Table of Contents:
A brief explanation, before launching into this week's discussion: you'll note that I've been publishing here some of the more outrageous applications we've been receiving for the JREF prize, and also some of the furious attacks that we have to survive, regularly. This is being done so that readers can begin to better understand just what we go through, almost every day, at this office. It's important that you witness just how out-of-touch with reality many of these folks are, how furious and desperate they become, and how difficult a response can be when they're not required to abide by the rules of logic and respect, while we are so bound. Believe me, there is no agenda here to make these people look silly; they usually do that without any assistance from us. We publish this material to keep you informed of the basic three-fold fact that keeps us active: the public is grossly misinformed about how the real world works, the media feeds that ignorance, and we urgently need to address this situation before we are populated by a generation of affluent but unaware citizens who can lead our species back into another Dark Age — and are already forming up ranks to do just that. No, that is not overstating the case. Read ahead for some frightening and sobering attitudes and opinions that should alert you to, or remind you of, the problem.
FINALLY — POSITIVE PROOF OF UFOS
There is a set of so-called UFO photos that have been kicking around for years in the trade. Look 'em up on www.billymeier.com/ Concerning these photographs of purported UFOs produced by "contactee" Billy Meier in the mid-'70s, any mere replication of those photos would mean little toward examining the claim, except to show that they can be replicated. If they are not properly replicated, it merely means they have not yet been replicated, but does not speak at all to the question of whether or not they're faked photos. Replication would show that faking them by this means is possible, but would not show that Meier did it that way. I'm reminded of the circumstances surrounding my exact replication of the Geller "phenomena" at King's College, UK, in July of 1975, back when many scientists were actually prepared to accept that a new paradigm had been introduced with their introduction to "spoon-bending." The five prominent scientists who witnessed my requested demonstration — one of them a Nobel Laureate for the discovery of the structure of DNA, and another the editor of Nature Magazine — stated, in part, that I had
. . . demonstrated in a laboratory his ability to bend and break spoons and keys that we supplied. He caused bursts on a Geiger counter and made one of our spoons become flexible and finally break in two while one of us held it at each end. Then Mr. Randi caused a compass needle to deflect by about 15° and caused several watches to advance. We were made well aware in advance that Mr. Randi appeared before us as a conjuror, and we watched him closely, knowing that he was doing tricks. We gave him no advantage that might be given to a "sensitive." After the performance, he revealed to us how some of these tricks had been done. We believe that in investigating phenomena of apparently paranormal nature, a qualified conjuror must be closely involved.
But, importantly — this evidence — by itself — in no way proved anything about Geller's performance except that it could be replicated by simple trickery!
Meier's photographs do not establish the existence of UFOs. The photographs are provocative, but nothing more. Proof that they are genuine, since (a) they were unwitnessed, (b) we have no record of how many other photos he took, (c) no other record of detection of UFOs at that same time and place exists, and (d) we cannot know how skilled he may be in photography, is still to be produced. And, perhaps most evidential of all, just why do you suppose that this otherwise obscure man was somehow able to be present at UFO sightings so often that he was able to snap over 1,200 photos of them? Seems incredibly fortuitous, don't you think? Oddly, his supporters, like the man we discuss up ahead, point to this abundance of photos as evidence for their validity! As with so many other claims of supernatural, paranormal, or extraterrestrial effects, the onus of proof is on the claimants, not on the skeptics. The skeptics make no claim except that the claimants' case is not proved.
