted by mainstream science. Scientists such as psychologists Ray Hyman and James Alcock, among others, are critical of both the methodology used and the results obtained by parapsychology. Skeptical researchers suggest that methodological flaws provide the best explanation for apparent experimental successes, rather than the anomalistic explanations offered by many parapsychologists. Some critics have also argued that parapsychology crosses the line into pseudoscience.^[6] To date, no evidence has been accepted by the mainstream scientific community as establishing the existence of paranormal phenomena. Fringe science is a phrase used to describe scientific inquiry in an established field that departs significantly from mainstream or orthodox theories. ... Scientific modelling is the process of generating abstract or conceptual models. ... Scientific consensus is the collective judgment, position, and opinion of the community of scientists in a particular field of science at a particular time. ... Ray Hyman (b. ... A typical 18th century phrenology chart. ... Scientific consensus is the collective judgment, position, and opinion of the community of scientists in a particular field of science at a particular time. ...

History

The term parapsychology was coined in or before 1889 by psychologist Max Dessoir. It was adopted by J.B. Rhine in the 1930s as a replacement for the term psychical research, to indicate a significant shift toward laboratory methodologies applied to the study of psychical phenomena.^[7] Max Dessoir (born February 8, 1867, Berlin – died July 19, 1947, Königstein im Taunus) was a German philosopher and theorist of aesthetics. ... Joseph Banks Rhine (September 29, 1895 – February 20, 1980) was a pioneer of parapsychology. ...

Early psychical research

American psychologist and philosopher William James (1842-1910) was an early psychical researcher.

The Society for Psychical Research (SPR) was founded in London in 1882. The formation of the SPR was the first systematic effort to organize scientists and scholars for a critical and sustained investigation of paranormal phenomena. The early membership of the SPR included philosophers, scholars, scientists, educators and politicians, such as Henry Sidgwick, Arthur Balfour, William Crookes, and Charles Richet.^[8] Image File history File links Wm_james. ... Image File history File links Wm_james. ... The Society for Psychical Research (SPR) is a non-profit organization which started in the United Kingdom and later acquired branches in other countries. ... Henry Sidgwick Henry Sidgwick (May 31, 1838–August 28, 1900) was an English philosopher. ... For the steel manufacturer, see Arthur Balfour, 1st Baron Riverdale. ... Sir William Crookes, OM, FRS (17 June 1832 – 4 April 1919) was an English chemist and physicist. ... Charles Robert Richet (August 26, 1850 _ December 4, 1935) was a French physiologist who won the 1913 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for his work on anaphylaxis, his term for the sometimes fatal reaction by a sensitized individual to a second injection of an antigen. ...

The SPR classified its subjects of study into several areas: telepathy, hypnotism, Reichenbach's phenomena, apparitions, haunts, and the physical aspects of spiritualism such as table-tilting and the appearance of matter from unknown sources, otherwise known as materialization. One of the first collaborative efforts of the SPR was its Census of Hallucinations, which researched apparitional experiences and hallucinations in the sane. The census was the Society's first attempt at a statistical evaluation of paranormal phenomena, and the resulting publication in 1886, Phantasms of the Living is still widely referenced in parapsychological literature today. The SPR became the model for similar societies in other European countries and the United States during the late 19th century. Largely due to the support of psychologist William James, the American Society for Psychical Research (ASPR) opened its doors in New York City in 1885.^[9] Telepathy, from the Greek τῆλε, tele, remote; and πάθεια, patheia, to be effected by, describes the hypothetical transfer of information on thoughts or feelings between individuals by means other than the five classical senses. ... Hypnosis, as defined by the American Psychological Association Division of Psychological Hypnosis, is a procedure during which a health professional or researcher suggests that a client, patient, or experimental participant experience changes in sensations, perceptions, thoughts, or behavior. ... An apparitional experience is one which purports to involve ghosts, spirits or apparitions. ... James Pembridge and Laura Webber investigate haunted locations in the UK. Soon to be part of The Paranormal Magazine]] Image:P1090036. ... // By 1853, when the popular song Spirit Rappings was published, Spiritualism was an object of intense curiosity. ... A materialization is the creation or appearance of matter from unknown sources. ... An hallucination may occur to a normal person in state of good mental and physical health, even in the apparent absence of a transient trigger factor such as fatigue, intoxication or sensory deprivation. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... The Society for Psychical Research (SPR) is a non-profit organization in the United Kingdom whose purpose is to research and investigate supernatural, magical, paranormal, and occult phenomena in a scientific and unbiased manner. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ...

Today, the SPR and ASPR continue the investigation of psi phenomena. The SPR's purpose is stated in every issue of its Journal - being "to examine without prejudice or prepossession and in a scientific spirit those faculties of man, real or supposed, which appear to be inexplicable on any generally recognized hypothesis."^[10] In parapsychology, psi is defined as the active agent by which mind influences matter and is able to receive ESP impressions. ...

Rhine era

In 1911, Stanford University became the first academic institution in the United States to study extra-sensory perception (ESP) and psychokinesis (PK) in a laboratory setting. The effort was headed by psychologist John Edgar Coover. In 1930, Duke University became the second major U.S. academic institution to engage in the critical study of ESP and psychokinesis in the laboratory. Under the guidance of psychologist William McDougall, and with the help of others in the department—including psychologists Karl Zener, Joseph B. Rhine, and Louisa E. Rhine—laboratory ESP experiments using volunteer subjects from the undergraduate student body began. As opposed to the approaches of psychical research, which generally sought qualitative evidence for paranormal phenomena, the experiments at Duke University proffered a quantitative, statistical approach using cards and dice. As a consequence of the ESP experiments at Duke, standard laboratory procedures for the testing of ESP developed and came to be adopted by interested researchers throughout the world.^[9] Stanford redirects here. ... Extra-Sensory Perception (ESP) is defined as ability to acquire information by paranormal means independent of any known physical senses or deduction from previous experience. ... The term psychokinesis (from the Greek ψυχή, psyche, meaning mind, soul, or breath; and κίνησις, kinesis, meaning motion; literally movement from the mind)[1][2] or PK, also known as telekinesis[3] (Greek + , literally distant-movement referring to telekinesis) or TK, denotes the paranormal ability of the mind to influence matter, time... Duke University is a private coeducational research university located in Durham, North Carolina, USA. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. ... There have been several people named William McDougall For the member of parliament from Ontario and premier of the Northwest Territories in Canada (b. ... Karl Edward Zener (April 22, 1903 - Sept. ... Joseph Banks Rhine (September 29, 1895 - February 20, 1980) was a pioneer of parapsychology. ... Qualitative research is one of the two major approaches to research methodology in social sciences. ... Quantitative research is the systematic scientific investigation of quantitative properties and phenomena and their relationships. ... For Wikipedia statistics, see m:Statistics Statistics is the science and practice of developing human knowledge through the use of empirical data expressed in quantitative form. ... Zener cards are cards used to conduct experiments for extra-sensory perception, most often clairvoyance. ...

