By Robin M. Strom
Mackey
Within the
community of paranormal investigators the existence of extra-sensory perception
(ESP) or the modern term PSI (pronounced either by its initials P-S-I or like
the word “sigh”) comes up often. The
term Psi is coined from the 23rd letter of the Greek alphabet, ψ (Wikipedia.org,
2013). When first starting out in the paranormal field I was often confused by
the connection between two seemingly unconnected phenomena. What, I wondered,
did extra-sensory perception have to do with ghost hunting? And why were those in the paranormal
community so concerned with this line of inquiry? With time and study it
finally became apparent that many of the theories about how we perceive spirits
derived from the very notion of PSI. And some notions of paranormal activity
were based solely on a person’s ability to tap into their PSI.
Case in point,
the prevailing theory behind poltergeist activity (poltergeist meaning noisy
ghost) is that the activity is generated by a human host, normally an
adolescent. Objects moving, disappearing, reappearing or even exploding (in the
more sensational cases), is thought to be caused by an adolescent agent via the
power of the mind. Often these agents
are unaware that they’re manipulating the environment in violent or unpleasant
ways, in effect blowing off teenage angst in a subconscious manner. Such displays are known as psychokinesis, a
type of psi, which is the ability to control inanimate objects with the force
of the mind.
More importantly,
the mere ability to perceive an apparition has long been postulated to be a
product of PSI. Frank Podmore, council
member for the Society of Psychical Research (SPR), was the first to propose
the theory that apparitions were a result of, “telepathically induced
hallucinations (Podmore, 1909)” suggesting that they occurred spontaneously and
without the percipient’s knowledge.
George N.M. Tyrell, also a SPR council member, suggested a
telepathic connection to apparitional sightings. He noted the hallucinatory
effect, occurred either consciously or unconsciously. He noted that most first-hand accounts of
apparitions did not include physical evidence.
For example, one might hear footsteps stomping in the attic, but on
closer look no physical evidence of foot prints could be perceived. Tyrell suggested that the apparition plants
such experiences in the unconscious, and the information eventually moves to
the conscious part of the recipient’s brain – especially in telepathic crises
situations.
Tyrell described
telepathic episodes using a metaphor of a stage drama. Behind the scenes (the
unconscious or supra-liminal mind) the message is received. The “stage
carpenter” builds from this a “dramatic message.” Tyrell suggested that the
dramatic message resided in a mid-level of consciousness much like an actor
waiting in the wings to step out onto the floor. In the final, “apparitional
drama the idea moves out from the shadows where it is received as a
“quasi-perceptual” experience perceived so that it embodies paranormal
information in a symbolic way (Schumacher, 2012).” For example, a person
drowning at a distance appears to the recipient as standing in sodden clothing,
appealing for help (Schumacher, Wikipedia, 2012).
J. B. Rhine first
coined the phrase extra-sensory perception (ESP) in 1934 in a book by that
title. Conducting PSI studies at Duke
University from the 1920’s-1960’s, Rhine was the creator of the infamous ESP
cards, and is considered one of the fathers of modern Psi studies. The term Psi
itself is an umbrella term which includes ESP (telepathy, clairvoyance) PK
(psychokinesis) and phenomena suggesting after-death survival of the soul.
The most cogent
argument why one should achieve at least a working knowledge of PSI was written
by Dr. Dean Radin in his book The Unconscious Mind. Radin stated:
“Eventually, investigators realized that
virtually all the interesting evidence for survival-related phenomena could
also be explained as telepathy by the medium, so research efforts began to
shift to telepathy. In addition, telepathy lent itself to controlled laboratory
investigation, whereas survival research did not….
It may seem odd
that it took any time at all to go from systematic research on survival
phenomena, to telepathy research, and then to clairvoyance, before it was
realized that the fundamental issue in all cases was the nature of psi
perception (Radin, 93).”
