Posts Tagged ‘body’
Thursday, October 30th, 2014
Scientific Explanations For Ghost Sightings
Do you believe in ghosts? If you answered yes, you’re not alone. Almost half of all Americans believe, according to recent CBS News poll. This conviction is an old one, found throughout history in ancient Greek culture, cave paintings in Utah from 7000 BC, and even in the Bible itself. Science is still skeptical, but the absence of proof is not necessarily proof of absence. Scientists have yet to prove the existence of black holes under laboratory conditions, but we’re pretty sure they exist in the universe. Couldn’t the same be true for ghosts? Although researchers have yet to reach a solid explanation, here are a few of the most supported theories regarding whether or not paranormal beings exist, and what they actually are.
1. Spirits of the Deceased
Common culture dictates that apparitions are human spirits separated from their bodies by death. Surprisingly, it seems Einstein considered this a true possibility: “If energy cannot be created or destroyed but only change form, what happens to our body’s energy when we die? Could that somehow be manifested as a ghost?” In 1907, Dr. Duncan McDougall attempted to prove that at the moment of death, the soul leaves the human body and the body thus weighs less – 21 grams to be exact. His work was later discredited, but has since inspired other researchers to determine the soul’s weight and all resulted in some measurable weight loss after death, although results varied greatly. However, this does seem to imply that something that leaves the body following death – could this be the human soul, that for unknown reasons, lingers here on Earth?
2. Neutrinos
Neutrinos are weak, electrically neutral particles with the ability to pass through any form of matter. They are created by radioactive decay. If paranormal beings were made up of neutrinos, this would explain their ability to pass through objects. However, if this were true they would be silent and invisible to the naked eye. It’s possible that ghosts are made of neutrinos, but under the right conditions these neutrinos are charged and thus become audible and visible. This could explain why supernatural activity is more likely during solar storms and during heightened geomagnetic activity.
3. Infrasound Resonation
Some sounds emitted occur at too low a frequency for the human ear to fully process. These infrasound waves occur anywhere between one to twenty Hertz. They are so quiet that you don’t actually hear them, but your ears can still sense them. Your brain can’t zero in on the source so your mind becomes confused, causing fear, dread, panic, nausea, anxiety, and chills. At 18.9 Hz, the human eyeball will actually vibrate just enough to create optical illusions. This accounts for at least some reported sightings. In 1998 at Coventry University, Vic Tandy discovered infrasound resonation to be the source of ghostly apparitions and feelings of fear. A fan emitting a low frequency sound wave of 18.9 HZ was the culprit, and Tandy published his findings in the Journal of the Society for Physical Research.
4. Geomagnetic Waves
Robert Schoch, a professor at Boston University, is currently researching the relationship between brain waves and geomagnetic waves. His theory is that the mind’s emotional states can travel along the low frequency wavelengths found naturally in Earth’s geomagnetic field. In this way, they can be transferred between people and result in apparitions. Although this explanation may seem far-fetched, his laboratory has compiled evidence that a positive correlation exists between apparition sightings and geomagnetic flux patterns.
5. Electrical Stimulation of the Mind
Recently, researchers in Switzerland published a paper in the journal Nature. These doctors electrically stimulated the left temporoparietal junction of the patient’s brain to treat epilepsy. This is the area of the brain responsible for recognition of consciousness – it allows us to differentiate between ourselves and other people. The result was that the patient described a ‘shadow person,’ closely following her every move. Her mind was unable to detect the break in her consciousness, and instead sensed a strange presence. Summary
Although we currently have no concrete answers as to what exactly ghosts are, or if they even exist, the possibility still remains. There is much in the universe that we still don’t know. Every scientific fact we now know to be true was just an unproven theory faced with skeptical opponents. Throughout history we have consistently developed new technology and improved our scientific methods of detection. There is no telling what we might find in the years to come.
Q: Is this a real science?
A: Yes, it is.
There are several scientific organizations and laboratories around the world investigating this phenomenon. Several are affiliated with or run by respectable universities and conduct experiments using the scientific method and advanced technology like Geiger counters, infrared cameras, ion detectors, digital video/ audio recorders, and Electromagnetic Field (EMF) to detect evidence of any abnormal presence.
Q: Where can I find out more?
A: The American Paranormal Research Association (http://apraparanormal.com/), the Paranormal Research Organization (http://www.paranormal-research.org/), and the International Paranormal Reporting Group (http://www.iprgc.com/) are great places to start.
