102909 ParaNexus Newsletter

8/14/2019 102909 ParaNexus Newsletter

1/9

Tonight on ParaNexus

Universe Radio

Thursday, 10-29-09 9pm -

10pm Eastern

Halloween SpecialWith

Doug and GrantDetails to be announced

Members Re-

search assis-

tant, Online with

many great fea-

tures and tools

located all in

one place on the

web.

Whats tall,

hairy and

smells like

rotten eggs?

Find out in the

latest entry of the ParaNexus

ParaPedia.

ParaNexus is happy

to welcome Dr

Ingrid Irwin to the

Board of Directors.

Ingrid, an EVP specialist will be

heading our EVP research

department as we bring

anomalous research to the

forefront.

Not a ParaNexusMember Yet?

Join the Vision

T h i s W e e k i n P a r a N e x u sThe ParaNexusNewsletter

2009 by ParaNexus.org.Editor: David Desjardins CDThis Newsletter is distrib-

uted free of charge to any-

one interested. Please visit

ParaNexus.orgto subscribe.

Serious article submissions

welcome. Please send sub-

m i s s i o n s t o

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I N S I D E T H I S

I S S U E :

Letters From the Editor 2

What Will it Take?

Thoughts for Discussion 2

Science, Religion, and the

Paranormal2

Parapsychology

Fact and Fiction7

Gizmos and Gadgets

BOSS Micro BR8

N e w A n n o u n c e m e n t s

29 October 2009

Recent Blogs

- Let No One Come ThisWay

- Responsible Research:Experts

- A Celebration of Fear

- Buzzards Might Roost inMy Hair

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2/9

In the spirit of David

Bowie, Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-

Changes. Over the nextfew weeks I will be playing

around with different for-

mats and templates for our

newsletter in order to

streamline it and make it

as aesthetically pleasing as

I can. Comments and sug-

gestions are always wel-

come. In the same vane,

and as I had posted within

the forums at ParaNexus, I

would also like to get some

feedback on content. Thisnewsletter is somewhat a

labour of love for me, I

love writing and I dont

mind researching any topic,

but in the end it is for you,

the readership. What

would you like to see cov-

ered within future pages to

keep us fresh, educational

and to inspire you? Please

dont be shy.

Suggestions, questions,

comments or concerns per-

taining to this article or

anything contained herein

may be sent to:

[email protected]

or [email protected]

I look forward to receiving

your feedback.

Paranormal investigation groups seem to

be sprouting up all across the United States

in recent years, no doubt due in part to in-

creased media attention. Television shows

like Ghost Hunters, Most Haunted, and

numerous documentaries do very well be-

cause many people want to know the answer

to perhaps the biggest question of humanity:

What happens when we die? Like many oth-

ers, I founded my own paranormal

group, the Scientific Paranormal Investi-

gation, Research, and Identification

Team (SPIRITeam) to search for the

answer to that age-old and elusive ques-

tion, and to help people along the way.

As I conceived of and created the

SPIRITeam (initially for a novel), I

ness accounts from such

credible sources as astro-

nauts, members of the gov-

ernment, military, law en-

forcement, etc, as well as

the statistics from any num-

ber of sources, some gov-

ernments still insist on using

such excuses as weather

balloons and swamp gas to

explain away UFOs. What

will it take for the truth to

come out, and are we as a

race of intelligent beings

mature enough for this

truth? I guess only time will

tell. One way or the other!

To discuss this or any

other topic, please visit:

http://www.paranexus.org/

f o r u m / i n d e x . p h p ?action=forum

As far back in time as

paintings on cave walls

there have been recordings

of flying craft and visitors in

strange outfits. High profile

accountings in the media,

including such events of

The Battle of LA in 1942,

to more recent accounts

from around the world indi-

cate frequent visitation by

intelligent beings. Yet, de-

spite these facts, eye wit-

L e t t e r s F r o m t h e E d i t o rB y D a v i d D e s j a r d i n s C D

S c i e n c e , R e l i g i o n , a n d t h e P a r a n o r m a l

R e s e a r c h i n g a n d I n v e s t i g a t i n g W i t h a n O p e n M i n d

By Doug Kelley, CH, CSL, CLPI, ParaNexus Chairman, Executive Director

P a g e 2

W h a t W i l l i t T a k e ?

