Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Paranormal/Archive 4

message: I would like to encourage members of Wikiproject Paranormal to comment on the proposal to change the name of Category:Psychic to Category:Purported psychic or claimed psychic. This seems a little petty to me, especially as the category states it is a list of "purported psychics" already. We are trying to reach a consenous on this so please leave a comment at Category talk:Psychics. Best wishes - Solar 13:17, 30 August 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Solar, thanks for letting us know about this important discussion.  I believe such a name change would amount to Skeptical Activism and as such, is a bad idea.  Funny thing is, I'm a Skeptic myself so you'd think I'd agree with the name change.  Please read my comments at the above link you provided. If people wish to agree or disagree with my comments, feel free, but do so at that link.  I don't want to get our project page further bogged down.  However, I do believe our project members should be involved in this debate becuase if the change is made, it could have wider implications for many of the areas we write about. The tag of PURPORTED could wind up on everything skeptics wish to discredit. Thanks again. Lisapollison 18:28, 2 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Psychic or Purported Psychic? 

message: I've found a Kids TV show that can lead to several seperate article placements. The show is called ROSWELL CONSPIRACIES: ALIENS, MYTHS & LEGENDS. The show is about a World/UN group of Special agents, some who are aliens themselves, fight evil aliens bent on taking Earth for themselves. Website access to the show is www.digiviewus.com Episodes include, The Bait - Part I, The Bait - Part II, Mountain Retreat, Troubled Past, Peacemaker, Chupacabra. I have two DVDs of the show myself. I think I have found a source for seperate edits for Wikipedia. Martial Law 17:23, 30 August 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: The show is under BKN New Media , INC., Seen on the FOX KIDS NETWORK. Martial Law 17:30, 30 August 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: I've found a source....

message: The article Invisible Master has been deleted before on account of a lack of any external verification, but has recently been recreated with the addition of "Emerson, C.X. "Investigations into the Paranormal: The Invisible Master phenomenon" (Paradigm Publishing)" as a source. I can't find any external verification that this source itself exists, however. Does anyone here know of this book or where to find verification of it? I'm still quite dubious that this article isn't original research. Bryan 00:19, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I checked Amazon.com and the Library of Congress catalog, but I didn't get any results for the title or the author.  There is a (very cheesy) Fortean writer who goes by the pseudonym "Commander X", but none of his titles even vaguely resemble this one.  My guess would be OR. Zagalejo 01:39, 3 September 2006 (UTC)

text: No matches found at Booksinprint.com, either. Zagalejo 01:42, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Call for references: Invisible Master

message: There should be a category dedicated to this, and/or affiliation with the project.  The stuff that happened in Bennington, Vermont up to 1950, and the region's history, would qualify, for example. --Chr.K. 15:26, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: We do have :Category:Disappeared people, although none of the Bennigton people have their own articles.  I'm not sure if unexplained disappearances are a specific focus of this project, but some of the weirder cases might be.  Zagalejo 17:55, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Oh, I see you've already made a category.  That's cool.  Category:Disappeared people could become a subcategory of that one.  One point of advice, though: the title of the category should probably be "Unexplained disappearances" (with a lower case "d") rather than "Unexplained Disappearances".  I'm sure there's a rule about titles here. Zagalejo 18:12, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I'd change it back to lowercasing the second word if I could, unfortunately.  As for the category classificiation, the unexplained aspect of the disappearances put them within the project; NC16002 (written above on this page as well) is classifiable as both a aircraft disappearance, and those of people; the individuals in Bennington would be people alone, et al. --Chr.K. 13:26, 8 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Actually, I do think the Bennington mystery and the Bermuda triangle stuff are relevant to this topic.  I was thinking about things like Jimmy Hoffa's disapperance, which has no perceived connection with the paranormal. As for the category name, I'm not sure how to change it myself, but it's not a pressing issue, so we can worry about it later. Zagalejo 14:11, 8 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Relevence is in consideration of the unexplained, which to me is the definition of paranormal.  Hoffa's death has a likely and reasonable explanation: a Mafia wack.  The ones referenced here do not have such. --Chr.K. 04:33, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Unexplained Disappearances

