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PROCEEDINGS OF THE IEEE, VOL. 64, NO.
3, MARCH 1976
329
\
A Perceptual Channel for Information Transfer
over Kilometer Distances: Historical Perspective
and Recent Research
HAROLD E. PUTHOFF, member, ieee, and RUSSELL TARG, senior member, ieee
Abstract -Fot more
than
100
years,
scientists have attempted
to
determine the truth or falsity of claims for the existence of a perceptual
channel whereby certain individuals are able to perceive and describe
remote data not presented to any known sense. This paper presents an
outline of the history of scientific inquiry into such so-called paranor-
mal perception and surveys the current state of the art in parapsycho-
logical research in the United States and abroad.
The nature of this
perceptual channel
is examined in a series of experiments carried out
in the Electronics and Bioengineering Laboratory of Stanford Research
Institute.
The perceptual modality most extensively investigated is the
ability
of both experienced subjects and inexperienced volunteers to
view, by
innate mental
processes, remote geographical
or
technical
targets including buildings, roads, and laboratory apparatus.
The ac-
cumulated data indicate that the phenomenon
is not a sensitive func-
tion of distance, and Faraday cage shielding does not in any apparent
way degrade the quality and accuracy of perception. On the basis of
this research, some areas of physics are suggested from which a descrip-
tion or explanation of the phenomenon could be forthcoming.
I. Introduction
I
T
IS THE PROVINCE of natural science to
investigate
nature, impartially and without prejudice”
[ 1
]
. Nowhere
in
scientific inquiry has
this dictum met as great a chal-
lenge as in the area of so-called extrasensory perception (ESP),
the
detection
of remote
stimuli not mediated by the usual
sensory processes.
Such phenomena, although under scientific
consideration for over a century, have historically been fraught
with unreliability and controversy, and validation of the phe-
nomena by accepted scientific methodology has been slow in
coming.
Even
so, a recent survey conducted by the
British
publication New Scientist revealed that 67 percent of nearly
1500 responding readers (the majority of whom are working
scientists and
technologists) considered ESP to be an estab-
lished
fact
or
a
likely
possibility, and
percent held the
investigation of ESP to be a legitimate scientific undertaking
m.
A review of the literature reveals that although experiments
by reputable researchers yielding
positive
results were begun
over
a century ago
(e.g., Sir William Crookes’ study of D. D.
Home,
1860’s)
[3], many consider
the study of these phe-
nomena
as only recently emerging from the realm of quasi-
science.
One
reason
for
this
is
that,
despite
experimental
results, no satisfactory theoretical construct had been advanced
to
correlate
data or to predict new experimental outcomes.
Consequently, the
area in question remained for a long time
in the recipe stage reminiscent of electrodynamics before the
Manuscript received July 25, 1975; revised November 7, 1975.
The
submission
of
this paper was encouraged
after review of an advance
proposal.
This work was supported by the Foundation for Parasensory
Investigation and the Parapsychology Foundation, New York, NY; the
Institute
of Noetic
Sciences, Palo Alto, CA; and the National Aero-
nautics and Space Administration, under Contract NAS 7-100.
The authors are with the Electronics and Bioengineering Laboratory,
Stanford Research Institute, Menlo Park, CA 94025.
unification brought about by the work of Ampere, Faraday,
and Maxwell.
Since the early work, however, we have seen the
development
of
information
theory, quantum
theory, and
neurophysiological
research,
and
these
disciplines
provide
powerful conceptual tools that appear to bear directly on the
issue.
In
fact, several physicists (Section V) are now of the
opinion that these phenomena are not at
all inconsistent with
the framework of modern physics:
the often-held view that
observations of this type are a priori incompatible with known
laws
is erroneous in that such a concept
is based on the naive
realism prevalent before the development of quantum theory.
In the emerging view,
it
is accepted that research in this area
can be conducted so as to uncover not just a catalog of inter-
esting events, but rather patterns of cause-effect relationships
of the type that lend themselves to analysis and hypothesis
in
the
forms
with
which we
are
familiar
in
the
physical
sciences.
One hypothesis
is that information transfer under
conditions
of
sensory
shielding
is
mediated
by
extremely
low-frequency (ELF) electromagnetic waves,
a proposal that
does
not seem
to
be
ruled out by any obvious physical or
biological
facts.
Further,
the development
of information
theory
makes
it
possible
to
characterize and
quantify
the
performance
of
a
communications
channel
regardless
of
the underlying mechanism.
For
the
past
three
years, we have had
a program
in the
Electronics
and
Bioengineering
Laboratory
of
the
Stan-
ford
Research
Institute
(SRI)
to
investigate those
facets of
human perception that appear to fall outside the range of well-
understood
perceptual/processing
capabilities.
Of particular
interest
is a human information-accessing capability that we
call
“remote
viewing.”
This phenomenon
pertains
to
the
ability of certain individuals to access and describe, by means
of mental processes, information sources blocked from ordi-
nary perception, and generally accepted as secure against such
access.
In
particular,
the phenomenon we have investigated most
extensively
is the ability of a subject to view remote geograph-
ical locations up to
several thousand kilometers distant from
his physical location (given only a known person on whom to
target).
We
have
carried out more than
fifty experiments
under controlled laboratory conditions with several individuals
whose remote
perceptual
abilities
have been developed
suf-
ficiently to allow them at times to describe correctly—often in
great detail—geographical or technical material such as build-
ings, roads, laboratory apparatus, and the like.
As observed in the laboratory, the basic phenomenon appears
to cover a range of subjective experiences variously referred to
'Our
initial work
in
this area was reported
in Nature
[4], and re-
printed in the IEEE Commun. Soc. Newsletter, vol. 13, Jan. 1975
Copyright © 1976 by The Institute of
Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.
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330
PROCEEDINGS OF THE IEEE, MARCH 1976
: Fig.
1.
Airport in San Andres, Colombia, used as remote-viewing target, along with sketch produced by subject
in California.
in the literature as autoscopy (in the medical literature); exteri-
orization
or
disassociation
(psychological
literature);
simple
clairvoyance, graveling clairvoyance, or out-of-body experience
(parapsycholdgical literature); or astral projection (occult liter-
ature).
We Choose
the term “remote viewing” as
a neutral
descriptive term
free from
prior associations and
bias
as
to
mechanisms.
!
The development
at SRI of a successful experimental pro-
cedure to elicit this capability has evolved to the point where
persons
such
as
visiting government
scientists and
contract
monitors, with no previous exposure to such concepts, have
learned to perform well; and subjects who have trained over a
one-year, period have performed excellently under a variety of
experimental conditions.
Our accumulated data thus indicate
that both
specially
selected and
unselected
persons
can
be
assisted
in
developing
remote
perceptual
abilities
up
to
a
level of usefulj information transfer.
In experiments of this type, we have three principal findings.
First, we have established that
it
is possible to obtain signifi-
cant amounts ;of accurate descriptive information about remote
locations.
Second, an
increase
in the
distance from a few
meters up to; 4000 km separating the subject from the scene
to be
perceived
does
not
in any apparent way degrade the
quality or accuracy of perception.
Finally, the use of Faraday
cage electrical shielding does not prevent high-quality descrip-
tions from being obtained.
To
build
a: coherent
theory
for
the
explanation
of these
phenomena,
it
is necessary to have a
clear understanding of
what constitutes the phenomena.
In this paper, we first briefly
than
fifty experiments with nine subjects
carried out
in our
own laboratory, which represent a sufficiently stable data base
to permit testing of various hypotheses concerning the func-
tioning
of
this
channel.
Finally,
in
Section
V, we indicate
those areas of physics and information theory that appear to
be
relevant
to
an
understanding
of
certain
aspects of the
phenomena.
First, however, we present an illustrative example generated
in an
early
pilot experiment.
As will be clear from our later
discussion,
this
is
not
a
“best-ever” example, but
rather
a
typical sample of the level of proficiency that can be reached
and that we have come to expect in our research.
Three
subjects
participated
in
a
long-distance experiment
focusing on
a
series of targets in Costa Rica.
These subjects
said they had never been to Costa Rica.
In this experiment,
one of the experimenters (Dr. Puthoff ) spent ten days traveling
through Costa Rica on
a combination business/pleasure trip.
This information was
all that was known to the subjects about
the traveler’s itinerary.
The experiment called for Dr. Puthoff
to keep a detailed record of his location and activities, includ-
ing photographs
of each of seven target days at 1330 PDT.
A total of twelve daily descriptions were collected before the
traveler’s
return:
six
responses from one
subject,
five from
another, and one from a third.
The third subject who submitted the single response supplied
a drawing for a day in the middle of the series. (The subject’s
response, together with the photographs taken at the
site, are
shown
in
Fig.
1).
Although
Costa
Rica
is
a mountainous
country, the subject unexpectedly perceived the traveler at a
summarize previous efforts in this field in Septic
preseiABf^Mfllll^dwfeSfelftOiP 1
iseiymgJie described an
iPwiTlfthe ocean at the
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PUTHOFF AND TARG: PERCEPTUAL CHANNEL FOR INFORMATION TRANSFER
end (correct).
An airport budding also was drawn, and shown
to have a large rectangular overhang (correct).
The traveler
had taken an unplanned one-day side trip to an offshore island
and at the time of the experiment had just disembarked from a
plane
at
a
small
island
airport
as
described by
the subject
4000 km away.
The
sole discrepancy was that the subject’s
drawing showed a Quonset-hut type of building in place of the
rectangular structure.
The above description was chosen as an example to illustrate
a
major
point
observed
a number
of times throughout the
program to be described.
Contrary to what may be expected,
a subject’s description does not necessarily portray what may
reasonably be expected
to be correct (an educated or “safe”
guess),
but
often
runs
counter
even
to
the
subject s own
expectations.
We wish to stress again that a result such as the above is not
unusual.
The remaining submissions in this experiment pro-
vided further examples of excellent correspondences between
target and response.
(A target period of poolside relaxation
was identified; a drive through a tropical forest at the base of
a truncated volcano was described as a drive through a jungle
below a large bare table mountain; a hotel-room target descrip-
tion, including such
details as rug
color, was correct; and so
on.)
So as to determine whether such matches were simply
fortuitous-that
is, could reasonably be expected on the basis
of chance alone-Dr. Puthoff was asked after he had returned
to
blind match the
twelve
descriptions
to
his
seven
target
locations.
On the basis of this conservative evaluation proce-
dure, which
vastly underestimates the
statistical significance
of the individual descriptions,
five correct matches were ob-
tained.
This number of matches is significant at p = 0.02 by
exact binomial calculation.
The observation of such unexpectedly high-quality descrip-
tions
early
in our program led to a large-scale study of the
phenomenon at SRI under secure double-blind conditions (i.e.,
target unknown
to experimenters
as
well as subjects), with
independent random target selection and blind judging.
The
results, presented
in Sections
III and
IV, provide strong evi-
dence
for
the
robustness
of
this phenomenon
whereby
a
human perceptual modality of extreme sensitivity can detect
complex remote stimuli.
II. Background
Although we are approaching the study of these phenomena
as physicists, it is not yet possible to separate ourselves entirely
from the language of the nineteenth century when the labora-
tory study of the paranormal was begun.
Consequently, we
continue to use terms such as “paranormal,” “telepathy,” and
the
like.
However, we intend only to indicate a process of
information
transfer under
conditions
generally accepted
as
secure against such transfer and with no
prejudice or occult
assumptions
as to the mechanisms involved.
As in any other
scientific pursuit, the purpose is to collect the observables that
result from experiments and to try to determine the functional
relationships between these observables and the laws of physics
as they are currently understood.
Organized research into so-called psychic functioning began
roughly in the time of
J.
J. Thomson, Sir Oliver Lodge, and
Sir William Crookes, all of whom took part in the founding of
the Society for Psychical Research (SPR) in 1882 in England.
Crookes, for example,
carried out his principal investigations
with D. D. Home, a Scotsman who grew up in America and
returned to England in 1855 [3]
.
According to the notebooks
and pubhshed
reports
of
Crookes, Home had demonstrated
the
ability to cause objects to move without touching them.
We
should, note in passing that, Home, unlike most subjects,
worked only in the
light and spoke out in the strongest pos-
sible terms against the darkened seance rooms popular at the
time [5]
.
.
Sir William Crookes was a pioneer in the study of electrical
discharge in gases and in the development of vacuum tubes,
some types of which still bear his name. Although everything
Crookes said about electron beams and plasmas was accepted,
nothing he said about the achievements of D. D. Home ever
achieved
that
status.
Many of his colleagues, who had not
observed the experiments with Home, stated publicly that they
thought Crookes had been deceived, to which Crookes angrily
responded
:
Will not my critics give me credit for some amount of common
sense? Do they not imagine that the obvious precautions, which
occur
to them
as soon
as they
sit down to pick holes in my
experiments, have occurred to me also in the course of my pro-
longed arid patient investigation?
The answer to this, as to all
other objections
is, prove
it to be an error, by showing where
the
error
lies,
or
if a trick, by showing how the trick
is per-
formed.
Try the experiment fully and fairly.
If then fraud be
found, expose
it;
if
it be a truth, proclaim it.
This
is the only
scientific procedure, and
it
is that
1 propose steadily to pursue
[3].
In the United
States,
scientific interest
in the paranormal
was centered
in the
universities.
In
1912, John Coover [6]
was established in the endowed Chair of Psychical Research at
Stanford University.
In the 1920’s, Harvard University set up
research programs with George Estabrooks and L. T. Troland
[7],
[8].
It was in this framework that,
in 1930, William
McDougall invited
Dr.
J. B. Rhine and Dr. Louisa Rhine to
join the Psychology Department at Duke University [9]. For
more than 30 years, significant work was carried out at Rhine’s
Duke
University
Laboratory.
To examine the existence of
paranormal
perception, he
used
the now-famous ESP cards
containing
a boldly
printed
picture of a
star,
cross, square,
circle, or wavy lines.
Subjects were asked to name the order
of these
cards
in
a freshly shuffled deck of twenty-five such
cards.
To
test for telepathy, an experimenter would look at
the cards one at a time, and a subject suitably separated from
the sender would attempt to determine which card was being
viewed.
Dr.
J.
B.
Rhine
together with Dr.
J. G. Pratt
carried out
thousands of experiments of this type under widely varying
conditions [10]
.
The statistical results from these experiments
indicated that some individuals did indeed possess a paranor-
mal perceptual
ability
in
that
it was
possible
to obtain an
arbitrarily high degree of improbability by continued testing
of a gifted subject.
The work of Rhine has been challenged on many grounds,
“The
probability of a
correct daily match by chance for any given
inscript
is p =
Therefore, the probability of at least five correct
atches by chance out of twelve tries can be calculated from
yi\
ApprS/feCPFi^i
(12-0
.
= 0 .02 .
/ase 2001/03/26
tics, error, and fraud. With regard to the statistics, the general
consensus of statisticians today
is that
if fault
is to be found
in Rhine’s work,
it would have to be on other than statistical
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be
noted
that
cently
exposed
encountered it
most
celebrated
case
of
criticism
of
Rhine’s work,
that of
G.
R.
Price
[12], ended
years
after
it began when the
accusation of fraud was retracted by
its author
in an article
entitled “Apology to Rhine and Soal,” published in the same
journal in whiqh
it was first put forward [13],
It should also
parapsychological
researchers
themselves
re-
fraud
in
their own
laboratory when
they
114].
At the end of the 1940’s, Prof. S. G. Soal, an English mathe-
matician working with the SPR, had carried out hundreds of
card guessing experiments involving tens of thousands of calls
[15],
Many
ojf these experiments were
carried out over ex-
tended
distancejs.
One of the most notable experiments was
conducted
with
Mrs.
Gloria
Stewart between London
and
Antwerp.
This! experiment gave results whose probability of
occurring by chjince were less than 10 -8
.
With' the publication
of Modern Experiments
in
Telepathy by Soal and Bateman
(.both of whom were statisticians), it appeared that card guess-
ing experiments produced significant results, on the average. 3
The most severe
criticism of all this work, a criticism diffi-
cult to defend against in principle,
is that leveled by the well-
known
British parapsychological
critic C. E. M. Hansel [17]
who began
his Examination of the ESP hypothesis with the
stated assumption, “In view of the a priori arguments against
it we know
in advance that telepathy,
etc., cannot occur.”
Therefore,
basejj
on
the
“a
priori
unlikelihood”
of
ESP,
Hansel s examination of the
literature centered primarily on
the
possibility
pf
fraud, by
subjects
or
investigators.
He
reviewed
in
depth
four
experiments which he
regarded
as
providing the best evidence of ESP: the Pearce-Pratt distance
series
[18]; the iPratt-Woodruff [19]
series, both conducted
at Duke; and Soil’s work with Mrs. Stewart and Basil Shackle-
ton [15], as well as a more recent series by Soal and Bowden
[20]
.
Hansel showed, in each case, how fraud could have been
committed (by
tjhe experimenters
in the Pratt-Woodruff and
Soal-Bateman
series,
or by
the subjects
in the Pearce-Pratt
and Soal-Bowdeji experiments).
He gave no direct evidence
that fraud was committed in these experiments, but said, “If
the result could have arisen through a
trick, the experiment
must be considered unsatisfactory proof of ESP, whether or
not it is finally decided that such a trick was in fact used” [17,
p.
18],
As
discjissed by Honorton
in a review of the
field
[21]
, Hansels conclusion
after 241 pages of careful scrutiny
therefore was that these experiments were not “fraud-proof”
and therefore in principle could not serve as conclusive proof
of ESP.
i
Even among
thjs supporters of ESP research and
its results,
there remained tpe
consistent problem that many successful
subjects eventually lost their ability and their scores gradually
drifted toward chance
results.
This decline effect in no way
erased their previous astronomical success; but
it was a disap-
pointment since
if paranormal perception
is a natural ability,
one would like td see subjects improving with practice rather
than getting worse.
One of the
first successful attempts to overcome the decline
effect was in Czechoslovakia in the work of Dr. Milan Ryzl, a
chemist with the ^Institute of Biology of the Czechoslovakian
Academy
of
Science and
also an amateur hypnotist
[22],
Through
the
use
! of hypnosis,
together with feedback
and
reinforcement, he developed several outstanding subjects, one
of whom,
Pavel
Stepanek,
has worked
with
experimenters
around the world for more than 10 years.
Ryzl s pioneering work came as an answer to the questions
raised by
the
1956 CIBA Foundation conference on extra-
sensory perception.
The CIBA Chemical Company has annual
meetings on
topics of
biological
and chemical interest, and
that
same
year
they assembled
several prominent
parapsy-
chologists to have a state-of-the-art conference on ESP [23],
The conference concluded that little progress would be made
in
parapsychology
research
until
a
repeatable
experiment
could be found; namely, an experiment that different experi-
menters could repeat
at
will and that would
reliably yield a
statistically significant result.
Ryzl had by 1962 accomplished that goal.
His primary con-
tribution was a decision to interact with the subject as a per-
son, to try to build up his confidence and ability.
His protocol
depended on “working with” rather than “running” his sub-
jects.
Ryzl’s star subject, Pavel Stepanek, has produced highly
significant results with many contemporary researchers [24] —
[29 ].
In these experiments, he was able to tell with 60-percent
reliability
whether
a
hidden
card
was green
side
or
white
side
up,
yielding
statistics
of
a
million
to one with only
a
thousand trials.
As significant as such results are statistically, the information
channel
is imperfect, containing noise along with the signal
When considering how best to use such a channel, one
is led
to the communication theory concept of the introduction of
redundancy
as
a means of coding
a message to combat the
effects of a noisy channel [30],
A prototype experiment by
Ryzl using such techniques has proved to be successful.
Ryzl
had an
assistant
select randomly
five groups of three
digits
each.
These 15 digits were then encoded into binary form and
translated into a sequence of green and white cards in sealed
envelopes.
By means
of repeated
calling and
an elaborate
majority vote protocol, Ryzl was able after
19 350
calls by
Stepanek (averaging 9 s per
call) to correctly identify
all 15
numbers,
a
result
significant
at p = 10" 15
The
hit
rate
for
individual calls was 61.9 percent,
1 1 978 hits, and 7372 misses
[ 31 ].
Note Added in Proof:
It has been brought to our attention
that a similar procedure was recently used to transmit without
error
the word “peace”
in
International Morse Code
(J.
C.
Carpenter,
“Toward
the
effective
utilization
of
enhanced
weak-signal ESP effects,” presented at the Annual Meeting of
the American
Association
for
the Advancement of Science
New York, NY, Jan. 27, 1975).
The
characteristics
of such
a
channel
can be specified
in
accordance with the precepts of communication theory.
