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Extrasensory perception or ESP is the knowledge of external objects or events without using our five basic senses. People that believe that they have a kind of ESP are people such as psychics or spiritualists that believe they can communicate with the dead (Encarta). ESP is a supernatural and is nothing of the natural world that can be explained. Most believers in the phenomena of extrasensory perception do not understand physics at all and maintain that spatial distance is irrelevant to the exercise of ESP.
People often have the tendency to make psychic experiences seem unusual, out of the ordinary, special, somehow set apart, or frightening (edgar cayce. org). Skeptical people of the widespread belief in ESP find themselves having to do practically nothing. ESP supporters do most of their work for them by dipping into the sensational, proponents of ESP effectively remove all believability they might have been able to convey.
If their involvement with TV psychics, mediums and spiritualists was not quite so obvious or vocal, ESP promoters might well find themselves with a willing market for their similar things and for their values (wheel. uc davis. edu). Computers and other instruments have been used in the study of ESP. Most scientists do not believe that ESP exists. These scientists say that thousands of controlled studies have failed to show any evidence of psychical phenomena, and that no person has ever successfully demonstrated ESP for independent investigators (Encarta).
Most sciences try to explain observable phenomena, but parapsychology tries to observe unexplainable phenomena (wheel. uc davis. edu). The scientific method of investigation dictates that any observable results from experimentation be copied under the same sort of circumstances, and also be copied by investigators other than the original ones provided the circumstances and environment are the same (wheel. uc davis. edu).
This is the downfall of all known and described investigation into the existence of ESP. Research in this area has been characterized by incompetence, deception and fraud. When properly controlled experiments are done they have usually yielded negative results, have been unable to demonstrate a single clear case of psychic power or paranormal phenomena (wheel. uc davis.
edu). Experimentation following the believer method but performed by non believing investigators has consistently come up with negative results that have been criticized by the believing side and vice versa (wheel. uc davis. edu). Most of the research into the existence of parapsychological phenomena has had the effect of proving nothing verifiable, giving the two sides fresh facts and information with which to attack each other (wheel. uc davis.
edu). Researchers who say that they have found positive results usually ignore or rationalize their own studies which don't support their claims, and all limit their investigations to activities which essentially are parlor tricks-identifying playing cards (edgar cayce. org). When researchers do claim to have discovered a true psychic, even they cannot reproduce the results they claim to have achieved initially, and they refuse to allow any independent or outside testing of the person (a 2 z psychology. com).
Not only do they not take precautions themselves to ensure the honesty of the subject, they also do not allow anyone else to remove any doubt (a 2 z psychology. com). Such a case was of Hubert Pearce, a minister who J. B.
Rhine and J. G. Pratt, two of the pioneers of paranormal research, claimed to have correctly identified 25 consecutive cards. Pearce was tested only twice, and each time was by Rhine and Pratt.
Not only did Rhine and Pratt not take precautions to make sure that Pearce did not cheat, they never had anyone independently test Pearce. As a result, much of the literature on this topic deals with integrity: skeptics proposing that cheating was possible and Rhine and Pratt taking offense that anyone would challenge their integrity or competence, or of Mr. Pearce. There would not have been any controversy if Pearce had been tested by others who did not have such an interest in the perpetuation that paranormal research may yield valuable results some day (a 2 z psychology. com).
A so-called psychic Uri Geller was effectively put out of business by James Randi. Both Geller and Randi are magicians, but only Randi admitted to his profession. On talk show after talk show, Randi set off on a mission to return the practice of magic to the realm of entertainment after Geller publicly announced to help people choose their actions based on his knowledge of the future. He proved his abilities by bending spoons and key, something that any true magician can do. Randi exposed the realities of Geller's proof, collecting some criticism himself from the magic community in revealing the methods by which two of their favorite illusions were accomplished.
The community did realize acknowledging that Randi was indeed performing a service by exposing Geller at every opportunity (can. org). Today we have occurrences that are not explainable in a way that we can understand in our natural world and we call them supernaturals. We call them supernaturals because we do not have enough information to resolve these phenomena. One day some of these things may be resolved and there will be enough evidence such occurrences are real. Most so-called psychic or supernatural phenomena can be explained by known natural laws but those who cannot think clearly refuse to accept naturalistic explanations of their pet psychic phenomena (wheel.
uc davis. edu. ). WORK CITED Extrasensory Perception. Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 2000. CD-ROM. Microsoft. 2000.
Hefner, Alan G. Telepathy. The Mystic 18 March 2002: Online. Internet. 16 March 2002. Available: web Spiritualism. Eternal Spirit. 19 July 1999: Online.
Internet. 16 March 2002. Available: web Spiritualism. 2002: Online. Internet. 16 March 2002. Available: web Carroll, Robert Todd. Clairvoyance.
The Skeptics Dictionary 30 Dec 2001: Online. Internet. 16 March 2002. Available: web Clairvoyance. Sanctuary's Garden 31 Oct 1999: Online.
Internet. 18 March 2002. Available: web
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Research essay sample on Extrasensory Perception Supernatural Power