A man named Michael Horn, a martial arts practitioner who designates himself as the "Authorized American Media Representative for The Billy Meier Contacts," but offers no evidence for that appointment and is not referred to by the other Meier supporters as such, seems really annoyed. He runs on and on about all sorts of "proof" that he says he can provide. Witness the following excerpts from his latest heated post to me, beginning with mention of the Psychological Stress Evaluator (PSE), which Horn devoutly believes is far more efficient than the polygraph for proving obscure claims. (See "Even Better than the Polygraph?" item up ahead.) I don't need to point out to you the frustration, frenzy, and vitriol released by this man, who finds his favorite delusion threatened. But he's a smooth talker, I'm sure you'll agree. Here's what he wrote to me, in his exact words:
Who said polygraphs, they were PSE tests, you fool, and I doubt that you could pass one if all they asked you was your real name. And you, windbag and poseur, are YOU a metallurgist, photographic expert, film expert, video expert, sound engineer? In your world the tree doesn't make a sound when it's in the forest unless you're there to hear it. But then, with your credibility, who would believe you?The metal WAS shown to be other worldly [his emphasis] you devious, lying, self-inflated fraud! Perhaps not as other world as the bottom of the barrel, transparently dishonest, deceptive, and previosuly [sic] unknown to this planet variety of con artist that you nakedly expose yourself to be. No, fool, the game will be played this way. In addition to the already EXPERTLY studied, examined, and validated physical evidence, we are in possession of copyrighted documents and books that were published before the specific events predicted in them occurred. We have legal proof of the "paranormal" so, since you mistook the velvet glove for weakness, as most inwardly terrified, pathetic little bully boys like you do, you will be held to your word to pay up.
Your value, your only relevance to the debate amounts to providing the full-blown, best poster-boy example of an unscientific, cultic, true believer posing as a "scientist" to contrast with those who've taken the time to research, test and discover the truth. And, rather than slink away because your 15 minutes in the spotlight have long since passed, I encourage you and your happy little band of clueless, inept bumblers to keep up the charade, even at the risk of people thinking we hired you to look stupid, unprofessional, unethical and disreputable, when in truth it's your charitable donation to the cause.
You, little fella, are one pathetic, feeble and completely out-of-your-league charlatan, which is why no reputable scientist, let alone any rational, thinking individual, would champion your silly nonsense for a second.
Dry out before you do your parlor tricks for the kids...and have a nice day.
My, my. Take an aspirin and call me in the morning, Michael. And for future reference, the tree is supposed to fall in the forest, because standing trees don't make any noise. You see, Michael?
The one item above that really has seriously taken my fancy, is the line, "The metal WAS shown to be other worldly." Note: the emphasis — italics, capitalization, and underlining — is Horn's, not mine, which makes this statement more than just a casual remark. Previously, he had written:
Metal alloy samples provided for analysis by Meier to Marcel Vogel, former IBM research chemist, holder of 32 patents; stated that, with any technology available to him as a scientist neither he nor another metallurgist friend who examined the metals, could put it together, could come close to duplicating or reproducing it.
I was so elated that I responded:
Ah! Something we can actually examine! Where are these samples? Surely, if this statement is true, we have absolute, inarguable proof of other-worldly technology. By the way, I knew Vogel, and he was not very smart. And what does "holder of 32 patents" indicate? Anyone can get a patent, if they apply and pay the fees. My admittedly amateur search of the files of the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office didn't come up with even one patent by your "expert" Vogel; are his "32 patents" in some other country? But I wander. Where is the metal? If it can be shown to be other-worldly, the JREF million-dollar prize will be awarded. I await that evidence.
Now here, as I pointed out to him, we have something that can obviously, immediately, firmly, establish that Mr. Horn has a case to make. That's prima facie material, Mr. Horn. Therefore, I ask you to simply produce that evidence for us, through whatever agency you choose, and the JREF will promptly pay you the million-dollar prize that we offer. Unless, of course, Sylvia Browne has snapped up the prize before you can show us the alien metal. She's just passed 1,116 days (3 years + 20 days!) since she first agreed to do our test, and hasn't been in touch since except by slander and innuendo, so you have at least that far to go before you look as silly as she does.