T h o u g h t s f o r D i s c u s s i o n

By David Desjardins CD

To be one's self,

and unafraid

whether right or

wrong, is more

admirable than

the easy cowardice

of surrender to

conformity. -

Irving Wallace(1916-1990)

Writer and

screenwriter

Certified Paranormal Investiga-

tors Course Available at

ParaNexus Academy

2 9 O c t o b e r 2 0 0 9
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3/9

on ghosts and spirits. These techniques

range from the usual electronic gadgets

such as EMF meters, thermometers, and

cameras, to the use of psychics, medi-

ums, dowsing rods, sances, and the

like.

In this regard, I have heard and read

many a paranormal group strongly dis-

courage the use of non scientific

tools, such as dowsing rods and sances.

I couldnt help but wonder why. Of

course, the explanations range from

its too subjective and you cant prove

it to you could be dabbling in some-

thing that could ultimately hurt you,

perhaps even possess you. Contrary to

what one might think, some investiga-

tors seem to harbour a deep fear of spir-

its.

Again I wondered, Is it true that you

cant prove psychic evidence? And, is it

true that spirits or malevolent entities

can harm you? If it is true, how can it

be proven? And if not true, where did

these notions come from?

The result of my thinking and re-

search on the matter was that it all de-pended on a persons beliefs. Belief is

arguably the most powerful thing in the

known universe. Beliefs have started

every war fought in the history of hu-

manity, and they are responsible for

everyones success or failure in life.

Beliefs at one time killed many alleged

witches, and, during the inquisition,

many thousands of innocent people with

contrary beliefs. Beliefs once told us

we could not fly, and then Beliefs told

us we could, so we did.

When it comes to investigating the

paranormal, which belief is correct? Is

the scientific method the best? Or are

non-scientific methods better? Can I

become possessed? Can spirits hurt me?

Will a spirit follow me home if I dont

mentally surround myself with a bubble

of white light or say a prayer be-

fore investigating or burn sage

smudge sticks? Are all psychics frauds?

The answers are: Absolutely yes,

and absolutely no. It all depends on

your beliefs. If you believe it is so,then it is true for you.(1)

Beliefs are also responsible for all

of the good and all of the bad of both

religion and science, and I will go so

far as to say that science and religion

are principally the same thing. How

so? They both often approach life

and especially the paranormalwith

preconceived notions. Religion in gen-

eral and mainstream science are both

essentially closed-minded.

In order to arrive at a balanced and

open-minded conclusion about the

best approach to investigating the

paranormal, consider the following

regarding fundamentalist religion and

fundamentalist science.

RELIGIONI have had an extreme interest in

all aspects of the paranormal since I

was a small child, having devoureddozens of books and done much re-

search on the topic. To date, I cant

say with certainty that Ive ever had a

paranormal experience, but Im hop-

ing that will change. When I was

about nine years old, my friends and I

put together a makeshift Ouija board

using a blank sheet of paper and some

long-forgotten trinket to serve as a

planchette. It seemed to workat

least to the minds of creative nine-

year oldsbut we got so spooked that

we tore our Ouija board up and

never tried again. My great-

grandfather died when I was just a

toddler, and as I grew up, my

P a g e 32 9 O c t o b e r 2 0 0 9

wanted to approach paranormal

investigations from a scientific

standpoint; I wanted to use the

scientific method to gain evidence

of the paranormal, whichever sub-

category it fell into, e.g., ghosts,

UFOs, mysterious creatures, etc.

That meant that I would first seek a

rational, natural explanation of

specific events before I would con-

clude that they were paranormal in

nature. My philosophy would be

Open-mindedness tempered by

healthy skepticism tempered by

open-mindedness. Many paranor-

mal groups also take a similar ap-

proach.

As I read about the investiga-

tions of other groups as well as per-

formed my own investigations, I

began to see a common theme:

Many groups would have personal

paranormal experiences during in-

vestigations, sometimes even cap-

turing apparitions on video, but

then what? How can you scientifi-

cally prove that anything paranor-

mal happened? These events are

usually not reproducible in a lab.So, groups go and investigate, ex-

perience many strange things, ac-

quire some weird pictures, video,

or EVPs, and then go do it all over

again. I wondered, beyond person-

ally experiencing these strange

events, what do we really have that

can be shown as concrete proof?

