Electromagnetic Energy Disruptions and Paranormal Activity

By Robin Strom-Mackey

Brad Steiger in his book Real Ghosts, Restless Spirits and Haunted Places explains briefly that documentation over years of paranormal investigating have repeatedly reported three distinct similarities: electromagnetic field disruptions, temperature changes and infrared spectrum manifestations.

Probably of no surprise to seasoned investigators are the documented occurrences of low-level electromagnetic field disruptions. These mainly fall between the 3 to 100 mliligauss (Mg) range the lower range wherein our own bioelectric bodies function. He believes these fluctuations are the, intangible “biomagnetic” field that comprises a “ghost (Steiger, pg. XI).” Basing his theory on the work of Brian Schill, (The DNA of Ghosts) he suggests that when a body dies, the bioelectric energy they possess is released. Remember, if you will, the scientific theory that energy is neither created nor destroyed. If this is true than the energy produced by our bodies may depart in the form of low frequency raw electromagnetic energy that usually disperses into the local environment. However, under unusual circumstances [my emphasis] this same energy may,

“’through covalent bonding, remain in the local environment and attach itself to a certain place or object that the person was attached to in life, or any place that has an electron deficit . The energy may, upon rapid release from the physical body (such as an accidental death tragic situations, or a rapid natural release, etc.) coagulate within the local environment over a short period of time, perhaps only a minute or two, and amass to such a degree that the greater portion that was originally in the body has now become self-aware outside the body (Schill).’ Psychological forces of conscious will may also trigger this type of reaction. When self-awareness occurs, there is generally a degree of confusion because of the new form that the person is in, one of pure energy rather than a physically manifested body (Steiger, pg. XI).”

These low-scale electromagnetic disturbances, occurring at the outset of paranormal phenomena might further explain why electronic devices suddenly stop functioning.

Resources

Steiger, B. (2003) Real Ghosts, Restless Spirits and Haunted Places

Visible Ink Press. Canton, MI.

Part IV: The Current Debate; Electromagnetic Energy and Gauss Meters

See also Part I-III of the Current Debate under the July 2010 heading, Part V under January 2011 heading cover topics: AC vs. DC power, the atom and electron, how electricity flows though the human body and the infrared spectrum.

By Robin Strom Mackey

When embarking upon a series of articles about which EMF detector to choose for ghost hunting, I admit, I had never considered how in depth my research would become. What I did not understand at the outset, and hence what many people probably misunderstand about the electromagnetic field, is that different types of electromagnetic energy are not actually disconnected from one another, but are merely a portion of the larger spectrum of electromagnetic energy. Hence the microwave with which you warm your soup is simply on a different part of the spectrum from the type of ultraviolet light that causes your sunburn. The type of EMF detector you choose and purchase is calibrated not to read different types of energy, but to measure a certain part of the spectrum. Deciding which EMF detector to buy, therefore, becomes a matter of determining what portion of the spectrum you wish to measure.

Definition of Electromagnetic Energy

Electromagnetic energy is a combination of electrical impulses and magnetic force coupled together. The two forces move together in waves. The lower end of the spectrum has looser waves with the crests further apart. At the low end of the spectrum, and not shown on this graph are the Extremely Low Frequency (ELF) electro-magnetic fields of AC power, which we use to power most of our electric appliances. Above that (shown below) are the Intermediate Frequency Fields (IF) with the wave crests closer together. This is the radio wave and microwaves portions of the spectrum. The infrared spectrum is just below what is visible light to humans. Just beyond the visible light spectrum are the ultraviolet rays. Undoubtedly you’ve heard of ultraviolet rays in connection with using sunscreen on a hot day. These light rays are faster moving and thus have more energy which can be harmful to exposed flesh.

A Simple Definition of Electromagnetic Energy

Electricity can be static. For instance, when you break the electrical circuit by turning off a light switch, the electrons that would normally be shifting down the circuit from one atom to the next stall out and merely rotate around their own nucleus. Magnetism can also be static. Consider the magnets you use to pin important pictures to the refrigerator. However, when electricity and magnetism become coupled, and when one of these forces change, it causes a change in the other force. Both begin moving together in waves -electromagnetic waves. The magnetic and electric fields of an electromagnetic wave are perpendicular to each and to the direction in which the wave is moving. Electromagnetic waves appear impervious to such concerns as gravitation or friction. Once created, an electromagnetic wave will continue moving forever unless it becomes absorbed by matter (nasa.gov).