These people are very fond of making fantastic, unsupported statements. Well, I'm just as fond of challenging them to prove those statements. Mr. Horn firmly asserts that he has "otherwordly" evidence. He cites the opinion of Vogel, long dead, and an unidentified "metallurgist friend" to support this conviction. Incidentally, Vogel, speaking of "magic" quartz crystals that he sold back when they were so popular with the woo-woo crowd, claimed that
. . . pointing a crystal at another person, the crystal would amplify the person's thoughts and emotions. This often also led to putting the individual into an altered state of consciousness. . . . A crystal is an assemblage of molecules that form a unit cell, a consciousness, a soul. It takes your program and draws to itself the replication of its image. Take this crystal and program it with your mind. Charge it, get it oscillating, and program it with whatever you desire. You may call on the divine vibrations of love, peace, or joy to be instilled within it. Or use your flower essences, aromatherapy, or the like, for your programming. Remember, when utilizing the mineral and plant kingdoms, you are also implementing the corresponding evolutionary Kingdoms of the Solar and Planetary Logos to assist you in your healings. Simply hold the larger end in your dominant hand, with the tip pointing into your palm. Here the crystal will pick up the program and amplify the healing vibrations that pour forth from your palm chakra. Next send these energies effortlessly down through the crystal and out its bottom tip towards your client. The effects are extraordinary!
The only reference I can locate on Vogel's claimed 28 patents, is for one trademark reference, #2,380,981 (that happens to be a prime number!), which only copyrights the name of these crystals that Vogel turned out! I believe that he had no patents! From the above quotation, I leave it to you to decide on the value of his "extraordinary" opinions as applied to alien metals.
Okay, I'm willing to be shown. We're all willing to be shown. Where is the alien metal? Hello….? Mr. Horn, crawl in with Sylvia Browne, quavering under that very crowded rock over there….
This response to Mr. Michael Horn is signed by the "bottom-of-the-barrel, clueless, completely-out-of-my-league, cultic, deceptive, devious, disreputable, feeble, inept, lying, pathetic (twice!), self-inflated, stupid, transparently dishonest, unethical, unprofessional, and unscientific, charlatan, con artist, fool, fraud, little bully boy, little fella, poseur, true-believer-posing-as a-scientist, poster-boy and windbag," known as James Randi.
Whew! I repeat, he's sure a smoooooth talker! And a bit out of control, in my opinion.
So where's the metal? Dear reader, take a peek at the section under the heading, "Scientific Evidence" on the Meier web page (www.billymeier.com) which promises us that "The proof is in the science...see what Billy has presented." We should be able to find there a reference to the "other-worldly metal, but as of today (March 26th, as I write) it is totally blank….! Why?
I suggest that you look at www.iigwest.com under "Investigations" to learn what the Independent Investigations Group, who have also been trying to bring Horn to account — much longer than I — have to say about all this.
Can you believe it? Oh, sure you can! The astrologers have joyously jumped on the finding of the "new" planet/planetoid/lump now named Sedna after an Eskimo goddess, probably mythical. (The goddess, not the lump.) This has them rhapsodical over the additional variables they now have to try explaining away the abysmal failings of their "science," and they've assigned the quality of "passion" to this object, just as they connect Mars with war, and Venus with love. One exuberant site says:
The November 14, 2003, discovery of Sedna marks an acceleration in our knowledge of the outer planet makup [sic] of the solar system....For astrologers this signifies yet another distant transpersonal planet to join with Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, Quaoar, and 2004DW. Our whole way of looking astrology [sic] is undergoing a fundamental shift, and will reshape the way we think about ourselves, our spiritual evolution, and our place in The Universe.
The astrological interpretation of Sedna has a clear starting spot, being a victim and victimization, but it's [sic] goes far deeper than that. The ephemeris below will allow you locate [sic] Sedna in your natal chart. Contemplate that natal position especially by house position and aspecting to your other natal planets. Think about the times you have been a victim or times you have been victimized. Be prepared to have some eye-opening insights into yourself.
"Contemplate that natal position"? Shouldn't that be "naval"? What amuses me is that the illustration of Sedna used by one of the sites is actually a photo of Io, one of the moons of Jupiter, since no photo of this new object exists. But hey, little boo-boos like that are all part of this children's game, aren't they?
What's much more interesting to me, is that the astrologers can now be expected to examine every one of the billions of chunks of ice and rock that are wandering about in the Oort Cloud and the Kuiper Belt (look 'em up on Google!) so that the failure of astrology can be explained by complexity alone. But this might keep them busy enough that they won't be nuisances. It's sorta like trimming a hangnail….
(See the closing "Nutty Applicant" item ahead on this week's page, for further Sedna excitement….)