Furthermore, are high EMF read-

ings, cold spots, and dust orbs

about all we can expect to get from

our investigations? And even if wewere to see and video tape a full-

body apparition, then what? What

would it really tell us about the

other side? I wanted more.

This is when I began to seriously

and open-mindedly reassess all of

the known paranormal investigative

techniques, with a particular focus


4/9

cousins and I swore we saw strange things happening

at his house in Blackfoot, Idaho, including an appari-

tion of him walking with his cane. Again, undoubt-

edly the creations of imaginative children. It was at

this time that I did my first formal paranormal in-

vestigation.

My religious belief system put the kibosh on my

serious efforts to investigate the unexplained for

most of my life up until a few years ago, however I

still covertly read many books on the subject as well

as watched any documentary I could find. As a Jeho-

vahs Witness (JW),(2) my Christian belief system

dictated that spirits or ghosts of any kind were

demons or fallen angels, and we as a group

were warned that if we had anything to do with the

occult, it could open a channel for them to attack

us. The fear of demons was inculcated in us from

infancy, and we were to yell Gods

name out loud and flee if we saw any

sign of them. Of course, I now know

that this was simply cult mind control.

But as a result of this belief, we were

absolutely forbidden to have anything to

do with Ouija boards, Tarot Cards, Me-diums, Psychics, Fortune Tellers, or

anything else that even smacked of the

occultand this included some televi-

sion shows or movies. Some JWs (not

all) would not even watch the comic

television series, Bewitched, as they

were paranoid about bringing demons

into the house. Even watching the

Smurfs were thought by some to invite

demons.

bring demons into your home. I never really believed

thateven as a Christianand I can attest to the fact that

Ive purchased many things from garage sales over the

years and have never once had a problem with demons,

ghosts, or spirits of any kind. Damn it.

After 40 years of mind-numbing and soul-killing funda-

mentalist religion, I had had enough. I could no longer jus-

tify nor reconcile the concept of a loving God with the pain

and suffering of humanity. Furthermore, I was tired of lob-

bying a supernatural being (praying) to do the things he

ought to be doing anyway. I am now an Agnostic Dougist.

I believe in the indomitable power of the human spirit and

in having a truly open mindnot half open, and therefore,

not half closed. I do not believe that we need anything be-

yond ourselves to fix our problems. This is similar to the

beliefs of Secular Humanists, but they dont typically be-

lieve in the spirit world. At the risk of sounding ambiguous,

I neither believe nor disbelieve in spirits; however, the evi-

dence strongly suggests that something is indeed going on.

Whether this means dead people or the psychic manifesta-

tions of our own mindsor bothno one knows. This is why

I founded the SPIRITeam to try and find out.

Religion and Paranormal Investigations

The bottom line is that many religions (and every funda-

mentalist religion) regard ghosts and spirits as demons and

fallen angelsthings to stay away from. They also denounce

anything of an occult nature, such as Ouija boards, psy-

chics, mediums, dowsing rods, Tarot cards, sances, hypno-

sis, and pendulums, etc. as satanic, or from the Devil.

I remember when the

movie, The Exorcist, came

out in the early seventies. The

gossip train launched into full

throttle as my religious friends

began to recount all the mys-

terious happenings during the

filming, or about how people

became

demonized (possessed) by

simply watching it in the thea-tre. Christian evangelist Billy Graham even claimed

an actual demon was living in the celluloid reels of

the 1973 movie (and he was absolutely correctthe

power of belief).(3) In retrospect, it was amazing

just how many of the religious people I knew were

almost mesmerized with demons. It was, at

times, sensationalized among them, after all, who

can resist a good ghost (or demon) story? There

were many demon stories floating around JW

circles, which makes sense. Cults usually attract

the lowly, the depressed, and people who cant or

wont think for themselves. Who better to imagine

that theyve seen demons than people with demons

of their own?

This nave and Dark Ages mentality of demon-

fear even spread to purchasing used items. For

example, I heard more than once that it was not a

good idea to purchase items at garage sales be-

cause those items could be possessed; they could

P a g e 4

The answers are:

Absolutely yes,

and absolutely no.

It all depends on

your beliefs. If

you believe it is so,

then it is true for

you.(1)

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Course (CLPI)

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2 9 O c t o b e r 2 0 0 9
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P a g e 52 9 O c t o b e r 2 0 0 9

Could it be that some paranormal groups who profess to followthe scientific method but denounce alternative approaches asdangerous have allowed religious beliefs to cloud their think-ing and half-close their otherwise open minds?