Measuring the Electromagnetic Field

The electromagnetic field is measured by wavelength. Wavelength is the measurement of the top or crest of the waves from one wave to the next. The shorter the distance between waves the faster the wave is moving and the more energy it is giving off.

That energy is being expended is obvious, but what might not be obvious is that waves moving at different velocities and with differing wavelengths give off energy differently. For example microwaves and the farther region of the infrared spectrum give off thermal energy, energy we can feel as heat.

Frequency is another term for measuring wavelength and refers to how fast or slow the waves cycle in a second. Consider the radio wave for example. The distance between one crest of a wave and the next is the size of a building. Hence in one second one wave will have traveled by – or cycled through. Hence wavelength and frequency are interrelated; the larger the wave the lower the frequency or the fewer waves that will go by in a second. Conversely the closer the wave’s crests are to one another the more waves which will cycle by in a second and the higher the frequency. (Corrosions-doctors.org).

Common Terminology and Measurement Units

Undoubtedly you’ve seen these terms before, but probably never knew what they meant or what they measured. Below I’ve tried to compile a list of terms that will come in handy when trying to determine what an EMF detector measures.

Electric fields are measured in voltage (volts per meter). The higher the voltage the stronger the electrical field. Actual electrical current is not necessary to measure voltage. In other words electrons need not be moving down a circuit to be measurable. The human body generates weak electricity between 10 to 100 millivolts to power the heart and the central nervous system. This is not enough to power so much as a television which requires 25,000 volts to create a picture on TV. Magnetic fields are measured in amps (amperes per meter A/m). Unlike an electric field, which can be measured even when current is not actually flowing, a magnetic field is created from the motion of the electricity moving in a circuit. Because electricity and magnetism are intertwined the two can be measured using a related quantity measurement called a microtesla (µT). A gauss unit is actually a measurement of the magnetic flux density, just as is the microtesla (µT) which is often the preferred measurement system in science. Hertz is a measurement of the number of waves, called cycles that pass per second. AC power cycles through at an Extremely Low Frequency rate of 60 Hertz per second. Intermediate Frequency Fields (computer screens and anti-theft devices) measure around 300 Hz to 10 MHz Radio Frequency Fields (cellular telephone antennas and microwave ovens) measure from 10 MHz to 300 GHz (Corrosion-Doctors.org). Hertz Units Conversions 1 Hertz is a frequency of 1 cycle per second. 1000 Hertz = 1 kilohertz kHz 1,000,000 Hertz = 2 Megahertz MHz 1,000,000,000 Hertz = 1 Gigahertz Watts refer to a measurement of electromagnetic waves in the radio wave region of the spectrum. Because the magnetic wave and the electric wave are so close together at this frequency they are measured, “as two components of an electromagnetic wave.” The power density of that wave is measured in watts per square inch (W/m2), to describe “the intensity of these fields (corrosion-doctors.org).”

Gauss Meters and Flux

Gauss meters, which you may have noticed advertised on the web, measure the strength of a magnetic field. A gauss unit is actually a measurement of the magnetic flux density, just as is the microtesla (µT) which is often the preferred measurement system in science.

Magnetic Flux is the strength of the magnetic field in a specific region measured perpendicular to the flow. Near the poles the field and force are strongest, becoming progressively weaker away from the poles. The term flux is used because there seems to be a motion or flow as magnetism moves out of the north (+ area) pole, does a circuit and returns to the south (-) pole.

Sprinkling iron fillings on a piece of paper held over a magnet demonstrates this circulating pattern succinctly. Specific patterns form, and these patterns are called lines of induction. The direction of the filings demonstrate in which direction the magnetic field is flowing and the density (the number of lines passing through a unit area) shows the strength of the field (answers.com).

The Gauss Meters work by giving off a tiny electrical current when they come in contact with a magnetic field. The current is amplified so that a meter is capable of showing the number of gauss units. Remember magnetic field strength, unlike electric field strength, cannot be measured unless it is coupled with electricity and moving in electromagnetic waves.

Resources

Electromagnetic Spectrum (1996) http://www.its.bldrdoc.gov/fs-1037/dir-013/_1941.htm Retrieved January 6, 2011.

