Mind Energy

[my-toe-sis]

has ayone heard of current experiments in quantum physics that test the ability of human thought and concentration to manifest physically? I'm not sure but i think the plan is to try and prove that the human mind can manifest energy that is put to use in external (away from the body) energy systems. I have also heard that this proposed energy makes the quantum math work?

[deamonstar]

reminds me of the movie "Ghostbusters 2".

[rileyj]

the CIA did experiments with ESP during the cold war. i forget the name of the program but i will look for a site for you.

[Freethinker]

After 24 years of research, the CIA scrapped their ESP program stating it was a complete dead end. However, one of the original researchers, one with a history of faking results, had generated a widely circulated "memo"/ statement to the contrary. It is available all over the web at site that want to ignore the evidence exposing it. Dr. Harold Puthoff had studied two previous claimed remote viewers and reported that their remote viewing compared favorably to the findings of the Mariner 10 and Pioneer 10 research spacecrafts. Isaac Asimov, however, did a similar comparison and found that 46% of the observation claims of the astral travelers were wrong. The claimant had said he saw 30,000 ft. mountain range on Jupiter, which we know is impossible. Also, only one out of 65 claims made by the remote viewers was a fact that either was not obvious or not obtainable from reference books [James Randi]. So we find that Puthoff had a history of using misleading information to supprt remote viewing.

The CIA and the U.S. Army thought enough of remote viewing to spend millions of taxpayers' dollars on research in a program referred to as "Stargate". More recently, CIA spokesman Mark Mansfield said: "The CIA is reviewing... the Stargate program (and it) was found to be "unpromising" in the 1970s.

http://skepdic.com/remotevw.html

[rileyj]

stargate must have been a different program then what i'm thinking, but the results were the same, nothing. they used people (remote viewers) to try and "vision" russian missile silos. when i get sometime i'll get the name of the one i'm thinking about.

[Freethinker]

AS to the original post. There has been research done on such things as predicting the next number generated "randomly" by a computer. Of course any results greater than "chance" is reported by the believing to be proof. Wht they ignore is many of the problems with putting together a VALID test.

One of the main problems is the concept of a "random" number beinig generated by a computer.

A computer CAN NOT generate "Random" numbers. There is nothing in a computer's software or hardware that would allow it to pick a number randomly out of the air. Computers run a program known as quasi-random number generators. Typically it uses some "seed" or starting number and some algorithym to derive the next number. Some use a database of numbers supplied in advance, which came from some larger computer/ program that generates a "more random" set of numbers.

But the tests are usually done using a simple, "less random", random number generator. And yes, even subconciously, a human could notice a pattern and adapt to it. After all, pattern recognition is the brain's top ability.

Time after time, this is what happens. Some experiment comes along, that is not properly set up, that produces some sensationalism that the press loves to cover. "Psychic helps police... " but when closer investigation proves it to be bogus, the press is no longer interested. So all the general mass hears is the initial sensationaism, not the REALITY.

However if there is some SCIENCE behind this, i would love to see it.

[rileyj]

why would you need to use a computer, why not flash cards?

[rileyj]

if you shuffled the hell out of them every time, any pattern would be random.

[Freethinker]

The test was NOT about a person's ability to predict the future. It was about a person's ability to CONTROL the future.

Originally posted by: my-toe-sis
has ayone heard of current experiments in quantum physics that test the ability of human thought and concentration to manifest physically?

The test was whether the person could CONTROL the computer and MAKE it produce the desired number next. NOT to predict what number the computer would show next.

[rileyj]

Quote
"current experiments in quantum physics that test the ability of human thought and concentration to manifest physically"

how would a computer be used test this any way? wouldn't it be better to use actual physical means instead of just electircal?