The
bit rate associated with the information channel is calculated
from [30]
R = H(x) - Hy (x)
(1)
where H(x) is the uncertainty of the source message containing
symbols with a priori probability p t
:
H{x) = - £
Pi log2 p,
l=i
( 2 )
,
l
J
ece" t' y ’ some of the early Soal experiments have been criticized
!
*j
I7owever,
his long-distance experiments cited here were judeed
eMiy^ex^'ri"ments.
faS^*0n °f *h6
*ha * eSCaP°d the criticism of fhe
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:
and Hy (x)
is the conditional entropy based on the a posteriori
probabilities that a received signal was actually transmitted:
Hy(x)=~ ^
p(i,j)
l0g2 pi (;)
.
(3
)
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'Ur
333
For Stepanek’s run, with
p,- =
p/(/) = 0.619, and an average
time of 9 s per choice, we have a source uncertainty H(x) =
bit and a calculated bit rate
R =» 0.041 bit/symbol
or
R/T& 0.0046 bit/s.
(Since the 15-digit number (49.8 bits) actually was transmitted
at the rate of 2.9 X 10~4
bit/s, an increase
in
bit
rate by a
factor of about 20 could be expected on the basis of a coding
scheme more optimum than that used in the experiments.
See,
for example, Appendix A.)
Dr.
Charles Tart
at the University of California has written
extensively on the so-called decline effect.
He considers that
having subjects attempt to guess cards, or perform any other
repetitious task
for which they receive no feedback, follows
the
classical technique for deconditioning any response.
He
thus
considers
card guessing
“a
technique for extinguishing
psychic functioning in the laboratory” [32]
.
Tart’s
injunctions
of the mid-sixties were being heeded
at
Maimonides Hospital, Brooklyn, NY, by a team of researchers
that
included
Dr.
Montague
Ullman, who was
director
of
research
for
the
hospital;
Dr.
Stanley Krippner; and,
later,
Charles Honorton.
These three worked together for several
years on experiments on the occurrence of telepathy in dreams.
In the course of a half-dozen experimental series, they found
in
their week-long
sessions
a number
of subjects who had
dreams
that
consistently were highly descriptive of pictorial
material that
a remote sender was looking at throughout the
night.
This work
is described in detail in the experimenters’
book Dream Telepathy
[33],
Honorton
is continuing work
of this free-response type in which the subject has no precon-
ceived idea as to what the target may be.
In his more recent work with subjects in the waking state,
Honorton
is providing homogeneous stimulation to the subject
who
is to describe color slides viewed by another person in a
remote room.
In
this new work, the subject listens to white
noise
via
earphones and
views an homogeneous
visual
field
imposed through the use of Ping-Pong ball halves to cover the
subject’s eyes
in
conjunction with diffuse ambient illumina-
tion.
In this so-called Ganzfeld setting, subjects are again able,
now
in
the waking
state, to
give
correct and
often
highly
accurate
descriptions
of
the
material being viewed by
the
sender [34],
In Honorton’s work and
elsewhere,
it apparently has been
the
step away from the repetitive forced-choice experiment
that has opened the way for a wide variety of ordinary people
to demonstrate significant functioning in the laboratory, with-
out being bored into a decline effect.
This
survey would
be incomplete
if we
did
not
indicate
certain aspects
of the current
state of research in the USSR.
It
is
clear from translated documents and other sources
[35]
that many laboratories in the USSR are engaged in paranormal
research.
Since the
1930’s, in the laboratory of L. Vasiliev (Leningrad
Institute for Brain Research), there has been an interest in the
use of telepathy as a method of influencing the behavior of a
person at a distance.
In Vasiliev’s book Experiments in Mental
Suggestion, he makes
it very clear that the bulk of his labora-
tory’s experiments were aimed
at long-distance communica-
tion
combined
with
a
form
of behavior
modification;
for
example, putting people
at a distance to sleep through hyp-
nosis [36]
.
Approved For Release 2001/03/26
Similar behavior modification types of experiments have been
carried out
in recent times by
I. M. Kogan, Chairman of the
Bioinformation
Section
of the Moscow Board of the Popov
Society.
He
is a
Soviet engineer who, until 1969, published
extensively on the theory of telepathic communication [37]-
[40]
.
He was concerned with three principal kinds of experi-
ments:
mental
suggestion without hypnosis over
short
dis-
tances, in which the percipient attempts to identify an object;
mental awakening over short distances,
in which a subject
is
awakened from a hypnotic sleep at the “beamed” suggestion
from the hypnotist; and long-range (intercity) telepathic com-
munication.
Kogan’s main
interest has been to quantify the
channel capacity of the paranormal channel. He finds that the
bit
rate decreases from
0.1
bit/s
for laboratory experiments
to 0.005 bit/s for his 1000-km intercity experiments.
In the USSR, serious consideration is given to the hypothesis
that telepathy
is mediated by extremely low-frequency (ELF)
electromagnetic
propagation.
(The
pros
and
cons
of
this
hypothesis
are
discussed
in
Section V of
this
paper.)
In
general, the
entire
field of paranormal research in the USSR
is part of a larger one concerned with the interaction between
electromagnetic
fields and
living organisms [41],
[42],
At
the
First
International
Congress
on
Parapsychology
and
Psychotronics in Prague, Czechoslovakia, in 1973, for example,
Kholodov spoke
at
length about the
susceptibility of living
systems to extremely low-level ac and dc fields. He described
conditioning effects on the behavior of fish resulting from the
application of 10 to 100 /xW of RF to their tank [43],
The
USSR take these data seriously
in that the Soviet safety re-
quirements
for
steady-state
microwave
exposure
set
limits
at
1 0 txW/cm
, whereas the United States has set a steady-state
limit of 10 mW/cm
[44].
Kholodov spoke
also about the
nonthermal effects of microwaves on animals’ central nervous
systems.
His experiments were very carefully carried out and
are characteristic of a new dimension in paranormal research.
The increasing importance of this area in Soviet research was
indicated recently when the Soviet Psychological Association
issued an unprecedented position paper calling on the Soviet
Academy
of
Sciences to
step up
efforts
in
this area
[45].
They
recommended
that
the
newly
formed
Psychological
Institute
within
the
Soviet Academy
of
Sciences
and
the
Psychological Institute of the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences
review the area and consider the creation of a new laboratory
within one
of the
institutes
to
study persons with unusual
abilities.
They also recommended a comprehensive evaluation
of experiments and theory by the Academy of Sciences’ Insti-
tute of Biophysics and Institute for the Problems of Informa-
tion Transmission.
The
Soviet
research,
along
with
other
behavioristically
oriented work,
suggests
that
in
addition
to obtaining overt
responses such as verbalizations or key presses from a subject,
it should be possible to obtain objective evidence of informa-
tion transfer by direct measurement of physiological parame-
ters
of
a
subject.
Kamiya,
Lindsley,
Pribram,
Silverman,
Walter, and others brought together to
discuss physiological
methods
to
detect ESP
functioning, have
suggested
that
a
whole range of electroencephalogram (EEG) responses such as
evoked potentials (EP’s), spontaneous EEG, and the contingent
negative variation (CNV) might be sensitive indicators of the
detection
of remote
stimuli not mediated by usual sensory
processes [46].
Early
experimentation
of
this
type
was
carried
out by
Douglas Dean
at the Newark College of Engineering.
In his
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PROCEEDINGS OF THE IEEE, MARCH 1976
search for physiological correlates of information transfer, he
used
the plethysmograph
to
measure
changes
in
the blood
volume in a finger, a sensitive indicator of autonomic nervous
system functioning
[47].
A plethysmographic measurement
was made on the
finger of a subject during telepathy experi-
ments.
A
sender looked
at randomly selected target
cards
consisting of na;mes known to the subject, together with names
unknown to him (selected at random from a telephone book).
The names of the known people were contributed by the sub-
ject and were to be of emotional significance to him.
Dean
found
significant
changes
in
the
chart
recording
of
finger
blood volume when the remote sender was looking
at those
names known to the subject
as compared with those names
randomly chosen.
Three
other experiments
using the physiological approach
have now been published. The first work by Tart [48 ]
, a later
work by Lloyd
[49], and most
recently
the work by
the
authors
[4]
all Tollow a similar procedure.
Basically, a subject
is closeted in an
electrically shielded room while his EEG
is
recorded.
Meanwhile, in another laboratory, a second person
is stimulated from time to time, and the time of that stimulus
is marked on the magnetic-tape recording of the subject’s EEG.
The subject do^s not know when the remote stimulus periods
are as compared with the nonstimulus periods.
With regard to choice of stimulus for our own experimenta-
tion, we noted that
in previous work others had attempted,
without
success, to detect evoked potential changes in a sub-
ject’s EEG in response to a single stroboscopic flash stimulus
observed by
another
subject
[50].
In
a discussion of that
experiment, Kamiya suggested that because of the unknown
temporal characteristics of the information channel,
it might
be more appropriate to use repetitive bursts of light to increase
the probability :of detecting information transfer [51].
There-
fore, in our study we chose to use a stroboscopic flash train of
10-s duration as! the remote stimulus.
In the design |of the study, we assumed that the application
of the remote
stimulus would
result
in responses similar to
those
obtained
: under conditions of direct stimulation.
For
example,
when
an
individual
is
stimulated
with
a
low-
frequency (< 30 Hz)
flashing
light, the EEG typically shows
a
decrease
in
the
amplitude
of
the
resting rhythm and
a
driving of the brain waves at the frequency of the flashes [52]
.
We hypothesized
that
if we
stimulated
one
subject
in
this
manner
(a putative sender), the EEG of another subject in a
remote room With no
flash present
(a receiver) might show
changes
in
alpha
(9-11 Hz)
activity
and
possibly an EEG
driving similar to that of the sender, or other coupling to the
sender’s EEG
[53].
The
receiver was
seated
in
a
visually
opaque,
acoustically and
electrically shielded, double-walled
steel room about
7 m from the sender.
The
details of the
experiment,
consisting
of seven runs of thirty-six
10-s
trials
each (twelve periods each for 0-Hz, 6-Hz, and 16-Hz stimuli,
randomly intermixed), are presented in
[4],
This experiment
proved to be successful. The receiver’s alpha activity (9-1 1 Hz)
showed a significant reduction in average power (-24 percent,
p < 0.04) and :peak power (-28
percent, p < 0.03)
during
16-Hz
flash
stimuli
as
compared
with
periods
of
no-flash
stimulus.
[A similar response was observed for 6-Hz stimuli
(-12 percent iq average power, -21
percent in peak power),
but
the
latter
result
did
not reach
statistical
significance.]
Fig. 2 shows an overlay of three averaged EEG spectra from
one
of
the
subject’s 36
trial
runs, displaying differences in
alpha activity during the three stimulus conditions.
Extensive
Fig. 2.
Occipital EEG frequency spectra, 0-20 Hz, of one subject (H.H.)
acting as receiver showing amplitude changes in the 9-1 1-Hz band as a
function of strobe frequency.
Three cases:
0-, 6-, and 16-Hz flashes
(twelve trial averages).
results
were
produced
by system
artifacts,
electromagnetic
pickup (EMI), or subtle cueing; the results were negative [4]
.
As part of the experimental protocol, the subject was asked
to indicate a conscious assessment for each trial (via telegraph
key)
as to the nature of the stimulus; analysis showed these
guesses to be at chance.
Thus arousal as evidenced by signifi-
cant alpha blocking occurred only at the noncognitive level of
physiological response.
Hence the experiment provided direct
physiological (EEG) evidence of perception of remote stimuli
even in the absence of overt cognitive response.
Whereas in our experiments we used a remote light flash as a
stimulus,
Tart
[48]
in
his work used an electrical shock to
himself as sender, and Lloyd
[49] simply told the sender to
think
of
a red
triangle each time
a
red warning
light was
illuminated
within
his
view.
Lloyd
observed
a
consistent
evoked
potential in
his subjects; whereas in our experiments
and
in Tart’s,
a reduction in amplitude and a desynchroniza-
tion of alpha was observed—an arousal response.
(If a subject
is
resting
in
an
alpha-dominant
condition
and
he
is then
stimulated, for example in any direct manner, one will observe
a desynchronization and decrease
in alpha power.)
We con-
sider that these combined results are evidence for the existence
of noncognitive awareness of remote happenings and that they
have a profound implication for paranormal research.
III. SRI Investigations of Remote Viewing
Experimentation
in
remote
viewing
began
during
studies
carried out to
investigate the
abilities of
a New York artist,
Ingo Swann, when he expressed the opinion that the insights
gained during experiments at SRI had strengthened his ability
(verified
in other research before he joined the SRI program)
to view remote
locations
[54].
To
test Mr. Swann’s
asser-
tion, a pilot study was set up in which a series of targets from
around the globe were supplied by SRI personnel to the ex-
perimenters on
a
double-blind
basis.
Mr. Swann’s apparent
ability
to
describe
correctly
details
of
buildings,
roads,
bridges, and
the
like
indicated
that
it may
be possible
for
a subject by means of mental imagery to access and describe
randomly
chosen
geographical
sites
located
several
miles
from
the subject’s position and demarcated by some appro-
priate
means.
Therefore, we
set up a research program to
test
the remote-viewing hypothesis under
rigidly
controlled
scientific conditions.
In carrying out
this program, we concentrated on what we
considered to be our principal responsibility -to resolve under
control App^oved tForiReffeas
|e 2O011/03/2
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[D TARG: PERCEPTUAL CHANNEff^IR INFORMATION TRANSFER
PUTHOFF AND TARG: PERCEPTUAL CHANNEPTUR
class
of paranormal perception phenomenon
exists.
At
all
times, we and others responsible for the overall program took
measures to prevent sensory leakage and subliminal cueing and
to
prevent
deception, whether
intentional
or unintentional.
To ensure
evaluations independent of belief structures of both
experimenters and judges,
all experiments were
carried out
under a protocol, described below, in which target selection at
the beginning of experiments and blind judging of results at
the end
of experiments were handled independently of the
researchers engaged in carrying out the experiments.
Six subjects, designated SI through S6, were chosen for the
study. Three were considered as gifted or experienced subjects
(SI
through S3), and three were considered
as learners (S4
through
S 6).
The
a
priori dichotomy between
gifted and
learners
was
based
on
the
experienced group
having been
successful
in
other
studies
conducted
before
this program
and
the
learners group
being inexperienced with
regard
to
paranormal experimentation.
The
study
consisted of a series of double-blind
tests with
local targets in the San Francisco Bay Area so that several in-
dependent judges could visit the sites to establish documenta-
tion.
The protocol was to closet the subject with an experi-
UWU.
„
menter
at SRI and
at an agreed- on time to obtain trom tne
subject
a
description
of
an
undisclosed
remote
site
being
visited by a target team.
In each of the experiments, one of
the
six
program
subjects
served
as remote-viewing
subject,
and SRI experimenters served as a target demarcation team at
the
remote
location
chosen
in
a
double-blind
protocol
as
follows.
,
.
,
In
each
experiment,
SRI management randomly
chose
a
target location from a
list of targets within a 30-min driving
time from SRI; the target location selected was kept blind to
subject and experimenters.
The target pool consisted of more
than 100
target locations chosen from a target-rich environ-
ment.
(Before the experimental series began, the Director of
the Information Science and Engineering Division, not other-
wise associated with the experiment, established the set of lo-
cations as the target pool which remained known only to him.
The target locations were printed on cards sealed in envelopes
and kept in the SRI Division office safe.
They were available
only with the personal assistance of the Division Director who
issued
a single random-number selected
target card that con-
stituted the traveling orders for that experiment.)
In detail: To begin the experiment, the subject was closeted
with an experimenter at SRI to wait 30 min before beginning
a narrative description of the remote location. A second ex-
perimenter then obtained from the Division Director a target
location from a set of traveling orders previously prepared and
randomized by the Director and kept under his control.
The
target demarcation team, consisting of two to four SRI experi-
menters, then proceeded by automobile directly to the target
without any communication with the subject or experimenter
remaining behind.
The experimenter remaining with the sub-
ject at SRI was kept ignorant of both the particular target and
the
target pool
so
as
to
eliminate the
possibility of cueing
(overt or subliminal) and to allow him freedom in questioning
the subject to clarify his descriptions.
The demarcation team
remained
at the
target
site
for an agreed-on 15-min period
following the 30 min allotted for travel.4
During the observa-
4 The
first subject (Si) was allowed 30 min for his descriptions
but
it was found that he fatigued and had
little comment after the first
I S
min. TheApp^V€daR^Rema^°2
100'fyO
,3f2'6
c
!
s
S2 through Sb.
tion period, the remote-viewing subject was asked to describe
his impressions of the target
site into a tape recorder and to
make any drawings he thought appropriate. An informal com-
parison was then made when the demarcation team returned,
and the subject was taken to the site to provide feedback.
A.
Subject SI: Experienced
To begin the series, Pat Price, a former California police com-
missioner and
city
councilman,
participated
as
a subject in
nine
experiments.
In
general,
Price’s
ability
to
describe
correctly buildings, docks, roads, gardens, and the like, includ-
ing
structural materials,
color, ambience, and
activity- often
in
great
detail-indicated
the
functioning
of
a remqte
per-
ceptual
ability.
A Hoover Tower
target,
for example, was
recognized and named by name.
Nonetheless, in general, the
descriptions contained
inaccuracies
as
well
as
correct
state-
ments. A typical example is indicated by the subject s drawing
shown
in Fig.
in which he correctly described
a park-like
area containing two pools of water: one rectangular, 60 by
ft
(actual dimensions 75 by 100
ft); the other
circular,
diameter 120
ft (actual diameter 110 ft). He incorrectly indi-
cated the
function, however,
as water filtration rather than
recreational swimming.
(We often observe essentially correct
descriptions of basic elements and patterns coupled with in-
complete or erroneous analysis of function.)
As can be seen
from
his drawing, he
also included some elements, such as
the tanks shown in the upper right, that are not present at the
target site. We also note an apparent left-right reversal, often
observed in paranormal perception experiments.
To
obtain
a numerical
evaluation
of the
accuracy of the
remote-viewing
experiment,
the
experimental
results
were
subjected to independent judging on a blind basis by an SRI
research
analyst not
otherwise associated with the research.
The
subject’s
response
packets,
which
contained
the
nine
typed
unedited
transcripts
of
the
tape-recorded
narratives
along with any associated drawings, were unlabeled and pre-
sented in random order.
While standing
at each target loca-
tion, visited in turn, the judge was required to blind rank order
!
the nine packets on a scale
1 to 9 (best to worst match). The
:
statistic of interest is the sum of ranks assigned to the target-
’
associated
transcripts, lower values indicating better matches.
For nine targets, the sum of ranks could range from nine to
,
eighty-one.
The probability that a given sum of ranks s or
less will occur by chance is given by [55 ]
s
k
Pr (s or less)
M
i=n
1=0
where s
is obtained sum of ranks, N is number of assignable
ranks, n
is number of occasions on which rankings were made,
and
l takes on values from zero to the least positive integer k
in
(i - n)/n.
(Table
I
is a table to enable easy application of
the above formula to those cases in whichN = n.) The sum in
this case, which included seven direct hits out of the nine^was
(see Table
II),
a
result
significant
at p = 2.9 X 10
by
exact calculation.
In Experiments
3, 4, and 6 through
9, the subject was se-
cured
in
a double-walled
copper-screen Faraday
cage.
The
Faraday
cage
provides
120-dB
attenuation' for
plane-wave
radio-frequency radiation over a range of
15 kHz to
1 GHz.
For magnetic
fields, the attenuation
is 68 dB at 15 kHz and
decreases to 3 dB at 60 Hz.
The results of rank order judging
electrical
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PROCEEDINGS OF THE IEEE, MARCH 1976
TABLE
I
; Number of
| Aasignable
Proljabiliify
(on.e-tail<2d)
tha t
the Indicated
Sum
MATCHING
of Ranks
or Less Would occur by chan«
| Ranks
(N)
0.20
0.10
0.05
0.04
0.025
0.01
0.005
0.002
0.0D1
0.0005
10-4
10"6
10~s
10-7
!
j
2.2
!
26.
i
22'
|
Note: This
table
aonlie:
s nnlv
fn
tlii
*47
a* being ranked
(„)
is equal to thenuVbe^
°"* °bjeCtS
number that is significant at the indicated p-level. SmXmSs
*ly represents the
shielding does not prevent high-quality descriptions from being
obtained.
I
*
As a backup judging procedure, a panel of five additional
,
scientists not otherwise associated with the research were
asked simply
to blind match the unedited typed
transcripts
(with
associated
drawings) generated by
the remote
viewer
against
the nine
target
locations which
they independently
visited in turn.
