The “paranormal” as related to psychic research are those faculties and phenomena beyond normality in terms of their cause and effect as currently understood by science. Parapsychology is the branch of science that deals with extrasensory perception (ESP) and psychokinesis (PK), that is, behavioral and personal informational exchanges with the environment that are extrasensorimotor, or not dependent on the senses or muscles. The above definition of parapsychology is a classical one and does not in itself elucidate the numerous subdivisions within each of the two major categories.
Under the heading of psychokinesis, or what is more commonly referred to as “mind-over-matter," falls one of the most enigmatic types of paranormal phenomena----the poltergeist. As described in Chapters 1, 3, 5 & 6, the term poltergeist translates from German as “noisy, mischievous spirit,” and is often linked with haunted houses. Various paranormal manifestations produced during poltergeist outbreaks include unexplained and sometimes violent movement and breakage of objects, interference with and manipulation of electrical devices and appliances, unaccountable sounds and odors, and apparitions.
As a hardened physical scientist, it is almost inconceivable to consider, let alone accept the possibility of a discarnate (without a body) intelligence influencing and directing the action of energy and/or matter. Nevertheless, these were the concepts and suspicions of our ancestors in psychical research, for they hypothesized that the causal agent responsible for such phenomena was indeed a prank-playing ghost.
Modern parapsychologists, however, strongly influenced by the success of our physically oriented, technological society, have conveniently provided a new theory for poltergeist activity which suggests that living human agents (technically referred to as “poltergeist agents” or PGA’s) are unconsciously and spontaneously emitting some type of energy responsible for the observed phenomena.
The interaction between the poltergeist agent and their environment has been labeled by parapsychologists as Recurrent Spontaneous Psychokinesis, or more simply, RSPK. This more conventional hypothesis intimates that this unique energy is generally discharged by pubescent and/or adolescent children experiencing intense emotional conflicts and turmoil in and around themselves. An adjunct to this hypothesis state that the psychodynamic environment, such as the interrelationships between family members, is directly related to the onset, orientation and magnitude of the phenomena. 1, 2, 3
Although some aspects of the poltergeist were covered in earlier, there is a far deeper and more enigmatic aspect to this mystery than meets the eye. With the current sophistication of electromagnetic remote sensing systems (not remote viewing), one would suspect that the RSPK theory was developed as a result of actual and direct measurement of this energy as it is being emitted from the suspected poltergeist agent during the course of observed phenomena. Unfortunately, this is not the case. What seems to have occurred is that the RSPK hypothesis was arrived at through a process of backwards reasoning. In other words, it has been established that pubescent or adolescent children were almost always present during outbreaks of poltergeist activity or, more precisely, that the psychokinetic manifestations seemed to occur particularly around these types of individuals.s 1, 2, 3. Subsequently, it was reasoned that these children were the causal agents of the psychokinetic displays.
What is important to note here is that the “energy” referred to within RSPK hypothesis as being responsible for the abrupt movement of massive objects (anywhere from twenty to several hundred pounds) does not appear to conform to the properties associated with the four known forces in nature, especially electromagnetic. One of the basic principles of thermodynamics as related to all forces is that when energy is used to do “work," such as the movement of an object, heat is generated. Specifically, “work” is accomplished when energy produces “force." Force is simply defined as mass times acceleration. Therefore, in order for energy to move an object, it must generate a force exceeding the rest mass and inertia of that object.
Now here is the paradox: the energy, in particular electromagnetic, required to produce a force sufficient to move a massive object should generate such intense heat, say through ionization, that people in the immediate vicinity would be severely burned long before the object began to move.
No such heating or ionization effects have ever been detected or observed, Conversely, if anything, the environment appears to show a temperature drop. It should be made expressly clear here that whatever energy is responsible for these physical phenomena, it has not yet been detected, measured or quantified. 4, 5 There are other forms of energy, such as gravitation, strong and weak nuclear forces and perhaps even electroweak, but their very nature prohibit them from being considered viable candidates for this phenomenon.
The RSPK theory is being used to explain virtually all types of haunting phenomena ranging from poltergeist activity to the appearance of apparitions. However, it is necessary to make the following distinctions. Generally, haunting phenomena can be divided into two categories: first, events that seem to occur in a haphazardly random fashion; second, events that occur in a controlled manner, seemingly directed by some intelligence. 6
An example of non-directed, random type of activity is when a glass flies off an unoccupied table and strikes the wall, while a television turning on to the same station each night by itself best exemplifies directed type of action. While the RSPK hypothesis may account for the random movement of objects, this cannot explain the controlled manipulation of large amounts of energy or matter. Psychokinetic experiments within the laboratory seem to reinforce this position because volitional PK produces the movement of small, light objects over extremely short distances, 7, 8 opposed to the spontaneous movement of large, heavy objects over relatively great distances, as documented in numerous poltergeist cases. 9
If we eliminate RSPK as being the operative force underlying seemingly intelligent or directed production of large-scale physical phenomena, what then is left? One alternative is to consider the same concepts presented by our predecessors in psychical research, namely, discarnate intelligence (disembodied consciousness) such as a ghost or spirit. Another alternative is to consider the possibility of a totally unknown or missing variable that may explain the phenomena.
