SG1J SAICMP94. 004 Approved For Release 2003/6488 FEET_RDP96-00789R00260@R004-4— of 2 Science Applications International Corporation Cognitive Sciences Laboratory Memorandum Date: 16 February 1994 To: LO] From: — Dr. Edwin May Via Subject: Preliminary Research Results (U) This year we conducted three experiments: (1) Aconfirmation experiment to determine if the quality of anomalous cognition (AC) results corre- lates with the gradient of the Shannon entropy within the target. (2) Asearch for an event-related desynchronization in the brain in response to an AC stimulus. (3) Aconfirmation experiment to determine if an isolated person’s skin conductance can be influenced by a remote individual. (S/NF) We have observed significant effects in all three experiments. I will briefly outline the result for each experiment and describe how it may impact operational anomalous cognition. (1) Entropy Experiment. Three of our four receivers produced independently significant evidence for AC. The best of these had a hitting rate of 50% (chance being 20%). The effect size for the four subjects was 0.778, 0.742, 0.601, and —0.035, respectively. For comparison, the largest effect size ever seen in Ganzfeld testing is 0.354. The major result, however, is a correlation of 0.502 with 31 degrees of freedom for the gradient of the Shannon entropy with AC quality. A correlation of this magnitude is rare in psychological or behavioral studies. We are currently working through a list of potential artifacts that might have contributed to this correlation, but so far the correlation stands. This is the first time in the history of the field that a physical variable has correlated with any AC activity. It’s major contribution will be to guide future researchers in choosing targets that will opti- mize the AC output. It is only a modest extension to move this laboratory result into the operation- al domain. To the degree Shannon entropy is roughly equivalent to classical thermodynamic entro- py, AC-operations can be improved by choosing intelligence target sites that are likely to possess dynamic changes of entropy (¢.g., nuclear blasts, radioactive decay, radar, accelerators, etc.). (2) Alpha Desynchronization. A brain in “idle mode” oscillates at approximately 10 Hz. It is well known that a brain cannot remain idle and do anything else. For example, responding to a sensory stimulus (e.g., light flash, click sound, smell, touch, taste), thinking about something (¢.g., counting backward from 100 or imagining your grandmother’s kitchen), or moving a body part all interrupt alpha production. Therefore, it would be odd, indeed, if AC failed to interrupt alpha. Our current experiment improved upon the previous protocols from Los Alamos by including behavioral evi- dence of AC as measured in brain waves. We have observed significant evidence for AC, and the preliminary EEG analysis indicates that we may see an AC event-related desynchronization (ERD). We currently have a probability against chance of only 0.2, but we have not yet sorted the EEG data with regard to AC performance. The effect must be there. If we fail to see it after analy- sis, we will be able to quote a lower limit for the percent desynchronization. Ifwe see an ERD, it will be the first time such an effect has been seen in AC research. The implica- tions for R&D and operations are unbounded. An immediate potential is an AC polygraph-type i 1010 El Camino Real, Suite 330. Menlo Park, California 94025. (415) 325-8292, (415) 325~8296 FAX RET/NOFORN Approved For Release oO NOt Pos-00789R002600260002-4
‘ Approved For Release 2003/G4£%8 REIA-RDP96-00789R002600260002-4 instrument. More likely, however, is the potential use of biofeedback techniques to improve AC functioning for operations and R&D. SG1B EEE ranrerere—aeed 4010 El Camino Real, Suite 330. Menlo Park, California 94025. (415) 325-8292, (415) 325-8296 FAX Approved For Release shoe Q: l NQEB AN 00789R002600260002-4