EVEN BETTER THAN THE POLYGRAPH?
Reader Peter Nothnagle, of Iowa, writes:
You alluded to the "computerized voice stress analyzer" (CVSA) in your most recent newsletter. This is something I know a little about, being an audio engineer, and having an interest in forensic science. A few years ago I learned that such a device was being used in an investigation by the Monterey County, CA Sheriff's Department, and my initial reaction was skeptical. I posted a question about the technique to Forens-L, an email list for forensic science professionals. What I learned from the replies I received, and other research I did at the time, boils down to these points:1. The device is based on a theory that there are imperceptible changes in the human voice, called "microtremors," which diminish when the speaker is feeling stress; that stress is caused when the speaker is attempting to deceive; and that the device is capable of detecting the microtremors and indicating the change in the speaker's voice to an investigator.
2. Neither the theory behind the technique, nor any commercial product that has been tested, has been scientifically validated, as far as I can tell. If you search the Web, you will find reports of studies showing dramatic success (98.6%!), but without an exhaustive search I have been unable to find a credible successful test by an unbiased investigator. Unsurprisingly, the purveyors of the equipment claim to have achieved stellar results. One institution that would seem to be above suspicion in that regard, is the Department of Defense Polygraph Institute, and their studies of the CVSA, and comparing the CVSA to the polygraph, have been unpromising. They do, however, point out that further investigation is called for.
3. CVSA is commercially available and is in use by law enforcement today. However, one wonders whether the agencies that have bought into the technology really have their critical thinking caps on. The marketing behind CVSA stresses that the equipment is less expensive and easier to use than polygraph, and maintains that it has a very high accuracy rate. Police officers are usually not scientists, and their anecdotal endorsements do not impress me very much.
4. CVSA, like polygraph, has the potential to be used more to intimidate a suspect than to discern a false statement. A police officer quoted in an article I found says, "If I put a spaghetti strainer on a suspect's head and he is convinced it is a device for detecting truth-telling, and it gets him to focus better, to tell the truth, then I guess it worked." The difference is, of course, that in that example the police officer knows it's only a spaghetti strainer, and he bases his investigation on the suspect's statement, not the instrumentation. The police officer may be convinced that the machine is infallible, despite a lack of technical standards for the equipment, standardized training, and clear guidelines for how it should be used.
The problem with the studies I have read is that the tests of CVSA conducted in the laboratory setting may not translate well into the real world. A test subject may be able to fool the machine when he lies about something of no consequence, which would mean that the test results, although dismal, are not necessarily relevant; even though the Department of Defense experiments resulted in high numbers of both false positives and false negatives — CVSA couldn't reliably identify truthful statements. What we need is to test real criminals about real crimes, to begin to learn whether there is validity to the underlying theory and whether the equipment performs as advertised, and then to develop plausible investigative protocols.
But for now, don't trot out CVSA evidence if I am on the jury!
Reader Dominic Ambler, in the UK, alerts me to the latest exciting revelations of astrologer Russell Grant, who at http://msn.live-astro.com/paranormal/ghostsmovedin.php, gives readers this list of sure-fire methods of discovering whether your house is haunted. This is science in its most precise and definitive mode, friends! Writes Grant:
A GHOST IN YOUR HOUSE?We look at the ten key signs that the spooks have moved in!
1. You hear unexplained and strange noises
2. Lights go on and off of their own accord
3. You feel or see furniture shake
4. Items are inexplicably moved around
5. You see somebody in your home who shouldn't be there, probably dressed in old-fashioned clothing
6. You feel regularly feel exhausted or "heavy" in your home
7. You feel an unexplained pressure or heaviness in your back or kidney area
8. There is a radical temperature change in one room of the house
9. There are certain times of the day which don't "feel right" in your home
10. You feel very uncomfortable in one particular room in the house
At risk of being presumptuous, I'll add these to this list:
11. Your head feels light and hollow, as if empty12. Opening a certain window produces a draft on a windy day
13. Following a heavy meal in this house, you feel "bloated" or "full"
As for number 5, above, I experience that regularly when I look into a mirror….
