Can we PLEASE put this topic to rest now?

After talking to some fellow paranormal researchers, I’m wondering if it might be time to form a more organized group and start advertising.  There is no shortage of investigators locally, but there is a definite shortage of active, experienced groups who are not involved in the entertainment industry.

Just a thought…

Now for those (few) out there who know me, you’ll know I’ve tried making one of these things work, but with much failure.

About a year ago, I acquired a “telekinetic enhancer” version of a psi wheel in the hopes of being able to figure out either how to fake it or how to make it work as advertized.  As a neuteral skeptic (though biased in that I *wanted* to make it spin using mind power) I would consider either result a success.

I placed my pinwheel under a clear plastic cover – in fact, the clear plastic cover from a package of blank CDs.

Try as I might… no success.  So I tested faking it.  First, I tried a subtle, but definite pushing of the table.  It bounced a bit, but no luck getting a spin to happen.  Next, I took a rather strong neodymium magnet and attempted to influence it that way.  As the only part of the setup that is made of ferrous metal is the center pin, I figured I might be able to wobble it and use that movement to induce a spin.  No luck there either.

Now, in the last couple weeks, I moved my office and decided to try the convection idea.  I removed the cover for this to help enhance the air flow and LO! a spin began!

Convection for the win! Right?  The wheel spun as if pushed by a force eminating from my finger tips – clockwise if I held my left hand near and counter clockwise if I used my right hand.

But in an effort to put off my success in proving Derren Brown’s explanation, I decided to “will” the wheel to reverse direction.  If it was convection, it should make no difference.

But it did.

The wheel slowed… stopped, and hesitantly began in the other direction.

One thing I distinctly noticed was that I had to really concentrate to get this to happen right.  A little thought of “go the other way” would stop it but if I really concentrated, I could make it go in reverse.  It was a VERY strong correlation, though with my limited experimentation, not statistically significant.  Three tries.  Correlation of a solid 1.0!

I realize that this *could* be my willing my hands to get cooler, but even if this is so, it is still significant in that this would be much more direct control over my body’s autonomic nervous system than I thought I had.

More experimentation is definitely called for.  Anyone else have any similar results out there?  Please leave a comment.

Many of the reported dreams have to do with apocalyptic themes.  Some have time frames involved – and they don’t point to 2012, but in the next few years following.  They don’t point to President Obama as the cause but rather his successor.  I’m hearing of dreams of religious prosecution from Christians and Pagans alike – about cities in lockdown and people starving in the countryside.

While apocalyptic dreams that feel prophetic are nothing new (I’ve been collecting reports since the mid 1990′s, but heard about them since they were easy to explain in the 1980′s as Cold War paranoia….), the frequency of which I’ve been getting reports has gotten my attention.  Most of those I know do not know each other and those who do rarely know of eachothers’ dreams.  From colleagues I’ve spoken to in the last year, this has been escalating for the last 10 years or so,  but I’m seeing more reports in the last few months than I should.

Have you had strange dreams picking up in frequency lately?  Do you have any theory on the causes?  Please comment.

So with that and the severe inactivity of the group I usually work with, I figured I’d mention that I am available to work as a guest investigator for any group in the southern NH area.  If you’d be interested in having me along, I can offer a “true skeptic” viewpoint as well as several methods of gathering data and analyzing it.  I’ve got two wireless security cameras (one remotely adjustable and another IR illuminated) which can capture video and detect motion.  I’m not famous and adding my name to your roster won’t get you screaming fans, but it will get you someone with serious experience and a level head.

If you might be interested, please email me at brian at arcanorum dot org and let me know what you’re looking for, when, and where.

While not really giving any proof that the auras some people claim to see are such light, it does show some interesting pieces of the puzzle.  Note that the intensity of the light is over a thousand times below the normal human threshold of vision.

I’d still like to see how this light fades at death if at all, as well as the effects of various meditations and other mental states.

The research is published in the online journal, “PLoS ONE” here. A good summary news article about the findings is here and the Slashdot comments can be found here.

