Sign up has started for the 56th Annual Convention of the Parapsychological Association, the inventor of Xerox got some inspiration from a seance experience, a new horror movie based on the Ganzfeld experiments hits post-production, and baby chicks get involved with psi experiments at the Institut Metapsychique International, Paris, France in this edition of psi in the news.
- Details and sign up information are available for the upcoming 56th Annual Convention of the Parapsychological Association, which will be held at the Ora Domus La Quercia in Viterbo, Italy. (Parapsychological Association)If you haven’t yet, be sure to follow the Parapsychological Association on Facebook to see pictures from past events, and receive regular updates on PA activities. Might not be a bad idea to check out the Rhine Research Center, Society for Psychical Research, Windbridge Institute, Paranthropology Journal and the Institute of Noetic Sciences on FB while you’re at it.
- Depending on when you read this you may have already missed Dr. David Luke’s Anthropology, Consciousness and Culture presentation titled Anthropology, Parapsychology & Psychedelics, but there are more upcoming lectures in the series that look to be equally as fascinating. (Anthropology, Consciousness & Culture)Also be sure to check out their archive of talks, which will feature recordings of the lectures as they become available, including Dr. Luke’s presentation.
- This Friday, February 15th Julia Assante PhD will be presenting a workshop at the Rhine Research Center titled: The Last Frontier: Exploring the Afterlife and Transforming Our Fear of Death. The event will also be available as a webinar for those unable to attend in person. (Rhine Research Center)
- On March 28th Dee Christopher will be lecturing for the Society for Psychical Research on the topic of ‘Trickery, Deception and Fraud in Parapsychology.’ (Society for Psychical Research)
- Author Carla Wills-Brandon discusses the difficult relationship between the question of post-death survival when it comes to religious beliefs. (White Crow Books)
- Dr. Julie Bieschel and Mark Bocuzzi of the Windbridge Institute discuss telepathy in couples, and how an ESP experiment with Dean Radin eventually lead to them getting married. (Discovery News)
- The inventor of Xerox was inspired during a seance, George Washington Carver got the recipe for peanut butter from dawn walks and what he experienced as divine communion, fiction that seems to foretell future fact, and a number of other anomalous anecdotes in this interesting piece by NDE researcher P.M.H. Atwater. (Waking Times)
- Bleiberg Entertainment is shopping around a film project currently in post-production that uses the Ganzfeld experiments as a launching point for horror. (Bloody Disgusting)
- Jeremy Schuler gives a preview of the upcoming Matmos show at The Empty Bottle, Chicago which details their use of Ganzfeld in their latest release. (Gapers Block)
- Brian Dunning takes us through a brief history of the Ganzfeld ESP experiments, and the critiques of the evidence. (Skeptoid)
- Kirsty Walley reports on Croydon University Hospital , one of 25 medical centers taking part in the AWARE study, which is a program designed to test for evidence of anomalous perception in Near Death Experiences. (Croydon Guardian)
- An interesting exploration of parapsychology and skepticism through a comparison with New Testament studies. (Subversive Thinking)
- Fred Burks presents the work of Dr. Kenneth Ring, which examines the life changing aspects of Near Death Experiences. (Examiner)
- Dr. Carlos Alvarado reviews Science, the Self, and Survival After Death: Selected Writings of Ian Stevenson, edited by Dr. Emily Williams Kelly, which presents an overview of Ian Stevenson’s work on questions of reincarnation, and further implications of his career. (Parapsychological Association)
- The question of post-mortem survival, and the existence of consciousness after death, is more nuanced than the media is usually able to explore. Dr. Michael Sudduth opens up some of the more salient details in an inaugural post for his new blog. I highly recommend his work for those interested in looking at these issues on a deeper philosophical level than is available in most of the current coverage of the topic. (Michael Sudduth)
- Wired Cosmos provides a brief overview of three books exploring the question of post-mortem survival (Wired Cosmos)
- Dr. David Luke posted a link to this video on Facebook, it shows some experiments at the Institut Metapsychique International, Paris, France, testing for evidence of psi during periods of stress. (YouTube)
- The Academy for Spiritual and Consciousness Studies, Inc. (ASCSI) announces its 1st annual competition for the Franck C. Tribbe Memorial Award for the best paper on the subject: Exploring the Non-Locality of Consciousness (ASCI.org)
- There are currently two funds available from the Society for Psychical Research to promote research in areas relevant to psychical research. (Society for Psychical Research)Tom Ruffles of the Society for Psychical Research clarified this in the comments: “Thank you for mentioning the SPR research funds but I need to clarify that there aren’t only two grants available; there are two funds, a general research fund covering the whole of the field, and one specifically for survival-related projects. There will be a number of grants made by each fund.”
- RVIS, Inc. has posted some interesting Remote Viewing session examples from Tom McNear, one of the Remote Viewers trained by Ingo Swann during the early 1980’s for the U.S. military Remote Viewing program. (RViewer.com)
- Craig Weiler uses the ‘left-brain/right-brain’ metaphor to explore differences in the worldviews of skeptical and pro-psi parapsychologists. (Weiler Psi Blog)
- Jane Warren provides an overview of the cultural climate surrounding Near Death Experiences, with some interesting mentions of celebrity NDE’ers. (Express UK)
- The Journal of Exceptional Experiences in Psychology is currently looking for submissions for its inaugural issue. Submissions are due by April 13th, 2013. (Journal of Exceptional Experiences in Psychology)
- The Bethlem Heritage blog provides a review of the recent Psychical Research and Parapsychology in the History of Medicine and the Sciences conference hosted by Andreas Sommer at University College London. (Bethlem Heritage)
- A recent piece on The Daily Grail highlights a few of the most recent books on anomalous experiences that have come out, including work from Jack Hunter, Paranthropology Journal, and Dr. Julie Beischel, Windbridge Institute. (The Daily Grail)
- The Journal of Consciousness Exploration and Research has posted a new paper by Dr. Michael Pesinger’s team, looking at EMF effects on anomalous cognition. (Journal of Consciousness Exploration & Research)
- Chris Carter talks to Alex Tsarkis on Skeptiko regarding the scientific evidence for the survival of consciousness after death. (Skeptiko)
- More on Dr. Stuart Hameroff, Professor Emeritus at the University of Arizona, and Sir Roger Penrose’s quantum theory of consciousness which seeks to explain anomalous experiences such as NDE’s. (Waking Times)
- Our very own Maxi Cohen admits to seeing a psychic, and writes about personal experiences with the practical use of psi. (Reality Sandwich)
Note: Special thanks to Jean-Michel Abrassart, Iona Miller, Tom Ruffles, Soc. for Psychical Research, Jack Hunter, Editor at Paranthropology Journal, Dr. David Luke, Cal Cooper and Matt Staggs, Editor at Disinfo.com, for a number of links included in this edition of Reality Sandwich’s Psi-in-the-News.