But hold on! What does an astrologer know abut ghosts, anyway? As much as anyone else, I guess….
Reader Paul Hatchman, from Australia, suggests that to be perfectly fair, we should look at contrary evidence when it's presented:
I thought you might be interested in this site http://www.moontruth.com (if you have not already seen it). Have a look at the video, it is a classic!
The reason I gave last week for the error that created the false scientific "discovery" known as "polywater" — the inadvertent presence of detergents on lab glassware — turns out to be somewhat more complicated than that. Though I've seen the detergent angle discussed, and it may have had a role in some of the investigations, this mysterious form of water was produced in very tiny quantities, in fine capillary quartz tubes. This means that it had considerable contact with many surfaces, all of which could introduce a wide variety of possible contaminants. Also, examination of the water produced, revealed small bits of other substances, which could increase the density, the "wetting" capability, and other parameters of the substance, over regular purified water. Several readers pointed this out to me. Thanks.
I just received this posting (some spelling corrected) which is not really very much different from so many that I get in application for the JREF prize, but has characteristics — such as the units in which the speed of light is measured — that point to it being a gentle joke. Read it and see what you think. The applicant started off describing the elements of the orbit of Sedna, the newly-discovered planet/planetoid/lump that has caused such great excitement in astronomy, then:
This is a fantastically extended ellipse, creating an orbit that has been called "bizarre" and a NASA spokesman has said that no possible theory could have predicted this orbit.However, Mr. Randi, I have predicted that the next planet beyond Pluto would orbit in exactly this way because the background fields of the universe — called "dark matter" or "dark energy" — are in reality consciousness and they comprise 97.9591836735% of the universe. Further, the solar system is a matter-consciousness hologram created by the speed of light, with the planets laid out in two Fibonacci sequences that can be measured in meters. (Note: a meter is a measure of the speed of light.) [????]
This means that the next planet beyond Pluto will orbit about 10.5 — 11 billion kms. from the sun, (the orbit of Pluto — 5,913 kms. — plus the orbit of Neptune — 4504 kms. — equals 10,417 kms.) and that it will be powerfully connected to a psychic meridian that runs 117 billion 646 million kms. from the sun. This meridian corresponds to a vibration in consciousness of 117,646 Hz and relates to the throat chakra described by the mystics of the Himalayas. This vibration can be converted to a solar system distance using the simple cosmic formula: "every one million kms. of solar system distance creates the cosmic appearance of 1Hz in consciousness."
This then is my simple challenge to you, Mr Randi! I propose that the orbit of the planet Sedna is not something "bizarre" and "random" but that in fact it is following a very precise psychic meridian within the cosmic mind. I suggest then that if NASA eventually measures the outer point of Sedna's orbit to be very close to the proposed meridian of 117 billion 646 million kms. from the sun then it proves the existence of a profound paranormal power and is therefore in contention for the Randi prize.
You see the problem I have, folks? Do I take this seriously, and point out the potholes in the above statement, or do I just agree to chuckle with him over this shaggy dog story? I've written him and asked if he's really serious. As the moral of one of Aesop's fables, "The Old Woman and the Physician," goes, "He who plays a trick, must be prepared to take a joke." I admit that I've played a trick or two in my time, so I should be ready to take jokes, but it would please me to have the ground rules hold that a statement concerning whether the offering is a joke or merely an exhibition of ignorance, is required. That would save all of us time and much brain-cudgeling….
FLASH! — Just as I finished typing the above, I received a response from this mercifully un-named person:
Thank you for your prompt reply and yes — I am totally serious! And I can go into the tapestry of this challenge as deeply as you may want. I have even created a 65 minute DVD on these premises and what at first glance seems to be an absurd proposition is in reality something that is embarrasingly [sic] simple. As simple a revelation as the feat of the ancient Greek Eratosthenes who predicted a round earth and measured its circumference using a differential of light shadows in two water wells 800 kms. apart — with his estimate of 46,500 kms. still so deliciously close to our modern estimate of 40,075 kms. — and all this 2000 years before Galileo!The primal question of our age is: "Are the background fields of our universe matter or consciousness?" If you consider the possibility that they are consciousness then we open the door to the challenge that I am suggesting.