Jennifer. Infrared Imagery Springfield Paranormal Research Group

http://springfieldparanormal.net/ir.htm Retrieved January 7, 2011

Layton, J. How Does the Body Make Electricity -- and how does it use it?

http://health.howstuffworks.com/human-body/cells-tissues/human-body-make-electricity1.htm. Retrieved January 7, 2011

Magnetic Flux Definition http://www.answers.com/topic/magnetic-flux#ixzz1AMTK2txP Retrieved January 7, 2011.

Rowlett, R. How Many? A Dictionary of Units of Measurementthe University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

www.unc.edu/~rowlett/units/dictG.html retrieved January 6, 2011

Steiger, B. (2003) Real Ghosts, Restless Spirits and Haunted Places

Visible Ink Press. Canton, MI.

The Electromagnetic Spectrum: What are Electromagnetic Waves? (2007) http://science.hq.nasa.gov/kids/imagers/ems/waves2.html Retrieved January 6, 2011

The Appearance on Electronic Video Capture Devices of Anomalous Images That Are Normally Not Visible to Humans. (1998-2002) http://www.hauntedchicago.com/research.htm. Retrieved January 7, 2011.

Types of Electromagnetic Fields http://corrosion-doctors.org/Voltage/electromagnetic-def.htm#various_forms Retrieved January 6, 2011.

Using Alternate Light Spectrums for Paranormal Investigations (2003-2011) Long Island Paranormal Investigators. http://www.liparanormalinvestigators.com/light.shtml Retrieved January 7, 2011.

Are You A Transliminal Personality?

If you're interested in finding out how you rate, take the transliminality survey below and find out. Take the three short tests below and see how you rank.

Thalbourne Transliminality Index (1998)

Answer true or false on the 30 questions below. More true answers indicate a higher transliminality rating.

1 Horoscopes are right too often for it to be a coincidence

2 At times I perform certain little rituals to ward off negative influences

3 I have experienced an altered state of consciousness in which I felt that I became cosmically enlightened

4 At the present time, I am very good at make-believe and imagining

5 I have felt that I had received special wisdom, to be communicated to the rest of humanity

6 I have sometimes behaved in a much more impulsive or uninhibited way than is usual for me

7 I am fascinated by new ideas, whether or not they have practical value

8 I have sometimes sensed an evil presence around me, although I could not see it

9 My thoughts have sometimes come so quickly that I couldn’t write them all down fast enough

10 If I could not pretend or make-believe anymore, I wouldn’t be me – I wouldn’t be the same person

11 Sometimes I experience things as if they were doubly real

12 It is sometimes possible for me to be completely immersed in nature or in art and to feel as if my whole state of consciousness has somehow been temporarily altered

13 Often I have a day when indoor lights seem so bright that they bother my eyes

14 I am convinced that I have had at least one experience of telepathy between myself and another person

15 I am convinced that I am psychic

16 I have experienced an altered state of awareness which I believe utterly transformed (in a positive manner) the way I looked at myself

17 I am convinced that I have had a premonition about the future that came true and which (I believe) was not just a coincidence

18 I think I really know what some people mean when they talk about mystical experiences

19 I have gone through times when smells seemed stronger and more overwhelming than usual

20 I can clearly feel again in my imagination such things as: the feeling of a gentle breeze, warm sand under bare feet, the softness of fur, cool grass, the warmth of the sun and the smell of freshly cut grass

21 A person should try to understand their dreams and be guided by or take warnings from them

22 While listening to my favourite music, in addition to feeling calm, relaxed, happy etc, I often have a feeling of oneness with the music, or of being in another place or time, or vividly remembering the past

23 At times, I somehow feel the presence of someone who is not physically there

24 I am convinced that it is possible to gain information about the thoughts, feelings or circumstances of another person, in a way that does not depend on rational prediction or normal sensory channels