SCIENCE

Of all people, one would think that scientists would havethe most open of minds. However, this is not always the case,at least not with mainstream science. These days, scientists ingeneral must play the political game if they are to be eligiblefor grants or to get published in respected scientific jour-nals. All too often, scientists in general have to balance trueopen-mindedness with concerns of tenure, job promotions andpay raises, acceptance, and academic stardom. To be sure,many scientists exist who do believe in the paranormal, or atleast allow for it as a potential reality. However, to admit thisbelief publicly would often mean the death-knell to their ca-reers. To these open-minded scientists, I understand your pre-dicament, and I applaud you for not mentally succumbing tothe old school beliefs of the last two centuries that will

soon die out when the old boys are gone. You may have toplay the game, but you dont have to sacrifice your soul. Andyou never know, perhaps well even have a chance to talkwith these good ole boys on the other side and see what

they believe now!

During the 19th century when the Darwinian theory of evo-lution began to take hold, science made a concerted effort todistance itself completely from anything that even hinted atreligion. A case in point is the concept of a global deluge, orthe Flood of Noahs day. Strong evidence exists that the earthsuffered widespread and regional flooding, although the storyof Noah building an Ark that could feed, water, and care forthousands of animals does not stand up to deductive reason

nor is it logically feasible.(4) 19th century science categori-cally denied any and all evidence of a flood because if a bibli-cal flood was proven by science, then the Bible would beproven by default, and science would not hear of suchheresy. Therefore, any scientist who published or promotedthe idea of widespread historical flooding could say goodbyeto his or her career.

Similarly, Skeptics and Debunkers are joined at the hipwith the religion of science, or Scientism.(5) To be fair, thewords skeptic and debunker are often used loosely andcan convey different shades of meaning with different intensi-ties depending on the context. Technically, to debunkmeans to expose or ridicule the falseness, sham, or exagger-ated claims of a particular issue, and skeptical means

marked by or given to doubt; questioning.(6)

I like the following summation: Skeptical means to ques-tion and Debunk means to expose while ridiculing."(7) Usingthe foregoing definitions, to be skeptical is healthy; it impliesthat a person is open-minded and undecided, but is trying toprove it one way or another. To debunk implies that the per-son possesses preconceived notions from the outset and istrying to prove it one particular way regardless of any evi-dence to the contrary. Debunkers are no different than religi-

onists in that they approach the issue with faith, whichis belief absent of evidence, or in this case, belief basedon denial of evidence.

It often impassions me when I watch a documentaryor read a book in which the current parade of skeptics(debunkers) appear on cue to dismiss any compelling

evidence out of hand saying in effect, No, it didnt hap-pen; these people are kooks; it was simply their imagina-tions or mass hysteria or mass delusion/hallucination,etc. They often speak with such cocky authority thatthey almost seem believable. They fancy themselves asopen-minded and objective, but they are the very epit-ome of what they claim they are not: closed-minded.

Even Dr. J. Allen Hynek, a principle consultant anddebunker for the U.S. Governments UFO ProjectsGrudge and Blue Book as well as the credited originatorof the famous Swamp Gas UFO explanation, (8) couldno longer deny what the evidence suggested. Late inlife, he became a believer. Underscoring the predilec-

tion of many scientists and hard-core skeptics(debunkers) to ignore compelling evidence, Dr. Hynekonce said, "As a scientist I must be mindful of the past;all too often it has happened that matters of great valueto science were overlooked because the new phenome-non did not fit the accepted scientific outlook of thetime."(9) He was obviously a scientist who could notkeep his mind even partially closed indefinitely.

SCIENCE AND PARANORMALINVESTIGATIONS

The bottom line is that many scientists today ignorecompelling evidence of the paranormal with an almostblind faith usually associated with religion. This cor-

rupted thinking has also infected some paranormalgroups who categorically reject out of hand any non-scientific means of answering paranormal questions. Tobe sure, any paranormal research group must be some-what open-minded, or they would not be doing whatthey do. But could it be that they have allowed the relig-ion of Scientism to partially close their minds to mean-ingful alternatives?