The problem is, as usual, that I’m an independent researcher with a strong leaning towards the scientific side of paranormal investigation.  Here, in New England, you can’t swing a cat without hitting a psychic.  It seems to be something about the region.  I’m no exception.  I’ve had my share of experiences, too.  And I don’t know about the rest of you out there, but I’m sick of being dumped into the category of loony, crystal-waving fluff-bunnies out there.  So to counteract that possibility, I keep my paranormal investigations and the reports that come from them very clear.  I make a solid distinction between the subjective “psychic” impressions and solid, scientific fact.  That’s not easy in this business.  Now don’t get me wrong.  I’m not a so-called “skeptic” who thinks it’s all bunk.  I’ve seen things.  But in order to be taken seriously by the world at large, we need to be able to present solid facts.  If we can figure out how these anomalies work, in a logical and scientific manner, we can better be able to help people understand what is going on around them and if they wish, to be rid of these happenings.

Well, that’s my basic philosophy in a nut shell.

The thing is, as an independent investigator, I don’t seek publicity.  I’d much rather get to the bottom of something than get my name and face plastered all over the newspapers.  I don’t do this for entertainment except in so far as it is entertaining to figure things out… kind of like Mr. Wizard made basic science entertaining.  I’m not out to get scared or to scare people.  I’ll leave that to the most excellent horror writers out there.

There is one major drawback to being an independent investigator who doesn’t seek publicity:  I don’t get many cases to investigate.  If I’m lucky, I usually get 2 or 3 a year.  And that’s where I hope you will come in.

I’d love to work with other people of similar minds.  Proper investigation cannot be done solo.  As the ancient Romans would put it, “Testus unus, testus nullus.”  The team I’ve been working with is on hold due to real life issues of a number of team members, so I’m back to looking.    I am basically fearless toward the supernatural, use a no-BS approach, and write good reports.  I won’t steal your group’s thunder, and you’ll get the credit.  I know the field, the tech, and the lo-tech.  I have over 20 years experience and am well versed in paranormal phenomena and occult philosophy and practices, both ancient and modern.  If you are part of a paranormal investigations team in the area around southern New Hampshire and would like me to work with you, please let me know.

These will start small and grow as we add cases to report to you.

You can order them from us right over here….

There is a lot out there on anomalous cognition. A bit less on healing by unexplained means. There is a LOT of information from unscientific sources of highly variable quality on ghosts and hauntings. If you want to study demons? Good luck.

To date, the best sources on demons and exorcisms all come from the Roman Catholic Church. While most religions have teachings on negative entities and how to get rid of them, the Catholic Church is known to have devoted a lot of good minds to the topic and the results show.

The Catholic requirements to denote a need for an exorcism are clear, concise, and well written. Talking about a quality of the priest to perform the exorcism, the old Rituale Romanum, their handbook on their rituals, the requirements are put forth:

3. Especially, he should not believe too readily that a person is possessed by an evil spirit; but he ought to ascertain the signs by which a person possessed can be distinguished from one who is suffering from some illness, especially one of a psychological nature.[1] Signs of possession may be the following: ability to speak with some facility in a strange tongue or to understand it when spoken by another; the faculty of divulging future and hidden events; display of powers which are beyond the subject’s age and natural condition; and various other indications which, when taken together as a whole, build up the evidence.

From the “Rituale Romanum” 1964 Edition in English

Clearly, they make a distinction between possession and mental illness, a distinction not always made by less respectable people.

The rite itself was changed in 1999 and more recently, bishops are no longer required to get explicit permission from Rome, but these requirements are effectively unchanged. The revisions actually make it even more clear that all physical, mental, and psychological conditions must be ruled out before the rite is to be performed. The new rite has come under some criticism.

In the 25+ years I’ve studied the paranormal and occult, I have not once, personally witnessed anything I would consider clear proof of demons, let alone a possession needing an exorcism. At one point, I had contacts within the Catholic Church who informed me that exorcisms for demonic possession were extremely rare. At the time, there were less than a dozen full time exorcists in the entire Catholic Church. Recent news about more and more priests being trained and qualified as exorcists has come out, but I’ve heard nothing about the priests who do this full time. The newest rules now allow bishops to authorize exorcisms without the intercession of Rome, and so they need people who can properly perform the rite.

I have personally witnessed hauntings, ghosts, full-bodied apparitions, nature spirits, trance possession, precognition, micro-psychokinesis, spells, etc. But demons? Hardly. I’ve experienced what some would call “negative entities” who’s origin I don’t claim to know, but they never have been able to show me much power beyond making people freaked out. They were always easy enough to shoo away by anyone with sufficient ability, whether natural or trained.

So, beware of people who see demons in every shadow. Are they out there? Something certainly is, but so are ebola, giant squids, worm holes etc. They’re all pretty exceptional things in the world.

Would I like to study a real demon? Sure. Bring it on. I’ll call in the specialists if needed.