Q: What universities have supported experiments and research in this field?
A: Stanford University (1970s-1980s), Duke University (1930s-1960s), Princeton University (1970s-2000s), Harvard University (1990s-2000s), University of Virginia (1960s-present), University of Arizona (2000s-present), University of California (1960s-1970s), and Cornell University (2000s), as well as several others worldwide.
Tags: abnormal, apparitions, belief, body, death, divination, ghosts, linger, manifestation, paranormal, sightings, soul, spirits, supernatural Posted in classics, ghosts, haunting, movies, Paranormal Phenomena, spirits | No Comments »
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Thursday, October 30th, 2014
Scary Ghosts Throughout The Ages
Introduction
Throughout history, imagery attached to ghosts is of shadowy, vaporous figures. Mysterious ghosts and phantoms reportedly haunt graveyards, misted moors, famous hotels, hospitals and prisons and castles. Spirits may possess good or evil auras.
Historical Ghost Sightings
In southeastern Ireland, Wilton Castle stands with only fire-scarred walls remaining. Ravaged by fire in the 1920s, this was the stately home of the prominent Alcock family since the early seventeenth century.
It’s believed several spirits reside within Wilton Castle walls. The strangest story about Wilton Castle is of a neighbor, Archibald Jacob, magistrate and captain of the local militia during the 1798 rebellion of the Irish against Britain.Jacob flogged and tortured many people in the parish. While returning home from a Wilton Castle ball one night in 1836, he was killed when he fell from his horse. For years, his ghost haunted the scene of his death and the castle.According to the story, a Catholic priest was summoned to perform an exorcism. When the priest made the sign of the cross and Archibald Jacob’s ghost appeared in the fireplace and subsequently disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Classic vs. Modern Sightings
Spectral hunting and paranormal research have always been subject to criticism and skepticism. The classic spectral image depends on the era in which the specter emanates. Although white-garbed spirits are the centuries-old popular image, naked spirits have been reported in a well-known Scandinavian story, where a scantily dressed man returns to his village after his death. The Japanese image of specters is clothed and often disheveled and bloody. Locations of Hauntings
The traditional locations of hauntings have been Scotland, Ireland, England and Germany. Hauntings of the early 1600s have also been reported in New England in the USA. The locations of hauntings have been reported in cemeteries and ancient Native American burial grounds. Military battle grounds of the Revolutionary and Civil Wars are reportedly haunted by unrested souls who died in battle.
Cultural Burial Rituals
Certain aboriginal cultures like Eskimos in the Bearing Sea, the Dogon people of West Africa, Siberian Chukchi and Kwearriburra in Queensland, Australia practice burial rituals to ward off the return of the dead who walk the earth restlessly. Within a culture, there are practices that transcend time and afford each culture a specific embodiment of understanding basic natural and spiritual events modern day people accept with skepticism.
Buildings, War and Mysterious Events
Old, empty buildings often evoke images in windows, in attics, basements, across expanses of lawns and lakes. A more recent haunting occurred when a well-known country and western singer purchased a large antebellum mansion in Tennessee. After moving in, she and her family experience paranormal events. After studying the history of the town and mansion, she learned it was located on the site of a Civil War battle.
Unexplained Events
Another unexplained event occurred when Charlie Troxell was murdered in Portage Indiana. His father, Romer, drove from his home in Pennsylvania to view his son’s body in the morgue. Romer Troxell believed he heard his son’s voice directing him to the killer. Local police later confirmed Troxell helped capture his son’s murderer. Unexplained visions shortly before or after a loved one’s death have been reported numerous times.
Halloween, Depictions and Demons
The celebration of Halloween is an annual event that arouses interest in scary demons, witches and specters. Halloween is actually an ancient Celtic harvest festival. It celebrated the bounty of harvest and souls who died.
Cemeteries
Among ghostly locations, an historical, ancestral or military cemetery elicits a large number of eerie sightings. Some believe the dead haunt a cemetery to prevent desecration of graves. Native American Indian folklore is strongly attached to cemetery sites. Folklore and legends tend to add emphasis to ethereal beliefs.
Have You Ever Felt a Ghostly Presence?
