Tag Archives: apparitions

Dealing With Ghosts, Part One: Some friendly advice for journalists, T.V. researchers and writers.

Every few weeks I receive a phone call or email from an interested media person, wanting me to help them out with an article, documentary, occasionally a film and sometimes a series. In the past I have cooperated, and have … Continue reading

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The Day I Met Myself: or how I survived my death-omen doppleganger.

It was an overcast day, and I was walking through Bury St Edmunds with my best friend, Hugh. After lunch sometime, killing time before our scheduled afternoon classes. I don’t know the date or even the year — and Hugh … Continue reading

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Why Everything We Think We Know About Ghosts Is (Probably!) Wrong

If you are interested in ghosts you may want to take a look. By kind permission of the editor, Dave Wood, my paper, with only the graph missing, follows. Continue reading

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How To See A Ghost – At Home!

“OK, I’m in a playful mood. Last week I ended with a promise – that we would create a “ghost” in the lab, or our own homes, and experiment with it. And that, dear reader, is exactly what we are going to do today… if you want to!

I will skip the philosophical stuff, and the discussion of the cases I referenced last time for now – Campermon wants science, and while I think we have been doing science from the start let’s play with something empirical. Let’s see a ghost! Continue reading

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Are Ghosts Hallucinations?

Over at http://www.rationalskepticism.org I’m debating the poster known as Campermon, an excellent chap. So far we are just really getting started, but I thought I’d share one of my posts, just in case anyone interested… Continue reading

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Charting the Unknown: Ghosts, Memory & the Progress of Time

OK something mildly interesting tonight – very much a preliminary set of thoughts on something Becky and I are still working on. Before she started her PhD we undertook some simple research on reports of “paranormal experiences” together, using a novel new methodology which is actually quite close to that used by the SPR in the 1894 Census of Hallucinations. And something has already come up that I find fascinating! Continue reading

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Elliot O’Donnell 1872-1965: the first great ghosthunter?

It’s hard to believe it is fourteen years since I wrote this piece, and it reflects my  ideas at that time. I have however, with some embarrassment as some of my ideas have changed, reproduced it here. I hope it … Continue reading

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How to Investigate a Ghost – part two

Investigating a Haunting Investigating a ghost ultimately comes down to common sense.  Firstly, it is necessary to visit the site of the haunting and take detailed notes on the environment.  Are there any obvious factors that could be causing strange … Continue reading

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How to Investigate a Ghost – Part one

How do you set about investigating a case?   Something unusual, quite purportedly paranormal is occurring – the investigators seek to understand it. The following notes are merely tentative guidelines. There can be huge differences between one case and the … Continue reading

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Wild “paranormal” theory! Why ever not?

WILD PARANORMAL THEORY! I wrote this for fun a couple of years back on James Randi’s forum… thought might amuse! I thought time to allow myself some wild speculation and kookery, and the original featured LOTS OF STUFF IN CAPS, … Continue reading

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