Thd transcripts were unlabeled and presented
m random order.
A correct match consisted of a transcript
of a given date being matched to the target of that date
In-
stead of the expected number of
1 match each per judge
the
number of correct matches obtained by the five judges was 7
6, 5
3, and
3, respectively.
Thus, rather than the expected
total number of 5
Correct matches from the judges, 24 such
matches wer^^i^ec, For Release 2001/03/26
B.
Subject S4: Learner
This experiment was designed to be a replication of our pre-
vious experiment with Price, the
first replication attempted
The
subject
for
this experiment was Mrs. Hella Hammid
a
gifted
professional photographer.
She was
selected for this
series on
the
basis of her
successful performance
as a per-
cipient in the EEG experiment described earlier.
Outside of
that interaction, she had no previous experience with apparent
paranormal functioning.
At
the' time we began working with Mrs. Hammid, she had
no, strong feelings about the likelihood of her ability to suc-
ceed m
this task.
This was in
contrast to both Ingo Swann
who had come
to our laboratory fresh from a lengthy and
337
putho ff Arw
^jl[^^]^[6^,QPi'|i/Q>3/3fiT0tCIrf^ROP96-00787
0200080007-7
Fig. 4.
TABLE II
Distribution of Rankings Assigned to Transcripts
ASSOCIATED W,T„ EACH TARGET LOCATION FOR EXPERIENCED
Target Location
Hoover Tower,
Stanford
Bay land a Nature Preserve,
Palo Alto
Radio
telescope,
Portola Valley
Marina,
Redwood City
Bridge
toll
plaza,
Fremont
Drive-in theater,
Palo Alto
Arts and Crafts
Plaza, Menlo Park
Catholic Church,
Portola Valley
Swimming pool complex,
Palo Alto
Total
sum of ranks
Distance
|
(km)
Rank
of
Associated
Transcript
3.4
6.4
6.4
6.8
14.5
5.1
L
1.9
8.5
3.4
j
( P=2.9xur B
)
scientific
rigor, one of our primary tasks as researchers
is to
provide
an environment
in which
the
subject
feels
safe
to
explore the possibility of paranormal perception.
With a new
subject we also try to stress the nonuniqueness of the ability
because from our experience paranormal functioning appe
to be a latent
ability
that
all subjects can articulate to some
^Because of Mrs. Hammid’s
artistic background, she was ca-
pable of drawing and
not identify in any cognitive or analytic
demarcation
team went
to
a
target
who
felt that he used his remote-viewing ability in his every-
d
Tn
U
c
f
omparison with the
latter two, many people
^
are more
influenced
by
their
environment
and
are
reluctant und
public scrutiny to attempt activities that are
to be impossible.
Society often provides inhibition and nega
tive
feedback
to
the
individual who might
otherwise have
explored his own nonregular perceptual ability. We ah share
an
historical
tradition
of
“the
stoning
of prophets and the
burning of witches” and, in more modern times, the hospitaliza-
tion of-those who claim to p^ceive thmgstiiat the majority ^
not
a
pable ot drawing aim u»w.™.0 —
.
~
,
t
t
not identify in any cognitive or analytic sense
When the target
demarcation
team went
to
a
target
location wh^h was
pedestrian overpass, the subject
said that she saw
^
trough up
in the
air,” which she indicated in the upper part
of her drawing in Fig.
4.
She went on to explain
I
stand where
they
are
standing you
will
see somethmghk
this” indicating the nested squares at the bottom of Fig.
,
As
It turned out, a judge standing where she indicated would
have a view closely resembling what she had drawn, as can be
seen from the accompanying photographs of the target loca-
tion
It needs to be emphasized, however, that judges did not
Lave
access
to our photographs of the
site, used here
for
Illustrative purposes only, but rather they proceeded to each
"LIT'
subject
described
seeing “an
barton
the
wall.”
Her drawing and
a photograph ^Jhe
oars un
.
.
tjs„
c
associated bicycle shed target are shown mi Fig.
are encouraged to make drawings of anythmg they visualize
, of witches” and, in more.modern times, me
of 1
e mne
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PROCEEDINGS OF THE IEEE, MARCH 1976
Fig.: 5.
Subject Hammid (S4) response to bicycle shed target described as an open “barn-iike building” with “slats
on the sides” and a “pitched roof.”
TABLE
III
Distribution of; Rankings Assigned to Transcripts Associated
with Each Target Location for Learner Subject Hammid (S4)
i
Target Location
Distance
(km)
Rank of
Associated
Transcript
Methodist Church,! Palo Alto
1.9
Ness Auditorium,
Menlo Park
0.2
Merry-go-round,
Palo Alto
3.4
Parking garage, Mountain View
8.1
SRI
International iCourtyard,
Menlo park
0.2
Bicycle
shed, Menlo Park
0.L
Railroad
trestle bridge,
Palo Alto
1.3
Pumpkin patch,
Mertlo
park
1.3
Pedestrian
overpas's,
Palo Alto
5.0
Total
sum of ranks
(psl. 8xl0" 6
)
experiment series were submitted for independent judging on
a blind basis by an SRI research analyst not otherwise associ-
ated with the
research.
While at each target location, visited
in turn, the judge was required
to
blind rank order the nine
unedited
typed
manuscripts of the tape-recorded
narratives,
along with any associated drawings generated by the remote
viewer, on a scale
to 9 (best to worst match).
The sum of
ranks assigned to the target-associated transcripts in this case
was 13, a result significant at p = 1.8 X
10'6 by exact calcula-
tion (see Table
I and discussion), and included five direct hits
and four
Again,
as a backup judging procedure, a panel of five addi-
tional
judges
not
otherwise
associated
with
the
research
were
asked simply to blind match the unedited typed
tran-
scripts and associated drawings generated by the remote viewer,
against
the
nine
target
locations which
they independently
visited
in
turn.
A
correct match consisted of a transcript of
a
given
date
being matched to the
target
of that
date.
In-
stead
of
the expected number
of
match
each per judge,
the number
of
correct matches obtained by the
five judges
was
5, 3, 3, 2, and
2, respectively.
Thus, rather than the ex-
pected
total number
of
correct matches from the judges,
15 such matches were obtained.
C.
Subjects S2 and S3: Experienced
Having completed a series of 18 remote-viewing experiments,
each
with
experienced
subject
S
I
(Price) and learner S4
(Hammid), additional replication experiments, four with each
subject, were carried out with experienced subjects S2 (Elgin)
and S3 (Swann) and learners S5 and S6. To place the judging
on
a basis comparable to that used with SI and S4, the four
transcripts each of experienced subjects S2 and S3 were com-
bined into a group of eight for rank order judging to be com-
pared
with
the
similarly
combined
results
of
the
learners
S5 and S6.
The series with S2 (Elgin, an SRI research analyst) provided
a further example of the dichotomy between verbal and draw-
ing responses.
(As with medical literature, case histories often
are more illuminating than the summary of results.)
The ex-
2001/03/26
:
d with
this
TARGET—TENNIS COURTS
Fig. 6.
Subject Elgin (S2) drawings in response to tennis court target.
subject.
It was a demonstration experiment for a government
visitor who had heard of our work and wanted to evaluate our
experimental protocol.
In the laboratory, the subject, holding a bearing compass at
arm’s length, began the experiment by indicating the direction
of the target demarcation team correctly to withm 5
. Un all
four experiments with this subject, he has always been within
10° of the correct direction in this angular assessment.)
I he
subject then generated a 15-min tape-recorded description and
the drawings shown in Fig. 6.
In
discussing
the
drawings,
Elgin
indicated
that
he
was
uncertain
as
to the action, but had the impression that the
demarcation team was located
at
a museum (known to him)
in a particular park.
In fact, the target was a tennis court lo-
cated in that park about 90 m from the indicated museum.
Once
again, we note the characteristic (discussed earlier) of a
resemblance between the
target
site and certain gestalt
ele-
ments
of the
subject’s
response,
especially
in regard to the
drawings, coupled with incomplete or erroneous analysis of
the significances.
Nonetheless, when rank ordering transcripts
1 through 8 at the site, the judge ranked this transcript as 2.
This example illustrates a continuing observation that most ot
the correct information related to us by subjects is of a non-
analytic nature pertaining to shape, form, color, and material
rather than to function or name.
A second example from this group, generated by S3 (Swann),
indicates the
level of proficiency that can be attained with
practice
In the two years since we first started working wit
experiments, he dictates two
lists for us to record.
One
list
contains objects that he “sees,” but does not think are located
at the remote scene.
A second
list contains objects that he
thinks are at the scene.
In our evaluation, he has made much
progress
in
this
most
essential
ability
to
separate memoir
and imagination from paranormal inputs.
This
is the key to
bringing the remote-viewing channel to fruition with regard
o
its potential usefulness.
,
,
.
The quality of transcript that can be generated by this pro-
cess
is evident from the results of our most recent experiment
with Swann.
The target location chosen by the usual double-
blind protocol was the Palo Alto City Hall. Swann described a
tall building with vertical columns and “set in” windows.
His
sketch, together with the photograph of the site, is shewn in
Fia.
7.
He
said there was a fountain, “but
I don t hear it.
At the time the target team was at the City Hall during the
experiment, the fountain was not running.
He also made an
effort to draw a replica of the designs in the pavement in front
of the building, and correctly indicated the number of trees
(four) in the sketch.
For the entire series of eight, four each from S2 and S3, the
numerical
evaluation based on
blind rank
ordering of tran-
scripts
at each
site was significant at p = 3.8 X 10
and
in-
cluded three direct hits and three second ranks for the target-
associated transcripts (see Table IV).
D.
Subjects S5 and S6: Learners
To complete the series, four experiments each were carried
put wjth learner subjects S5 and S6, a man and woman on the
taken
as a
340
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Fig. 7.
Subject Swann (S3) response to City Hall target.
group, did not differ significantly from chance. For the sens
of eight (judged
jas a group of seven since one target came u
twice, once for ^ach subject), the numerical evaluation base
on bhnd rank
ordering
of
transcripts at each
site was not
significant at p =j0.08, even though there were two direct hit
and two second ranks out of the seven (see Table V).
One of the direjet hits, which occurred with subject S6 in he
firsl experiment, provides an example of the “first-time effect
that has been rigorously explored and is well-known to exper:
menters
in
the
field
[57],
The
outbound
experimente
obtained, by random protocol from the pool,
a
target blim
to the experimenter with the subject, as
is our standard pro
cedure, and proceeded to_the location.
The subject,.a_mathi
matician
PROCEEDINGS OF THE IEEE, MARCH 1976
TABLE IV
Distribution of Rankings Assigned to Transcripts Associated
with Each Target Location for Experienced Subjects Elgin (S2)
and Swann (S3)
Sublect
Target
Location
Distance
Rank
of
Associated
S2
BART Station
(Transit
System),
Fremont
16.
S2
Shielded
room,
SRI, Menlo Park
0.1
S2
Tennis court,
Palo Alto
3.4
S2
Golf course bridge,
Stanford
3.4
S3
City Hall,
Palo Alto
2.0
S3
Miniature golf course,
Menlo
Park
3.0
l
S3
Kiosk
in
park,
Menlo Park
0.3
S3
Baylands Nature
Preserve,
Palo Alto
Tdtal
sum of ranks
6.4
<p-3.8xl0“4
)
TABLE V
Distribution of Rankings Assigned to Transcripts Associated
with Each Target Location for Learner Subjects S3' and S6
Sublect
Target Location
Distance
Rank of
Associated
S5
Pedestrian overpass,
Palo Alto
5.0
S5
Railroad
trestle bridge,
Palo Alto
S5
Windmill,
Portola
Valley
8.5
S5,
S6
White
Plaza,
Stanford
(2)
3.8
S6
Airport,
Palo Alto
5.5
S6
Kiosk
in Park, Menlo Park
0.3
S6
Boathouse,
Stanford
4.0
Total
sum of ranks
(p=0. 08,
NS)
vious experience in remote viewing, began to describe a large
square with a fountain.
Four minutes into the experiment,
she recognized the location and correctly identified it by name
(see Fig.
8).
(It should be noted that in the area from which
the
target
locations
were
drawn
there
are
other
fountains
as
well, some of which were
in the target pool.)
As an ex-
ample of the style of the narratives generated during remote
viewing with inexperienced subjects and of the part played by
the experimenter remaining with the subject in such a
case,
we have included the entire unedited text of this experiment
as Appendix B.
E. Normal and Paranormal: Use of Unselected Subjects in
Remote Viewing
After more than
a year of following the experimental pro-
tocol described above and observing that even inexperienced
subjects generated results better than expected, we initiated a
series
of experiments to explore further whether individuals
other than putative “psychics” can demonstrate the remote-
viewing
ability.
To
test
this idea, we have a continuing pro-
gram to carry out additional experiments of the outdoor type
with new subjects whom we have no a priori reasbn to believe
have paranormal perceptual ability. To date we have collected
data from
five experiments with two individuals in this cate-
gory.
a man
and
a woman who were
visiting government
scientists interested in observing our experimental protocols.
The motivation for these particular experiments was twofold
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Fig. 8.
Subject (S6) drawing of White Plaza, Stanford University. Sub-
ject drew what she called “curvy benches” and then announced cor-
rectly that the place was “White Plaza at Stanford.”
Second, when an individual observes a successful demonstra-
tion experiment involving another person as subject,
it inevi-
tably occurs to him that perhaps chicanery
is involved. We
have found the most effective way to settle this issue for the
observer is to have the. individual himself act as a subject so as
to
obtain
personal
experience
against
which
our
reported
results can be evaluated.
The
first visitor (VI) was invited to participate as a subject
in a three-experiment series.
All three experiments contained
elements
descriptive
of the
associated
target
locations, the
quality
of response
increased
with
practice.
The
third
re-
sponse
is shown in Fig.
9, where again the pattern elements in
the drawing appeared to be a closer match than the subject s
anaiyticA^d^a f
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: C
RESPONSES OF VISITING
SCIENTIST SUBJECT
I
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TECHNOLOGY SERIES
TYPEWRITER TARGET
; o*e
e^iL* <rttcv -
a Mulwu Cm 2foA
•
v*. ;«£•
mu -
llaj
SUBJECT SWANN
(S3) RESPONSE
SUBJECT HAMM ID
(S4) RESPONSE
Fig. 10.
Drawings of a typewriter target by two subjects.
The second visitjor [V2]
participated as a subject in two ex-
periments.
In his
first experiment, he generated one of the
higher
signal-to-noise
results we have
observed.
He
began
his narrative,
There
is a red A-frame building and next to
it
is
a
large yellow .thing
[a tree-Editor]
.
Now
further left
there
is another A-shape.
It looks like a
swing-set, but
it
is
pushed down in
aj gully so
I can’t see the swings.”
[All cor-
rect.]
He then went on to describe a lock on the front door
that he
said
“looks
like
it’s made
of laminated
steel, so
it
must be a Master lock.”
[Also correct.]
For the
series
ojf five—three from the first subject and two
from
the
second-the
numerical
evaluation
based on
blind
rank ordering of the transcripts at each site was significant at
p = 0.017 and included three direct hits and one second rank
for the target-associated transcripts. (See Table VI.)
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:
TABLE VI
Distribution of Rankings Assigned to Transcripts Associated with
Sublect
Target
Location
Distance
Rank of
Associated
VI
Bridge over
stream, Menlo Park
0.3
VI
Bay lands Nature Preserve,
Palo Alto
6.4
VI
Merry-go-round,
Palo Alto
3.4
V2
Windmill,
Portola Valley
8.5
V2
Apartment
swimming pool.
Mountain View
9.1
Total
sum of ranks
“+A-R ^pc>n.007n7R0009000i .0007-
(p=0. 017)
z
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343
TARGET LOCATION:
XEROX MACHINE
(TECHNOLOGY SERIES)
TO ADD INTEREST TO TARGET
LOCATION EXPERIMENTER WITH
HIS HEAD BEING XEROXED
u>
Fie
Drawings by three subjects (S2, S3, and V3) for Xerox machine target.
When asked to describe the square at upper left of response on
the right, subject (V3) said, “There was this predominant light source which might have been a window, and a working surface which might have
been the
sill, or
a working surface
or desk.”
Earlier the subject had said, “I have the feeling that there
is something silhouetted against the
window.”
Observations
with
unselected
subjects
such
as
those
de-
scribed above indicate that remote viewing may be a latent and
widely distributed perceptual ability.
F.
Technology Series: Short-Range Remote Viewing
Because remote viewing
is
a perceptual
ability, we consid-
ered
it important to obtain data on
its resolution capabilities.
To accomplish
this, we turned to the use of indoor techno-
logical targets.
Twelve experiments were carried out with five different sub-
jects, two of whom were visiting government scientists. They
were
told
that one
of the experimenters would be
sent by
random protocol to a laboratory within the SRI complex and
that he would
interact
with the equipment or apparatus
at
that location.
It was further explained that the experimenter
remaining with the subject was, as usual, kept ignorant of the
contents of the target pool to prevent cueing during question-
ing.
(Unknown to subjects, targets in the pool were used with
replacement; one of the goals of this particular experiment was
to
obtain multiple responses to
a given target to
investigate
whether correlation of a number of subject responses would
provide enhancement of the
signal-to-noise
ratio.)
The sub-
ject
was
asked
to
describe
the
target
both
verbally
(tape
recorded) and by means of drawings during a time-synchronized
15-min
interval
in which
the outbound experimenter inter-
acted
in
an
appropriate manner with the equipment in the
target area.
In the twelve experiments, seven
targets were used:
a drill
press, Xerox machine, video
terminal,
chart
recorder, four-
state
random number
generator,
machine
shop,
and
type-
writer.
Three
of these were used
twice
(drill
press, video
Comparisons of the targets and subject drawings for three of
the
multiple-response
cases (the typewriter, Xerox machine,
and video terminal) are shown in Figs.
10, 11, and
12.
As
is
apparent
from
these
illustrations
alone,
the
experiments
provide
circumstantial
evidence
for
an
information
channel
of useful
bit
rate.
This includes experiments
in which visit-
ing
government
scientists
participated
as
subjects
(Xerox
machine
and
video
terminal)
to
observe
the
protocol.
In
general,
it appears that use of multiple-subject responses to a
single
target
provides
better signal-to-noise ratio than
target
identification by a single individual.
This conclusion
is borne
out by the judging described below.
Given
that
in
general
the
drawings
constitute
the
most
accurate portion of a subject’s description, in the first judging
procedure
a judge was asked simply to blind match only the
drawings (i.e., without tape transcripts) to the targets. Multiple-
subject responses to a given target were stapled together, and
thus
seven
subject- drawing
response
packets
were
to
be
matched to the seven different targets for which drawings were
made.
The judge did not have access to our photographs of
the
target locations, used for illustration purposes only, but
rather proceeded to each of the target locations by list. While
standing at each target location, the judge was required to rank
order the seven subject- drawing response packets (presented in
random order) on
a scale
1 to 7 (best to worst match).
For
seven targets, the sum of ranks could range from 7 to 49. The
sum
in
this
case, which included
direct hit and 4 second
ranks out of the 7 (see Table VII) was 18, a result significant
at p = 0.036.
In the second more detailed effort
at evaluation, a visiting
scientist selected
at random one of the
12 data packages (a
drill press experiment),
sight unseen and submitted
it for in-
for an esti-
terminal, and typewriter) and one (Xerox machine) came up
three timAp^^rF^c
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TARGET:
VIDEO MONITOR FOR TEXT EDITING (TECHNOLOGY SERIES)
Fig. 12. Drawing ;by two subjects of a video monitor target,
(a) Subject (S4) drawing of “box with light coming out of it
.
.
. painted flat black
andjin the middle of the room.”
(b) Second subject (V2) saw a computer terminal with relay racks in the background.
TABLE VII
Distribution of Rankings Assigned to Subject
Drawings Associated with Each Target Location
Subject)
Target
Rank of
Associated
Drawings
S3,
S4
Drill press
S2,
S3,
l! 3
Xerox machine
S4,
V2
Video terminal
S3
Chart
recorder
S4
Random number generator
S4
Machine
shop
S3,
S4
Typewriter
Total
sum of ranks
(p=0.036)
TABLE VIII
Summary: Remote Viewing
Sub ject
Number of
Experiments
p-Value,
Rank
With natural
targets
Si
(experienced)
2.9
x
10‘ 5
S2 and
S3
(experienced)
3.8
X
I0'
S4
(learner)
1.8
X
10' 6
S5 and
s6
(learners)
0.08
(NS)
VI and
V2
(learners/visitors)
0.017
With technology
targets
S2,
S3,
S4,
V2,
V3
0.036
mate as to what! was being described. The analyst, blind as to
the
target and
^iven
only
the
subject’s taped
narrative and
drawing
(Fig.