Thus Radin
explains that paranormal research was deflected away from survival phenomena
which had been the main thrust of the SPR at the height of the Spiritualist
Movement and toward a concerted study of PSI. Investigation of other paranormal
activity (UFO’s, Big Foot, ghosts etc.) then became the purview of the weekend
enthusiast. There were two reasons for the shift. First, Psi was the component
in paranormal experiences and thus needed to be understood. But secondly, the
original members of the SPR were mainly scientists.
PSI became their
mainstay because it could be studied in a laboratory and under scientific
parameters. In short PSI could be
scrutinized under careful scientific parameters, the experiments duplicated
time and again. Furthermore, the
scientists studying the phenomenon could hone their scientific methods,
creating better experiments that could be replicated in a laboratory - thus
building credence with the scientific community (which has long been dubious)
and building a base of evidence in support of PSI. Dr. Dean Radin who wrote perhaps the most
comprehensive analysis of what amounts to thirty or more years of study in the
area of Psi surmises that studies into the existence of PSI proves, via a
growing body of evidence, that PSI not only exists, but is a mostly untapped
ability that even normal people possess.
Telepathy
We should begin
our discussion of Psi by differentiating between telepathy and
clairvoyance. Telepathy is a type of PSI
sent out by an agent or a “sender” possibly directed to a distinct “receiver.”
For example, Mom passes away at midnight in New Hampshire. At exactly twelve in
Rhode Island her son Clarence is awoken from a deep sleep by the sound of his
mother’s call. In the corner of his room he sees his mother beckoning to him.
Slowly, as he watches, Mom waves good bye and fades from view. This is an example of a telepathic event with
a sender, Mom, and a distinct receiver, Clarence. It is an exchange between two
people without any known physical communication or sensory exchange. Also note
there is no lag in time or distance. Exchanges occur at the exact moment, no
matter how great the distance between the two involved. In his article entitled
“Telepathy” for Explorer.com, Mario Varvoglis, Ph.D. explains that this
particular anecdote covers two other requirements for categorizing something as
a telepathic event: first it occurs between two family members and second, it
involves a life-threatening event (Varvoglis, 2007).
The latest psi
experiments have been focusing on physiological responses (body responses) to
telepathy. They have placed sensors on the skin of "receivers" and
connected them to Galvanic Skin Response monitors (GSR) as a device that
measures the skin’s conductance. Varvoglis contends this is a sensitive device
for measuring minor psychological disturbances - many of which occur below the
conscious level.
In these
experiments a sender is located in a separate room with no access to the
receiver. The sender is instructed to alternate between periods of thinking
about the receiver and periods of rest. Correlation of the data appears to
demonstrate that the GSR indicates greater skin conductivity levels by the receiver
when the sender is actively transmitting than during periods when the sender is
resting. While the receivers aren't able to consciously determine periods of
activity from rest, it appears that on a physiological level their bodies know.
Varvoglis notes
these recent body-psi experiments have redefined the study of psi and as such
transference appears to resemble Tyrell’s theory of an “apparitional
drama.” Instead of the image of a
telepathic message being received as a visual billboard in the mind, more often
telepathic information may be picked up on an unconscious, physiological level
where it may remain in the unconscious. It may also be only partially perceived
- perhaps as a heightened awareness of unexplained anxiety. Or, the information
may be delayed from transferring to the conscious mind until the mind is
relaxed and thus open to receiving messages (for example during sleep).
Therefore
Varvoglis notes a difference between reception of psi messages and the
conscious detection of the messages, noting we probably receive far more psi
information than we ever consciously know. "So, while reception of psi may
be occurring all the time, detection depends upon the complex interaction of a
number of psychological and bodily conditions Varvoglis, 2007)."
It appears that
our busy, hectic lives create a type of block to receiving psi information. Our
conscious minds are so focused on our day-to-day thoughts that we create a type
of white noise that effectively blocks out subtle, quieter signals the brain
may receive. But when the brain is relaxed and the blizzard of thoughts is
diminished, thoughts in our unconscious queue can actually be processed. With
this in mind, psi researchers first began doing dream research, and later
created the ganzfield experiments as attempts to quiet receiver’s minds so that
they were more open to receiving PSI information.