message: I'm preparing to do some further cleanup and improvement to the Project page, starting with removing Paranormal News (since it has no relation to the improvement of articles) and References (which I can't make heads or tails of, anyway). I'm also eyeing the Links section as a linkfarm. If anyone has any comments or, more importantly, needs any of that info, get it now. --InShaneee 22:38, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: As semi-referenced to just above, there should be a summary of the major topics currently covered by the project, and likely subtopics to those as well. --Chr.K. 13:30, 8 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Most definatly. I've got some other ideas too, but I'll discuss those shortly. --InShaneee 17:30, 8 September 2006 (UTC)

text: We need to include the Kecksburg UFO Incident in articles that need expansion, and a classification system to the prioritization proceedure.  For starters, I would classify EVP as a priority one, considering the amount of interest in the subject. --Chr.K. 04:28, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I think Phantom kangaroo could use some expanision, too, although I'm not sure how to tackle it.  Is there any good evidence to suggest they are something more than escaped pets/zoo animals? Zagalejo 15:00, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text:  LOL!  I have een wanting to exapnd that article, Phantom kangaroo, for some time!  When I was in highschool in the late 70s, there was a periodic outreak of Phantom kangaroo sightings in a Northern NJ town called Ho Ho Kus!  It made the newspapers many times but I have yet to find a source to quote.  These thinsg are almost never animal escpaes ut are often cited as such in news reports.  other typical explanations include an circus train derailment neary to the sightings.  Those are parts of the legend/rumor that pop up whenever people start seeing kangaroos in the yards! Lisapollison 04:05, 19 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text:  There's a bit about kangaroos in Ho Ho Kus here. About ten years before I was born, there was a major flap in my hometown (Chicago).  They later parodied it on the show ER, which blew my mind. :) Zagalejo 14:31, 19 September 2006 (UTC)

text: Chris, my next priority is to set up a "collaboration of the month" (which should be up and running within the week), in which we vote on an article that needs a lot of TLC, then encourage all members to put in some work on it. I think that should take care of that issue. --InShaneee 17:02, 11 September 2006 (UTC)

text: Hey, thanks for all your hard work! I like where this project is going.  Do whatever you think should be done with the templates. Zagalejo 22:01, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Further project improvement

message: There is something wrong with the file indexing of his site.  I say this here in the hope that someone could inform him, so that I could in turn contact him concerning his research on the subjects of phantom trains, and unidentified submerged objects. --Chr.K. 03:10, 14 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Well, he hasn't edited here since May 22.  There were some disputes about the content of his biography, which I won't discuss here.  If you want to e-mail him, though, all of his contact info is available on the web.  See . Zagalejo 03:53, 14 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Regarding rumors that Loren Coleman is now working with us at WPP...

message: Hi all, just threw my hat into the ring.  I do have one comment at the outset -- I think that black tag at the top of the page that suggests people who want to chat about paranormal experiences contact a member of the project is a little much.  At the risk of sounding uptight, I don't particularly want random people leaving messages on my talk page about the weird lights they saw in the forest last night.  I think it's best really to just leave it at ... "This isn't for discussing the paranormal."  
On another topic, is anyone interested in setting up a more formal mechanism to decide what project should be the current collaboration?  I'd nominate Winchester Mystery House myself, which is how I found out about this wikiproject.  Admittedly I'm a bit biased since I've already been working on it.  :) — ripley/talk 17:46, 18 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Yeah, I agree. That second sentence should probably come out of there. As for a 'formal mechinism', one's already in place, right here, so feel free to make that nomination. Welcome to the project! :) --InShaneee 18:13, 18 September 2006 (UTC)