13), was
able, from
the
subject’s description
alone, to correctly classify the target as a “man-sized vertical
boring machine. ’
G. Summary of Remote Viewing Results
1)
Discussion ,i
The
descriptions
supplied
by
the
subjects
in the experiments involving remote viewing of natural targets
or
laboratory
apparatus,
although
containing
inaccuracies,
were sufficiently accurate to permit the judges to differentiate
uiai remote viewing may
oe
a latent and widely
among
v^n&^&2WWm&yC\A*G®mmQ787R000200080007 -7
tabulation of the
statistical evaluations of these fifty-one ex-
periments with nine subjects is presented in Table VIII.
The
overall
result,
evaluated
conservatively
on
the
basis
of
a
judging procedure that ignores transcript quality beyond that
necessary to rank order the data packets (vastly underestimat-
ing
the
statistical
significance
of
individual
descriptions),
clearly
indicates the
presence
of an information channel of
useful
bit
rate.
Furthermore,
it
appears
that the principal
difference
between
experienced
subjects and
inexperienced
volunteers is not that the latter never exhibit the faculty, but
rather that their results are simply less reliable, more sporadic.
Nevertheless,
as described
earlier, individual
transcripts from
the inexperienced group of subjects number among some of
the
best
obtained.
Such observations indicate a hypothesis
that remote viewing may be
a latent and widely
distributed
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TARGET: DRILL PRESS
BELT DRIVE FOR DRILL
PRESS (CAN BE SEEN ONLY
FROM ABOVE MACHINE)
In the process of judging- attempting to match
transcripts
against
targets
on
the
basis
of
the
information
in
the
transcripts-some
patterns
and
regularities
in
the
transcript
descriptions became evident, particularly regarding individual
styles
in remote viewing and in the perceptual form of the
descriptions given by
the
subjects.
These patterns and the
judging procedure are discussed below.
a)
Styles
of
response:
The
fifty-one
transcripts
were
taken
from
nine
different
subjects.
Comparing
the
tran-
scripts of one subject with those of another revealed that each
pattern
tended
to
focus
on
certain
aspects of the remote
target complex and
to
exclude
others, so that each had an
individual pattern of response, like a signature.
Subject
S3,
for example,
frequently responded with topo-
graphical descriptions, maps, and architectural features of the
target locations.
Subject S2 often focused on the behavior of
the remote experimenter or the sequence of actions he carried
out
at
the
target.
The
transcripts of subject S4, more than
those of other subjects, had descriptions of the feel of the lo-
cation,
and
experiential
or
sensory
gestalts—for
example,
light/dark
elements
in
the
scene
and
indoor/outdoor
and
enclosed/open distinctions.
Prominent features of SI
s tran-
scripts were detailed
descriptions of what the
target persons
were concretely experiencing,
seeing, or doing-for example,
standing on asphalty blacktop overlooking water; looking
at
a purple iris.
The
range
of any individual
subject’s responses was wide.
Anyone might draw a map or describe the mood of the remote
experimenter,
but
the
consistency
of each
subject’s
overall
approach
suggests
that
just
as
individual
descriptions
of
a
directly viewed scene would
differ,
so these differences also
occur in remofe-viewing processes.
b) Nature of the description:
The concrete descriptions
that appear most commonly
in transcripts are at the level of
subunits of the overall scene.
For example, when the target
was
a Xerox copy machine,
the
responses included
(S2)
a
rolling object (the moving light) or
dials and
a cover that
is
lifted (S3), but the machine as a whole was not identified by
name or function.
In
a few
transcripts,
the
subjects correctly
identified and
named
the
target.
In the
case of a computer terminal, the
subject (V2) apparently perceived the terminal and the relay
racks behind
it.
In the case of targets which were Hoover
Tower and White Plaza, the subjects (SI and S6, respectively)
seemed
to
identify
the
locations through
analysis
of
their
initial images of the elements of the target.
There were also occasional incorrect identifications.
Gestalts
were
incorrectly named
;
for example, swimming pools in a
park were identified as water storage tanks at a water filtration
plant (SI).
The most common perceptual level was thus an intermediate
one— the individual elements and items that make up the tar-
get.
This
is suggestive of a scanning process that takes sample
perceptions from within the overall environment.
When the subjects tried to make sense out of these fragmen-
tary
impressions, they
often
resorted
to metaphors or con-
structed an image with a kind of perceptual inference.
From
a feeling of the target as an “august” and “solemn
building,
a subject (S4)
said
it might be a library; it was a church. A
pedestrian overpass above a freeway was described as a conduit
(S4). A rapid transit station, elevated above the countryside,
was
associated with an
observatory
(S2).
These
responses
I in the data oackaee tq.be judged and evaluated.
seem to be the result of attempts to process partial mforma-
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Thus the primary achievement of the SRI program was the
elicitation
of
high-quality
remote
viewing from
individuals
who agreed to
act
as subjects.
Criticism of this claim could
in
principle be .put forward on the basis of three potential
flaws.
1) The study could involve naivete
in protocol that
permits various forms of cueing, intentional or unintentional.
2) The experiments discussed could be selected out of a larger
pool
of experiments
of which many
are of poorer quality.
3) Data for the reported experiments could be edited to show
only the matching elements, the nonmatching elements being
discarded.
All three criticisms, however, are invalid.
First, with regard
to cueing, the use of double-blind protocols ensures that none
of the persons in contact with the subject can be aware of the
target.
Second, selection of experiments for reporting did not
take place; every experiment was entered
as performed on a
master log and
is included in the statistical evaluations.
Third,
data associated with
a given experiment remain unedited; all
experiments
are tape recorded and
all data are included un-
edited
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346
tion:
similarly,
this occurs in other parapsychological experi-
ments. These observations are compatible with the hypotheses
that information feceived in a putative remote-viewing mode
is processed piecemeal in pattern form (consistent with a low
bit
rate
process,
but not
necessarily
requiring
it); and
the
errors arise in
the; processes of attempted integration of the
data into larger patterns directed toward verbal labeling.
When
the
subjects augmented
the
verbal
transcripts
with
drawings or sketches, these often expressed the target elements
more accurately th|an the verbal descriptions.
Thus the draw-
ings tended
to
correspond
to
the
targets more
clearly and
precisely than the words of the transcript.
The descriptionsj ®*ven by the subjects sometimes went be-
yond what the remote experimenter experienced, at least con-
sciously.
For exajnple, one subject (S4) described and drew
a belt drive at the jtop of a drill press that was invisible even to
the
remote
experimenter who
was
operating
the machine;
another
subject
($1)
described
a number of items behind
shrubbery and thu$ not visible to members of the demarcation
team at the site.
Curiously, objects in motion at the remote site were rarely
mentioned in the transcript.
For example, trains crossing the
railroad
trestle target were not described, though the remote
experimenter stood! very close to them.
Also in a few cases, the subject descriptions were inaccurate
regarding size of structures. A 20-ft courtyard separating two
buildings was described
as 200
ft wide, and a small shed was
expanded to a barn-like structure.
c)
Blind judging of transcripts:
The judging procedure
entailed examining! the
transcripts
for
a given experimental
series and attempting to match the
transcripts with the cor-
rect targets on
the] basis of their correspondences.
The tran-
scripts varied from coherent and accurate descriptions to mix-
tures of correspondences and noncorrespondences.
Since the
judge did not know a priori which elements of the descriptions
were correct or incorrect, the task was complicated, and tran-
scripts often seemeijl plausibly to match more than one target.
A confounding factor in
these studies
is that some target lo-
cations have
similarities that seem alike at some level of per-
ception.
For examjple, a radio telescope at the top of a hill,
the observation dec|c of a tower, and a jetty on the edge of a
bay
all match a transcript description of “looking out over a
long distance.
A liake, a fountain, and a creek may all result
in an image of water for the
subject.
Therefore,
in
several
cases,
even correct
|images may not help
in the conservative
differential matching procedure used.
According to the judge, the most successful procedure was a
careful element-by-element comparison that tested each tran-
script against every target and used the transcript descriptions
and drawings as arguments for or against assigning the
tran-
script
to a particular target.
In most
cases,
this resulted
in
either
a
clear conclusion or
at
least
a ranking of probable
matches;
these
matches
were
subjected
to
the
statistical
analyses presented in this paper.
2) Summary:
In summary, we do not yet have an under-
standing of the nature of the information-bearing signal that a
subject perceives during remote viewing.
The subjects com-
monly report that
tjhey perceive the signal visually as though
they were looking at the object or place from a position in its
immediate
neighborhood.
Furthermore,
the
subjects’
per-
ceptual viewpoint
hjas
mobility
in
that
they can
shift
their
point of view so as to describe elements of a scene that would
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not be visible to an observer merely standing at ground level
and describing what he
sees.
(In particular, a subject often
correctly describes elements not visible to the target demarca-
tion
team.)
Finally,
motion
is
seldom
reported;
in
fact,
moving
objects
often
are
unseen
even when
nearby
static
objects are correctly identified.
A comparison of the results of remote viewing (a so-called
free-response task) with results of forced-choice tasks, such as
the selection of one of four choices generated by a random
number generator [58]
,
reveals the following findings. From a
statistical viewpoint, a subject
is more likely to describe, with
sufficient accuracy
to permit
blind matching, a remote
site
chosen at random than he
is to
select correctly one of four
random numbers. Our experience with these phenomena leads
us to consider that
this difference
in
task performance may
stem from
fundamental
signal-to-noise considerations.
Two
principal sources of noise in the system apparently are mem-
ory and imagination, both of which can give
rise to mental
pictures of greater clarity than the target to be perceived.
In
the random number task, a subject can create a perfect mental
picture of each of the four possible outputs in his own imagi-
nation and then attempt to obtain the correct answer by a
mental matching operation. The same is true for card guessing
experiments. On the other hand, the subject in remote view-
ing
is apparently more
likely
to approach
the
task with
a
blank mind as he attempts to perceive pictorial information
from remote
locations about which he may have no stored
mental data.
Finally, we
observe
that most
of the correct information
that subjects relate to us is of a nonanalytic nature pertaining
to shape, form, color, and material rather than to function or
name.
In consultation with Dr. Robert Ornstein of the Langley-
Porter Neuropsychiatric Institute, San Francisco, CA, and with
Dr. Ralph Kieman of the Department of Neurology, Stanford
University
Medical
Center,
Stanford, CA, we have formed
the
tentative
hypothesis
that
paranormal
functioning may
involve specialization
characteristic of the brain’s right hemi-
sphere.
This possibility
is derived from a variety of evidence
from
clinical and neurosurgical sources which indicate that the
two hemispheres of the human brain are specialized for dif-
ferent
cognitive functions.
The
left hemisphere
is predomi-
nantly active in verbal and other analytical functioning and the.
right hemisphere predominates
in
spatial and
other holistic
processing
[59],
[60],
Further
research
is
necessary
to
elucidate the relationship between
right hemisphere function
and
paranormal
abilities.
Nonetheless, we
can
say
at
this
point that the remote-viewing results of the group of subjects
at
SRI have
characteristics
in common
with more
familiar
performances
that
require
right
hemispheric
function.
The
similarities include the highly schematicized drawings of ob-
jects in a room or of remote scenes.
Verbal identification of
these
drawings
is
often
highly
inaccurate and
the drawings
themselves
are
frequently
left-right
reversed
relative
to the
target
configuration.
Further,
written
material generally
is
not
cognized.
These
characteristics have been
seen
in
left
brain-injured patients and in callosal-sectioned patients.
As a result of the above considerations, we have learned to
urge our subjects simply to describe what they see as opposed
to what they think they are looking at. We have learned that
their unanalyzed perceptions are almost always a better guide
to the true
target than
their interpretations of the perceived
data.
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347
IV. Considerations Concerning Time
If the authors may be forgiven a personal note, we wish to
express that this section deals with observations that we have
been reluctant to publish because of their striking apparent in-
compatibility with existing concepts.
The motivating factor
for presenting the data at this time is the ethical consideration
that
theorists endeavoring to develop models for paranormal
functioning should be apprised of
all the observable data
if
their efforts to arrive at a comprehensive and correct descrip-
tion are to be successful.
During the course of the experimentation in remote viewing
(Section
III),
subjects occasionally volunteered the informa-
tion that they had been thinking about their forthcoming par-
ticipation in a remote-viewing experiment and had an image
come to them
as to what the target location was to be.
On
these occasions, the information was given only to the experi-
menter remaining at SRI with the subject and was unknown to
the outbound experimenter
until completion of the experi-
ment.
Two
of
these
contributions were among the most
accurate
descriptions
turned
in
during
those
experiments.
Since the
target location had not yet been selected when the
subject communicated
his perceptions about
the
target, we
found the data difficult to contend with.
We offer these spontaneous occurrences not as proof of pre-
cognitive perception, but rather as the motivation that led us
to do further work in this field. On the basis of this firsthand
evidence, together with the copious literature describing years
of precognition experiments carried out in various other labo-
ratories, we decided to determine whether a subject could per-
form a perceptual task that required both spatial and temporal
remote viewing.
It
is well known and recently has been widely discussed that
nothing in the fundamental laws of physics forbids the appar-
ent transmission of information from the future to the present
(discussed further in Section V).
Furthermore, there is a gen-
eral dictum that “in physical law, everything that is not forbid-
den,
is required”
[61
]
.
With this in mind, we set out to con-
duct very well-controlled experiments to determine whether
we could deliberately design and execute experiments for the
sole
purpose
of
observing
precognition
under
laboratory
conditions.
The experimental protocol was identical to that followed in
previous remote-viewing experiments with but one exception.
The exception was that the subject was required to describe
the remote location during a 15-min period beginning 20 min
before the target was selected and 35 min before the outbound
experimenter was to arrive at the target location.
In detail, as shown in Table IX, each day at ten o’clock one
of the
experimenters would
leave SRI with
a stack of ten
sealed envelopes from a larger pool and randomized daily, con-
taining traveling instructions that had been prepared, but that
were unknown to the two experimenters remaining with the
subject.
The subject for this experiment was Hella Hammid
(S4) who participated in the nine-experiment series replicating
the original Price work described earlier. The traveling experi-
menter was to drive continuously from 10:00 until 10:30 be-
fore selecting his destination with a random number generator.
(The motivation for continuous motion was our observation
that objects and persons in rapid motion are not generally seen
in the remote-viewing mode of perception, and we wished the
traveler to be a poor target until he reached his target site.) At
the end of 30 min of driving, the traveling experimenter gener-
TABLE IX
Experimental Protocol: Precognitive Remote Viewing
Time
Schedule
Experimenter/Subject Activity
10:00
Outbound experimenter
leaves with
10 envelopes
(containing
target
locations)
and random number
generator;
begins half-hour drive
10:10
Experimenters
remaining with
subject
in
the
laboratory
elicit
from subject
a description of where
outbound
experimenter will
be
from 10:45-11:00
10:25
Subject
response completed,
at
which
time
laboratory part
of experiment
is
over
10:30
Outbound experimenter obtains
random number
from
a random
number generator,
counts
down
to associated envelope,
and
proceeds
to
target
location indicated
10:45
Outbound experimenter
remains
at
target
location
for
15 minutes
(10:45-11:00)
Fig. 14.
Subject Hammid (S4) described “some kind of congealing tar,
or maybe an area of condensed lava
.
.
. that has oozed out to fill up
some kind of boundaries.”
ated
a random
digit from 0 to 9 with a Texas Instruments
SR-51 random number generator;
while
still
in motion, he
counted down
that number of envelopes and proceeded
di-
rectly to the target location so as to arrive there by 10:45. He
remained
at the target
site until
1 1 :00, at which time he re-
turned to the laboratory, showed his chosen target name to a
security guard, and entered the experimental room.
During the same period, the protocol in the laboratory was
as follows.
At 10: 10, the subject was asked to begin a descrip-
tion of the place to which the experimenter would go 35 min
hence.
The subject then generated a tape-recorded description
and associated drawings from 10:10 to 10:25, at which time
her part
in the experiment was ended.
Her description was
thus entirely concluded 5 min before the beginning of the tar-
get selection procedure.
Four such experiments were carried out.
Each of them ap-
peared to be successful, an evaluation later verified in blind
judging without error by three judges.
We
will briefly sum-
marize the four experiments below.
The
first target, the Palo Alto Yacht Harbor, consisted en-
tirely of mud flats because of an extremely low tide (see Fig.
14).
Appropriately, the entire transcript of the subject per-
tained to “some kind of congealing tar, or maybe an area of
condensed lava.
It looks like the whole area is covered with
some kind of wrinkled elephant skin that has oozed out to fill
up some
kind
of boundaries where
(the outbound
experi-
menter) is standing.”
Because of the lack of water, the dock
where the remote experimenter was standing was in fact rest-
ing directly on the mud.
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Fig. 15.
Subject (S4) described a formal garden “very well manicured”
behind a double colonnade.
Note that the: subject has learned not to rush into interpreta-
tion as to the nature or purpose of the place.
This is a result
of our cautioning based on the observation that such efforts
tend to be purely analytical and in our experience are almost
invariably incorrect.
If a subject can limit himself to what he
sees, he
is oftejn then able to describe a scene with sufficient
accuracy that an observer can perform the analysis for him and
identify the place.
The second target visited was the fountain at one end of a
large formal garden at Stanford University Hospital (Fig.
15).
The subject gave a lengthy description of a formal garden be-
hind a wall with a “double colonnade” and “very well mani-
cured.”
When we later took the subject to the location, she
was herself taken aback to find the double colonnaded wall
leading into the garden just as described.
The third target was a children’s swing at a small park 4.6 km
from the laboratory (Fig.
16). The subject repeated again and
again that the main focus of attention at the site was a “black
iron
triangle
that the outbound experimenter had somehow
walked
into or was standing on.”
The triangle was “bigger
than a man,” and she heard a “squeak, squeak, about once a
second,” whicli we observe is a match to the black metal swing
Fig. 17.
Subject (S4) described a very tall structure located among city
streets and covered with “Tiffany-like glass.”
The final target was the Palo Alto City Hall (Fig.
17).
The
subject
described
a
very,
very
tall
structure
covered
with
“Tiffany-like glass.”
She had it located among city streets and
with little cubes at the base. The building is glass-covered, and
the
little cubes are a good match to the small elevator
exit
buildings located in the plaza in front of the building.
To obtain a numerical evaluation of the accuracy of the pre-
cognitive viewing, the experimental results were subjected to
independent judging on a blind basis by three SRI scientists
who were not otherwise associated with the experiment. The
judges were asked
to match the four locations, which they
visited,
against
the unedited typed manuscripts of the tape-
recorded narratives, along with the drawings generated by the
remote viewer.
The transcripts were presented unlabeled and
in random order and were to be used without replacement. A
correct match required that the transcript of a given experi-
ment be matched with the target of that experiment.
All three
judges independently matched the target data to the response
data without error. Under the null hypothesis (no information
channel and
a random
selection of descriptions without re-
placement), each judge independently obtained a result signifi-
cant at p = (4!)
1 =0.042.
For reasons we do not as yet understand, the four transcripts
generated in the precognition experiment show exceptional co-
herence and accuracy as evidenced by the fact that all of the
judges were able to match successfully all of the transcripts to
that did squeak.
judges were aoie ro marcn suceessiimy au v* me
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349
the corresponding target locations. A long-range experimental
program devoted to the clarification of these issues and involv-
ing a number of subjects is under way. The above four experi-
ments are the first four carried out under this program.
Currently, we have no precise model of this spatial and tem-
poral remote-viewing phenomenon.
However, models of the
universe
involving higher
order
synchronicity
or correlation
have been proposed by the physicist Pauli and the psychologist
Carl Jung [62]
.
ACAUSALITY.
If natural law 5 were an absolute truth, then of
course
there
could not possibly be any processes that deviate
from
it.
But since causality5
is a statistical truth,
it holds good
only on average and thus leaves room for exceptions which must
somehow be experienceable, that is to say, real,
1 try to regard
synchronistic
events as acausal exceptions of this kind.
They
prove to be relatively independent of space and time; they rela-
tivize space and time insofar as space presents in principle no ob-
stacle to
their passage and the sequence of events in time is in-
verted so that
it looks as if an event which has not yet occurred
were causing a perception in the present.
We
shall
see
in
the next
section
that such a description,
though poetic, has some basis in rhodern physical theory.
V.