In the mid-1970s,
[the late] Charles Honorton and William Braud independently arrived at the
ganzfield experiment in which a receiver (test subject) was placed in a
sensory-reduced state. The subjects were placed in a quiet room. They had
halved Ping-Pong balls placed over their eyes to reduce light and visual images
from being processed. Over their ears were placed head-sets which transmitted a
white-noise signal (like being in between radio stations. Researchers felt that
this placed subjects in a "uniform-sensory state" which brought on a
state of consciousness somewhere between wakefulness and sleep.
The experiments
used pictures randomly selected by a computer and transmitted onto a television
screen to the sender alone (the experimenters do not see the images either).
The pictures selected were usually landscape scenes which the sender would then
attempt to describe telepathically to the sensory-deprived receiver. After the
sending-receiving period the receiver is shown four images. One is the actual
image and the other three are decoys. Pure chance alone dictates that a
receiver will have one chance in four of identifying the correct image.
Ganzfield research now spanning more than 20 years of repetition and over one
thousand test subjects has proven that receivers choose the correct images as a
first guess far more often that pure chance dictates. Not only does it happen
more often than statistical chance allows, but it happens to normal people,
people who don't claim to psychic abilities, as well as those who claim to have
heightened telepathic abilities. Psi researchers speculate that psi is an
ability we all inherently possess in some amount. For most of us psi is ability
primarily undeveloped and undetectable.
Clairvoyance
Clairvoyance on
the other hand is telepathic information out there in the “ether” to be picked
up or perceived by whoever has the ability to do so. It is a French term
meaning “clear seeing.” In the parapsychology community it has also been known
as remote viewing. Dr. Dean Radin notes a distinction between the two types of
psi phenomenon. Clairvoyance, he notes, is different from telepathy in the fact
that no one “sends” the information that is received. “That is, information is
obtained from a distant or hidden location, beyond the ordinary bounds of space
and time (Radin, 1997).” While clairvoyance literally means “clear seeing” the
actual psi perceptions can also resemble sound, called “clairaudience,” or
smell, touch, or taste, called “clairsentience.” It should be noted that
clairvoyance would also help explain the existence of residual haunts, messages
imprinted in the environment and received and decoded by whoever happened into
the environment with the powers to do so.
It should be
noted that experiments in remote viewing were taken so seriously by the U.S.
government that they ran experiments in remote viewing in the 1970’s through
the 1990’s which totaled some $20
million in expenditure. Known
telepathics were chosen for these experiments. For the intelligence community,
development of such a program would be very valuable. A telepathic in a
sensory-reduced state might possibly be able to view distant locations and
gather intelligence information with little or no expense or threat to
personnel. The studies started at the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) a
think-tank affiliated with the university. They later became the purview of the
Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) (Radin, 1997) and were a
joint venture investigated by the CIA, Navy, Army, NASA and the Defense
Intelligence Agency. Needless to say the
study was inconclusive. Under some experiments the percipient was able to detect
significant information and describe in detail physical details of distant
locations. Under other situations the information was less reliable. The
research was halted in 1994.
Radin notes that
the distinction between telepathy and clairvoyance may be arcane. He notes that
“It…proved to be nearly impossible to create a test for pure telepathy that
could not also be explained as clairvoyance (Radin, 1997).” In other words
whether the message was being sent by a sender, or was simply being picked up
in the environment was impossible to determine, and probably not a significant
a distinction.
Precognition
You’re driving
behind a truck carrying logs in the right lane.
For no known reason you feel anxious. Therefore you change to the left
lane and speed up, passing the truck.