The publication of J.B. Rhine's book, New Frontiers of the Mind (1937) brought the laboratory's findings to the general public. In his book, Rhine popularized the word "parapsychology," which psychologist Max Dessoir had coined over 40 years earlier, to describe the research conducted at Duke. Rhine also founded an autonomous Parapsychology Laboratory within Duke and started the Journal of Parapsychology, which he co-edited with McDougall. Max Dessoir (born February 8, 1867, Berlin – died July 19, 1947, Königstein im Taunus) was a German philosopher and theorist of aesthetics. ... The Journal of Parapsychology is a quarterly publication devoted primarily to the original publication of experimental results and other research findings in extrasensory perception and psychokinesis. ...

The parapsychology experiments at Duke evoked much criticism from academic psychologists who challenged the concepts and evidence of ESP. Rhine and his colleagues attempted to address these criticisms through new experiments, articles, and books, and summarized the state of the criticism along with their responses in the book Extra-Sensory Perception After Sixty Years.

The administration of Duke grew less sympathetic to parapsychology, and after Rhine's retirement in 1965 parapsychological links with the university were broken. Rhine later established the Foundation for Research on the Nature of Man (FRNM) and the Institute for Parapsychology as a successor to the Duke laboratory.^[9] In 1995, the centenary of Rhine's birth, the FRNM was renamed the Rhine Research Center. Today, the Rhine Research Center is a parapsychology research unit, stating that it "aims to improve the human condition by creating a scientific understanding of those abilities and sensitivities that appear to transcend the ordinary limits of space and time."^[11]

Establishment of the Parapsychological Association

The Parapsychological Association (PA) was created in Durham, North Carolina, on June 19, 1957. Its formation was proposed by J. B. Rhine at a workshop on parapsychology which was held at the Parapsychology Laboratory of Duke University. Rhine proposed that the group form itself into the nucleus of an international professional society in parapsychology. The aim of the organization, as stated in its Constitution, became "to advance parapsychology as a science, to disseminate knowledge of the field, and to integrate the findings with those of other branches of science".^[12] The Parapsychological Association was formed in 1957 as a professional society for parapsychologists following an initiative by J.B. Rhine. ... Nickname: Location in North Carolina Coordinates: , Country State Counties Durham, Orange, Wake Government  - Mayor Bill Bell Area  - City  94. ... is the 170th day of the year (171st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar). ...

Under the direction of anthropologist Margaret Mead, the Parapsychological Association took a large step in advancing the field of parapsychology in 1969 when it became affiliated with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the largest general scientific society in the world.^[13] In 1979, physicist John A. Wheeler argued that parapsychology is pseudoscientific, and that the affiliation of the PA to the AAAS needed to be reconsidered.^[14] His challenge to parapsychology's AAAS affiliation was unsuccessful.^[14] Today, the PA consists of about three hundred full, associate, and affiliated members worldwide and maintains its affiliation with the AAAS.^[15] The annual AAAS convention provides a forum where parapsychologists can present their research to scientists from other fields and advance parapsychology in the context of the AAAS's lobbying on national science policy.^[15] Margaret Mead (December 16, 1901, Philadelphia – November 15, 1978, New York City) was an American cultural anthropologist. ... The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an organization that promotes cooperation between scientists, defends scientific freedom, encourages scientific responsibility and supports scientific education for the betterment of all humanity. ... John Archibald Wheeler (born 1911) is an American theoretical physicist. ...

Decade of increased research (1970s)

The affiliation of the Parapsychological Association (PA) with the American Association for the Advancement of Science, along with a general openness to psychic and occult phenomena in the 1970s, led to a decade of increased parapsychological research. During this period, other notable organizations were also formed, including the Academy of Parapsychology and Medicine (1970), the Institute of Parascience (1971), the Academy of Religion and Psychical Research, the Institute of Noetic Sciences (1973), the International Kirlian Research Association (1975), and the Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Laboratory (1979). Parapsychological work was also conducted at the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) during this time.^[7] For other uses, see Occult (disambiguation). ... Founded in 1973 by astronaut Edgar Mitchell, the Institute of Noetic Sciences explores the frontiers of consciousness through rigorous scientific research, bridges science and spirit, and seeks to support a fundamental shift in human consciousness to create a world grounded in freedom, wisdom and love. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... SRI International is one of the worlds largest contract research institutions. ...

The scope of parapsychology expanded during these years. Psychiatrist Ian Stevenson conducted much of his controversial research into reincarnation during the 1970s. Psychologist Thelma Moss devoted time to the study of Kirlian photography at UCLA's parapsychology laboratory. The influx of spiritual teachers from Asia, and their claims of abilities produced by meditation, led to research on altered states of consciousness. Physicist Russell Targ coined the term remote viewing for use in some of his work at SRI in 1974.^[7] Ian Pretyman Stevenson, M.D., (born October 31, 1918, in Montreal, Canada, died February 8, 2007, in Charlottesville, Virginia), was a Canadian-American psychiatrist whose research interests included: children who claim to remember previous lives, near-death experiences, apparitions (death-bed visions), the mind-brain problem, and possible survival of... This article is about the theological concept. ... Thelma Moss, Ph. ... Kirlian photography refers to a form of contact print photography, theoretically associated with high-voltage. ... Binomial name Ucla xenogrammus Holleman, 1993 The largemouth triplefin, Ucla xenogrammus, is a fish of the family Tripterygiidae and only member of the genus Ucla, found in the Pacific Ocean from Viet Nam, the Philippines, Palau and the Caroline Islands to Papua New Guinea, Australia (including Christmas Island), and the... For other senses of this word, see Meditation (disambiguation). ... The phrase altered state of consciousness was coined in the 1970s and describes induced changes in ones mental state, almost always temporary. ... Russell Targ is an American physicist and author who was a pioneer in the development of the laser. ... Remote viewing (RV) is a broad term for a variety of techniques or protocols employed to produce and control extra-sensory perception (ESP). ... This article is about psi studies at SRI. For intelligence applications of this work, see Stargate Project. ...