Discussion
It
is important to note at the outset that many contempo-
rary physicists are of the view that the phenomena that we
have
been
discussing
are
not
at
all
inconsistent
with
the
framework of physics as currently understood.
In this emerg-
ing view, the often-held
belief that observations of this type
are incompatible with known laws
in principle
is erroneous,
such
a concept
being
based
on
the
naive
realism prevalent
before
the
development
of
modern
quantum
theory
and
information theory.
One hypothesis, put forward by
I. M. Kogan of the USSR,
is
that
information
transfer
under
conditions
of
sensory
shielding
is
mediated
by
extremely
low-frequency
(ELF)
electromagnetic
waves
in
the
300-1000-km
region
[37] -
[40].
Experimental
support
for
the
hypothesis
is claimed
on the basis of slower than inverse square attenuation, com-
patible
with
source-percipient
distances
lying
in
the
induc-
tion
field range
as opposed to the radiation
field range; ob-
served
low
bit
rates
(0.005-0.1
bit/s)
compatible with the
information carrying capacity of ELF waves; apparent ineffec-
tiveness of ordinary electromagnetic shielding as an attenuator;
and standard antenna calculations entailing biologically gener-
ated currents yielding results compatible with observed signal-
to-noise ratios.
M. Persinger, Psychophysiology Laboratory, Laurentian Uni-
versity, Toronto, Canada, has narrowed the ELF hypothesis to
the
suggestion
that
the
7.8-Hz “Shumann waves” and
then-
harmonics propagating along the earth-ionosphere waveguide
duct may be responsible.
Such an hypothesis
is compatible
with driving by brain-wave currents and leads to certain other
hypotheses such
as asymmetry between east-west and west-
east
propagation,
preferred
experimental
times (midnight-4
A.M.),
and
expected
negative
correlation
between
success
and
the U
index
(a
measure
of
geomagnetic
disturbance
throughout
the
world).
Persinger claims
initial support
for
these factors on the basis of a literature search [63]
, [64]
.
On the negative side with regard to a straightforward ELF
interpretation as a blanket hypothesis are the following: a) ap-
5 As usually understood.
parent real-time descriptions of remote activities in sufficient
detail to require a channel capacity in
all probability greater
than that allowed by
a conventional modulation of an ELF
signal; b) lack of a proposed mechanism for coding and decod-
ing the information onto the proposed ELF carrier; and c) ap-
parent precognition data. The hypothesis must nonetheless re-
main open at this stage of research, since it is conceivable that
counterindication
a) may eventually be circumvented on the
basis that the apparent high bit rate results from a mixture of
low bit rate input and high bit rate “filling in the blanks” from
imagination; counterindication b)
is common to a number of
normal perceptual
tasks and may therefore simply reflect a
lack of sophistication on our part with regard to perceptual
functioning
[65]; and
counterindication
c) may be accom-
modated by an ELF hypothesis
if advanced waves as well as
retarded waves are admitted [66], [67].
Experimentation to
determine whether the ELF hypothesis is viable can be carried
out by the use of ELF sources as targets, by the study of para-
metric
dependence on
propagational
directions and
diurnal
timing, and by the exploration of interference effects caused
by
creation of
a high-intensity ELF environment during ex-
perimentation,
all of which are under consideration in our lab-
oratory and elsewhere.
Some physicists believe that the reconciliation of observed
paranormal functioning with modern theory may take place at
a more fundamental level—namely, at the level of the founda-
tions of quantum theory.
There
is a continuing dialog, for
example, on the proper interpretation of the effect of an ob-
server
(consciousness)
on
experimental
measurement
[68],
and there
is considerable current interest
in the implications
for our notions of ordering in time and space brought on by
the observation [69], [70]
of nonlocal correlation or “quan-
tum interconnectedness” (to use Bohm’s term [71
] ) of distant
parts
of quantum systems of macroscopic dimensions.
The
latter,
Bell’s theorem
[72], emphasizes
that “no theory of
reality compatible with quantum theory can require spatially
separated events to be independent”
[73], but must permit
interconnectedness of distant events in a manner that is con-
trary
to. ordinary experience [74] -[75],
This prediction has
been
experimentally
tested
and
confirmed
in
the
recent
experiments
of,
for example, Freedman and
Clauser
[69],
[70],
E.
H. Walker and
O.
Costa de Beauregard, independently
proposing theories of paranormal functioning based on quan-
tum concepts, argue that observer effects open the door to the
possibility
of nontrivial coupling between consciousness and
the environment and
that
the
nonlocality principle permits
such coupling to transcend spatial and temporal barriers [76]
,
[77].
Apparent “time reversibility”-that
is, effects
(e.g., observa-
tions) apparently preceding causes (e.g., events)-though con-
ceptually difficult at
first glance, may be the easiest of appar-
ent paranormal phenomena
to
assimilate within the current
theoretical
structure of our world view.
In addition to the
familiar retarded potential solutions /(f - r/c), it is well known
that the equations
of, for example, the electromagnetic field
admit of advanced potential solutions f(t + r/c)—solutions that
would appear to imply a reversal of cause and effect.
Such
solutions are conventionally discarded as not corresponding to
any observable physical event.
One
is cautioned, however, by
statements such as that of Stratton in his basic text on electro-
magnetic theory [78]
.
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The reader hap doubtless noted that the choice of the function
f(t - r/c)
is highly arbitrary, since the field equation admits also
a solution /(f +| r/c). This function leads obviously to an advanced
time, implying that the field can be observed before it has been
generated by the source.
The familiar chain of cause and effect
is thus reversed and this alternative solution might be discarded
as logically inconceivable.
However, the application of “logical”
causality principles offers very insecure footing in matters such
as these and we shall do better to restrict the theory to retarded
action solely dn the grounds that this solution alone conforms to
the present physical data.
Such caution
isj justified by the example in the early 1920’s of
Dirac’s development
of the mathematical description of the
Relativistic electron that also yielded a pair of solutions, one of
which was discarded as inapplicable until the discovery of the
positron in 1932.
In an analysis by O. Costa de Beauregard, an argument is put
forward
that
advanced
potentials
constitute
a convergence
toward “finality” in a manner symmetrical to the divergence
of retarded
potentials
as
a
result of
causality
[77].
Such
phenomena are generally unobservable, however, on the gross
macroscopic spale for
statistical reasons.
This
is codified
in
the thermodynamic concept that for an isolated system entropy
(disorder) on the average increases.
It
is just this requirement
of isolation, however, that has been weakened by the observer
problem in quantum theory, and O. Costa de Beauregard argues
that the finality principle
is maximally operative in just those
situations where the intrusion of consciousness as an ordering
phenomenon
results in
a significant local reversal of entropy
increase.
At
tliis point, further discussion of the subtleties of
such considerations, though apropos, would take us far afield,
so we simply note that such advanced waves, if detected, could
in certain cases! constitute a carrier of information precognitive
to the event.
The above arguments are not intended to indicate that the
precise
nature! of the
information
channel coupling remote
events and hu(nan perception
is understood.
Ra.her, we in-
tend to show o|nly that modem theory is not without resources
that can be brought to bear on the problems at hand, and we
expec* that these problems will, with further work, continue
to yield to analysis and specification.
Furthermore!, independent of the mechanisms
that may be
involved
in remote sensing, observation of the phenomenon
implies
the
existence
of
an
information
channel
in
the
information-theoretic sense.
Since such channels are amenable
to analysis on ithe basis of communication theory techniques,
as indicated edrlier, channel characteristics such as bit rate can
be determined! independent of a well-defined physical channel
model in the sense that thermodynamic concepts can be ap-
plied
to
the
analysis of systems independent of underlying
mechanisms.
Furthermore, as we have seen from the work of
Ryzl discussed; in Section II, it is possible to use such a channel
for error-free transmission of information if'redundancy coding
is used.
(See ;also Appendix A.)
Therefore, experimentation
involving the collection of data under specified conditions per-
mits headway rio be made despite
the formidable work that
needs
to
be
<ione
to
clarify
the
underlying
bases
of
the
phenomena.
bilities.
The primary achievement of this program has been
the
elicitation
of high-quality “remote viewing”-the
ability
of
both
experienced
subjects and
inexperienced
volunteers
to
view, by means
of innate mental processes, remote geo-
graphical
or
technical
targets
such
as
roads,
buildings, and
laboratory apparatus.
Our accumulated data from over fifty
experiments
with more
than
a
half-dozen
subjects
indicate
the following,
a) The phenomenon
is not a sensitive function
of distance over a range of several kilometers,
b) Faraday cage
shielding does not appear to degrade the quality or accuracy of
perception,
c) Most of the correct information that subjects
relate
is
of a nonanalytic nature pertaining to shape, form,
color, and material rather than to function or name.
(This
aspect
suggests
a
hypothesis
that information
transmission
under
conditions
of sensory shielding may be mediated
pri-
marily
by
the
brain’s
right hemisphere.)
d) The
principal
difference
between
experienced
subjects and
inexperienced
volunteers is not that the latter never exhibit the faculty, but
rather that their results are simply less reliable.
(This observa-
tion
suggests
the hypothesis
that remote viewing may be a
latent
and
widely
distributed, though
repressed,
perceptual
ability.)
Although the precise nature of the information channel cou-
pling remote events and human perception
is not yet under-
stood,
certain
concepts
in
information
theory,
quantum
theory, and neurophysiological research appear to bear directly
on the
issue.
As a result, the working assumption among re-
searchers
in
the
field
is that the phenomenon of interest
is
consistent with modern
scientific thought, and can therefore
be expected
to yield to
the scientific method.
Further,
it
is
recognized
that
communication
theory
provides
powerful
techniques, such as the use of redundancy coding to improve
signal-to-noise ratio, which can be employed to pursue special-
purpose application of the remote-sensing channel independent
of an understanding of the underlying mechanisms. We there-
fore consider
it important to continue data collection and to
encourage others to do likewise; investigations such as those
reported here need replication and extension under as wide a
variety of rigorously controlled conditions as possible.
Appendix A
Signal Enhancement in a Paranormal
Communication Channel by Application
of Redundancy Coding
Independent
of
the mechanisms
that may
be
involved
in
remote
sensing,
observation of the phenomenon implies the
existence
of
an
information
channel
in
the
information-
theoretic
sense.
As we have seen from the work of Ryzl dis-
cussed in Section
II,6
it
is even possible to use such a (noisy)
channel
for
error-free
transmission
of
information
if
suf-
ficient redundancy coding is used [30]
, [31]
.
Following is a
general procedure
that we have
used successfully
for signal
enhancement.
We
shall assume that the “message” consists of a stream of
binary
digits
(0,1)
of equal probability
(e.g., binary
sort of
green/white cards as in Ryzl’s case, English text encoded as in
Table X and sent long distance by strobe light on/off, and so
on).
To combat channel
noise, each binary
digit to be sent
VI. Conclusion
through the channel requires the addition of redundancy bits
For the pastj three years we have had a program in the Elec-
(coding).
Efficient coding requires a compromise between the
tronics and Bioengineering Laboratory of SRI
to
investigate
desire to maximize reliability and the
desire to minimize re-
those
facets o^ human perception that appear to
fall outside
« See
also the note added
in proof on the successful work done by
the raAppf©i0(ifecl‘cF©pcReteasefti2OO
i1</03/®6capeiAiRDP96-OO787ROOO2OOO8OOO7-7
puthoff AAjpp«weefefHOtijRe<l:0as^QiMi^3^26TicGIA-!®DB06-OO787f^pO2OOO8OOO7 -7
351
TABLE X
5-Bit Code for Alphanumeric
Characters
E
00000
Y
01000
T
nut
G, J
10111
N
00001
w
01001
R
11110
V
10110
I
00010
B
01010
11101
10101
A
00011
01011
s,x,z
11100
10100
D
00100
01100
H
11011
10011
L
00101
01101
C,K,Q
11010
10010
F
00110
onio
P
11001
10001
U
00111
01111
M
11000
10000
Note: Alphabet characters listed
in
order of decreasing frequency
in English text.
See, for example,
A.
Sinkov
[79],
(The
low-fre-
quency letters, X, Z, K, Q, and J,
have
been grouped
with
similar
characters
to
provide
space
for
numerics
in
a
5-bit
code.)
In
consideration of the uneven
dis-
tribution of letter frequencies in
English
text,
this code
is chosen
such
that
and
have
equal
probability.
dundancy.
One efficient coding scheme for such a channel is
obtained by application of a sequential sampling procedure of
the type used
in production-line
quality control
[80],
The
adaptation of such a procedure to paranormal communication
channels,
which we now
discuss,
was
considered
first
by
Taetzsch
[81].
The sequential method gives a rule of proce-
dure for making one of three possible decisions following the
receipt of each bit: accept
1 as the bit being transmitted; reject
as
the
bit
being
transmitted
(i.e.,
accept
0); or continue
transmission of the
bit under consideration.
The sequential
sampling procedure
differs from
fixed-length coding in that
the number
of
bits
required
to
reach
a
final decision on
a
message
bit
is not fixed before transmission, but depends on
the results accumulated with each transmission. The principal
advantage of the sequential sampling procedure as compared
with the other methods
is that, on the average, fewer bits per
final
decision
are
required
for
an
equivalent
degree
of
reliability.
Use of the sequential sampling procedure requires the speci-
fication of parameters that are determined on the basis of the
following considerations.
Assume that a message bit (0 or
1)
is being transmitted.
In the absence of a priori knowledge, we
may assume equal probability (p = 0.5) for the two possibili-
ties (0,1).
Therefore, from the standpoint of the receiver, the
probability of correctly identifying the bit being transmitted is
p = 0.5 because of chance alone. An operative remote-sensing
channel could
then
be expected
to
alter the probability of
correct identification to a value p = 0.5 +
where the param-
eter
ip
satisfies 0 <
| \p
| < 0.5.
(The quantity may be positive
or
negative
depending on whether
the paranormal channel
results in
so-called psi-hitting or psi-missing.)
Good psi func-
tioning on a repetitive task has been observed to result in
ip =
0.12,
as reported by Ryzl
[31].
Therefore, to indicate the
design
procedure,
let
us
assume
a
baseline
psi
parameter
ipb = 0.1 and design a communication system on this basis.
Approved For Release 2001/03/26
:
Fig. 18. Enhancement
of
signal-to-noise
ratio by sequential sampling
procedure (p 0 = 0.4, p l = 0.6, a = 0.01, p = 0.01).
The
question
to
be
addressed
is whether,
after repeated
transmission, a given message bit is labeled a “1” at a low rate
Po commensurate with the hypothesis H0 that the bit in ques-
tion
is a “0,” or
at a higher rate Pi commensurate with the
hypothesis H j
that the
bit in question is indeed a “1.”
The
decision-making
process
requires
the
specification
of
four
parameters.
Po
The probability of labeling incorrectly a “0” message bit
as a “1.”
The probability of labeling correctly a “0” as
a “0”
is p = 0.5 +
\p b = 0.6.
Therefore, the probability
of labeling incorrectly a “0” as a “1” is
1 - p = 0.4 = Po-
Pi
The probability of labeling correctly a “1” message bit
as a “1,” is given by p t = 0.5 + ip b = 0.6.
a
The probability of rejecting a correct identification for
a “0” (Type
I error). We shall take a = 0.01.
(3
The probability of accepting an incorrect identification
for a “1” (Type II error). We shall take 0 = 0.01.
With
the parameters thus specified, the sequential sampling
procedure
provides
for construction
of
a
decision graph
as
shown in Fig. 18. The equations for the upper and lower limit
lines are
where
Zj =dt +SN
X0 = -rfo +SN
log 1-0
d i =-
Pi
1 - Po
log
Po
1 ~ Pi
d 0 =
log
1 - a
~T~
log
Pj_
1 - Po
Po
1 - Pl
S =
log
1 - Po
1 - Pl
log
Pj_
1 - Po
Po
1 - Pl
in which S is the slope, N is the number of trials, and d\ and
do
are the y-axis intercepts. A cumulative record of receiver-
generated responses to the
target
bit
is compiled until either
CIA-RDP96-00787R000200080007-7
352
Approved For^lease 2001/03/26
:
+0.4
+0.2
-0.2
-0.4
(psi
parameter)
Fig. 19.
Reliability! curve f° r sequential sampling procedure (p 0
= 0.4,
p, = 0.6, a - 0.01, P - 0.01).
tlie upper or thej lower limit line
is reached, at which point a
decision is made to accept 0 or
1 as the bit being transmitted.
Channel
reliability
(probability
of
correctly
determining
message
being
transmitted)
as
a
function
of
operative
psi
parameter
i//
is plotted in Fig. 19. As observed, the sequential
sampling procedure can result in 90 percent or greater reliability
with psi parameters on the order of a few percent.
Implementation
of
the
sequential
sampling procedure
re-
quires
the transmission of a message coded
in binary
digits.
Therefore, the
target space must consist of dichotomous ele-
ments such
as the white and green cards used in the experi-
ments by Ryzl.
;
In operation,
a sequence corresponding to the target bit (0
or 1) is sent and (he cumulative entries are made (Fig. 18) until
a decision is reached to accept either a
1 or a 0 as the bit being
transmitted.
At
a prearranged
time,
the next sequence
is
begun and contiriues as above until the entire message has been
received.
A useful alternative, which relieves the percipient of
the burden of being aware of his self-contradiction from
trial
to
trial, consists of cycling through the entire message repeti-
tively and entering each response on its associated graph until
a decision has been reached on
all message bits.
The authors
have used
this technique successfully in
a pilot study, but a
discussion of this would take us beyond the intended scope of
this paper.
From the results obtained in such experiments, the channel
bit rate can be ascertained for the system configuration under
consideration,
furthermore,
bit
rates
for
other
degrees of
reliability
(i.e., for other p 0
, Pi
. a , and (3) can be estimated by
construction of Other decision curves over the same data base
and
thus
provide
a measure
of the
bit
rate per
degree
of
reliability.
In summary, the procedures described here can provide for a
specification of the characteristics of a remote-sensing channel
under well-defined conditions.
These procedures also provide
for
a determination of the
feasibility of such a channel
for
particular applications.
Appendix B
Remote-Viewing Transcript
Following
is the unedited transcript of the first experiment
with an SRI volunteer (S6), a mathematician in the computer
viewing.
The
target, determined by random procedure, was
White’s
Plaza,
a
plaza with
fountain
at Stanford University
(shown in
Fig.
8).
As
is our standard protocol, the
experi-
menter with the subject
is kept ignorant of the specific target
visited as well as the contents of the target pool. The experi-
menter’s statements and questions are italics.
Today
is Monday, October 7th.
It is 11:00 and this is a re-
mote viewing experiment with Russ Targ, Phyllis Cole, and Hal
Puthoff.
In
this experiment Hal
will drive
to a remote
site
chosen by a random process.
Phyllis Cole will be the remote
viewer, and Russ Targ is the monitor.
We expect this experi-
ment to start at twenty minutes after eleven and run for fif-
teen minutes.
It
is just about twenty minutes after eleven and Hal should
be at his target location by now.
Why don 't you
tell me what kind of pictures you see and
what you think he might be doing or experiencing.
The
first thing that came to mind was some sort of a large,
square kind of a shape.
Like Hal was in front of it.
It was a
... not a building or something, it was a square.
I don’t know
if it was a window, but something like that so that the bottom
line of it was not at the ground. About where his waist was, at
least.
That’s what
it seemed to me.
It seems outdoors some-
how.
Tree.
Does Hal seem to be looking at that square
?
I don’t know.
The first impression was that he wasn’t, but I
have
a sense
that whatever
it was was something one might
look
at.
I don’t know if it would be a sign, but something that
one might look at.
Can you tell if it is on the ground or vertical?
It seemed vertical.
I don’t have a sense that it was part of anything particular.
It might be on a building or part of a building, but
I don’t
know.
There was a tree outside, but
I also got the impression
of cement.
I don’t have the impression of very many people
or
traffic
either.
I have
the sense
that he
is sort of walking
back and
forth.
I don’t have any more explicit picture than
that.
Can you move into where he
is standing and try to see what
he is looking at?
I picked up he was touching something-something rough.
Maybe warm and rough.
Something possibly like cement.
It is twenty-four minutes after eleven.
Can you
change your point of view and move above
the
scene so you can get a bigger picture of what’s there?
I
still
see some
trees and some
sort of pavement or some-
thing like that.
Might be a courtyard. The thing that came to
mind was it might be one of the plazas at Stanford campus or
something like that, cement.
Some kinds of landscaping.
I said Stanford campus when
I started to see some things in
White Plaza, but
I think that is misleading.
I have
the
sense
that
he’s not moving around too much.
