Approved For Release 2004/09/09
: CIA-RDP96-00791R0001 001 60001-0
SECRET
ORD- 0245 -95
SGI
I
MEMORANDUM FOR:
Deputy Director
for Science and Technology
FROM
:
Director of Research and Development,
DS&T
SUBJECT:
Star Gate
- Program Status and Proposed New Direction
1.
In late January,
the Executive Director approved our
recommended approach to
the Congressionally Directed Action that
transfers
the
"Star Gate" program to CIA
(attachment
A)
.
Our approach
was
later formally transmitted to Congress and briefed to Richard
D
' Amato
of
the
SAC
staff on
27 March 1995
(attachment
B)
.
This approach
included asking the National Research Council
to conduct
a blue ribbon
panel review and evaluation of
the Star Gate program,
using experts that
had participated in a similar review for
the US Army several years
ago.
2.
We proceeded to contact
the NRC and officially transferred
funds
to the Army Research Institute
to have them be the executive agent
for this review.
In parallel with this,
we also have been working
closely with DIA and their support contractor
to identify all relevant
documents pertaining
to Star Gate and have made plans
to declassify all
but
the most sensitive aspects
of
the program.
3.
Last week we received from NRC their letter,
dated
5 May 1995,
in which NRC declines
to do
the evaluation,
citing their 1988
report
(attachment
C)
.
In
fact,
they quote from their previous report on this
CL BY
DECL
OADR
DRV FRM Multiple
All SECRET
Approved For Release 2004/09/0^F&f£-RDP96-00791R0001 001 60001-0
Approved For Release 2004/09/09
: CIA-RDP96-00791R0001 001 60001-0
SECRET
SUBJECT:
Star Gate
- Program Status and Proposed New Direction
subject
further stating that they hope their recent report will be
helpful
in guiding our assessment
of remote viewing studies:
"In summary,
after approximately
15 years
of claims and
sometimes bitter controversy,
the literature
on remote
viewing has managed to produce only one possibly successful
experiment that
is not seriously flawed in its methodology
-
and that one experiment provides only marginal evidence
for the
existence of
ESP.
By both scientific and parapsychological
standards,
then,
the case
for remote viewing
is not
just very
weak,
but virtually nonexistent.
It
seems
that the preeminent
position that remote viewing occupies
in the minds
of many
proponents results
from the highly exaggerated claims made
for
the early experiments,
as well
as
the subjectively compelling,
but
illusory,
correspondences
that experimenters and
participants
find between components
of the descriptions and
the target
sites."
4.
We were subsequently referred by our contacts
at NRC
to
Dr.
David Goslin,
President
of American Institutes
of Research
(AIR)
,
a
highly respected firm dealing with behavioral
science
issues.
AIR could
quickly assemble
a panel
that
includes
some
of
the original NRC study
contributors.
We have talked
to AIR and believe they could indeed do
the review and evaluation
in less
time and
for
fewer dollars than the
NRC
itself,
and AIR
is currently preparing a preliminary proposal.
5.
However,
in view of
the strong position taken by the NRC that
the
"case
for remote viewing
is not
just very weak,
but nonexistent",
I
want
to propose at
this point that we strongly consider
the option of
going back to Congress with the recommendation not to accept
the Star
Gate program from DIA.
Even
if we do proceed with
a new review by AIR,
there exists
a very strong possibility that AIR will merely reach the
same conclusion firmly held by the NRC.
Furthermore,
as you may recall,
neither the DO nor the DI were at all interested in having this program
reside
in their directorates,
and we deferred any decision regarding
Approved For Release 2004/6$^PW$bP96-00791R0001 001 60001-0
Approved For Release 2004/09/09
: CIA-RDP96-00791R0001 001 60001-0
SECRET
SUBJECT:
Star Gate
- Program Status and Proposed New Direction
what
to do with the operational people currently at DIA until after we
had completed the blue ribbon panel assessment regarding the value of
the program to CIA and the Intelligence Community.
6.
Regardless,
we are prepared to proceed with a blue ribbon
panel review and evaluation as originally proposed but we would be
contracting with AIR instead of NRC.
The alternative plan,
however,
which
I recommend you raise at
the EXDIR level,
is
to take the advice of
the NRC and conclude without
further review that
the Star Gate program
is not likely to be of value
to CIA.
Despite the interest
of various
members
of
the SSCI and SAC,
I recommend we adopt this alternative plan
and ask Congress
to agree that
the program should NOT be transferred to
CIA.
SGI
i
Attachments
A.
Lotus Note Memo
to EXDIR
(January 1995)
B.
CIA Response
to Congressionally
Directed Action,
28 March
1995
C.
Ltr frm NRC dtd
5 May
1995
Approved For Release 2004/6§W?®$bP96-00791R0001 001 60001-0