Over the past one hundred and eighteen years of organized psychical research in the western world, some of the following dissimilarities have been noted between hauntings and poltergeists. Hauntings are usually visual and auditory. Poltergeists are usually motor displays. Additionally, individuals capable of producing small-scale psychokinesis within laboratory environments demonstrate high levels of fatigue, while large-scale RSPK activity does not appear to physically weaken its supposed perpetrator. Hauntings can persist for years, decades, even centuries, while poltergeists are generally short-lived and burn themselves out rather quickly. But most important, hauntings are usually linked with a specific house or locale, while poltergeists focus on a specific individual. However, what is not yet known is whether the poltergeist agent is the generator of the phenomena or simply a charged-coupler to an external power source such as surrounding geophysical forces or a discarnate entity.
In other words, the poltergeist agent is unconsciously absorbing energy from a supposedly non-physical source. They are then transforming this energy and re-emitting a force that physically affects the environment.
Although the phenomena associated with both hauntings and poltergeists have been well established 10, 11, 12 the nature of their true source and mechanics remains a complete mystery. It become dismayingly clear upon a comprehensive examination of both the research and anecdotal literature related to apparitions 13, 14 ghosts and hauntings 15, 16 that it is one enigma of nature that does not easily, if at all, lend itself to empirical evaluation due to its randomness, scarcity and general lack of predictability and consistency. Combining these features with the fact that one cannot bring such research into a controlled laboratory environment, further supports the supposition that the causal element in this situation is an almost total unknown. Because it cannot even vaguely be operationally or functionally defined, therefore, it remains as it always has been----a phenomenon.
In terms of scientific methodology, the attempt to explain one unknown in terms of another unknown is not only undesirable but is considered invalid. However, one method by which science examines a newly discovered phenomenon is by analogy. This technique involves looking for similarities between the effects of a newly found phenomenon and the effects of a system already well understood. And through the process of studying similarities in the effects between known and unknown systems, we can then learn more about the cause of the latter. At the same time, it is important to grasp the fact that all true science begins with systematic observation of things we do not understand. This naturally and eventually evolves into the aforementioned analogy method.
Considering the uniqueness of the properties associated with ghosts, hauntings, poltergeists and apparitions, it did not seem likely or probable that an analogous system would be discovered. However, during the past thirty years certain aspects of another system have been found to overlap with the area of the paranormal under discussion here. The system I am referring to here is UFO encounters. Numerous cases from the files of UCLA’s former Parapsychology Laboratory suggests an interrelationship between these two systems of phenomena.
The cases of Allan of Canoga Park, Margi of Hollywood, Teri from Bel-Air, and Mrs. Valdez from Sunland, clearly demonstrate the high degree of correlation between phenomena manifested in both paranormal and UFO abduction cases. In the most simplistic of terms, it appears that those individuals who have been abducted, frequently experience some form of paranormal “fallout” (telepathy, precognitive dreams, poltergeist outbreaks and spontaneous healings) following their encounter. At the other end of the spectrum, it also appears as if those individuals who have intense paranormal experiences, e.g., poltergeists, out-of-body experiences (OBE’s), etc., have a greater probability of having an encounter with UFOs. The penultimate question here is; is there really any difference between these two types of phenomena other than their possible source or origin?
Unfortunately, most of these cases that start as paranormal and turn into abductions or start as abductions and evolve into paranormal experiences produce little in the way of hard, physical evidence. What we are invariably left with is anecdotal accounts that occasionally have multiple witnesses and corroborative testimony. However, once in a great while something physical is captured on film or video tape that partially compensates for the lack of anything tangible.
In February 1977 our lab received a call from a Mrs. Olsen of Catalina Island because she and several of her relatives had independently observed flying balls of light, luminous clouds of vapor and several humanoid apparitions. One particular photograph obtained during the course of this investigation revealed a strange object not seen by anyone present. The photograph was analyzed by computer image enhancement techniques. The results of the analysis indicated the object captured on film was 1) traveling horizontally, right to left at approximately 986 mph; 2) the refractive index was that of a metallic object; 3) it was going through what is known as trans-axial motion or pitching, yawing and rolling while in horizontal flight; and 4) one aerospace engineer’s eyeball analysis resulted in the comment that the object resembled a micro-miniature spaceship with a nodular engine cluster at the rear, a tubular extension in the middle and a spherical structure at the front. What was an apparitional image of this type doing in a supposedly haunted environment? (Photo 9)
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