25 For several days at a time I have had such a heightened awareness of sights and sounds that I cannot shut them out

26 I sometimes have a feeling of gaining or losing energy when certain people look at me or touch me

27 Now that I am grown up, I still in some ways believe in such things as elves, witches, leprechauns, fairies, etc.

28 Sometimes people think I’m a bit weird because my ideas are so novel

29 When listening to organ music or other powerful music, I sometimes feel as if I’m being lifted up into the air

Transliminality

By Robin Strom-Mackey

You’ve heard them described as the “artistic type.” They’re highly creative and have truly unique and unusual ideas. They’re the ones who believe in the possibility of the supernatural, or may report having had an mystical experience of their own. Perhaps they dabble in eastern philosophies, or non-mainstream religions. This is the type of person who would cut off his ear in a fit of depression - Van Gogh. Or perhaps the type of creative genius that would take his own life at the very height of his career -Curt Colbaine. Creative, odd, moody and into all sorts of weird philosophies; these are people who are said to have a transliminal personality.

1994 Study Results

University of Adelaide Parapsychologist Professor, Michael Thalbourne, (with Peter S. Delin) designed a study that would measure personality traits of those who believed in the paranormal. They wanted to know what type of person believed in the possibility of the paranormal, (The researchers defined paranormal to those who believed in ESP, Psycho kinesis, or life after death.) and in particular what set believers apart from non-believers. What the researchers found startled even them. Their findings indicated that those who believed in the paranormal shared an unequivocal similarity of personality traits. So strong was the similarity that Thalbourne gave the personality type a name, dubbing it transliminality.

Definition of Transliminality

The term transliminality literally means to “go beyond the threshold.” Thalbourne, in an interview with Robyn Williams of ABC Science, defined transliminality as:

“a hyper-sensitivity to psychological material coming from the unconscious and a hyper-sensitivity to stimulation from the external environment. So consciousness is like the meat in the sandwich; one part of the sandwich being the external environment, the other being what we tend to call the unconscious or subliminal region (Williams, 2007).”

In other words, subjects that scored significantly higher on a transliminal scale were people who appear to be able to tap into their subconscious, subliminal, or “supraliminal” minds. This ability to bring the unconscious to the conscious (meaning awareness) they describe as being able to cross more easily the thresholds between the levels of consciousness. Thalbourne also suggested that a person with a transliminal personality can also tap into information outside himself/herself, perhaps the collective unconscious, to borrow from Jung. An experiment at Goldsmith College London, found that high transliminals were able to perceive flashed subliminal messages far more frequently, while those who were low on a transliminal scale were completely unaware of them. High transliminals did not score significantly higher on ESP scores, however, than their low transliminal counterparts.

Creativity

Thalbourne’s 1994 study, and several subsequent follow-up studies proved that people who scored as high transliminals, or very high transliminals, also shared a interesting number of other traits. Subjects that score high on a transliminal scale were usually extremely creative people. Artist, the researchers suggested, used just the ability to bring forth snatches of the unconscious into the conscious while creating their art. Thalbourne points out that this correlation between creativity and the belief in the paranormal had already been demonstrated in three studies. He cites Moon (1975) who noted that visual arts students showed a significantly higher belief in ESP than did their fellow students in other disciplines. Therefore finding this strong correlation was not surprising.

Belief in the Supernatural/Magical Ideation/Mystical Experiences

What might be more surprising was the direct relationship between those who believed in the supernatural and magical ideation. The authors defined magical ideation as, “the tendency to believe in scientifically unorthodox and often bizarre forms of interaction between thought and the physical world,” a tendency they point out as an possible indicator to the “schizotypal personality (schizophrenia type illusions)“ (Thalbourne & Delin, 1994).”

They also found that these people were often believers in the mystical and reported a higher number of mystical experiences - defined as the feeling of oneness with the universe, “a profound sense of peace and the apparent illumination about the meaning of existence (Thalbourne, 1991).

Religion

People who scored high on the transliminal scale also tended to classify themselves as very religious. Oddly though, highly transliminal subjects did not tend to correspond with traditional orthodox beliefs, but often sought out and identified with other religions, markedly Asian religions and philosophies (Thalbourne & Delin, 1999). Interestingly they also found that atheists scored lowest on a transliminal scale followed by agnostics. Those who were brought up or practiced Christianity constituted the middle ground of the transliminal scale.

Dream Interpretation

Those high on the scale also tended to be more aware of their dreams. It wasn’t determined whether they had a higher degree of dream recall than normal, but they did report they tended to spend more time interpreting their dreams for meaning. Also those who believed in the paranormal suffered from a higher number of nightmares.