During this period, academics outside parapsychology also appeared to have a general optimism towards this research. In 1979, a survey of more than 1,100 college professors in the United States found that only 2% of psychologists expressed the belief that extra-sensory perception was an impossibility. A far greater number, 34%, indicated that they believed ESP was either an established fact or a likely possibility. The percentage was even higher in other areas of study: 55% of natural scientists, 66% of social scientists (excluding psychologists), and 77% of academics in the arts, humanities, and education believed that ESP research was worthwhile.^[16] A psychologist is a researcher and/or a practitioner of psychology. ... Extra-Sensory Perception (ESP) is defined as ability to acquire information by paranormal means independent of any known physical senses or deduction from previous experience. ... ESP can mean: In the paranormal: Extra-sensory perception Effective Sensory Projection In music: E.S.P. (Miles Davis album), an album by Miles Davis E.S.P. (Bee Gees album), an album by the Bee Gees Ectopic Shapeshifting Penance-propulsion, on The Mars Voltas De-Loused in the... The Michelson–Morley experiment was used to disprove that light propagated through a luminiferous aether. ... Terms like SOSE (Studies of Society & the Environment) not only refer to social sciences but also studies of the environment. ... The Arts is a broad subdivision of culture, comprised of many expressive disciplines. ... For other uses, see Humanities (disambiguation). ...

The surge in paranormal research continued throughout the 1970s and into the 1980s. By the end of the 1980s, the Parapsychological Association reported members working in more than 30 countries. Additionally, research not affiliated with the PA was being carried out in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.^[7] Pre-1989 division between the West (grey) and Eastern Bloc (orange) superimposed on current national boundaries: Russia (dark orange), other countries of the former USSR (medium orange),members of the Warsaw pact (light orange), and other former Communist regimes not aligned with Moscow (lightest orange). ...

Parapsychology today

Since the 1970's, contemporary parapsychological research has waned considerably in the United States.^[17] Early research was considered inconclusive, and parapsychologists were faced with strong opposition from their academic colleagues.^[7] Some effects thought to be paranormal, for example, the effects of Kirlian photography, disappeared under more stringent controls, leaving those avenues of research at dead-ends.^[7] Many university laboratories in the United States have closed, citing a lack of acceptance by mainstream science as the reason, leaving the bulk of parapsychology confined to private institutions funded by private sources.^[7] After 28 years of research, Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Laboratory (PEAR) retired their laboratory in 2007.^[17] Kirlian photography is high voltage contact print photography. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Two universities in the United States still have academic parapsychology laboratories: the Division of Perceptual Studies, a unit at the University of Virginia's Department of Psychiatric Medicine, studies the possibility of survival of consciousness after bodily death; the University of Arizona's Veritas Laboratory conducts laboratory investigations of mediums. Several private institutions, including the Institute of Noetic Sciences, conduct and promote parapsychological research. Britain leads parapsychological study in Europe, with privately funded laboratories at the universities of Edinburgh, Northampton, and Liverpool Hope, among others.^[17] The University of Virginia (also called U.Va. ... The University of Arizona (UA or U of A) is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. ... Mediumship is a term used to refer to a person who claims to communicate with spirits of the deceased and passes on messages from the spirit world or Heaven to people on earth. ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... The University of Edinburgh (Scottish Gaelic: ), founded in 1582,[4] is a renowned centre for teaching and research in Edinburgh, Scotland. ... This article is about The University of Northampton in the present day; for the University in existence from 1261 to 1265, see University of Northampton (thirteenth century). ... Liverpool Hope University is a university in Liverpool, England. ...

Parapsychological research has also been augmented by other sub-disciplines of psychology. These related fields include transpersonal psychology, which studies transcendent or spiritual aspects of the human mind, and anomalistic psychology, which examines paranormal beliefs and subjective anomalous experiences in traditional psychological terms.^[18][17] Transpersonal psychology is a school of psychology that studies the transpersonal, the transcendent or spiritual aspects of the human mind. ...

Research

Scope

Parapsychologists study a number of ostensible paranormal phenomena, including but not limited to:

• Telepathy: Transfer of information on thoughts or feelings between individuals by means other than the five classical senses.

• Precognition: Perception of information about future places or events before they occur.

• Clairvoyance: Obtaining information about places or events at remote locations, by means unknown to current science.

• Psychokinesis: The ability of the mind to influence matter, time, space, or energy by means unknown to current science.

• Reincarnation: The rebirth of a soul or other non-physical aspect of human consciousness in a new physical body after death.

• Hauntings: Phenomena often attributed to ghosts and encountered in places a deceased individual is thought to have frequented, or in association with the person's former belongings.