Seconds later, the truck drops its load of logs, spilling them onto the
road behind. “Lord, I could have been killed,” you think. What was this sense that told you to get out
of the way just in the nick of time? Psi researchers would call it precognition
or the ability to sense the future before it actually happens.
Precognition is
as its name implies the ability to gain information consciously about a future
event in which the information could not be arrived at by the usual means. It
is a general ability, says Radin, which is not dependent on time or space.
Variations on the idea include premonitions - unconsciously gaining information
about a future event. Presentiment - the ability to sense future emotions.
Radin goes on to complicate the matter by noting that telepathy, “real-time”
clairvoyance and precognition may simply be a difference in semantics not a
difference in abilities. “Instead the vast majority of both anecdotal and
empirical evidence for perceptual psi suggests that the evidence can all be
accommodated by various forms of precognition (Radin, 1997).” He notes that all
types of perceptual psi might be explained by the fact that we all occasionally
“run into our own futures (Radin, 1997).”
To research
precognition Radin conducted an experiment. They selected college student
volunteers and sat them in front of monitors. The monitors were designed to
display images, one at a time with several seconds of blank screen in between
each viewing. The images were divided
into two groups, pictures of landscapes etc. which were to elicit a calming
effect on the viewer, and disturbing images such as violent scenes. In between
images the screen was a blank grey. The images were presented randomly so that
the viewer never knew whether the next image would be disturbing or
calming. Each volunteer had electrodes
attached to two fingers of one hand to measure skin conductivity (electro
dermal activity). They were also monitored for heart rate and the amount of
blood at the fingertip. The signals were monitored by a computer. Viewers that
had the usual response to an emotional image displayed an autonomic nervous
system change (in other words a stress response) that demonstrated predictable
physiological changes: heart rate dropped blood volume in the finger dropped
and electro dermal activity (sweat gland activity) increased. Calming images
had the opposite effect or calming effect on the physiology of the participant.
What the
researchers noticed was that the participants began pre-sensing their future
emotional state. If a disturbing image was next, while the screen was still
grey, the volunteers would be already displaying physiological changes of the
autonomic system. When asked after the
experiment whether the volunteers had consciously sensed or knew when an
emotional image was to be displayed the volunteers said that they had not. Yet
their bodies had sensed it, indicating as Radin concludes, that presentiment
“is a largely unconscious process (Radin, 1997).” Once again the results were
significantly above chance indicating that precognition is an ability that most
people possess.
Pyschokinesis
(Telekinesis)
Psychokinesis or
PK is formulated from the Greek words kinesis meaning movement and psyche
meaning mind (also sometimes referred to as telekinesis). Someone with this
ability would be able to move objects or manipulate objects with their mind.
Think Uri Geller the spoon-bending performer from the 70's or the table tipping
craze of the 19th century. Varvoglis contends that this type of macro-PK, i.e.
a person with this amount of PK, and with the ability to control it at will, as
a very rare occurrence. Thus studying macro-psychokinesis is extremely
difficult under laboratory conditions.
Think instead
micro-PK, or the ability to change small things with one's will. J.P. Rhine,
researcher at Duke University was approached one day by a young man who claimed
he could control the roll of the dice far more often than mere chance allowed.
Rhine agreed to observe and noted that indeed the young man seemed to be able
to influence the wee squares far more often than chance dictated. Rhine was
intrigued and modern PK research was born.
PK experiments
have centered on mundane, random variables. Take a coin toss for example. Given
chance, if a coin, equally weighted on both sides, is tossed 100 times, it
should land heads-up 50 times and tails-up 50 times. Therefore, a researcher
would direct a test subject to impose their will on a coin, attempting to
influence it to land heads-up. If in 100 tosses heads comes up 67 times, then
the results are above the chance level. Perform such coin tosses repeatedly,
using different test subjects, and if the results summed up continue to exceed
the chance level, then the experiment would suggest the possibility of PK.