And I would perhaps ask you to begin with a simple premise. The formula E=MC squared implies that energy is the basis of matter and in turn the speed of light is the basis of energy. This implies then that matter and energy are simply holograms created by the speed of light. Now as there are only two primal aspects to our universe — matter and consciousness — the next dimension of this formula will perhaps suggest that the nature of matter-consciousness is also a hologram created by the speed of light. The solar system may then be a precise construct of consciousness which mirrors the vibrations of consciousness upon our spinal columns. A concept thousands of years older even than Eratoshenes [sic]!
Well, folks, now that I know the "primal question of our age," I just wrote him to hold the rhetoric and fill out the application form and send it in. With any luck, he'll find that to be beyond his ability, and I can move on. But I'm afraid this guy is going to be around for a while….
Next week I'll share with you another applicant, one who actually had the form notarized — but not much more. You thought the above was egregious? Just wait!
I've been sent a statement from the web site of a man named Magola, the same one who appears on the list of applicants published here last week. This is a person who has made much noise about being tested, but has never submitted his talents to us for that purpose. I wrote him by e-mail on July 3rd last year and told him to apply, but I also told him that I'd dust his skin with talcum powder — a substance that seems to inhibit magnetism for these performers. To cover the embarrassing fact that he has not replied, he has now made a claim that I already accept his powers. That's hardly the case. Just take a look at www.magola.com/English/welcome.html and you'll see that he's just another of the many untalented "magnetic" people, no better and no worse, and imagine what talcum powder would do to spoil that act. The following statement by him (spelling corrected) is a blatant lie:
The abilities of Miroslaw Magola are known to the most hard-line sceptics on both sides of the planet. Even the famous James Randi is well versed in Magola´s talents. Mr. Randi, who has spent a large part of his life and a lot of money to de-mask paranormal phenomenon, does not dispute the authenticity of Magola´s talents (and so far has avoided a scientific inspection of Magola´s abilities).
It never occurs to these people that I've no urge whatsoever to travel across the world to see yet another "sticky skin" demo — but I'll be in Germany in September and in Italy in October. Maybe MM will come around and wow me? He lives in Munich, and I'm available. And will he win the million….? I don't think so….
There's not much room left under Sylvia's rock, now that Michael Horn has just moved in, as well….
News! I finally contacted my old buddy Sonny Fox, of TV "Wonderama" fame! And, folks, as if it wasn't heady enough for you to know that Richard Dawkins, Joe Nickell, and other "heavies" will be at The Amaz!ng Meeting 3, Sonny tells me that he'll be there, too! Now, if you don't know who Sonny Fox is, you're pretty young — although I'm getting to feel that most of the world is young, compared to me. Those of you who are in your 50's or older, and lived in the USA in the 50s, are well aware.
Irwin Sonny Fox has been active in television for more than forty years. His career includes an award-winning tour as Voice of America's correspondent covering the Korean War. He later hosted the CBS-TV series, "Let's Take a Trip," hosted the TV game show The $64,000 Challenge, and for over eight years produced and hosted "Wonderama," a children's TV program in the New York area. He produced an off-Broadway musical, "Taking my Turn," which he later presented as a PBS Masterpiece Theater special, and a film with Julie Harris, "Bronte."
Sonny has been the Vice President for Children's Programs, NBC-TV, and Chairman of the Board of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS). He's presently Senior Vice President of Population Communications International (CSI), the author of four books, and he's currently working on his fifth.
I haven't seen Sonny for something like 25 years! We'll have lots to talk about, and you can listen in!
In addition, as if there could be much more reason needed for you to be registering for next January 13th-16th, another dear friend of mine, Frederik Pohl, will attend and speak for us. Fred's not only a Grand Master of Science Fiction, but is equally acclaimed as an editor, having won three Nebulas and Six Hugo awards. He's written about the history of Science Fiction, taught at Colleges and Universities, written non-fiction books about science and space and served as an inspiration for generations of Science Fiction readers and authors. This is a man who will leave you talking for months about his exciting ideas.
Hey, I think I'll be there, myself! Linda, register me!