The definitions for the terms above may not reflect their mainstream usage, nor the opinions of all parapsychologists and their critics. Many critics, for example, feel that parapsychologists are engaged in the study of phenomena that disappear under stringent experimental conditions and are thus normal processes. Telepathy, from the Greek τῆλε, tele, remote; and πάθεια, patheia, to be effected by, describes the hypothetical transfer of information on thoughts or feelings between individuals by means other than the five classical senses. ... This article is about the senses of living organisms (vision, taste, etc. ... Precognition (from the Latin præ-, “prior to,” + cognitio, “a getting to know”) denotes a form of extra-sensory perception wherein a person is able to perceive information about places or events before they happen through paranormal means. ... Clairvoyance, from 17th century French Clair meaning clear and voyant meaning seeing, is a term used to describe the transference of information about an object, location or physical event through means other than the 5 traditional senses (See Psi). ... The term psychokinesis (from the Greek ψυχή, psyche, meaning mind, soul, or breath; and κίνησις, kinesis, meaning motion; literally movement from the mind)[1][2] or PK, also known as telekinesis[3] (Greek + , literally distant-movement referring to telekinesis) or TK, denotes the paranormal ability of the mind to influence matter, time... This article is about the theological concept. ... Consciousness is a quality of the mind generally regarded to comprise qualities such as subjectivity, self-awareness, sentience, sapience, and the ability to perceive the relationship between oneself and ones environment. ... Reputed ghost of a monk. ... Look up mainstream in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

According to the Parapsychological Association, parapsychologists do not study all paranormal phenomena, nor are they concerned with astrology, UFOs, Bigfoot, paganism, vampires, alchemy, or witchcraft.^[2] Hand-coloured version of the anonymous Flammarion woodcut (1888). ... UFO redirects here. ... It has been suggested that Evidence regarding Bigfoot be merged into this article or section. ... Pagan and heathen redirect here. ... Further reading Christopher Frayling - Vampyres: Lord Byron to Count Dracula 1992. ... For other uses, see Alchemy (disambiguation). ... “Witch” redirects here. ...

Methodology

Parapsychologists employ a variety of approaches during the study of apparent paranormal phenomena. These methods include qualitative approaches used in traditional psychology, but also quantitative empirical methodologies. Their more controversial studies involve the use of meta-analyses in examining the statistical evidence for psi.^[17] A central concept in science and the scientific method is that all evidence must be empirical, or empirically based, that is, dependent on evidence or consequences that are observable by the senses. ... In statistics, a meta-analysis combines the results of several studies that address a set of related research hypotheses. ... This article is about the field of statistics. ... In parapsychology, psi is defined as the active agent by which mind influences matter and is able to receive ESP impressions. ...

Experimental research

Ganzfeld

Main article: Ganzfeld experiment

Participant of a Ganzfeld experiment which proponents say may show evidence of telepathy.

The ganzfeld (German for "whole field") is a technique used to test individuals for telepathy. The technique was developed to quickly quiet mental "noise" by providing a mild, unpatterned sensory field to mask the visual and auditory environment. Isolating the visual sense is usually achieved by creating a soft red glow which is diffused through half ping-pong balls attached to the recipient's eyes. The auditory sense is usually blocked by playing white noise, static, or similar sounds to the recipient. The subject is also seated in a reclined, comfortable position to minimize the sense of touch. Participant of a Ganzfeld telepathy experiment. ... Image File history File links Ganzfeld. ... Image File history File links Ganzfeld. ... The ganzfeld (total field) experiment uses audio and visual sensory deprivation to test for extra-sensory perception (ESP). ... Participant of a Ganzfeld telepathy experiment. ... Vision can refer to: Visual perception is one of the senses. ... This article is about compression waves. ...

In the typical ganzfeld experiment, a "sender" and "receiver" are isolated. The receiver is put into the ganzfeld state, and the sender is shown a video clip or still picture and asked to mentally send that image to the receiver. The receiver, while in the ganzfeld, is asked to continuously speak aloud all mental processes, including images, thoughts, and feelings. At the end of the sending period, typically about 20 to 40 minutes in length, the receiver is taken out of the ganzfeld and shown four images or videos, one of which is the true target and three are non-target decoys. The receiver attempts to select the true target, using perceptions experienced during the ganzfeld state as clues to what the mentally "sent" image might have been.

According to parapsychologists such as Dean Radin, Charles Honorton, and Daryl Bem, the results of ganzfeld experiments—collectively gathered from over 3,000 individual sessions conducted by about two dozen investigators world-wide—indicate that, on average, the target image is selected by the receiver more often than would be expected by chance alone.^[19] Because these meta analyses of ganzfeld results are said to be statistically significant, they have sparked debates within mainstream academic psychology journals over how to properly interpret the data.^[20] Dean Radin is a researcher in parapsychology. ... Charles Honorton (1946 - November 4, 1992) was, first and foremost, a parapsychologist. ... Daryl J. Bem is a noted social psychologist at Cornell University, USA, and the originator of the self-perception theory of attitude change. ... In statistics, a result is significant if it is unlikely to have occurred by chance, given that a presumed null hypothesis is true. ...

Remote viewing

Main article: Remote viewing

Remote viewing experiments test the ability to gather information on a remote target consisting of an object, place, or person that is hidden from the physical perception of the viewer and typically separated from the viewer at some distance. In one type of remote viewing experiment, a pool of several hundred photographs are created. One of these is randomly selected by a third party to be the target. It is then set aside in a remote location. The remote viewer attempts to sketch or otherwise describe that remote target photo. This procedure is repeated for a number of different targets. Many ways of analytically evaluating the results of this sort of experiment have been developed. One common method is to take the group of seven target photos and responses, randomly shuffle the targets and responses, and then ask independent judges to rank or match the correct targets with the participant's actual responses. This method assumes that if there were an anomalous transfer of information, the responses should correspond more closely to the correct targets than to the mismatched targets.^[21] Remote viewing (RV) is a broad term for a variety of techniques or protocols employed to produce and control extra-sensory perception (ESP). ...

Several hundred such trials have been conducted by investigators over the past 25 years, including by the Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Laboratory (PEAR) and by scientists at SRI International and SAIC, under contract by the U.S. government. The cumulative data was interpreted by Professor of Aerospace Science Robert G. Jahn and psychologist Brenda Dunne at PEAR as indicating that information about remote photos, actual scenes, and events can be perceived beyond chance expectation.^[21] This article does not cite any references or sources. ... SRI Internationals main campus on Ravenswood Avenue, Menlo Park, California SRI International is one of the worlds largest contract research institutions. ... Science Applications International Corporation Science Applications International Corporation (usually known as SAIC) is the largest employee-owned research and engineering firm in the United States. ... ... Professor Robert G. Jahn is Dean Emeritus of the School of Engineering and Applied Science of Princeton University. ...