text: Someone raised a section on "I saw a ghost."  The tag was placed like that after people had already shown their willingness to not know what they're doing. In favor of it's remaining: it's big and colorful, which catches the eye. --Chr.K. 01:06, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I don't mind the tag in general and I think it's a good thing to remind people that this page isn't for just discussing the paranormal. What I objected to (and have since removed) is the open invitation to use members' talk pages to chat about the weird noises they heard in their grandmother's house last Christmas.  :) — ripley\talk 16:25, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Indeed. As per WP:NOT, Wikipedia isn't for discussing things not relating to the site as a whole, anyway. --InShaneee 16:30, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  New member - and a question 

message: Again, if anyone has a way to change Category:Unexplained Disappearances into Category:Unexplained disappearances, by all means do so.  Invite comment on what kind of category name known, documented UFO sightings should be given, and whether the word documented is in fact going to be needed, to keep people from just throwing in something they may have seen five minutes ago, and encouraging only verifiable reports. --Chr.K. 01:42, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: You could try Wikipedia:Categories for discussion. As for UFO sightings, would we be limiting this to Close encounters of the first kind, or would this include all types? I don't think we need to worry about random articles, since non-verifiable reports would probably be deleted. Zagalejo 02:00, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Section for categories/discussion 

message: The Sci Fi channel has unveiled a investigative detail. Go to www.scifi.com for more info. They're investigating all paranormal matters, such as ghosts, Bigfoot, UFOs, the Chupacabra, related matters. Martial Law 22:28, 23 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Um...number one, I can't find what you've mentioned. Two, SciFi has NEVER been a reliable source for the paranormal in the past (remember Scifi Happens?). --InShaneee 22:40, 23 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Show is Sci-Fi Investigates, premires Oct. 11. Martial Law 03:58, 25 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Website is Sci Fi Investigates www.scifi.com/SciFi Investigates Martial Law 04:00, 25 September 2006 (UTC)

text: Link is www.scifi.com/Sci Fi Investigates. This corrects a unusual glitch. Martial Law 07:27, 27 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Sci-Fi....

message: Alright! After a week of working like a dog, I've got some HUGE additions to the project to announce!
*Article assessement! - This is a means by which we can rate articles, according to an objective criteria, as far as how close they are to Featured Article status. This not only allows us to see the status of the project as a whole, but is also a big step towords getting paranormal articles included in WP:1.0; more info on that page.
*Peer review! - a mechanism to gather opinions from other members of the project on what needs to be done to improve an article. Great for articles not quite ready for Collaboration, or just articles you'd like to work on yourself, but need some more ideas on where to go. More info on that page, as well.
*A new and improved project banner! - Now has the built-in functionality to show an article's rating, if it is or has been the Collab of the Month, and whether it has had a peer review before. But don't worry, simply tagging  still works just fine. More info on how to use the new features on the template page.
*A navigation template! - To help keep track of all this! Already posted on the main project page.
*Improved categorization! - Now, all articles tagged with our project banner will show up here in nice, neat alphabetical order for easy browsing.
*A shortcut! - The link WP:PARA is now an easy-to-type shortcut straight to the project page!
Goodness am I tired. Anyway, all of that is live as of now, so go ahead and feel free to start making use of them immediatly! The only big tasks left to do now are to keep tagging paranormal articles with  on the talk page, and to ask frequent editors of paranormal articles if they'd like to join in (no better time to join than now!). Please add the Peer Review and Assessment pages to your watchlist so that you know when another member needs something. Hope you guys enjoy, and if you have any questions at all, ask away! Oh, and a HUGE thanks to User:Kirill Lokshin, a member of the Wikipedia:WikiProject Council who helped with a lot of the enormous roadblocks (such as coding the new banner) to creating all of this. Alright, let's get started! --InShaneee 22:53, 25 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: HUGE announcements!