That it’s in a small area.
I guess I’ll go ahead and say it, but I’m afraid I’m just putting
on my impressions from Stanford campus.
I had the impres-
sion of a fountain.
There are two in the plaza, and it seemed
that Hal was possibly near the, what they call Mem Claw.
What is that?
It’s
a
fountain that looks rather like a claw.
It’s a black
sculpture. And it has benches around it made of cement.
Are there any buildings at the place you are looking at? Are
courtyard.
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PUTHOFF AND TARG: PERCEPTUAL CHANNEL FOR INFORMATION TRANSFER
^
3S3
Usually
at some places
there should be a
building,
large or
small that the courtyard is about. Look at the end or the sides
of the courtyard.
Is there anything to be seen?
I have a sense that there are buildings.
It’s not solid build-
ings.
I mean there are some around the periphery and
I have a
sense that none of them are very tall. Maybe mostly one story,
maybe an occasional two story one.
Do you have any better idea of what your square was that
you saw at the outset?
No.
I could hazard different kinds of guesses.
Does it seem part of this scene?
It ...
I think it could be.
It could almost be a bulletin board
or something with notices on it maybe.
Or something that people are expected to look at. Maybe a
window with things in it that people were expected to look at.
What kind of trees do you see in this place?
I don’t know what kind they are.
The impression was that
they were shade trees and not terribly big.
Maybe 12 feet of
trunk and then a certain amount of branches above that.
So
that the branches have maybe a
12 foot diameter, or some-
thing.
Not real big trees.
New trees rather than old trees?
Yeah, maybe 5 or 10 years old, but not real old ones.
Is there anything interesting about the pavement?
No.
It seems to be not terribly new or terribly old.
Not
very interesting.
There seems to be some bits of landscaping
around.
Little patches of grass around the edges and periph-
eries. Maybe some flowers.
But, not lush.
You saw some benches. Doyou want to tell me about them?
Well,
that’s my unsure
feeling about
this fountain.
There
was some kind of benches of cement.
Curved benches, it felt
like.
They were of rough cement.
What do you think Hal is doing while he is there?
I have
a sense that he
is looking at things trying to project
them.
Looking
at different things and
sort of walking back
and forth not covering a whole lot of territory.
Sometimes standing still while he looks around.
I just had the impression of him talking, and
I almost sense
that
it was being recorded or something.
I don’t know if he
has a tape recorder, but if it’s not that, then he is saying some-
thing because
it needed to be remembered,
It’s 11:33.
He’s
just probably getting ready to come back.
is
[6
[7
[8
[9
'10
[IS
[16
[17
[18
24]
25]
26]
27]
28]
29]
30]
31]
32]
Acknowledgment
f 33
The authors wish to thank the principal subjects, Mrs. Hella
j 34
Hammid, Pat Price, and Ingo Swann, who showed patience and
forbearance
in addition to
their enthusiasm and outstanding
l 35
perceptual abilities.
We note with sadness the death of one of
[ 36
our subjects, Mr. Price.
We express our sincere thanks also to
Earle Jones, Bonnar Cox, and Dr. Arthur Hastings, of SRI, and
I 37
Mrs.
Judith
Skutch
and
Richard
Bach, without whose
en-
[ 3s
couragement
and
support
this work could
not have
taken
place.
I 39
'
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H.
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the
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: New York:
Parapsychology
Foundation, pp. 143-
169,1970.;
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R. Targ, P. Cole, and H. Puthoff, “Techniques to enhance man/
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communication,”
SRI,
Menlo
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Final
Rep.,
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Ornsteih, The Nature of Human Consciousness.
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Sperry,
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behavior,” Science,
vol. 133, pp, 1749-1757, 1961.
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the Psyche (Bollingen
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Persijnger, “ELF waves and ESP,” New Horizons
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paranormal-P.
II: Mechanisms and models,” M.S.S.
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Julesz, Foundations of Cyclopean Perception.
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IL:
Univ. Chicago Press, 1971.
[66]
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Science, J. White, Ed.
New York: Putnam, 1974, pp. 522-542.
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G.
Feinberg,
“Precognition—A memory
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in
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Conf.
Quantum
Physics
and
Parapsychology
(Geneva,
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'
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[81]
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Parapsychol., vol. 4, no.
1, p. 35, Winter 1962.
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of voltages and
currents
along
the
asynchronous
link.
Case
I: Kinetico-alternator speed ~ 1.0 pu.
V, I, P,
l
•
P
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y
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of voltages and
currents
along
the
asyiiciuonous
link. Case
II: Kinetic-alternator speed « 0.44 pu.
V, I, P, * 1.0 pu.
rated charge-the frequency converter thereby supplying '/AAAm
full charge and superwheel rated speed, CB3 can be closed, with
and CB2
open.
Ajt
this
point
the
controlled
firing-angle
(3
(with
constant-exfinction-angle, CEA, override) of the inverter vahre. u auto-
matically
adjusted
to
“float”
the
rectifier-inverter combination by
equating
the
average dc output Vr of the
rectifier with
1<' AAntil
counter dc,
V; of the inverter.
This free-wheeling is maintained until
power is desired from the supcrwhecl, whereupon
(3
isi increased lower-
ing Vi < Vr to yield the desired P 30 into the utihty as depicted on F g
.
2,3, and 4.
After drawdown the charge-up sequence is repeated during
Avus
P
this ^c/dc/ac transmission link obviates the “usual” frequency
droop and provides smooth energy flow from the kinetic storage to the
fixeddrequency
utility grid with little limitation on the variable-speed
drive. 1
As such
this link can be considered one gencral appoach
o
many problems of variable-speed input to some form of fixed output
1 Fvtcnsive
erateful
credit
must
be
given
to
Doctoral
Candidate
Bernard T. Merritt for his irreplaceable aid in setting up the equipment
and instrumentation of this project.
}
variable
freq.
f
°uiput
. p,
‘Vsv_j|*_ /ir
a = o*—*l
kinetico-aU'r.
p/-
\
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M
DArl.r
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Ic = 15,6,5,6,
•••
t
^
'
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Fig. 4. Waveforms
of
voltages
and
currents
along
‘he
asynchronous
link.
Case III: Kinetico-alternator speed * 0.28 pu.
V,I,P,
l.opu.
and has related application in areas such as wind-energy conversion sys-
tems,
dynamic
stabilization
of
system
power-transients,
recovery
of slip-frequency power from the rotor of induction machines operating
sub- or suprasynchronously, and others.
References
[1]
R. T. Dann, “The revolution
in flywheels,” Machine Design, pp.
[2]
fAf
Post^and
S
?
F. Post
, "Flywheels,” Sc. Amer., vol. 229, no. 6,
[31
D? W.AfabenhorsA‘‘Priniary
energy
storage
y
nd
‘£ e ^SpUins
wheel,”
Applied
Physics
Laboratory,
The
Johns
Hopkins
University,
Baltimore, MD,
Tech. Memo. TG
1081
(Revised),
[4]
D-?w|
Rabenhorst, “Potential applications for the superflywheel,
in Proc.
Intersociety Energy Conversion Engineering Conf, Soc.
[S] A
J
B
L
runenA ’“Tbe Aperflywheel
: A second look ” J. Eng. Mate-
ri/rlv and Tech
Trans . ASME , pp. 63-65, Jan. 1973.
[61
L.
J. Lawson,‘’“New uninterruptible power system
ing high capacity
kinetic energy wheels,
in Conf. Rec°rtl&h&*
IAS
, Eighth Annual Meeting, Milwaukee, WI, pp.
151-156, Uct.
[7] A
9?
S
eireg and K. S. Surana, “Optimum design of rotating disks,”
J Enz
for Industry > Trans. ASME, pp. 1-10, Feb. 1970.
^
[81
E. Blauenstein, “The
first
gearless drive for a tube mill,
Brow«
Boveri Review, vol. 57, pp. 96-105, Mar. 1970.
A Confirmatory Remote Viewing Experiment in a
Group Setting
ARTHUR C. HASTINGS and DAVID B. HURT
Abstract-A remote viewing experiment was conducted with a ^°“P
of 36
persons who successfully
identified, without apparent sensory
communication, a target location chosen randomly and routed‘by two
observers
(p = 6 X 10"7 ).
Success
is partly attributed to procedures
designed
to
facilitate remote viewing
abilities:
asking participants to
give themselves permission to have the ability, forming the group into
two-person teams of viewer and coach, discussing resistances, and giving
instructions on generating mental imagery and impressions.
In response to the call for studies relating to the paper by Puthoff and
Tars
on information transfer via “remote viewing” and other modes,
we wish to report an experiment with a large number of participants in
a group setting.
ThAauflwr^A'e
with
y
the
Parapsychology
Research
Group,
Inc,
Stanford, GA 94305^
Targ, “A perceptual channel for information
transfer ove
kUometer distances: Historical perspective and recent re-
search,” Proc. IEEE, vol. 64, pp. 329-354, Mar. 1974.
Approved For Release 2001/03/26
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:
The authors followed the protocol, with some modifications, estab-
lished by Puthoff and Targ
in
their SRI remote viewing experiments.
Prior to the meeting of the group, and unknown to them, wo selected
six
target
sites, wrote
their names on
cards, and
sealed them
in
en-
velopes.
These were randomly numbered,
so no one, including
us,
knew the number of any target location.
The
group
consisted
of 36
people, men and women, mostly pro-
fessional, who met with the understanding that an experiment in ESP
would be conducted.
At the time of the experiment (8:30 PM, March
16), and
in
the
presence
of
the group, one envelope was randomly
selected by throwing a die.
D. H. and a companion who was selected
from
the group
then
left with the sealed envelope.
They opened the
envelope in D. H.’s car and drove to the target
site, timing their travel
to arrive exactly ten minutes after their departure. At the site they ob-
served and interacted with the location for ten minutes, then returned
to the group meeting place.
During the time the remote team was at the target, the members of
the group
attempted
to
generate information
about
the
target
site,
making notes and or drawings of their impressions.
At the end of this
ten minute period, but before the return of the remote team and
still
ignorant of the
target location, the participants were allowed to com-
plete their notes.
Then A.
II., who had directed the group procedure,
named the six locations in the target pool and described them briefly.
(A. H. knew
the
target
sites
in
the pool, but not which one was ran-
domly
chosen.)
The participants were asked to infer what the target
was, based on the information they had generated during the
target
period.
Of the 36
participants, 20 “voted” for one
site, a playground area
with a log structure in a nearby park. The remote team returned a short
while after the vote was taken, handed over their envelope, and reported
that the playground area was indeed the target location.
Statistically, chance expectation
(a null distribution) would allot six
votes out of 36 to each of the six locations in the target pool. A f-test
(one tailed) for the 20 votes actually given to the correct target gives a
Z score of 5.22, with a probability of less than 6 X 10 -7
.
We do not wish to be blase; frankly, we were astonished by the high
level of success of the participants.
The target was a circular play area, filled with sand, and containing a
log structure with chains hanging from
it and a slide on one side. The
remote
team
climbed up
the
structure,
stood
on
the
platform,
slid
down, and took off their shoes in the sand.
There were swings next to
the play area, and a jungle gym alongside the sidewalk.
Perceptions of the participants in the group included mental pictures
of swings,
trees, park
lights, sand, and the log structure (seen as logs,
vertical columns, a balcony, etc.). Two participants reported images of
the remote team taking off their shoes.
One participant drew a circle
and wrote “playground” in
it; D. H.’s companion reported that at the
location
she had drawn
a
circle
in
the sand and had written “play-
ground” in
it.
One participant reported the correct name of the park.
Other descriptions included items outside the immediate area but which
the
travelers had observed: the jungle gym, swings, lighted windows of
houses surrounding the park, a soft drink can on the ground.
The
other
five
target
locations were
a
children’s play
tunnel
into
which
the remote team was to crawl, an orchard of flowering trees, a
busy bar and restaurant, an ice cream parlor, and a post office building.
In studying the SRI remote viewing results we concluded that the target
locations
should
vary
widely
along
certain
dimensions,
particularly
indoor/outdoor locations and dominant mood, and the sites in the pool
were chosen to be three indoor and three outdoor locations, with each
location distinct in mood from the others.
We think that the effectiveness of the experiment was partly due to
the way we conducted
it.
We began by commenting that success in re-
mote viewing seems to be helped by three conditions:
1) Accepting that
remote viewing
is possible and agreeing that you can do
it; 2) Turning
your attention away from external perceptions and to inner pictures,
experiences, and thoughts; and 3) Receiving feedback as soon as possible.
Regarding the first condition, we stated that remote viewing appeared
to be a latent ability that could be developed, and that everyone who
agreed to do remote viewing under the SRI conditions had succeeded.
We asked everyone in the group to give themselves permission to have
“ESP” or remote viewing ability. We then held a brief group discussion
on reluctance and resistance to this ability, hoping in this way to relieve
emotional blocks or intellectual
rejection.
For those who had hesita-
tions, we suggested that they give themselves permission for the limited
time and place of this experiment.
Regarding the allocation of attention, we used quiet periods in which
the participants sat with their eyes closed in silence, and became aware
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of inner images and thoughts.
We had
a practice period of one-two
minutes before the experiment to facilitate this mode of attention.
To
generate
information about
the remote
target, we advised the
participants
to
clear their minds and “request” information about the
location, then to observe what information came. We commented that
they might expect it to be in the form of pictures, images, moods, and
other perceptions.
They were instructed not to be judgmental, i.e., not
to
edit,
reject,
or ignore impressions, but
to remember and report as
much
as
they
could,
even
if fragmentary
or apparently nonsensical.
They were not to interpret what they perceived.
We hoped these in-
structions would
facilitate
an
openness
to
internal
impressions
that
would
enable
the remote
viewing information
to emerge
above
the
noise level of the usual thinking, judging, and interpreting.
For
the
actual remote viewing procedure we asked participants to
form
into
pairs, with one person acting as percipient (viewer) and the
other
acting
as
a
coach.
During the
first
five minutes of the
target
period both
remained
silent,
eyes
closed.
Then
the
percipient,
still
with eyes closed, reported
his or her information
to
the coach, who
wrote down
all the description.
Near the end of the ten minute target
period the coach could ask general questions, such as, “Is the location
indoors or outdoors?
Are there other people present?”
Coaches were primarily intended to support and assist the viewer, but
they could also try remote description themselves
if they wished. Our
earlier
statistics were based on
total votes
for target sites, combining
viewers and
coaches.
We
did not record the two groups separately,
though apparently most coaches’ votes agreed with their partner.
If we
assumed that only viewers voted, and cast 10 out of 18 votes for the
correct target, thcZ score would be reduced to4,43,givingaprobability
score of 6 X 10 -5
.
With the large number of persons,
it was necessary to go through the
schedule as a group, rather than having individuals set their own pace. It
was important to have one person to conduct the experiment, announce
quiet
periods,
times
of
viewing,
and
keep
the
proceedings
relaxed
within the protocol.
Feedback was provided on
the return of the remote team, who de-
scribed where
they wore,
details of the location, and
their
activities.
The group asked them questions to check their remote viewing descrip-
tions, and many participants
later went to the target
site
to view
it
directly.
The remote team made written notes and drawings of what
they
did,
and
in
the
future we would
suggest
tape
recording and
Polaroid photographs
to add to
the immediate feedback given to the
viewers.
We would
also note some improvements that could be made in our
procedure.
In the
results we
relied on the viewer’s own judgment to
identify the correct target; it would be better to have the remote view-
ing descriptions also judged by outside referees. The target pool should
be made up by someone not at the experiment. And we would want to
clarify whether the coaches should vote on the basis of their viewer’s
information
or
with
consideration
for information
they
themselves
have generated.
In conclusion the results of this test indicate that remote viewing did
occur under controlled
conditions
in a group setting. We believe this
justifies further exploration of this mode of information transfer.
Comments on “A Perceptual Channel for Information Transfer
over Kilometer
Distances:
Historical Perspective and Recent
Research”
Comments 1 by R. A. McConnell2
The contribution of Puthoff and Targ in their paper3 seems to me
to be two-fold.
For
a
long time the enigma of extrasensory perception has been
needing the pressure of fresh minds with broad backgrounds.
In bring-
ing to bear the viewpoint of engineering science, these authors have em-
phasized
informational,
quantum
mechanical,
and
thermodynamic
aspects of the research that have been largely ignored by most of those
who call themselves parapsychologists.
1 Manuscript received May 6, 1976.
2 R. A. McConnell
is with the Life Sciences Department, University
of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
1 5260.
3 1(.
E. Puthoff and
It. Targ, Proc. IEEE, vol. 64, pp. 329-354, Mar.
1976.
CIA-RDP96-00787R000200080007-7
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Secondly,
they
have
developed
a new and
promising procedure
called “remote viewing,” which may bring us closer to the ideal of an
i
experiment “repeatable by prescription.”
_
In
a paper reporting
a
particular
set of experiments the authors
could not hope to convey the full scope of the existing literature.
Their
references, although well chosen for
their purpose, do not provide a
busy, sceptical engineer with many toeholds into the critical literature.
Some of their experimental references are primarily of historical inter-
est because there
is no
satisfying way to assess credibility from a dis-
tance
in time.
They
cite several modern papers of good quality, but
the reader has no way of spotting these from among others that are
important for conceptual exposition but fail to meet the highest stan-
dards of evidentiality.
In connection with a course that
I teach to natural science univer-
sity students,
I have prepared an annotated “evidential bibliography of
parapsychology” and a companion “sociological bibliography” (dealing
with the taboo against parapsychology).
I shall be glad to send a copy
of each to any reader who wonders how best to try to resolve feelings
of uncertainty engendered by
the
findings
of the Puthoff and Targ
paper.
Comments 5 by William A. Harris 6
You have opened Pandora’s box by publishing the paper by Put-
hoff and Targ, 1 and
I assume you will have to publish a considerable
number of discussions as a consequence.
I personally would like to
comment on two examples used in the above paper.
1)
Subject Hella Hammid (S4) had initially demonstrated apparent
noncognitive communication (pp. 334 and 336). A possible scenario:
S4 unconsiously identifies one of the envelopes at approximately 10:0U
and causes the target experimenter to override the TI-5S and select the
chosen card.
No misdirection is implied.
S4 directs the future instead
of predicting it.
2)
S4
described
a
part
of a
drill press not visible to the experi-
menter (p. 346) lending credence to the possibility that she could have
“seen”
the contents of a sealed envelope.
Invocation of
advanced
potentials”
as an explanation
is subject to the criticism of
^
too-close
identification of a model with reality
(see Slepian’s paper
On Band-
.
width,” in the same issue).
Comments’’ by C. A. Muses8
In connection with the article on parapsychology by Puthoff and
Targ, 1 there is a historical anecdote, furnishing some relevant lessons on
electronics vis-a-vis the mooted subject of “psi.”
When Puthoff visited my math lab and stayed overnight at my home
some four
years ago,
I pointed out to him among other things that
while retarded electromagnetic
field potentials furnished the Lorentz
transformations,
the mathematically equally admissible advanced po-
tentials were being neglected, and
I gave him the Julius Stratton refer-
ence which he cited in your issue mentioned above.
However, Puthoff rushed into print too soon, forgetting that
L had
also told him that whatever use they were, advanced potentials could
have no bearing whatsoever on precognition.
Yet that they do was the
main and really only electronic point of his and Targ s article (pp. 34y-
35<
The reason they do not
is very simple.
If one studies Maxwellian
potential theory one soon learns that the time-advance in the case ot
advanced potentials amounts
to
r/c, where r
is the distance between
event and observer.
The maximum distance between any two points
on
earth
is one
circumference of the planet or about 25 000 miles.
Even with this distance the time advance of any “precognition
on this
basis could be at best less than 0.0001 second!
_
_
Since any precognition worthy of the name must antedate the event
precognized by
at least 15 minutes,
it is clear that advanced potential
theory’s
ability
to
explain
precognition
fails by a factor of about a
We can only conclude that either Puthoff and Targ have not read
their Maxwell lately, or
else that they had so much desire to explain
precognition
in
print
that
they
sort of forgot
their physics in their
enthusiasm.
4 His
offer may be
accepted by
a
postcard
to him
at the above
address.
5 ManuscriDt received March 25
, 1976.
„
4 W. A. Harris
is a retired engineer formerly with the RCA Corpor-
ation.
’Manuscript received April 6, 1976.
.
S C. A. MusSs
is with the Research Centre for Mathematics and Mor-
phology, Santa Barbara, CA 93108.
As
to
the
telepathy (remote viewing) experiments,
similar proce-
dures,
with even better
results in graphic form, were performed and
published by the French engineer Rene Warcollier
in the 1920 s and
1930’s.