Another valid question also arises, Can the paranormalbe explained in scientific terms? I personally believethat it can because there are physical laws governingdifferent dimensions or planes of existence (do someresearch on recent discoveries in quantum physics).However, I do not believe that the technology yet existsto recreate or duplicate scientifically what our crea-tive right brains perceive. In other words, using scien-tific or non-scientific tools, we cannot force a ghost tomaterialize on demand.
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6/9

P a g e 6 2 9 O c t o b e r 2 0 0 9

CONCLUSIONS

In the world of paranormal investigation, many re-searchers are certainly well educated in the field, butthe term expert is relative because nobody conclu-sively understands nor can they prove exactly what isgoing onand empirical evidence definitely suggestssomething is going on.

In our efforts to discover whatever truths exist, weas a paranormal research community must aspire to andadvocate the true scientific method, that is, the open-minded search to discover and explain reality, whateverthat means and wherever that takes us. Furthermore,we must not allow preconceived notions or beliefs todissuade us from using any and all tools at our disposal,regardless of whether they are scientifically or intui-tively based.

In her article, Science, Scientism, and Anti-Science

in the Age of Preposterism,(10) Philosophy ProfessorSusan Haack wrote:

"The genuine inquirer wants to get to the truth ofthe matter that concerns him, whether or not that truthcomports with what he believed at the outset of hisinvestigation, and whether or not his acknowledgementof that truth is likely to get him tenure, or to make himrich, famous, or popular. So he is motivated to seek outand assess the worth of evidence and arguments thor-oughly and impartially. This doesn't just mean that hewill be hard-working; it is a matter, rather, of willing-ness to re-think, to re-appraise, to spend as long as ittakes on the detail that might be fatal, to give as muchthought to the last one percent as to the rest. The

genuine inquirer will be ready to acknowledge, to him-self as well as others, where his evidence and argu-ments seem shakiest, and his articulation of problem orsolution vaguest. He will be willing to go with the evi-dence even to unpopular conclusions, and to welcomesomeone else's having found the truth he was seeking.And, far from having a motive to obfuscate, he will tryto see and explain things as clearly as he can."

During the Dark Ages, Galileos life was all but ru-ined by the Catholic Hierarchy because he dared to pub-lish his scientific findings that the sun (and not theearth) was the center of the solar system. Human arro-gance has plagued our species for millennia, andwhether that arrogance states that we are the center ofthe universe, or whether there is only one way to ap-proach paranormal investigation, it is still arrogance.

True science is open to all possibilities and methods.True science is about discovery. True science does notarrogantly approach unexplained events with precon-ceived notions.

If we are to really discover what lies beyond this

plane of existence (if anything), we also must not allowancient belief systems born at a time when humanityattributed bad storms to angry gods to deprive us of po-tentially useful tools and color our perceptions with pre-conceived notions. We must open our minds completelyand then use our power of deductive reasoning to deter-

mine which tool or approach fits any particular situationbest.

Like every other paranormal researcher, I want toknow the truth; I want to know the reality of spirits,UFOs, mysterious creatures, and the like. And if itmeans using electronic tools such as cameras and digitalrecorders combined with intuitive tools such as psychicsand sances, then so be it. I want to know. And no dis-abling belief contrived from fundamentalist religion orfundamentalist science will stop me.

A half-open mind is still half-closed.

End Notes

(1) For more on this, read my article, On the Existence of Ghosts,Demons, and Possession available at http://www.paranexus.org.

(2) FYI for any JWs: I deliberately did not use the phrase, one ofJehovahs Witnesses.

(3) About.com, http://horror.about.com/od/everythingexorcist/a/faq_exorcist.htm.

(4) http://www.abarnett.demon.co.uk/atheism/noahs_ark.html.

(5) Scientism is the belief that the assumptions, methods and eventhe speculations of science are equally appropriate, if not essential,

for the proper understanding of all knowledge including religion.Scientism explicitly denies both the special revelation of truth andthe existence of a sovereign, supernatural and eternal being. In thereligion of Scientism, the Cosmos (matter, energy, time and space)is believed to be eternal and the only ultimate reality. Scientismteaches that all things have their being and origin in the intrinsicproperties of nature. It follows that if gods were to exist, they toowould only be a part and product of nature. The social and philoso-phical implications of Scientism for man are embodied in the relig-ion of Secular Humanism. David N. Menton, Ph.d, Carl Sagan:Prophet of Scientism, Copyright (c) 1991 Missouri Association forCreation, Inc. http://emporium.turnpike.net/C/cs/sagan.htm.