message: Does anybody know some good WP:V WP:RS sources that I could use to explain the phychological or sociological reasons behind people's belief in cattle mutilation, and the reasons why this belief has fluctuated over time (for example, was it a responce to the secularization of society, paranoia over Russian, or the age old 'fear of the unknown')?
Failing that, are there any good sources that apply to this area of the paranormal in general, eg crop circles, alien abductions and UFOs, that I could generalize around without slipping into WP:OR territory.
I'd like to show that people are the product of the society that they live in and their beliefs/fears reflect this, and that they aren't simply irrational kooks for believing in these things.
perfectblue 15:16, 28 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: These might prove helpful, although I haven't read any of them myself: Why People Believe Weird Things, How We Know What Isn't So,  Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition. Zagalejo 20:32, 29 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Reasons Why 

message: There are currently two pages about Gef the talking mongoose, a cryptid/ghost investigated by Harry Price. Does anybody know how to merge the pages or get rid of one of them?--Tascio 19:29, 29 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I'll take care of it. What's the title of the second one? --InShaneee 19:34, 29 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text:  It was http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gef_the_Talking_Mongoose but it seems to have vanished now?!--Tascio 19:58, 29 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Appears to have been into a redirect in late June, which is in fact what needs to be done after a merge. :) --InShaneee 20:00, 29 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Ah, Ok, I guess I got the wrong end of the stick on this one! Thanks for your help!--Tascio 20:04, 29 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Gef the talking mongoose

message: Can I do that, or is it an admin only thing?--Tascio 18:17, 30 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Feel free! However, I did add some 'hidden' directions there to help organize the section. You'll see 'em when you're editing the section, though. --InShaneee 14:35, 1 October 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Great stuff! Thanks! --Tascio 15:50, 1 October 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Adding stuff to "New articles" on the project page?

message: Go to the History Channel RIGHT NOW. It is currently featuring UFO material, as of this timepoint. Martial Law 03:03, 3 October 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: One part of this documentary has mentioned "JANAP - 146". Martial Law 03:06, 3 October 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Documentary on here is UFOs: When UFOs Arrive. Appearantly, this is about what may happen should it be known that "we(this planet)" have made contact with aliens, especially if they come here. Martial Law 03:14, 3 October 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: The show aired @ 11 pm EST/EDT on 10-2-06. Martial Law 03:16, 3 October 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Major question was this: IF there were alien contact, what will happen ? Will there be a planetary rebellion (some will revolt for religious reasons, some, out of revenge, due to the Robertson Panel protocol) Martial Law 03:19, 3 October 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Go to the History channel....

message: Please use this section to update us on your work.  
I have recently added some paragraphs to Phantom kangaroo and some facts and detial to EBay Haunted Painting.  I made a minor edit to Electronic voice phenomenon. I also just added a basic stub for Road troll but think it might be better titled as road trolls (plural). I'll be back at the Cryptozoology subjects later today.  if you'd like me to work on something, please leave me a message here or on my talk page.Lisapollison 10:12, 3 October 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Just a small note: As per the manual of style, Road Troll (singular) is indeed the correct title, though a redirect with the plural spelling isn't out of the question. As for expansion of that article, have you considered adding a Folklore section? (not having read the book, I'm not sure if it would be appropriate, but the name for me evokes the whole 'billy goats gruff' troll-under-the-bridge image). I'm also leaving a message on your talk page about references. Happy editing! --InShaneee 13:55, 4 October 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Thanks for clarifying the title issue.  I believe that if we include anything on folklore it should be very brief. Road trolls are the name given to an anomalous humanoid creature that the witnesses believe to be very real and not mthical or legendary creature.  That's what makes them different from trolls in general.  They are, therefore, cryptozoological in nature.  Certainly awareness of folklore and culture may influence sightings and how they are reported.  In any discussion of the folklore of trolls, we can keep it simple and then provide links to the other relevant articles on wikipedia.Lisapollison 17:36, 4 October 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Recent Work Done in The Project