Warcollier, who
anticipated
the
Puthoff-Targ
findings by
decades,
is
unfortunately
omitted by them from
their long
list
ot
^references.**
On
all counts, then, this letter of rectification
is due your ieaders,
with a kudo to that one engineer of yours who cannily distrusted that
particular piece.
Comments
9 by Sid Deutsch
Publication of the paper on extrasensory perception by Puthoff and
Targ 1 shows that, in addition to a shortage of electrical power, we are
now suffering from a shortage of editorial restraint (scanning the issue,
p.
291).
This
diversion into parapsychology was tolerable
in a day
when energy and paper were plentiful, but today man lives more and
more by bread alone.
It is immoral to devote 24 percent of the techni-
cal content of the March 1976 PROCEEDINGS to the dignification of
ESP when, ironically, the March 1976 Spectrum 11 bemoans the shaky
financial state of the IEEE and
is softening us up for an increase in
Martin Gardner
recently exposed the weaknesses in the Puthoff-
Targ ESP
research. 12
He showed that the small amount of statistical
“evidence” for ESP can be accounted for by bias on the part of the
human experimenters.
When one substitutes computer score-keeping
for the human brain, the statistical evidence vanishes.
But one cannot
disprove the existence of ESP, and most people (including engineers
and
scientists) have an emotional need for
this sort of thing. We can
confidently
expect,
therefore,
that ESP
research
will be one of our
permanent acquisitions.
,
,
,
One
can
understand how
the NASA
personnel
could
approve
$80 000 of public funds for an ESP project. 12
At the very least it paid
for some equipment that Stanford Research Institute could eventually
employ in the public interest.
One can only regret that the creativity
of some obviously
intelligent and
skilled engineers and scientists was
not directed into more socially useful channels.
There are several scientific arguments against ESP.
First, with our
present-day
sophisticated
equipment, we
cannot
detect
any
forces
beyond the four fundamental forces of physics-gravitational, electro-
magnetic, the “weak” force, and the “strong” force.
Second, we under-
stand quite well the gross operation of an individual neuron, and no one
seriously proposes that there
is anything here but electrochemical phe-
nomena.
Briefly and approximately,
a neuron
fires, or generates a
narrow 100-mV
pulse, when
the
algebraic summation
of incoming
stimuli or
their equivalents exceeds 20 mV.
The firing rate generally
has a strong noise-like component, but
this can be traced to thermal
noise (around 60 /uV for a myelinated fiber), to the fact that there are
many inputs (sometimes as many as 100 000), and not to extrasensory
The human
brain
contains some
100-billion neurons.
With 100-
billion neurons one can do research in ESP, and even write irate letters
to the Editor.
But the logical conclusion is that the future state of the
human brain (and of everything else, for that matter) is predetermined
by the present state of the universe. The behavior of the brain is stereo-
typed in the sense that two or more identical brains, given identical
initial
conditions, would
yield
identical outputs
at
t = 0+.
In other
word, “free will” is an illusion.
.
From another viewpoint, the computer of today was encoded m the
genetic potential of the DNA molecule of its designers 40 years ago.
The DNA molecule
is synthesized out of only four nucleotide bases
(abbreviated A, C, G, and T) each of which
is a relatively simple as-
semblage of atoms.
Except for identical twins, each of us is the devel-
opmental result of a chemically unique DNA molecule.
The informa-
tion content of the DNA molecule-10-million bits based on subsequent
protein structures 13 -must be equal to or greater than that needed to
“construct” the newborn infant.
At what point, as the child develops,
’Manuscript received May 4, 1976.
„
.
»°s
Deutsch
is with the Rutgers Medical School and Rutgers Uni-
,
VerSu^ F
Rubinstem,^“IEEEf another AM A?” IEEE Spectrum
,
vol
pp. 64-69, Mar. 1976.
Also, same issue, E. Rubinstein,
Pres. Dillard
°n
Gardn ei%
“Mathematical
games,”
Scientific
American,
vol.
233, pp. 114-118, Oct 1975.
Also, “Letters,” Scientific American, vol.
234] pp. 6-8, Jan. 1976.
13 S. Deutsch, Models of the Nervous System.
New York: Wiley,
1967, p. 57.
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do “free will” and ESP enter the picture?
And why,
if all men are
created approximately equal, are some of them blessed with ESP while
others are doomed to a more mundane existence?
It
is
difficult
to
contemplate
a beautiful mathematical
result, or
the
intricacies of a computer, and believe that
it
is
all the predeter-
mined outcome of ensembles of 100-billion neurons that are interacting
with
each
other and
with
the environment.
As
a consequence, the
IEEE has more than its share of egocentrics. To most of us the world is
still flat, we reside at the center of an admiring universe, and the brain
is greater than the sum of its 100-billion parts.
The great Laplace, on
the other hand, more humble than most of us, preached determinism.
Today, when we know so much more, quantum mechanics and the
uncertainty principle are routinely invoked to prove that free will docs,
indeed, exist.
The latter assertion is based on a distortion of the uncer-
tainty principle.
The principle does not state that the small-scale move-
ments
of an
individual
electron do
not obey,
say, F=ma\
it
only
implies that the human experimenter, regardless of how sophisticated
his measurements and apparatus become, cannot determine
precisely
the state of the electron.
In any event, quantum mechanics is of negli-
gible significance at the millivolt levels at which a neuron operates.
The writing of this letter, and the decision as to whether or not
it
will be published, are
all predetermined.
If it
is published,
it will be
fascinating
to
read
the predetermined comments of readers who are
convinced, without the slightest uncertainty, that they are writing let-
ters out of their own free
will. My point
is that whatever they write,
once it is published, had to be published that way.
Comments 14 by James L. Calkins 15
Puthoff and Targ have undertaken a series of potentially significant
studies 1
utilizing what appears to be appropriate techniques taken from
the
scientist’s arsenal of objective methodologies, many of which the
authors have previously distinguished themselves using in research in
the natural sciences.
It
is certainly an understatement to say that such
a controversial topic as ESP requires extraordinarily precise and careful
methods, especially well suited to exclude the basis for all those nagging
criticisms often irreverently hurled
at the parapsychologist— fraud, in-
adaquate controls, imprecise and imcomplete reporting of essentials and
details in their studies, improper statistics, and, especially, the presence
of numerous confounding
variables.
Indeed, the authors themselves
apparently
set
out
to
achieve
this
goal, what
they
refer to
as
their
“principle responsibility—to resolve under unambiguous conditions the
basic issue of whether or not this class of paranormal perception phe-
nomenon exists”
(pp. 334-335).
Unfortunately, the model for their
study follows the traditional stratagems of the parapsychologists in the
United States and Europe, rather than the method they no doubt other-
wise use in their non-behavioral research (and
I might add that is largely
followed in experimental psychology).
As we shall indicate, the conse-
quence of this
is
that they must
necessarily
fall far short in fulfilling
their stated “principle responsibility.”
It
is the essence of the experimental method-in contrast to natural-
istic observation, the survey
technique, correlational procedures,
field
studies, and so on, to in fact create the conditions necessary for “unam-
biguous” resolution of fundamental questions since only
this method
permits manipulation and control of potentially confounding variables
by the eminently sensible method of varying the critical factors under
study, and systematically observing
their effects upon other selected
and measurable
variables while holding potentially confounding vari-
ables under
tight control via such techniques as randomization, con-
stancy, counterbalancing, matching, etc. The manipulated variables are
called independent variables
(IV’s), and the variables
sensitive
to
the
effects of the IV are called dependent variables (DV’s).
This has been
expressed
quite eloquently by Ebbinghaus 18
in
his incorporation of
this experimental method into
his researches into human memory, a
successful effort which went
far
in
illustrating
in 1885
the power of
this method
in
scientifically understanding human behavior, including
I might pointedly add, the study of human perception:
We
all knew of what this method consists: an attempt
is made to
keep constant the mass of conditions which have proven them-
selves causally connected with a certain result; one of these con-
ditions
is isolated from the rest and varied
in
a way that can be
numerically
described; then
the accompanying
change on the
side of the effect
is ascertained by measurement or computation.
14 Manuscript received May
3, 1976; revised June 22, 1976.
J.
L. Calkins
is with the Department of Psychology and Sociol-
ogy, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA 19104.
' 6 H.
Ebbinghaus, Memory: A
Contribution
to Experimental Psy-
chology.
New York; Dover Publications,
1 964 (original
: 1885).
The
simplest and most unambiguous
experiments,
therefore,
are
those employing but
a
single IV and a
single DV, and, in the funda-
mental situation
in which an effort
is being made to demonstrate the
sheer existence of a phenomenon (as in the present study, without in-
quiring further into
its composition and contingencies), the two basic
values
or
levels
or
variates
of the IV may be simply designated the
“experimental” (i.e„ the factor appears-operationally defined-in some
amount) and “control” condition
(i.e., the factor actually empirically
appears as a “zero” level, something on the order of a “placebo” con-
dition in a drug study).
Unfortunately,
in the present study, the basic procedure desenbed
was
carried
out
with
all the
subjects
(six
in number
for Section
III
studies through subsection “D,” two more in subsection “E,” and five
more
in
subsection
“F”; we
limit our critique
to the more
detailed
accounts given in subsections A-D rather than the very eketchy mate-
rial in subsections E and F, although all these studies used essentially
the same procedure and
varies mainly on the
basis of subject
char-
acteristics).
That
is, all the subjects were administered, as
it were, the
same
basic treatment
condition , and were thus
all part of the same
“clairvoyant”
or “remote-viewing” group, consisting essentially in the
S's making an effort to somehow envision a remote target.
There did
not appear
to
be, therefore, any variations of this
critical factor, as
Ebbinghaus and experimental logic requires.
Actually,
all we know of the instructions to the
S, so
critical in
determining the operational definition of this variable (not to mention
making the study replicable!)
is that the “remote-viewing subject was
asked to describe his impressions of the target site into a tape recorder
and to make any drawings he thought appropriate (p. 335),” since the
authors do not give us the actual instructions.
Unfortunately, there are also fundamental problems in the very def-
inition of the DV, at the heart of which
is confusion over the nature
of the so-called “target.”
Specifically, the judge for a given S’s perfor-
mance for a given “target” was successively driven to each geographical
location
previously
visited by
the
peripetetic E’s.
Since we do not
know precisely what aspects of the geographical location constituted a
“target” in the original “experiment” when the demarcation team was
present, and since
it
is even more ambiguous now what the judge was
viewing, as well as what he was supposed to be looking at while he re-
viewed the
S’s packages of 9 descriptions, we seem in this procedure,
therefore, to actually be dealing with at least three recognizably distinct
categories of “targets”: one
is constituted by the perceptions of the
demarcation team; a second by the perceptions of the judges; and a
third by direct physical aspects of some geographical location (photo-
graphs are used in the report and labelled “target” to further compli-
cate
target specification -e.g.,
their
Fig.
4).
It
is difficult to evaluate
how potentially
dissimilar these various “targets” were in the absence
of clarifying and
detailed accounts of the
specific instructions to the
teams and to the judge.
Since these judgements define the essence of
a
“hit,” the fundamental datum of the DV in
tills report, we are led
logically to doubt the validity of this DV and suspect it is also very un-
reliable
(no
reliability measures
are presented
to reassure us on
this
point).
To summarize our concerns with the DV, we may say,
first,
it ap-
pears to need considerable specification, a detailed operational defini-
tion; second,
its
reliability should be ascertained, and doubt that it
is
inherently very
unreliable removed; third,
it should be used for deter-
mining experimental condition (“clairvoyance”) hit rates in the match-
ing task, as well as for appropriate control conditions’ (e.g., “No clair-
voyance,” “No clairvoyance and no demarcation team,” and so on) hit
rates, so that an appropriate
statistic based on the net differences in
"hit rates" could be tested for the degree to which this difference mea-
sure is statistically significant.
This
latter point reminds us to comment on the
essential experi-
mental
invalidity
of
this parapsychological
tactic of comparing their
so-called “experimental data”
to some hypothetical “chance” level in
the absence of experimental empirical control conditions.
This point is
perhaps most clearly illustrated in the psychokinetic (“mind over mat-
ter”) literature.
In those studies, classically championed by Rhine some
years age
(e.g., 1947), and reviewed up to 1962 in an excellent
re-
port by Girden 18
, a tumbler might toss out onto a table some 600 dice;
the 5 being evluated for
ltis alleged “psychic” skills makes some effort
to mentally or “psychically” influence each die and have, say, as many
5’s turn up as he can.
A tabulation
is made, and
it
is found that, say,
17 J.
B. Rhine, The Reach of the Mind.
New York; W. Sloane Asso-
ciates, 1966.
,
„
18 E. Girden, A Review of Psychokinesis (PK), Psychol.
Bull., vol.
59, pp. 353-388, 1962.
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I
1 "' IEEE, OCTOBER 1976
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wd W,n.d »p-.
cspooi-ny
V m,old F.
off
Ru„d!
«*
«*
To
begin, «e .ppwo>»
'the
.
235 5V have indeed
turned up-a
startling
result, indeed, cspcciahy
Ri
when
it
is considered
that
only
100 should have
so
turned up by
“chance,”
as
dictated by
purely
theoretical (not experimental) con-
siderations
The problem with this interpretation is the same as that in
S
t!^ present “remove-viewing” study.
This “chance level” is a theoreti-
or
cal, mathematical abstract model of the behavior of 600
! ld°a
‘ ^
"ll
'°
necessarily related to the dice actually being used in the study at
all,
^
not to mention to the procedures and physical condrtions operating in
actually
using and
tossing them.
An empirical control condition
is
necessary to obtain this standard for comparison, one
'
cc
behavior of actual, physically existent and manipulated concrete dice
S™thViby and accounting for ,»cb—
»".S«£'
*
ablcs influencing the throw such as non-honzontal tables, loaded dice,
^
etc
This control condition would exactly duplicate the experimental
condition
save only
for
the
omission
of some
critical factor under
study
in the experiment -such as psychokinesis, or, in the present in
q
stance, “remote viewing.” We must run a non-PK or nonremote view-
t
**SS~M this b. accomplished?
Fo,
"
noses
“remote viewing” may be operationally defined either by spec
Stag instructions to a subject concerning bis potential task of .... om
ing, distant objects, or by controlling the very existence of a target to
£
be
seen “remotely”
(or any other way
for tha t matte^0-
The cforc
(
each of these procedural details can serve as an IV in a well controlled
2-factor design
For the “target” IV, we would seem to need on y the
<
L basic levels of this IV, namely, a condition in whig‘ ®
pet
is available for alledged “remote viewing,
hypothetically facilitated
fn some inscrutable fashion by a “demarcation team” actively
(
the target according
to
explicit, replicable directions, andacondmon
in which no such remote target
or team
exists.
The forme
^stance
would theoretically permit clairvoyance
to opewte
(if'it exists),
si
one’s renorted imagery could be matched or compared to the actual
selected
target;
the'
latter
control condition would
not,
since
there
would be no selected target to see dairvoyantly or otherwse^
Furthermore, on the basis of an operational definition ot
remote
viewing”
in terms
of the
instructions
to 5
establishing
his remote-
viewine task (our second IV), we can proceed to require him to draw
pictures or verbally describe anything he can imagine, but in the experi-
mental condition further telling him to attempt to view a remote target.
Procedural^, this would mean we begin
nearbv geographical
sites to function as potential
targets
(this
s
Tempt ?^Srve the authors’ procedures wherever feasible, since
would*
hardly otherwise be very advisable to use such complex stimuli
as these targets in preference to simpler, ideally quantifiable
targets
)
and then randomly assign targets to the 4 ceU
of our 2 by 2 factorial
experimental design until, say, each ceU as five (5
targets.
,,
f(_ r thl, opmicncc to be followed in actually running o s tnrougn
these different treatment combinations, a simple randomized arrange-
ment Sd suffice.
Later, the judge can in random seque-
one ceU of descriptions and targets after the other, until. aU1 tou
: ceus
have been “matched,” where naturally the judge is not informed of the
treatmeut combination
condition.
Hit
rates are determmed
for ex
ample, and then appropriate statistical tests for simple effects, main
fects and possible interactions determined.
It mav be true, as the parapsychologists claim, that ESP is real an
represents a great latent power of the human mind, one day
o emerge
in full recognition by science as another momentous steP ln 1 10 ®vo
,
ton of man“ nd his mind; but
its truth remains to be demonstrated
throueh use of the experimental method, and until
it
is, in the sa
way a
g
s Ohm’s Law or Pavlov’s conditioned reflex paradigm, ParaPsy"
chotogisU ought not
consider
psychologists and other scientists .and
engineers
calcified
conservatives
blindly
refusing
to sectheobo
“fact” that ESP, etc., exists, because the parapsychologists themselves,
just as
n the present study, seem to virtually intentionally avoid using
the only* techniques which in the tong run will prove persuasive to
he
scientific community, and those, are objective
even through
it may appear such a convincing logic exists by virtue oi
the use of scientific jargon, description of scientific equipment, mat
matical and information theory mo^s and so om
t jt
indeed
the perseverance of behet in nor, ariu uiuvuu
does and will continue to receive from such publications as evalua
in this present critique, indicates to this writer that we are deahng mor
with a socialTovTcnt or cult than with a future discipline in empiri-
cal science as Hoffer might put it (1964). 19
is E.
Hoffer, The
True
Believer.
New York: New American
Li-
brary, 1964 (original: 1951).
To
beam, we
-
entoful to him for his offer to make available annotated bibliographies
on ptanorS studies, including the sociological issues
As researche
publishing in the field, we learned early that sociological factors appear
to play a®
especially significant role in this field, both in carrying out
research and in disseminating results.
.
.
A
+
«
In response to the comments of Harris, we too have considered the
possibility that an alternative explanation for apparent successful pr
cognitionto our experiment could involve a concatenation of telepathy,
remote viewtog, and remote psychokinesis.
Although there
is no evi-
dence to rule o
g
ut such a possibility, we prefer the simpler extdanation
as a working hypothesis.
The idea of subject-caused paranormal events
leading
to apparent
precognition,
although within the realm
P
sibility, would seem to be less viable, if one
is to give credence to a
y
of the more dramatic cases in the anecdotal literature (disaster pr
-
tton
etc.)
Harris’ comment that the “advanced potential” hypothes
may’ be too parochial is well taken. We cited it only as a Possibihty that
exists within
the
present
scientific framework, and which we think
should be examined before ad hoc theories are introduced.
However, the objection to advanced potentials raised by Muses (pre-
coanitive “advantage”
restricted to one nanosccond-per-foot)
is over
come if one considers not just plane waves propagating at the velocity
of light, but rather traveling-wave interferograms
(i.e., slowly mov ng
standing wave
patterns).
In this
case information propagates at the
veloc tv of the interference pattern in the wake of the passing waves,
rather* than at the velocity of the waves themselves. The group velocity
of a signal would under these conditions be slower than the Pbas® v^°
c
itv c
thus allowing for a longer precognition time interval.
We wish
t<f emphasize again that we are not putting this forward as£<«£«£
tion
for
precognition, but
rather only
as an example ^
modern
theory
does
not
absolutely
forbid
such modeling,
as shown
in our
Stratton
reference. 24
In
passing, one
of the authors (HP) does a
knowledge the conversation on this topic referred to by Dr. Muses but
must point out that the original source of this concept in our work lies
in nn earlier naner published by one of the authors (R !)•"
Wkh reg«d
P
to
P
the Warcollier reference pointed out by Muses we
are familiar with Warcollier’s work
in remote picture.drawing ,« which
is
similar to the more
easily available material in the book by Upton
SinTafr (wT pre ace by Einstein), Mental Radio™we are not fanul-
S
,S
work by Warcollier in our format (remote vrew-
£ Srn»W..r<i,Bet».
Fo, the latter . 8ood early
we ta»
come across since pubheation of our paper
is a chapter by Sir Oliver
'
FSP (-With our
,
ticated equipment , we cannot detect any forces beyond the four funda
mental force's of physics
.
.
”) indicates that
at least
paper
he has missed one of our major points-that
it is not necessary
'
re
P
g0
’ outside of present-day physics in order to begin to model so-
l
called paranormal
perception.
His comments on ®
”
neuronal
firing, and the uncertainty
principle, although not directed
*
toTd our paper per se, nonetheless inspire us to point out that the
"
leading neurophysiologists of our time have taken a position directly
, “ “ Sat of Deutsch.
For example, the eminent neuiophys olo-
d
eist
John C.