Indeed many such
experiments have been done with coins and dice, and taken cumulatively the
results have come out consistently above chance. In fact Varvoglis notes,
"The dice results coming out of Rhine’s lab and elsewhere were highly
significant (Radin, & Ferrari, 1991, Varvoglis, 2007)."
But there were
concerns raised that not all of the experiments were carefully controlled. For
example, if a coin is slightly heavier on one side, it may tend to fall on that
side more often than the other, thus not falling randomly. The same can be said
about dice. Parapsychology researchers were searching for a device that truly
and indisputably created randomness.
German physicist
Helmut Schmidt introduced a new device called a Random Number Generator (RNG or
REG) for psi research -- "devices which, on the basis of microphysical
events (such as radioactive decay, or electronic noise in chips)," would
produce truly unpredictable, random numbers (Varvoglis, 2007)." In the 1980's,
the RNG's which had been stand-alone devices were integrated with PC's which
revolutionized psi research. In the experiments test subjects sat down in front
of monitors which displayed random media - be it a virtual coin toss or dice
roll. Several different interfaces were developed.
The Princeton
Engineering Anomalies Laboratory (PEAR) out of Princeton University has
undoubtedly been the greatest contributor in the area of RNG research. One of
their first devices displayed a simple interface which showed arrows to
indicate a "toss of a coin." If more "heads" were thrown by
the RNG then an up arrow appeared. If more "tails," a down arrow was
displayed. When the tosses were equal a horizontal line showed on the screen.
In a truly random pattern the display should indicate some up arrows, some down
arrows, with most of the tosses hugging the horizontal line.
During tests, a
subject was instructed to attempt to move the arrow either up or down, thereby
influencing the computer. Varvoglis notes that testers were encouraged to try
different techniques in order to move the arrow in the direction they desired.
They might envision the arrow moving in their mind, or they might try to will
the arrow to move. Once they learned a personal system for influencing the
arrow. The results showed a subtle but definite ability of test subjects to
influence the RNG above chance. Once again, the test subjects were normal
people with normal abilities, indicating that even the average person has some
innate ability to wield control of a small scale on their environment. Literally hundreds of studies were done by
researchers all demonstrating results above chance, contributing significant
proof to the existence of PK.
But the ability
to influence the pointing direction of an arrow hardly appears to be ability
with widespread application or significance. But consider the advantages if you
could learn to control small but significant manipulables in your environment.
Varvoglis points out that the PEAR laboratory also designed an experiment using
Biofeedback machines that indicated normal people had the ability to influence
their own physiological responses.
Biofeedback
machines are devices with sensors that can be attached to a subject. The
sensors are able to monitor small physiological changes such as changes in
temperature or the contraction of a muscle. These devices have been used for
several years by medical practitioners to help retrain patients to use their
bodies. For example, a therapist might use a biofeedback machine to help a
stroke patient relearn certain muscle movements in an arm. The patient attempts
to move a specific muscle and if the muscle actually contracts the machine
indicates success. If the muscle isn't moved the machine indicates a failure. With
constant feedback a patient learns which movements are successful and how to
initiate those movements.
In psi experiment
the biofeedback machines have been attached to test subjects and the subjects
instructed to attempt to control certain small fluctuations in their physiology
such as body temperature. After several attempts with feedback the subjects
learned how to control their own thermostats, making small changes in their own
body temperature. Varvoglis concludes, "As it turns out, after a few such
sessions, people can learn a very refined form of control over these subtle
aspects of their body -- which we once considered completely beyond conscious
control -- and can learn to mentally cure a number of problems, such as
headaches, stress-related diseases and so forth (Varvoglis, 2012)."
Collective PK and
the Power of Prayer
So if one
individual, a normal individual at that, has the ability to control small
factors of their environment, what if these powers combined with the abilities
of others? Could they combine? And if so would the combined PK be stronger than
individual PK? And could their combined forces shape more than just
micro-events in their environment? Could they have the power to heal the sick
or change the world?