Psychokinesis on random number generators

Main article: Psychokinesis

The advent of powerful and inexpensive electronic and computer technologies has allowed the development of fully automated experiments studying possible interactions between mind and matter. In the most common experiment of this type, a random number generator (RNG), based on electronic or radioactive noise, produces a data stream that is recorded and analyzed by computer software. A subject attempts to mentally alter the distribution of the random numbers, usually in an experimental design that is functionally equivalent to getting more "heads" than "tails" while flipping a coin. In the RNG experiment, design flexibility can be combined with rigorous controls, while collecting a large amount of data in very short period of time. This technique has been used both to test individuals for psychokinesis and to test the possible influence on RNGs of large groups of people.^[22] The term psychokinesis (from the Greek ψυχή, psyche, meaning mind, soul, or breath; and κίνησις, kinesis, meaning motion; literally movement from the mind)[1][2] or PK, also known as telekinesis[3] (Greek + , literally distant-movement referring to telekinesis) or TK, denotes the paranormal ability of the mind to influence matter, time... Plato argued that as the body is from the material world the soul was from the world of the ideas and was so immortal. ... A random number generator is a computational or physical device designed to generate a sequence of elements (usually numbers), such that the sequence can be used as a random one. ... Radioactive decay is the set of various processes by which unstable atomic nuclei (nuclides) emit subatomic particles. ... Computer software (or simply software) refers to one or more computer programs and data held in the storage of a computer for some purpose. ...

Major meta-analyses of the RNG database have been published every few years since appearing in the journal Foundations of Physics in 1986.^[22] PEAR founder Robert G. Jahn and his colleague Brenda Dunne say that the effect size in all cases was found to be very small, but consistent across time and experimental designs, resulting in an overall statistical significance. The most recent meta-analysis was published in Psychological Bulletin, along with several critical commentaries.^[23][24] The meta-analysis was composed of 380 studies, which some researchers say has produced an overall effect size that was very small but statistically significant. Foundations of Physics is the most prestigious journal in physics on the subject of foundational problems facing modern physics. ... Professor Robert G. Jahn is Dean Emeritus of the School of Engineering and Applied Science of Princeton University. ... In statistics, a result is significant if it is unlikely to have occurred by chance, given that a presumed null hypothesis is true. ... A meta-analysis is a statistical practice of combining the results of a number of studies. ... Psychological Bulletin is a scholarly journal specializing in literature reviews. ...

Direct mental interactions with living systems

Formerly called bio-PK, "direct mental interactions with living systems" (DMILS) studies the effects of one person's intentions on a distant person's psychophysiological state. One type of DMILS experiment looks at the commonly reported "feeling of being stared at." The "starer" and the "staree" are isolated in different locations, and the starer is periodically asked to simply gaze at the staree via closed circuit video links. Meanwhile, the staree's nervous system activity is automatically and continuously monitored. Psychophysiology is the science of understanding the link between psychology and physiology. ...

Parapsychologists have interpreted the cumulative data on this and similar DMILS experiments to suggest that one person's attention directed towards a remote, isolated person can significantly activate or calm that person's nervous system. In a meta-analysis of these experiments published in the British Journal of Psychology in 2004, researchers found that there was a small but significant overall DMILS effect. However, the study also found that when a small number of the highest-quality studies from one laboratory were analyzed, the effect size was not significant. The authors concluded that although the existence of some anomaly related to distant intentions cannot be ruled out, there was also a shortage of independent replications and theoretical concepts.^[25] The Human Nervous System. ...

Near death experiences

Ascent of the Blessed by Hieronymus Bosch (after 1490) depicts a tunnel of light and spiritual figures similar to those reported by near-death experiencers.

Main article: Near-death experience

A near-death experience (NDE) is an experience reported by a person who nearly died, or who experienced clinical death and then revived. NDEs include one or more of the following experiences: a sense of being dead; an out-of-body experience; a sensation of floating above one's body and seeing the surrounding area; a sense of overwhelming love and peace; a sensation of moving upwards through a tunnel or narrow passageway; meeting deceased relatives or spiritual figures; encountering a being of light, or a light; experiencing a life review; reaching a border or boundary; and a feeling of being returned to the body, often accompanied by reluctance.^[26] Image File history File links Size of this preview: 256 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (409 × 958 pixel, file size: 32 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and in those countries with a copyright... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 256 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (409 × 958 pixel, file size: 32 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and in those countries with a copyright... Ascent of the Blessed is a Hieronymus Bosch painting made sometime after 1490. ... Hieronymus Bosch, (latinized, actually Jheronimus Bosch; his real name Jeroen van Aken) (c. ... NDE redirects here. ... NDE redirects here. ... Clinical death occurs when a patients heartbeat and breathing have stopped. ... An out-of-body experience (OBE or sometimes OOBE), is an experience that typically involves a sensation of floating outside of ones body and, in some cases, perceiving ones physical body from a place outside ones body (autoscopy). ... A life review is a phenomenon widely reported in near-death experiences in which a person having died (though in a handful of cases also while alive) rapidly sees much or the totality of their life history in chronological sequence and in extreme detail. ...

Interest in the NDE was originally spurred by the research of psychiatrists Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, George Ritchie, and Raymond Moody Jr. In 1998, Moody was appointed chair in "consciousness studies" at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The International Association for Near-death Studies (IANDS) was founded in 1978 to meet the needs of early researchers and experiencers within this field of research. Later researchers, such as psychiatrist Bruce Greyson, psychologist Kenneth Ring, and cardiologist Michael Sabom, introduced the study of near-death experiences to the academic setting.^[26] Elisabeth Kübler-Ross Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, M.D. (July 8, 1926 – August 24, 2004) was a Swiss-born psychiatrist and the author of the groundbreaking book On Death and Dying, where she first discussed what is now known as the Kübler-Ross model. ... Raymond Moody (born June 30, 1944) is a parapsychologist. ... “UNLV” redirects here. ... IANDS stands for the International Association for Near-Death Studies, Inc, is an organization for studying and disseminating information on the phenomena of Near-death experience. ... This article, image, template or category should belong in one or more categories. ... This article needs cleanup. ...