Manic Depression / Schizophrenia

Sadly, it seems highly transliminal people tended to be less well adjusted than their low transliminal counterparts. Individuals that scored very high on the transliminal scale tend to fall prey to mental disorders far more often than the “hard-headed” low transliminals. For one thing, researchers found a correlation between depression and transliminal personalities. Even more unsettling was the relation between highly transliminal personalities and the predilection of schizophrenia. The researchers noted that further down the transliminal scale a person tended to rate, the less likely they appeared to fall prey to emotional disorders. Although the “happy transliminal” does exist as well.

Conclusion

In his interview with Williams, Thalbourne indicates that while transliminals have the gift of creativity, they carry the burden of a likelihood of depression and mental disorders. Possibly Thalbourne would agree, being a transliminal personality is both a blessing and a curse. Undoubtedly a highly transliminal personality, he apparently suffered from bi-polar disorder (manic depression) as an adult, eventually taking his own life. Dr. Michael Thalbourne passed away May 24, 2010. He was 55 years old.

Thalbourne, M.A., Delin, P.S. A Common Thread Underlying Belief in the Paranormal, Creative Personality, Mystical Experience and Psychopathology. Journal of Parapsychology, Vol. 58, March 1994.

Thaibourne, M.A., Delin, P.S. (1999) Transliminality: Its Relation to Dream Life, Religiosity, and Mystical Experience. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion. 9-1 (pp.45-61)

Thalbourne, M.A. Interview with Robyn Williams. ABC.Science.com; Radio National. June 4, 2006. www.abc.net.au/rn/science/incon/stories/s1607944.html Retrieved August 12, 2010.

Famous People & the Supernatural Part VI: Crookes, Barrett

William Crookes & William Fletcher Barrett
by Robin Strom Mackey

William Crookes’ was an inventor of scientific equipment and a chemist. His scientific pursuits included the discovery of the element thallium and the invention the Crooke’s tube, a glass vacuum tube with two electrodes at either end, with which he was able produce and study the fluorescent rays of light energy not otherwise visible to the human eye. A decade later, physicist J.J. Thomson would name those streams of charged particles electrons. Crookes’ interest in the supernatural was centered around the work of the famous medium D.D. Home. According to an 1874 paper, by Crookes, he studied Home not as a performer, but because he felt that there was an actual “occult force” that Home was able to harness, that could be studied and measured. For his paper on Home, he was publicly chastised by John Tyndall the newly elected president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. Despite this, Crookes persisted in his research, searching for a physical theory to explain what he had observed, until eventually he grew weary of the criticism of his peers and abandoned his research for the safer regions of mainstream science.

William Fletcher Barrett was the first physicist to become interested in the spiritual realm. Barrett had worked under John Tyndall, the outspoken opponent of Crookes, for four years before taking a professorship himself, at the Dublin Royal College of Science. Barrett was professedly uninterested in the spiritual realm. However, while on holiday Barrett and his friends dabbled in the newly emerging field of hypnotism, occasionally conducting experiments among the local villagers. Barrett noticed that when one of the young village girls was hypnotized she had an uncanny ability to read other people’s thoughts. Intrigued in his further observations, Barrett returned to his university, conducted a few more experiments and eventually published a paper of his findings, blandly entitled, “On Some Phenomena Associated with Abnormal conditions of Mind.” In the paper, Barrett tentatively postulated that in an unconscious state, a mind may be capable of tapping into the thoughts and feelings of another person. He suggested that this occurred in a “’community of sensation (Blum, 2006).’” He further urged that further investigation might indeed be warranted. He submitted his paper for presentation to the 1876 meeting of the British Association of Science, who after initial rejection, eventually accepted the paper and allowed him to present.

Barrett also did a study on divining rods. While he could not define what made the rods work, he admitted that there appeared to be something to the use of the tools.

Resources

Blum, D. (2006). Ghost Hunters; William James and the Search for Scientific Proof of Life After Death. Penguin Books, New York, NY.