The most obvious
outlet for such an experiment would be the ability of a group of people, a
congregation perhaps, to influence the recovery of an ill person via the power
of prayer. The father of psychology and former SPR president William James once
wrote, “No mental modification ever occurs which is not accompanied or followed
by a bodily change (Radin, 1997).” There has been a growing interest in the
medical field as to whether the mind can aid the body in the recovery of
illness. Studies on intercessory prayer
have been conducted by psychologists and physicians to determine if prayer aids
in the recovery of patients. Unfortunately, the results have been inconclusive.
In 1988,
physician Randolph Byrd published the results of a double-blind study on the
effects of intercessory prayer on coronary care patients at San Francisco
General Hospital. Patients were divided into two groups: one that received
prayer and one that did not. The names and diagnoses of 193 patients were sent
to various religious organizations with the request that they receive prayer.
The similar group with similar ages and diagnoses was not prayed for.
The study found
that the group that had prayed for were five times less likely to need
antibiotics, three times less likely to develop coronary edema (swelling), and
none required endotracheal intubation (an emergency procedure in which a tube
is placed
down the mouth or
the nose). Finally, fewer patients who had received prayer died. While this
appears positive the final results showed only a 5% to 7% health improvement of
the prayed for group over the control group. So while prayer might have
improved the health of the individuals, Radin admits that prayer or mental
healing did not appear to be a “particularly robust method” towards recovery (Radin,
1997).
The study came
under attack by the scientific community for several reasons, methodology being
one area of concern. However, it sparked
the attention of the medical community leading to studies of remote healing on everything
from plants to people.
In 2006 The
American Heart Journal published a similar study of cardiac patients in 6 U.S.
hospitals that appeared to refute the power of intercessory prayer. They
divided patients awaiting CABG’s (coronary artery bypass graft surgery) randomly
into three categories. In group one, 604 patients were told that they might or
might not receive prayer but did receive prayer. Group two (597 patients) was
informed that they may or may not receive prayer and did not receive
intercessory prayer. And 601 patients in group three were both informed that
they would receive intercessory prayer and received such.
Prayer was
provided for fourteen days, starting the evening before the surgeries, for
group’s one and three. The team decided
that the lack of any complication from the surgeries within 30 days, and the
lack of any secondary outcomes (major event or mortality would indicate
positive results. The author concluded:
"In the 2 groups
uncertain about receiving intercessory prayer, complications occurred in 52%
(315/604) of patients who received intercessory prayer versus 51% (304/597) of
those who did not (relative risk 1.02, 95% CI 0.92-1.15). Complications
occurred in 59% (352/601) of patients certain of receiving intercessory prayer
compared with the 52% (315/604) of those uncertain of receiving intercessory
prayer (relative risk 1.14, 95% CI 1.02-1.28). Major events and 30-day
mortality were similar across the 3 groups (Am Heart, 2006)."
The study
concluded that intercessory prayer had no effect on complication-free recovery
from CABG surgery, and that it might actually be deleterious to recovery, as
the 2 prayer groups actually suffered more complications than the other
non-prayer group (Am Heart, 2006). “One
of the investigators, Dr. W. Bethea, said it is possible, ‘that being aware of
the strangers' prayers may have caused some of the patients a kind of
performance anxiety… It may have made them uncertain, wondering am I so sick
they had to call in their prayer team (Gaudi, 2007)?’”
The Last Word?
In 2004 the
Office of Internal Medicine at the National Institutes for Health (NIH)
published its meta-analysis of 14 such prayer studies, concluding that, “’There
is no scientifically discernible effect for Intercessory Prayer (IP) as
assessed in controlled studies. Given that the IP literature lacks a
theoretical or theological base and has failed to produce significant findings
in controlled trials, we recommend that further resources not be allocated to
this line of research (Gaudia, 2007).’”
Suffered
complications, compared with 51% of those who were uncertain Professor
Emeritus, Dr. Gil Gaudia editorialized that whether the results of prayer
studies were positive or negative was probably more dependent on psychosomatic
effects of the patients or statistical artifacts.