Anomalous psychology

A number of studies conducted in the American, European, and Australasian continents have found that a majority of people surveyed report having had experiences that could be interpreted as telepathy, precognition, and similar phenomena. Variables that have been associated with reports of psi-phenomena include belief in the reality of psi; the tendency to have hypnotic, dissociative, and other alterations of consciousness; and, less reliably so, neuroticism, extraversion, and openness to experience. Although psi-related experiences can occur in the context of such psychopathologies as schizotypal personality, dissociative, and other disorders, most individuals who endorse a belief in psi are well-adjusted, lack serious pathology, and are not intellectually deficient or lacking critical abilities.^[18] For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... Australasia is the area that includes Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, and the many smaller islands in the vicinity, most of which are the eastern part of Indonesia. ... Precognition (from the Latin præ-, “prior to,” + cognitio, “a getting to know”) denotes a form of extra-sensory perception wherein a person is able to perceive information about places or events before they happen through paranormal means. ... Hypnotic drugs are a class of drugs that induce sleep, used in the treatment of severe insomnia. ... Dissociative drugs are a class of psychedelic drugs characterized by intense feelings of depersonalization, derealization, and analgesia. ... For the band, see Neurotic (band). ... The terms Introvert and Extrovert (originally spelled Extravert by Carl Jung, who invented the terms) are referred to as attitudes and show how a person orients and receives their energy. ... A renal cell carcinoma (chromophobe type) viewed on a hematoxylin & eosin stained slide Pathologist redirects here. ...

Criticism

Fabricated images of ghosts such as this were very popular in the 19th century.

Scientists who are critical of parapsychology begin with the assertion that extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence. Proponents of hypotheses that contradict centuries of scientific research must provide extraordinary evidence if their hypotheses are to be taken seriously.^[27] Many analysts of parapsychology hold that the entire body of evidence to date is of poor quality and not adequately controlled. In their view, the entire field of parapsychology has produced no conclusive results whatsoever. They cite instances of fraud, flawed studies, a psychological need for mysticism, and cognitive bias as ways to explain parapsychological results.^[28] Skeptics have also contended that people's desire to believe in paranormal phenomena is often stronger than the evidence that it does not exist.^[29] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... This article is about the paranormal. ... In psychology and cognitive science, magical thinking is non-scientific causal reasoning (e. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

The reality of parapsychological phenomena and the scientific validity of parapsychological research is a matter of continued dispute. The methods of parapsychologists are regarded by some detractors as a pseudoscience.^[6] Some of the more specific criticisms state that parapsychology does not have a clearly defined subject matter, an easily repeatable experiment that can demonstrate a psi effect on demand, nor an underlying theory to explain the paranormal transfer of information.^[30] James E. Alcock, Professor of Psychology at York University, said that few of parapsychology's experimental results have prompted interdisciplinary research with more mainstream sciences such as physics or biology. Alcock states that parapsychology remains isolated science to such an extent that its very legitimacy is questionable,^[31] and as a whole is not justified in being labeled "scientific".^[32] A typical 18th century phrenology chart. ... Psychological science redirects here. ... York University (French: Université York), located in Toronto, Ontario, is Canadas third-largest university and has produced several of the countrys top leaders in the fields of law, politics, literature, philosophy, journalism, management, meteorological, chemical, and space sciences, and fine arts including film, theatre, jazz and experimental music... A magnet levitating above a high-temperature superconductor demonstrates the Meissner effect. ... For the song by Girls Aloud see Biology (song) Biology studies the variety of life (clockwise from top-left) E. coli, tree fern, gazelle, Goliath beetle Biology (from Greek: βίος, bio, life; and λόγος, logos, speech lit. ...

Fraud

Stage magician and debunker James Randi is a well-known critic of parapsychology and has shown that magic tricks can account for some apparent psychic phenomena.

There have been instances of fraud in the history of parapsychology research. The Soal-Goldney experiments of 1941–43 (suggesting precognitive ability in subjects) were long regarded as some of the best in the field because they relied upon independent checking and witnesses to prevent fraud. However, many years later, suspicions of fraud were confirmed when statistical evidence, uncovered and published by other parapsychologists in the field, indicated that Dr. Soal had cheated by altering the raw data.^[31][33][34] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Magician redirects here. ... A Debunker is an individual who strongly believes that certain claims are false, exaggerated, unscientific or pretentious and therefore discredits and exposes them. ... James Randi (born August 7, 1928), stage name The Amazing Randi, is a stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. ... “Illusionist” redirects here. ...

Walter J. Levy, director of the Institute for Parapsychology, reported on a series of successful ESP experiments involving computer-controlled manipulation of non-human subjects, including eggs and rats. His experiments showed very high positive results. Because the subjects were non-human, and because the experimental environment was mostly automated, his successful experiments avoided criticism concerning experimenter effects, and removed the question of the subject's belief as an influence on the outcome. However, Levy's fellow researchers became suspicious about his methods. They found that Levy interfered with data-recording equipment, manually creating fraudulent strings of positive results. Rhine fired Levy and reported the fraud in a number of articles.^[35][36]

Many spiritualist mediums used fraud, and some were exposed by early psychical researchers such as Richard Hodgson^[37] and Harry Price.^[38] In the 1920s, magician and escapologist Harry Houdini said that researchers and observers had not created experimental procedures which absolutely preclude fraud.^[39] In 1979, magician and debunker James Randi perpetrated a hoax, now referred to as Project Alpha. Randi trained two young magicians and sent them under cover to Washington University's McDonnell Laboratory with the specific aim of exposing poor experimental methods and the credulity thought to be common in parapsychology. Although no formal statements or publications from the McDonnell laboratory supported the likelihood that the effects demonstrated by the two magicians were genuine, both of Randi's trainees reportedly deceived experimenters over a period of four years with demonstrations of supposedly telekinetic metal bending.^[40] Such methodological failures have been cited as evidence that most, if not all, extraordinary results in parapsychology derive from error or fraud. Spiritualism is a religion in which contact with the spirits of the dead through a medium is central. ... Mediumship is a form of relationship to spirits practiced in many religions, including Spiritualism, Spiritism, Espiritismo, Candomblé, Voodoo, Kardecism, and Umbanda. ... This article is about the psychic researcher. ... “Illusionist” redirects here. ... Houdini redirects here. ... A Debunker is an individual who strongly believes that certain claims are false, exaggerated, unscientific or pretentious and therefore discredits and exposes them. ... James Randi (born August 7, 1928), stage name The Amazing Randi, is a stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. ... Project Alpha was a hoax orchestrated by the magician, and skeptic of the paranormal, James Randi. ... Washington University in St. ... A spoon bent at a PK party Spoon bending is the apparent deformation of objects, especially metal cutlery, apparently either without physical force, or with less force than normally necessary. ...

