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Tag Archives: Society for Psychical Research
The Quest for the Historical Harry Price
Yes, it’s been a while. I find writing about most things nowadays superfluous – people can become absurdly well informed by reading Wikipedia, and people like me belong to an irrelevant generation of people who hoarded books and knowledge the … Continue reading
The Fall of Parapsychology?
Long time readers of this blog will know I am a genuine fan of Professor Chris French — he is brilliant, hard working, and actually investigates claims, and like Professor Wiseman avoids making the “rationalist myths” howlers that most of … Continue reading
Posted in Paranormal, Reviews and Past Events, Science, Social commentary desecrated
Tagged Andrew Endersby, Anomalistic Psychology, Bruce Hood, Chris French, Do we need a new parapsychology?, JSPR, Neil Davies, parapsychology, psychical research, Richard Wiseman, Society for Psychical Research, Susan Blackmore
3 Comments
Seriously Strange – UK Paranormal/Parapsychology/Scepticism Event, September 2011
Anyway from 1981 to 2011 is thirty years, and ASSAP are putting together what looks to be a truly fantastic conference to be held this year at the University of Bath, on the 10-11th September. The anniversary conference is entitled Seriously Strange, and looks perfect for both the really hard core paranormal research types who are interested in ganzfeld experiments & Bem’s precognitive habituation, through the most ardent ghosthunter, and certainly given ASSAP’s always critical and sceptical approach Sceptics. Forteans will love it too, from what I can see of the line up. Continue reading
Booting the Ball in No Man’s Land… A Rant for Sceptics
I should really avoid this topic like the plague, but I’m going to talk about it anyway, and risk upsetting everyone, because that what I happen to do!
I nearly titles this the “sceptics movement”, but as I think the idea of a movement that makes sceptics sounds like a creed or religious group is a misnomer I avoided that term; one thing is certain, sceptics always argue, disagree and often strongly, over all kinds of things. Where the evidence is solid they tend to agree, but on moral issues, tactical issues, social or political issues, or scientific areas where the evidence is weak sceptics hold strongly divergent opinions. And that is good and healthy. Continue reading
Posted in Debunking myths, Paranormal, Social commentary desecrated, Unclassifiable!
Tagged Anomalous Psychology Research Unit, APRU, ASKE, Ciaran O keefe, Ersby, fls, Hayley Stevens, JREF, Matthew Smith, Prof. Chris French, Prof. Richard Wiseman, scepticism and the paranormal, skeptic movement, skepticism, skepticism and the paranormal, SoapySam, Society for Psychical Research, UK sceptic culture, UK skeptic culture, UKSkeptics
15 Comments
Cheltenham Science Festival: Richard Wiseman, “Seance” Review, Part One
Professor Wiseman was of course up to his old tricks — a despicable performance in which he tortured kittens, sacrificed goats to Dawkinsabub and then hypnotised the audience who compliantly became his slaves as he indoctrinated them against all that is good and holy — oh, sorry, no that was my Paranormality review. Continue reading
Strange Survey – have you had an unusual experience?
Long term readers of this blog will recall that I have mentioned a few times Becky Smith’s PhD research (based at Coventry Uni) in to anomalous experiences – ghosts, poltergeists, hallucinations, hauntings, call them what you will. Well she has started the mail data colletion phase now, and is trying to get as many accounts as possible from people who would answer positively to this main question
Have you ever (when fully awake and unaffected by illness, alcohol or drugs) had an experience of seeing something or someone, or of hearing a voice, when there was no ordinary cause for it that you could find? Continue reading
Psychic News closes down after 78 years — but why?
I am aware of the byzantine politics of the Spiritualist movement, and the complex theological, administrative and personality clashes which sometimes (always?) arise. In this the Spiritualist National Union is much like any other church, or much like any other organisation, be it poetry club or gardening society.
In those two factors, economic issues and doubtless some political manoeuvring we see the immediate reasons for the decline of Psychic News (a newspaper that as long term reader of this blog may recall once featured me on the front page!). It is a shame, but possibly to be expected. And yet… Continue reading
Posted in atheism, Paranormal, Religion, Social commentary desecrated
Tagged Charismatic Christian Churches, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, Chat magazine, Colin Fry, Derek Acorah, Derren Brown, Dr Chris French, Dr Richard Wiseman, Dr Susan Blackmore, European Journal of Parapsychology, falling advertising revenues, Fortean Times, ghosthunters, Ghosthunting TV shows, hands-on theological investigation., I'm with the Woolwich, ITN, James Randi, Jane Millichip, John Edwards, John Wesley, Journal of the Society for Psychical Research, JREF, Living TV, mediums, Most Haunted, New Atheists, New Religious Movements, New Sceptics, New Skeptics, Paranormal, Paranormal Magazine, paranormalisation' of our popular culture., Penn & Teller, Prof. Richard DAwkins, psychical research, psychics, Richard Dawkins, S.P.R, sceptics, skeptics, Skeptics in the Pub, Society for Psychical Research, Spirit & Destiny magazine, spiritualism, Spiritualist National Union, spiritualists, Susan Blackmore, teenage Wiccan wannabes, thoughts on spiritualists, Tony Stockwell, UK Skeptics, war and spiritualism, war and the psychic
7 Comments
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
Posted in Paranormal, Science
Tagged Annalisa Ventola, apparitions, Charles Dexter Ward, Coventry University, Dean Radin, Derek Acorah, Dr Ian Hume, Dr. Raymond Moody, experimental parapsychology, Hallucinations, Hauntings and Poltergeists: Multidisciplinary Perspectives, Houran, how to manufacture a ghost, how to see a ghost, James Houran, Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, JSPR, Lange, let's see a ghost, necromanteum, Parapsychological Association, psychic medium, psychical research, psychomanteum, Public Parapsychology blogspot, punk science, Raymond Moody, Reunions, S.P.R, Simon Sherwood, Society for Psychical Research, Terhune
2 Comments
"And sometimes he's so nameless" 
A 5 million dollar question: Is Life after Death real? The Immortality Project.
Today I should be working, but about the time I’m writing this my Becky is finally submitting her PhD thesis at Coventry University, entitled something like A Century of Apparitions: The Census of Hallucinations in the 21st Century. I have … Continue reading →