William F. Barrett

William James

by Robin M. Strom-Mackey

William James, brother to the novelist Henry James, was a vastly popular, Harvard professor and author. James actually started out teaching in the area of Physiology, but found he was much more fascinated by  the newly emerging science of psychology. He made his fame by authoring the first college textbooks (a two-volume set) on the newly emerging science, The Principles of Psychology published in 1890. The textbooks which had taken James a decade to write, won him international acclaim and redefined the newly emerging field of psychology. James’ theories in Psychology are relevant to this day, and included the idea of conscious thought as a continuous river of thought, better known as the stream of consciousness. He is also credited with founding the first, U.S. psychological demonstration laboratory, although he quickly abandoned the laboratory setting as being too narrow, returning to, "the broader realms of free observation, reflection, and speculation which philosophy allowed (PBS.org)."

Later in his career James changed directions again. Following a mental and physical breakdown in 1899, he spent a year recovering, and when he returned to the lecture circuit he returned with a fresh view to the psychology of religion. He published, in 1902, the book The Varieties of Religious Experience, which centered on the similarities of individual, human, spiritual experiences across religions and centuries.

(Picture: William James attending a seance) James brought the Society of Psychical Research to the United States, helping establish the American branch in 1885. He and wife Alice became more avid in their pursuit of the spiritual and supernatural, however, after the loss of their six-month-old son. James' main concern became proving or disproving the existence of life after death. In this capacity James attended seances with the talented Leonora Piper, a strong medium the society concluded was authentic and every bit as salient as claimed. James, looking for evidence of an after life, was never completely satisfied with the results of these sittings. While Piper’s conjured spirits were uncanny in ferreting information from the sitters, often the spirits lacked knowledge of their own lives. James felt he could not conclude satisfactorily that spirits existed, but could be comfortable claiming the existence of extrasensory perception. James became president of the Society for Psychical Research from 1842-1910.

References

Blum, D. (2006). Ghost Hunters; William James and the Search for Scientific Proof of Life After Death. Penguin Books, New York, NY.

Wolf, A., Census in the Family: Cameo Biography William James www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/americancollection/american/genius/william_bio.html retrieved August 11,2010.

Famous People & the Supernatural Part IV: Myers

Frank Myers

by Robin Strom Mackey

Frederic Myers was a professor of Classics at Cambridge University in England. An essayist and poet, he is known for such works as the poem St. Paul and Essays, Classical and Modern and Science and a Future Life. Myers' true passion appears to have been in quest of the meaning of it all.

Oddly, Myers didn’t turn to the classics in philosophy or literature for his answers, nor search it out in mainstream religion. Instead he sought out answers through the meticulous examination of human paranormal experiences. As a scholar, Myers was described as a man of “enormous energy” and “great intellectual ability.”

He is probably best remembered as being the founding father of the Society of Psychical Research and for publication of his life’s search which culminated in the book, Human Personality and It’s Survival of Bodily Death which became a classic book on the subject. Pooling all of his studies into one final book of essays didn’t satisfy Myers’ quest however. After studying the paranormal for most of his adult years he was no closer to admitting his evidence complete or irrefutable.

After countless hours studying mediums and their performances he was in little doubt of the medium’s abilities but was in severe doubt of just what that ability entailed. He had attended séances that seemed to insinuate that the dead were speaking through the medium. The medium would adopt a voice that sounded like a dead person, and that voice would list an impressive array of facts about that person’s life. At times, however, he’d found that the supposed departed was very much still alive. Sometimes it seemed that the mediums were gathering their information from the minds of the people in the room. Still worse, he conducted case studies, sending in subjects who were instructed to concentrate on fictitious persons. The medium seemed to read the mind of the subject and report through the voice that false identity.

Sadly, Myers concluded that it wasn’t a simple to determine from whence the information was coming. In fact the mediums could not determine the source of information, whether from a spirit or the minds of the subjects in the room. After a lifetime's worth of study he wasn't to know the answer to his most troubling question, not at least until he passed over himself.

Resources

Blum, D. (2006). Ghost Hunters; William James and the Search for Scientific Proof of Life After Death. Penguin Books, New York, NY.

Currie, I., Edited by Sherpherd, P. Excerpts about the life of Frederic Myers; You Cannot Die: The incredible Findings of a Century of Research on Death
http://www.trans4mind.com/spiritual/myers1.html Retrieved August 5, 2010.

Rogo, S.D. Psychical Research and the Survival Controversy (Part 3) Apparitions and the Case for Survival. www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/articles/rogo/
Retrieved August 5, 2010.