Criticism of experimental results

Although some critical analysts feel that parapsychological study is scientific, they are not satisfied with its experimental results.^[41][30] Skeptical reviewers contend that apparently successful experimental results in psi research are more likely due to sloppy procedures, poorly trained researchers, or methodological flaws than to genuine psi effects.^{[42][43][44][45]} For example, the data from the PEAR laboratory has been criticized by researchers such as statistics professor Jessica Utts and psychologist Ray Hyman. Utts has stated that these experiments suffered numerous problems with regard to randomization, statistical baselines and the application of statistical models, and that the significance values quoted in the experiments were meaningless due to defects in experimental and statistical procedures of the studies.^[46] For the scientific journal named Science, see Science (journal). ... This article needs cleanup. ... Ray Hyman (b. ...

Because psi is a negatively defined concept, a typical measure of the evidence for such phenomena in parapsychological experiments is statistical deviation from chance expectation. However, critics point out that statistical deviation from chance is, strictly speaking, only evidence of a statistical anomaly, or that some unknown variable was causing the deviation from chance. Hyman contends that even if experiments could be made to reproduce the findings of certain parapsychological studies under specific conditions, this would be a far cry from concluding that psychic functioning has been demonstrated.^[47] It has also been stated that assuming psi exists is affirming the consequent or begging the question. Reasoning that (1) if a person is psychic, then that individual will do better than chance in experiments, and (2) since that person does better than chance, then, (3) that person must be psychic, would be considered the fallacy of affirming the consequent.^[48] Psi has multiple meanings: Psi (letter) (Ψ, ψ) of the Greek alphabet Psi (Cyrillic) (Ѱ, ѱ), letter of the early Cyrillic alphabet, adopted from Greek Psi (parapsychology) Psi (instant messaging client), a popular Jabber client program J/ψ particle, a subatomic particle Wavefunction in Quantum Mechanics, ψ In mathematics, Ψ is used to denote the angle between... Affirming the consequent is a logical fallacy in the form of a hypothetical proposition. ... In logic, begging the question describes a type of logical fallacy, petitio principii, in which the conclusion of an argument is implicitly or explicitly assumed in one of the premises. ...

Selection bias and meta-analysis

Selective reporting has been offered by critics as an explanation for the positive results reported by parapsychologists. Selective reporting is sometimes referred to as a "file drawer" problem, which arises when only positive study results are made public, while studies with negative or null results are not made public.^[24] Selective reporting has a compounded effect on meta-analysis, which is a statistical technique that aggregates the results of many studies in order to generate sufficient statistical power to demonstrate a result that the individual studies themselves could not demonstrate at a statistically significant level. For example, a recent meta-analysis combined 380 studies on psychokinesis,^[23] including data from the PEAR lab. It concluded that, although there is a statistically significant overall effect, it is not consistent and relatively few negative studies would cancel it out. Consequently, biased publication of positive results could be the cause.^[17] Selection bias is the error of distorting a statistical analysis by pre- or post-selecting the samples. ... A meta-analysis is a statistical practice of combining the results of a number of studies. ... The power of a statistical test is the probability that the test will reject a false null hypothesis, or in other words that it will not make a Type II error. ... In statistics, a result is significant if it is unlikely to have occurred by chance, given that a presumed null hypothesis is true. ... A meta-analysis is a statistical practice of combining the results of a number of studies. ... The term psychokinesis (from the Greek ψυχή, psyche, meaning mind, soul, or breath; and κίνησις, kinesis, meaning motion; literally movement from the mind)[1][2] or PK, also known as telekinesis[3] (Greek + , literally distant-movement referring to telekinesis) or TK, denotes the paranormal ability of the mind to influence matter, time... The Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research (PEAR) program was established at Princeton University in 1979 by Robert G. Jahn, then Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science, to pursue rigorous scientific study of the interaction of human consciousness with physical devices, systems, and processes common to contemporary engineering practice. ... Publication bias, also called the positive outcome bias, is typically the tendency for researchers to publish experimental results that have a positive result (found something), while consequently not publishing findings which have a negative result (found that something did not happen). ...

The popularity of meta-analysis in parapsychology has been criticized by numerous researchers, and is often seen as troublesome even within parapsychology itself.^[49] Critics have said that parapsychologists misuse meta-analysis to create the incorrect impression that statistically significant results have been obtained which indicate the existence psi phenomena.^[50]

Researcher J. E. Kennedy has argued that concerns over the use of meta-analysis in science and medicine apply as well to problems present in parapsychological meta-analysis. As a post-hoc analysis, critics emphasize the opportunity the method presents to produce biased outcomes via the selection of cases chosen for study, methods employed, and other key criteria. Critics claim analogous problems with meta-analysis have been documented in medicine, where it has been shown different investigators performing meta-analyses of the same set of studies have reached contradictory conclusions.^[51] Post-hoc analysis, in the context of design and analysis of experiments, refers to looking in the data—after the experiment has concluded—for patterns that were not specified a priori. ...

Organizations and publications

A number of university laboratories conduct parapsychological research. Among these are the Koestler Parapsychology Unit at the University of Edinburgh;^[52] the Parapsychology Research Group at Liverpool Hope University;^[53] the VERITAS Research Program at the University of Arizona;^[54] the Consciousness and Transpersonal Psychology Research Unit of Liverpool John Moores University;^[55] the Center for the Study of Anomalous Psychological Processes at the University of Northampton;^[56] and the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit at Goldsmiths University of London.^[57] The Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research, a well-known laboratory that conducted psychokinesis experiments, closed in February 2007.^[58] The University of Edinburgh (Scottish Gaelic: ), founded in 1582,[4] is a renowned centre for teaching and research in Edinburgh, Scotland. ... Liverpool Hope University is a university in Liverpool, England. ... The University of Arizona (UA or U of A) is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. ... Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) is a university in Liverpool, England. ... This article is about The University of Northampton in the present day; for the University in existence from 1261 to 1265, see University of Northampton (thirteenth century). ... Website http://www. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The term psychokinesis (from the Greek ψυχή, psyche, meaning mind, soul, or breath; and κίνησις, kinesis, meaning motion; literally movement from the mind)[1][2] or PK, also known as telekinesis[3] (Greek + , literally distant-movement referring to telekinesis) or TK, denotes the paranormal ability of the mind to influence matter, time...