Eccles, in
discussing a neurophysiological hypothesis of
will in his book Facing Reality, comments at length on the
possibility
of neuronal firing patterns being controllcdbyquantumproccs^^
“
the
level of the uncertainty
principle.29
Be
that as it may,
s
rcR®"
,,n! L,b °'
ire
AU
«R.
Warcollier, Mind-to-Mind , New
York:
Creative
Age
Press,
ltl"
194
®'u. Sinclair, Mental Radio. New York: Collier Books, 197 1
-
’ 'Sir
Oliver Lodge, “Psychic science,
in The Outline of i>c,enc
,
L,
j '
Springer-Verlag, 1970,
ch. 8.
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appear
to
us that the “free-wffl-versus-determinism” issue
is separate
from and irrelevant to the ESP issue, since even in a deterministic uni-
verse
there
is no
strong argument
against the occurrence of a com
pletely predetermined event that, because of its characteristics, wo
1,6
With^regard^to Deutsch’s
trust
in the Martin Gardner attempt to
“expose the weaknesses” of our research with a random number gener-
ator! such trust is misplaced.
Our rebuttal to Gardner point
ou
that
Gardner’s major criticism of our experiments was based on his miscon
ception of the manner in which data were collected by an automated
^hTcllkins’ letter we find a detailed presentation of the elements of
an
experiment,
definitions
of independent and dependent
variables
(IV’s and DV’s); a detailed description of a particular factorial experi-
mental design standardly used in certain specialized studies (e.g., drug/
placebo tTeatrncnt of animals), and so on; all of which, taken in proper
context, we have no quarrel with. Unfortunately,
wth
discourse
is the claim that since our experimental design differs from
the paradigm he advocates, we have failed to follow accepted method-
ology
(as he narrowly interprets
it)
in experimental psychology.
He
would have the reader believe that, as a consequence, our experimental
.«<!~ IW- DV-, we,,
~d pe,.
force our results necessarily ambiguous.
Although on the surface h
might ,ppo„ to b. both sophisticated
examination of his remarks point by point reveals a basic misinterpre
tation of our experiment; and also a basic misunderstanding °f the roles
that different experimental paradigms play in eliciting data o
in er
in complex and subtle behavioral experimentation.
As a result we imd
his evaluation inaccurate and his conclusions invalid.
To handle the general argument
first, obviously there
is no sing
research
strategy
or experimental design that can be applied ^.n cook-
book fashion to
all research
issues.
The designs available within the
arsenal of experimental psychologists range from naturalistic obs
u
tions
through
systematic assessment with controlled
stimuli, and
fi
S’ to experimental manipulation-
The toy ^inctaons among
the
strategies involve
the degree of experimental control that is exer
ciscd, and the amount of artificiality or bias that is introduced.
Each
strategy has an appropriate function, application, strength, and short-
comS and, as Scott and Wertheimer point out
“any particular pro-
ject may well combine features of each strategy.
to
At an early stage of research, the investigator must find procedures
that will minimize ambiguity by controlling unwanted influences, whde
avoiding the rigidity, artificiality, masking, and biasing cf ^U
'at pre
mature overrefinement of procedures might introduce
It would be in
our opinion premature and imprudent, for example
during the m»
lal
stages
of
an
investigation when much
remains unknown about
t
mechanisms
and
factors
involved,
to
follow
Calkins
suggestion
to
snecify
precisely on which
stimuli
within
a
target area a subject or
judge
is
to concentrate.
As Scott and Wertheimer caution
experi-
mental manipulation may provide such refined control over the situa-
tion
in which a relationship
is established that the generality of the
results becomes questionable.
Precision of control is not the only con-
sideration in designing a research project.
Generahty and applicability
of the conclusions are others ... The problem facing the investigator is
to find an appropriate compromise that will afford control over certain
unwanted influences, while
at the same time adequately representing
the complex interplay of circumstances he is trying to find out about.
In the design of our remote-viewing protocol, we took into account
the
advice of Anderson
as given
in
his discussion of what he
calls a
“natural experiment.’^
“In the early stages of research ... it is good
strategy to observe the operations of variables in their natural settings
to obtain some estimate of the relative importance of these variables.
We therefore incorporated into our overall strategy certain elements of
a “natural experiment” such as the use of targets defined by the
nat-
ural” process of site visitation by a demarcation team with unspecified
instructions, and the use of “free-response” questioning.
In keeping with accepted methodology in experimental psychology
we emphasized rigid control over variables that might have introduced
bias into our results.
For instance, double-blind protocol was used in
all procedures involving the generation and presentation of the stimuli
30 R
Targ and H. Puthoff, Letters, Scientific American, vol. 234,
Scott and M. Wertheimer, Introduction
to Psychological
ReJ
.
??^NewY«k :
An Introduction to
the sfienii^MeZd
2nd Id.
Beftront, CA: Brooks/Cole Pubhshmg
Co., 1971. pp. 36-41.
ftareet
site visitations by demarcation team); the analysis of responses
(5-generated transcripts and drawings) was carried out by aijudge blind
as
to
the
correct
stimulus-response
pairs.
A
senes of mdependent
variables (IV’s) that Calkins chooses to ignore
“
such
as
distance, elevation, presence or absence
, f
.
was obtaTned
manipulated by random selection, and a well-defined DV was obtained
from
P
the judged accuracy of S ’s oral and graphic descnption of target
location as represented by rank-order numbor ’
precise time of stimulus presentation was controlled and 5 s were uni
formly instructed to provide a detailed description by word and^draw-
ing
0f
their impression of the target
area.
In short, precise expen
mental
control was used
where
appropriate
to
eliminate ambiguous
conditions
independent variables were systematically manipulated and
nresented under suitably controlled conditions, and measurement was
made of the effects of the changed stimuli. Thus, the vital elements of
an experiment
as defined
in
experimental psychology wmeprcsjmt.
(For definitions of the elements of an experiment
see footnotes
)
There
is insufficient space to answer
in detail each of the specific
criticisms made
in Calkin’s comments (for examplctheeffort to m-
validate our
statistical procedure by
erroneous
extrapolation of the
biased-die fallacy). However, a few important pomts need to be made.
T) Calldns
suggests
that
the two-factor
design he advocates
is a
supLior experimental
design, in part because of the introduction of
control conditions such
as:
(i) there
is an experimental target demar-
cated by the target team as in our usual experimental condition, but 5
is
told
to
think of “anything he can imagine”
(his “do-not-remote-
view” condition), and
(ii) there is no target, but 5 is asked to carry out
a remote viewing anyway.
In the first case 5 s might imagine remote
scenes, might focus on close relatives or friends, doodle or amply_think
of anything at random.
It is not at all clear that a meaningful compari-
son can be made between the output of this exercise and a genuine ef-
fort
at remote
viewing.
This would be similar to comparing apples
with an entire fruit stand.
For case
(ii)
it
is not clear how thc absence
of a target would be generated. How, for example, does one effectively
send a target team “nowhere”?
If there
is a target team, the members
must be somewhere, and thereby would P[ovib°
A^
viewing.
(Our best effort in this direction [p. 340, Table IV, 2nd target
site] was to lock the target team up in a shielded room, instead of send-
ing them out to an outdoor target.)
If, on the other hand - th®r® ,s
.
designated
target
team,
this situation
is so
dissimilar
to the putative
remote-viewing situation under study that 5 responses would be open
to
serious question
with
regard
to
the
basis
for making meaiungfi
comparisons.
In sum, Professor Calkins has not shown how
his ap-
proach
is better,
if indeed
it
is
as acceptable as that wluch was used.
It would seem, rather,
that the recommended approach would intro-
duce more ambiguity into the experimental design than
it would
re-
solve, making the results extremely
difficult to
interpret.
One must
not abjure common sense in an effort to follow a particular favorite
procedure which might recommend itself theoretically.
2) Perhaps the most valid criticism in Calkins’ comments, center on
our not detailing information about the reliability of the judging pro-
cess.
Although the data are contained within the paper, clarification is
As indicated in Sections A and B, pp. 335-338, two judging proce-
dures were used.
In the first, panels of 5 independent judges analyzed
the
first and second experiments.
From this one could obtain the re-
liability of rankings by
several judges
(inter-rater agreement)
as mea-
sured by the coefficient of concordance W.
However, in the present
study
a judgment consisted of the matching of descriptive transcripts
and drawings to
actual
sites, and therefore the accuracy of matching
provides an empirical measure of judge reliability.
The best judge o
tained seven matches out of nine cases in the first experiment, five out
of nine in the second, setting at least an empirical standard for quality
of judging.
This procedure amounted
to
a
pre-testing of potential
judge
reliability. A sixth judge was then obtained who independently
rank-order judged the same two experiments.
Since he also mdepen-
33 H
B
English and A. C. English, A Cpmprehens^e Dictionary of
Psychological and Psychoanalytic Terms.
^ ”
York:
34 B.
J. Underwood, Experimental Psychology, 2nd ed. New rora.
Appleton Century Crofts, 1966.
.
.
3 5 D. T. Campbell and J. C. Stanley ,
Quasi-Expert-
mental Designs for Research , Chicago, IL: Rand McNally, 1963.
34 G McSn and E. M. Segal, The Game of Science, Belmont, CA:
Bro?7k
^(
C
(S|la p anis j
' Research Techniques in Human Engineering.
Balti-
more, MB: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1959.
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1550
*
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dentlv obtained the same 7 and 5 direct matches as the bestJucfge, we
— —
“
Tot “ l
aHoa^thad amcasure that indicated that with regard to the data gener-
a ed
n our itet two experiments, the better judges were m accord,
indicating a high degree of reliability, inter- and intra-judge. This sixth
bmjo
,
judge was therefore used for
all the subsequent judging m the paper,
role
carried out by a single judge whose degree of reliabihty was estimarea
n
on the basis of a comparison with the results of judging panels.
The
BIKE
authors do
ecognize, however, that the analysis of free-response
rial
i°
difficult
at best and further work
is being pursued in the hope
that subjective judging procedures can be replaced altogether by a mo
^
asASswr"
....... ^
found in the laboratory formulating hypotheses and designing ana car
S out experiments.
It would appear to us that it is those who carry
JL
=v„„rimpnts and renort results
(see other replication studies, this
-tahtu n
»»» <•' tha,
Who «. true to .ho ..»«». of
.
TABLE " ^
empirical science.
Number
of Drawings
-
MUTUAL TARGET SITE
2nd choice not given
TABLE 11
Preliminary Experiments in Group “Remote Viewing
THOMAS W. WHITSON, DAVID N. BOGART, JOHN PALMER,
and CHARLES T. TART
Abstract - In preliminary research designed to
test the “remote view-
elusive, were encouraging.
The experimental
findings
of Harold Puthoff and
Stanford Research Institute (SRI) suggest that
it is possible to ob »
descriptive information about remote locations through an umdentifie
perceptual channel.
Here we report two preliminary expcrimen
P
formed at the University of California, Davis, to check on the validity
“we
wa^tott'st the hypothesis that “remote viewing” of natural
in
T
university
art course
as percipients.
None ot tnem were
known to possess extraordinary psychic abilities and none reported hav-
fng prior experience in describing unknown remote location. The per-
cipients were practiced art students quite willing to draw and desen
th
U
k
nuS?hfe
a
xperiments
at SRI,
this study was a group experiment
ie ^ percipients present simultaneously.
The percipients produced
their drawings individually, with no discussion. between on“
For the first experiment, thirty target locations were selectecl oy me
rr
onhei
1 t^t^o^Kcl^iSiS fron/each
other by Ssual criteria were chosen as the target pool. A few examples
of the target pool are: a palm tree, a Hammond organ, a bike underpass
tunnel
and gravestone statue of an angel. A color slide of each
sit
was seaS in Tn envelope together with
traveling instructions from the
university to the location pictured.
Before meeting with the class, El
fWhitson) randomized the envelopes while E2 (Bogart) was not presen
.
,^e
S
experimenters decided to introduce the nature of the expenm nt
atTe beghining of the class and then carry out the
percipients had been drawing for two hours
We f
t
hat the^pere.p
ients’ visual imagery would be more activated at this time than
b
?nar
n
rfv°ng
Cl
?he experimenters introduced themselves and the experi-
°
t ,oZ percipients.
They described the studies performed at SRI
* ».L
•
rryinhi hp
t widelv distributed perceptual
ability,
mey xnen
iSJS'Sl St'ipSfof
procedures 5».
<»
,
intpr
i p
that E2 would travel to a remote location and view t
JKKUj*— - °f •*—
T*he' ^utho r
s'
'ar^'wit if Ylnf Dep ar trne n t of Psychology, University of
California, Davis, CA 95616.
bike tunnel
DIRT MOUNDS
PALM TREE
Number of Drawings -
V*
*ACTUAL TARGET SITE
from
the randomized target pool, without telling ill what
it was, and
traveled to thcToscn
site. El returned to the art class to be presen
while the percipients attempted to visualize the remote location that
E2 was viewing. The experimenters had synchronized the fifteen mmu
After the percipients had attempted
remote viewing,
y
bv ill to produce a drawing of the images that corresponded to the
mofesite
*1 then collected the drawings and told the percipients the
results would be discussed at a later class meeting.
E2 returned
to a designated room, removed the slides from thc en
-
lopcs
and randomized them a second time with target slide included
iff was not present at the time the target site envelope was seated or
rerandomized.
El then proceeded with the: method
being ignorant of the target identity he could not bias theresults.
The judge for the first experiment was an employee of th®
'
f th
art department. He was asked to match a first and second choice f
the
ten nossible target slides to each drawing.
At the time of the judging,
he was not aware that
it was an ESP experiment.
Using an overhead
.
‘
the
ten
slides were
projected on
a screen simultaneously.
ThJ judge could then readily distinguish the differences in each location
and make the decision for each drawing.
After the judging if2 revealed
^rfeLt
follows (Tahie
I), with first and
second* choices ccmnted ^as
hits, a procedure decided upon before the
an
AUhough we were not
able
to apply a
single session, we nevertheless were impressed
that the correct ta g
eccivcd
a most
twice as many matches as the next most frequently
chosen sU^a i versus 6).
On the other hand, we were aware that
>f,
by chance alone, the selected remote location happened to meet a pr
dominant drawing bias
in
the percipients,
11 ,^^^016 viewing
factually
inflated.
Therefore we conducted
a second remote viewing
experiment
with mixed motivation.
Partly we wanted
to
see
of^unnels'^th^
oTcunTdftequently when it
was not the target.
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Experiment Two used essentially the same procedure as Experiment
One except that a new art class and a new judge, a graduate student m
the art department, were used. The bike tunnel was precluded as a pos-
sible
target, although
it was included in the judgmg pool.
Finally, £
noted before the data were analyzed that this class seemed less inter-
ested and involved in the experiment than did the
first class.
Table II
Tunnel-like images that would be matched with the slide of the bike
tunnel were quite rare, so we consider the possibility of artifactual in-
flation of the results of Experiment One to be unlikely. The results of
the second experiment were not as impressive as those of the first
al-
though the target slide did receive the third highest number of matches
out of ten.
Of all possible target pairs in both sessions combined, the
total number of matches assigned to the actual target pair was the thud
highest of the 90 possible pairs.
This
is associated with a one-tailed
probability of 0.033.
These
initial experimental excursions into the investigation of
re
mote
viewing”
offer modest
support
to Puthoff and Targ s
results.
Given the theoretical significance of the phenomenon, we intend to do
further studies.
REMOTE DESCRIPTION
I
Open/
Blind
Author
Open
Open
Blind
ft
Open
Blind
Blind
Blind
Blind
Open
Open
PANEL SELECTION AND SCORES
AMONG THE
10 POSSIBLE TARGETS
Remote Viewing Experiments Through Computer
Conferencing
JACQUES VALLEE, ARTHUR C. HASTINGS, and
GERALD ASKEVOLD
Abstract-
A
series of remote viewing experiments were run with 12
participants who communicated through a computer conferencing[net-
work.
These participants, who were located m various regions of th
United States and Canada, used portable terminals m their homes and
offices to provide typed
descriptions of 10 mineral samples.
These
samples were divided into an open series and a double-blind senes. A
panel of five judges was asked to match the remote viewing descriptions
against the mineral samples by a percentage scoring system-
Tl'°
rect target sample was correctly identified
in 8 out of 33 cases, ti
represents more than double the pure chance expectation. Two experi-
enced users provided 20 transcripts for which the probability of achiev-
ing
the observed distribution of the percentage score by chance was
0.04.
.
.
These results confirm earlier reports of successful remote viewing ex-
periments while extending them to cases in which participants were
thousands of miles away from each other and in which the targets were
mineral samples of potential economic
significance, with control ot
communications provided by a computer network.
In a recent
article, 1
Puthoff and Targ have stated the case
for the
existence
in humans of the ability to perceive objects and scenes at a
distance through an apparently unknown information channel.
In t
note, we report a
series of experiments that appear to confirm their
work while extending it to cases in which the participants were several
thousand miles away from each other, with control of sensory condi-
tions
automatically
and
unobtrusively
provided by
the medium
of
communication, and
in which the targets were mineral samples of po-
tential economic significance.
,
„
The experiments were conducted via a computer teleconferencing sys-
tem which has been described elsewhere.2
This system is implemented
on a computer network and allows each participant to type comments
at any time.
All comments are immediately printed by the computer
on the terminals of any participants who are currently logged in (or are
stored for later retrieval).
Twelve persons, in New York, Florida, Que-
bec
and
California, were
supplied with computer terminals
in their
homes or offices.
The conference was sponsored by a communications
company, and participants made
their personal time available for the
project on a voluntary basis.
Manuscript received May 5, 1976.
Ua„,. p„ rk
p A
The authors arc with the
Institute for the
Future, Menlo Park, CA
94,0
H.
S
’E. Puthoff and R. Targ, “A Perceptual channel for information
transfer over kilometer distances: Historical perspectives and recent re-
spfirch
** Pfoc. IEEE, vol. 64, no. 3, Mar. 1976.
t
.
1 See, in particular, the articles “Network conferencing,
May
1974, and “The Computer conference, An altered state of com-
munication?,” The Futurist , June
1 975.
F
{10)
A,
V
C
(30)
®(M)
Blind
Blind
Open
Fig. 1.
Total panel results for each remote description (correct matches
The primary purpose of the experiments was to test “remote viewing
under
the
altered
state
of
communication
enabled
by
computer
teleconferencing-in which participants are individually isolated, com-
municating with each other only in the printed mode but often in reaf
time. We further wished to confirm that the use of the teleconferenc-
ing system would supply accurate and unobtrusive recording of the data
and would prevent collusion or subliminal cuing to a degree not found
in most parapsychological experiments.
Over the period of 14 June to 8 July 1975, the participants discussed
current
issues in psychic research.
The formal experiments lasted
five
days, from 29 June to 3 July, and were conducted as follows:
len
mineral samples
selected
from
geological collections were assigned a
label and enclosed
in sealed envelopes.
The specimens were the rare
mineral bastnosite,
a vein
filling of galena and quartz, opal, gold ore,
halite, cinnabar, magnetite, realgar, barite, and cobaltite.
The partici-
pants were told only that the targets were mineral samples from Nortn
America
Five of the samples were enclosed
in larger envelopes and
randomly
labeled
“Sunday”
through
“Thursday”
to
compose
a
“double-blind” pool. The other samples constituted an
open
pool.
Each day at 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, a geolo-
gist
sitting
at his home terminal took one of the envelopes from the
open
pool,
extracted
the
sample, and
held
it
in his hand.
Anyone
logged into the conference at that time could volunteer a remote view-
ing description.
Such descriptions were recorded and printed by the
computer with
a date and time stamp.
After all descriptions were m,
the
geologist
entered
a brief description of the specimen to provide
feedback for the participants.
This sample was then removed from the
°similarly, each morning the envelope for the day was taken from the
double blind pool and placed
at a designated office location where it
was a target for remote viewing for eight hours.
Anyone logging into
the
conference during
that time could
type
in a description ot the
sample contained in that envelope. At the end of the day, the envelope
was taken to the geologist, who added the sample to the open pool. No
feedback was given for the double blind targets.
Upon completion of the experiments, we had obtamed 33 descrip-
tions of the ten samples from six people.
Thirteen of these descriptions
were under double blind
conditions and
20 under open conditions.
Four specimens had been run under both conditions.
.
.
,
Inspection showed what appeared
to be successful descriptions ot
several samples, but in order to objectively evaluate the accuracy of the
remote viewing descriptions, we asked outside judges to match the ii
descriptions against the mineral samples.
Five judges who had no poor
knowledge of the correct pairings (a sociologist, an editor, a physicist, a
secretary, and
a
librarian) were
given
transcripts of the descriptions
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