(6) The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language,Fourth Edition, Copyright 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.

(7) The Center for Paranormal Research and Investigation, http://www.vaparanormalconference.com/about.php.

(8) http://www.cohenufo.org/willnusaddendum.htm .

(9) Sarah Schneiman and Pat Daniels, editors; Mysteries of the Un-known: The UFO Phenomenon; Time Life Books, 1987; ISBN0809463245

(10) As published in Skeptical Inquirer magazine, November/December 1997 issue. http://www.csicop.org/si/9711/preposterism.html.
http://www.paranexus.org/http://www.paranexus.org/http://horror.about.com/od/everythingexorcist/a/faq_exorcist.htmhttp://horror.about.com/od/everythingexorcist/a/faq_exorcist.htmhttp://horror.about.com/od/everythingexorcist/a/faq_exorcist.htmhttp://www.abarnett.demon.co.uk/atheism/noahs_ark.htmlhttp://www.abarnett.demon.co.uk/atheism/noahs_ark.htmlhttp://emporium.turnpike.net/C/cs/sagan.htmhttp://emporium.turnpike.net/C/cs/sagan.htmhttp://www.vaparanormalconference.com/about.phphttp://www.vaparanormalconference.com/about.phphttp://www.vaparanormalconference.com/about.phphttp://www.cohenufo.org/willnusaddendum.htmhttp://www.cohenufo.org/willnusaddendum.htmhttp://www.csicop.org/si/9711/preposterism.htmlhttp://www.csicop.org/si/9711/preposterism.htmlhttp://www.csicop.org/si/9711/preposterism.htmlhttp://www.csicop.org/si/9711/preposterism.htmlhttp://www.csicop.org/si/9711/preposterism.htmlhttp://www.cohenufo.org/willnusaddendum.htmhttp://www.vaparanormalconference.com/about.phphttp://www.vaparanormalconference.com/about.phphttp://emporium.turnpike.net/C/cs/sagan.htmhttp://www.abarnett.demon.co.uk/atheism/noahs_ark.htmlhttp://horror.about.com/od/everythingexorcist/a/faq_exorcist.htmhttp://horror.about.com/od/everythingexorcist/a/faq_exorcist.htmhttp://www.paranexus.org/


7/9

The word parapsychology is synonymous with mod-

ern paranormal research, with more and moreParapsychologists appearing, seemingly, on a daily

basis. Common misconceptions would have the subject

covering everything from ghosts and apparitions to

cryptozoology. Quick internet searches yield results

such as paranormal investigators, psychic entertainers,

magicians, paranormalists and a host of other pseu-

doscience and fringe topics.

With all these different definitions floating around

it can be hard for the uninitiated to grasp the true

meaning behind the term parapsychology so Id like to

set the record straight and dispel as many myths as I

can in a short article.

Parapsychology is the study of events which fall

within one of three categories classified as, direct

mental interactions with living systems (PK), extra sen-

sory perception (ESP) and the survival hypothesis. All

of which are associated with the human experience.

Examples of the aforementioned categories include:

Near Death Experiences (NDE);

Out of Body Experiences (OBE);

Poltergeist or large scale PK phenomena;

Telepathy;

Reincarnations;

Place Memory (residual haunting);

Psi and AnPsi (Psi in animals);

Presentiment;

Precognition; and

Clairvoyance.

Parapsychologists do not adopt the title lightly or on

a whim because it sounds impressive as some may as-

sume. Researchers into parapsychology hold post

graduate degrees and PhDs in such fields as psychol-

ogy, spiritual psychology, theology, psychics, biology,

and philosophy, to name just a few. True researchers

within the field, will not be found in the wee hours

walking through cemeteries or breaking into abandoned

buildings for thrills and chills, they will not be found

entertaining audiences or telling you your future. They

can however, be found conducting experimentation

within controlled environments in a scientific and me-

thodical manner. Findings will be recorded, catalogued

and presented for review by their peers and research

papers will be written for publication.

So the next time you come across an individual or

organization claiming to be comprised of

Parapsychologists or study parapsychology, a review

of the facts will validate the legitimacy of such a

claim.