PK and RNGS -
Order out of Chaos
Another line of
study dealing with combined PK has been ongoing since 1998. Known as the Global Consciousness Project, or
EGG project, the researchers theorized that if a normal person could influence
their environment on a small scale, then a number of like-minded individuals
could exert even more influence collectively if and when they were combined in
thought and intent. Over time the
researchers have set up 70 random number generators at various locations around
the world. The RNG’s take synchronized,
200-bit trials every second. The theory
was this. During times when nothing significant was occurring in the world the
RNG’s would record random results.
However, during times when a mass of the population turned its attention
and its intent on one significant event, the random number generators would
indicate the massed consciousness by indicating decreased randomness. In other words, they theorized that a mass of
humanity could consciously create order out of chaos with their collective
minds. Such catastrophic events such as the World Trade Center bombing of 2001
showed a significant decrease in the randomness of the RNG's. So too other less
significant events such as an Academy Awards ceremony or the New Year’s Eve
celebration in Times Square have suggested an increase in combined
consciousness by a decrease of randomness recorded by the RNG’s (Radin, Nelson,
Bancel, 2013).
Conclusion
So too this
article has attempted to bring order out of the chaos that is literally the
hundreds of experiments and research projects dealing with psi. For a truly
comprehensive account of psi research consider reading The Conscious Universe;
The Scientific Truth of Psychic Phenomena written by Dean Radin, PhD. For a
quicker, and easier, breakdown of psi research check out the website
psiexplorer.com authored by Radin’s contemporary Mario Varvoglis, PhD. Readers
should know as well that this article was meant to cover only the major
classifications of psi research. There are other related psi abilities that
have not been covered fully. An
explanation of clairsentience can be found in the article “Haunted Objects,”
available on this blog. And finally, any honest discussion of the existence of
psi should point out that the scientific community remains highly skeptical of
the research results of psi experiments. More than one hundred years after the
Spiritualist Movement, parapsychologists have still not achieved the respect or
the support of the scientific community.
Resources
Anonymous (2012).
Apparitional Experience. Wikipedia. Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apparitional_experience on March 21, 2013.
Am Heart J.
(2006). “Study of the Therapeutic Effects of Intercessory Prayer (STEP) in cardiac
bypass patients: a multicenter randomized trial of uncertainty and certainty of
receiving intercessory prayer.” The American Heart Journal. Apr;151(4):934-42.
Retrieved online March 23, 2013 at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16569567
Gaudia, Gil PhD.
Professor Emeritus (2007). “About Intercessory Prayer: The Scientific Study of
Miracles” MedGenMed. 9(1): 56. Published
online 2007 March 20. Retrieved March 23, 2013 at
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1924985/.
Nelson, Roger
(2009) the Global Consciousness Project; Meaningful Correlations in Random
Data. Retrieved July 7, 2013 from
http://noosphere.princeton.edu/
Radin, D.,
Nelson, R., Pancel, P. (2013) “Global Consciousness Project.” Institute for
Noetic Sciences. Retrieved July 7, 2013
from http://www.noetic.org/research/project/global-consciousness-project/
Podmore, Frank
(1909) Telepathic Hallucinations: The New View of Ghosts. Frederick A. Stokes
Company. New York, NY.
Radin, Dean, PhD.
(1997) the Conscious Universe; the Scientific Truth of Psychic Phenomena.
Harper Collins Publishers, NY, NY.
Schumacher, Dave
(2011) Transliminality, Paranormal Belief and Paranormal Experiences at a
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Tyrell, George
N.M. (1943). Apparitions. Gerald A. Duckworth. London, U.K. p.53-60.
Varvoglis, Mario,
Ph.D. (2007) "Telepathy Thought Transmission" PsiExplorer.com
Retrieved January 22, 2013 from http://www.psiexplorer.com/
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