Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Update to the blog
I've been scouring the web for the past week or so, trying to find the academic institutions and their offshoots who are researching paranormal phenomena of every stripe. Not surprisingly, the legitimate institutions (i.e., the ones making a fair attempt at employing the scientific method and rigorous scientific principles in their research) are few and far between. However, I have managed to cull together quite a few links of interest and have begun posting them. Over the coming days and weeks I will continue to add more as I find them. In the meantime, please feel free to contact me with suggestions for sites that may be of interest. Until then - enjoy!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Welcome to "Science of the Paranormal"
Thanks for stopping by to check out the new blog! Here's a little background on the rationale behind this venture and my hopes and aspirations as I move forward with it.
Over the years I've had quite a number of anecdotal experiences that I couldn't quite explain, and that ultimately left me with more questions than answers. Most of the serious literature and investigative journalism on these subjects amount to little more than sensationalized accounts with little to no real substance behind them. Legitimate rigorous scientific investigations of paranormal phenomena apparently do occur, but they are few and far between. The gaps are filled with a surplus of pseudoscience and dogmatic interpretations that leave little space for rational thought, consideration, and debate.
As for me, I'm trained as a scientist with a doctoral level degree in biology(although the relevance of my field of specialization to paranormal phenomena is highly debatable). Add to that about 25 years of intermittent experience in oriental martial arts and a fairly insatiable degree of curiosity. I've had friends, roommates, and aquaintances over the years who've gone on to careers in computer science, engineering, medicine, law, physics, finance, etc and I still get along with most of them (and can hold an intelligent conversation with each to boot!).
The goals behind putting this together were really quite simple:
Explore the available scientific data available regarding the paranormal
Educate myself on the diverse topics (to satisfy my curiosity)
Engage in active discussions with like- and non-like-minded individuals.
In the coming days and weeks, please check back often for posts and discussions on ghosts/spirits, psychic phenomena, remote viewing, etc. Also, feel free to suggest additional topics and bring along an open mind. Above all else, enjoy!
Over the years I've had quite a number of anecdotal experiences that I couldn't quite explain, and that ultimately left me with more questions than answers. Most of the serious literature and investigative journalism on these subjects amount to little more than sensationalized accounts with little to no real substance behind them. Legitimate rigorous scientific investigations of paranormal phenomena apparently do occur, but they are few and far between. The gaps are filled with a surplus of pseudoscience and dogmatic interpretations that leave little space for rational thought, consideration, and debate.
As for me, I'm trained as a scientist with a doctoral level degree in biology(although the relevance of my field of specialization to paranormal phenomena is highly debatable). Add to that about 25 years of intermittent experience in oriental martial arts and a fairly insatiable degree of curiosity. I've had friends, roommates, and aquaintances over the years who've gone on to careers in computer science, engineering, medicine, law, physics, finance, etc and I still get along with most of them (and can hold an intelligent conversation with each to boot!).
The goals behind putting this together were really quite simple:
Explore the available scientific data available regarding the paranormal
Educate myself on the diverse topics (to satisfy my curiosity)
Engage in active discussions with like- and non-like-minded individuals.
In the coming days and weeks, please check back often for posts and discussions on ghosts/spirits, psychic phenomena, remote viewing, etc. Also, feel free to suggest additional topics and bring along an open mind. Above all else, enjoy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