One thought I would like to pose with regards to

what type of experiences fall within these categories,

is regarding alien abductions. Many correlations can be

made between reported abductions throughout history

and experiences reported in a haunting in that abduc-

tees' often report activity that closely resembles that

of large scale PK phenomena with telepathy used as

the primary means of communication between the visi-

tor and the human contact.

Could it be that some abductions are not physical at

all, but psychological or psychic in nature with any

resulting physical injuries being psychosomatic? More

research is indeed required to properly to answer this

question, however, it is my belief that such accounts

have a direct bearing on the human experience and I

feel the topic valid for consideration.

P a r a p s y c h o l o g y F a c t a n d F i c t i o n

B y D a v i d D e s j a r d i n s C D

P a g e 7 2 9 O c t o b e r 2 0 0 9


8/9

For those of you thatare familiar with this littlegem, youre no doubtthinking that Ive lost mymind. Please bear with meand Ill explain. To every-one else, Id like to intro-duce the BOSS Micro BR.Intended as a palm size, 4track recording studio formusicians, guitarists inparticular, the Micro BRdoes double duty as one ofthe better digital voicerecorders Ive ever usedfor investigations. Due tothe fact that the unit was

intended as a professional level multi track recording deviceBOSS has made it to live up to that standard in recording.

Slightly larger than an iPod touch and smaller than its in-struction booklet, the BOSS Micro BR offers such features asbuilt in microphone, which, because the recorder has no movingparts, records great quality for its size with next to no ambienthiss which is inherent to other digital voice recorders. Asidefrom the musician aspects such as the 4 track (32 virtual track)recording capabilities, guitar amp modeling, 300 drum patterns,chorus, flangers and a host of other guitar FX features, the MicroBR stands out with its ability to record in three different com-pression formats.

While recording in MP3 mode you are able to use the multi

effects processor which includes such things as an equalizer forisolating certain frequencies, the ability to highlight vocalswhile cutting background noise and a time stretch algorithm,which allows the user to slow down the recording in incrementswithout changing the pitch. This feature alone makes on thespot review of questionable captured audio a breeze.

Using the supplied mini USB cable makes connecting the Mi-cro BR to a computer quick and painless, plus, due to the factthat it records on a standard SD card, even if you dont have acable with you, all that is required is to pop out the card andplug it into any computer with a card reader. There are no soft-ware requirements with this product as everything is onboardand as long as you have a few SD cards running out of recording

space isnt a problem either.

G i z m o s a n d G a d g e t sB O S S M i c r o B R

B y D a v i d D e s j a r d i n s C D

P a g e 82 9 O c t o b e r 2 0 0 9

BOSS Micro BR

Additional features include: Input/output jacks forGuitar/Bass, external stereo microphone, line out orheadphones; recorded data can be converted, within theMicro BR to MP3, Wav or downloaded to computer; theunit can function as an MP3 or Wav file player allowingthe user to take their music with them when not re-cording; trainer function allows user to playback MP3 orWAV files at a slower tempo or eliminate the sound local-ized at the center of the sound field; runs on 2x AA bat-teries (included) or PSA AC adapter (not included); andincludes a 128 Mb SD card.

CONs: As with anything there are a few cons associ-ated with this unit. First of all is battery life. It is a bat-tery pig, with brand new or fully charged batteries lastingmaybe 3 hours of constant recording, tops. The poweradapter is well worth the extra few bucks and lessens your

frustration of running out of juice.

No external speakers. Quality headphones or a set ofexternal speakers are required if you want to review anyaudio recorded.

Bottom Line: This unit is intended for musicians. Imthe one that has gone and twisted it to my own devices.If you are not musically inclined or have no real use forguitar effects and drum patterns you may wish to look atother recording products out there that are a little moreuser friendly (not that this is hard to learn). For me thekey feature is in the playback, the onboard multi-effectsprocessors and time stretch ability in the palm of myhand. I dont have to transfer files and open up sound

editors to hear what dearly departed uncle Fred is tryingto say to me saving time in the field.

Everyone has their own likes and dislikes, but as far asdigital voice recorders go for functionality, the BOSS MicroBR gets my thumbs up. Besides, even if you get abso-lutely no evidence what so ever, you have almost 300drum patterns to pass the time with. What could be morefun than that?

Additional information may be found by visiting BOSS USAhttp://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=818
http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=818http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=818http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=818http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=818http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=818


9/9

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Join Today!ParaNexus is a global professional association of dedi-

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102909 ParaNexus Newsletter