Research organizations include the Parapsychological Association;^[59] the Society for Psychical Research, publisher of the Journal of Society for Psychical Research;^[60] the American Society for Psychical Research, publisher of the Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research;^[61] the Rhine Research Center and Institute for Parapsychology, publisher of the Journal of Parapsychology;^[62] the Parapsychology Foundation, publisher of the International Journal of Parapsychology;^[63] and the Australian Institute of Parapsychological Research, publisher of the Australian Journal of Parapsychology.^[64] The European Journal of Parapsychology is independently published.^[65]

Organizations that encourage a critical examination of parapsychology and parapsychological research include the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, publisher of the Skeptical Inquirer;^[66] and the James Randi Educational Foundation, founded by magician and skeptic James Randi.^[67] The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), formerly known as the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) is a U.S. nonprofit organization whose stated purpose is to encourage the critical investigation of paranormal and fringe-science claims from a responsible, scientific point of view and... The Skeptical Inquirer is a magazine of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) dedicated to debunking pseudoscience. ... The James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) is a Fort Lauderdale, Florida non-profit organization founded in 1996 by magician and skeptic James Randi. ... “Illusionist” redirects here. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... James Randi (born August 7, 1928), stage name The Amazing Randi, is a stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. ...

References

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 183rd day of the year (184th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Thomson Gale is a part of the Thomson Learning division of the Thomson Corporation, and is based in Farmington Hills, Michigan, in the western suburbs of Detroit. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Thomson Gale is a part of the Thomson Learning division of the Thomson Corporation, and is based in Farmington Hills, Michigan, in the western suburbs of Detroit. ... John Archibald Wheeler (born July 9, 1911) is an eminent American theoretical physicist. ... W. W. Norton & Company is an American book publishing company that has remained independent since its founding. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... A digital object identifier (or DOI) is a standard for persistently identifying a piece of intellectual property on a digital network and associating it with related data, the metadata, in a structured extensible way. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... A digital object identifier (or DOI) is a standard for persistently identifying a piece of intellectual property on a digital network and associating it with related data, the metadata, in a structured extensible way. ... ISSN, or International Standard Serial Number, is the unique eight-digit number applied to a periodical publication including electronic serials. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... A digital object identifier (or DOI) is a standard for persistently identifying a piece of intellectual property on a digital network and associating it with related data, the metadata, in a structured extensible way. ... A digital object identifier (or DOI) is a standard for persistently identifying a piece of intellectual property on a digital network and associating it with related data, the metadata, in a structured extensible way. ... A digital object identifier (or DOI) is a standard for persistently identifying a piece of intellectual property on a digital network and associating it with related data, the metadata, in a structured extensible way. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... A digital object identifier (or DOI) is a standard for persistently identifying a piece of intellectual property on a digital network and associating it with related data, the metadata, in a structured extensible way. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 183rd day of the year (184th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, or CSICOP, is an organization formed to encourage open minded, critical investigation of paranormal and pseudoscientific claims from a responsible, scientific point of view. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 183rd day of the year (184th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 210th day of the year (211th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 149th day of the year (150th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 41st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 192nd day of the year (193rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... ISSN, or International Standard Serial Number, is the unique eight-digit number applied to a periodical publication including electronic serials. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Further reading

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• Broughton, Richard S. (1992). Parapsychology. Ballantine Books. 

• Houran, James (2001). Hauntings and Poltergeists: Multidisciplinary Perspectives. McFarland & Company, 330 pages. ISBN 0786409843. 

• Irwin, Harvey J.; Watt, Caroline A. (2007). An Introduction to Parapsychology. McFarland & Company, 320. ISBN 978-0786430598. 

• Melton, J. Gordon (1996). Encyclopedia of Occultism & Parapsychology. Gale Group. ISBN 978-0810394872. 

• Radin, Dean (2006). Entangled Minds: Extrasensory Experiences in a Quantum Reality. Paraview Pocket Books, 368. ISBN 978-1416516774. 

• Randi, James (June 1982). Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions. Prometheus Books, 342. ISBN 0345409469. 

• Randi, James; Arthur C. Clarke (1997). An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural. St. Martin's Griffin, 336. ISBN 0312151195. 

• Sagan, Carl; Ann Druyan (1997). The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark. Ballantine Books, 349. ISBN 0345409469. 

• Shepard, Leslie (2000). Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. Thomson Gale, 1939 pages. ISBN 978-0810385702. 

• Wiseman, Richard; Caroline A. Watt (2005). Parapsychology (International Library of Psychology). Ashgate Publishing, 501 pages. ISBN 978-0754624509. 

Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Image File history File links Wikibooks-logo. ... Image File history File links Wikiquote-logo. ... Image File history File links Wikisource-logo. ... Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Image File history File links WikiNews-Logo. ... Image File history File links Wikiversity-logo-Snorky. ... James Randi (born August 7, 1928), stage name The Amazing Randi, is a stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. ... James Randi (born August 7, 1928), stage name The Amazing Randi, is a stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. ... Insert non-formatted text here Carl Edward Sagan (November 9, 1934 – December 20, 1996) was an American astronomer and astrobiologist and a highly successful popularizer of astronomy, astrophysics, and other natural sciences. ...

External links

• Parapsychology FAQ Frequently asked questions, by the Parapsychological Association, a professional organization of scientists and scholars engaged in the study of psychic phenomena, affiliated with the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1969.

• FindArticles.com Index Large number of articles about parapsychology, from publications such as the Journal of Parapsychology and the Skeptical Inquirer.

• Committee for Skeptical Inquiry Organization formed in 1976 to promote scientific skepticism and encourage the critical investigation of paranormal claims and parapsychology.