Ghostly presences often occur during times of heavy emotional stress. Stress can originate from loss of a loved one or when the mind is crowded with confusion. The greater the sense of stress, the more the individual feels isolated from reality. A ghostly presence doesn’t have to appear in shape or form. It can be a feeling of extreme cold or “not being alone.” The phantom of an unresolved issue with a deceased individual is another example of ghostly presence that occurs day or night. It may be a memory jogged by some vague reminder lurking in the back of the mind.
Do Certain Places Scare You?
A dark attic, a lonely road or a vacant old home inspires the deepest sense of solitude. Humans are naturally averse to feelings of loneliness and isolation. Ethereal vibrations occur when humans place themselves in locations where there is emptiness surrounding them. Some believe that attics or vacant old homes evoke spectors of unrested souls who were unable to resolve serious issues before their demise. Dark or empty places conjure thoughts of the past from the sheer curiosity of previous people and events that occurred in these places.
Have You Ever Used a Medium?
A medium is the intermediary between the spiritual world and conscious world. The medium may be a person, place or thing. Fortune tellers, old wells, tea leaves, Tarot cards, crystal balls, prisms, runic stones and I Ching are depictions used.
Consciously, most people know it’s impossible to know the future. In reality, these are implements that heighten meditation skills. Many unconscious questions lie in human minds that affect meditation. These implements are centuries old and became practiced arts among highly sensitive individuals.
Summary
We see ghostly spirits because humans are naturally sensitive, intuitive beings. As the most intelligent life form, we seek answers to the unknowable.
Tags: aura, belief, body, castle, classic, creature, culture, death, demons, ghosts, haunting, mist, sightings, spirits, story, tale Posted in classics, ghosts, haunting, movies, Paranormal Phenomena, spirits | No Comments »
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Thursday, October 30th, 2014
What Is The Difference Between Ghosts And Spirits?
Have you ever contemplated what the difference was? Are they the same thing? Are they words that co-inside with each other or is there more to it than just semantics? Let’s take a closer look at the definitions of each and try to make some sense out of the difference.
Definitions
The definition of a ghost is the following: a dead person’s soul, a disembodied spirit imagined, usually as a vague, evanescent or shadowy form, wandering among or haunting living persons. Looking at this, one would get the impression that a ghost is a troubled person that has died and who may be trapped between earth and a greater place, creating trouble for people who are alive.
Now let us take a look at the definition of a spirit
: a supernatural, non-material being, especially one inhabiting a place or an object. Reading this definition, the feeling is of someone that is invisible but still here. The definition does not say that they are going anywhere, but that they are inhabiting a home or an object.
What Do Ghosts Do?
The common assumption is that they are known to haunt houses. There is a lot of documentation and information out there that humans have felt and seen apparitions in their houses, usually during night, when it is dark outside. They aren’t always evil though. There are many stories of people who just see or hear things, without an explanation.
Paranormal activity is thought to be trapped souls doing things to catch our attention. These souls are named poltergeists. They are known to cause objects to move in an attempt to scare people and as a means of showing their anger with being trapped. Things may fly off of shelves or fall onto the floor without a human anywhere near them. This activity is common in homes that are thought to be haunted.
Are they trying to get our attention? Or are they so upset that they are stuck here that they feel they need to haunt us until they get where they are going?
They are thought to be troubled and trapped between realms. They are here because they may have some unfinished business to attend to before moving on. However, they may be unaware of this and are feeling they are imprisoned and unsure of how to proceed. Because of this they often haunt homes and do the paranormal things out of anger or fear.
Spirits – What Is Their Story?
They have a different story. They are thought to be invisible souls that are still here after death has happened. No one really sees them though. They are felt. They are people that are still here but not to been seen or to have haunt you.
After death they can stay here to watch over family and friends. They are here for a purpose. Unbeknownst to the living, they may be trying to give them guidance through subtle hints that can be given without being seen.
They have already seen the light of the other side, any higher power. They know already what is out there. They are here to help us and are hanging around to give us signs to help us through.
What Can I Do To Help?
If you have felt a presence in your home, you may be afraid. You might not know who or what you are dealing with. What should you do?
Try to relax and call out to the presence to see if you get any results. If things move around and you feel an anger in the air, try to calm the ghost by letting them know that you understand their pain. Tell them that you are friendly and wish to help.
You may have to live with the presence for a while until they find what it is that they are looking for. There are hunters of the paranormal that you could call to come and help, if you are very scared. A paranormal specialist can be found with a quick search on the internet.
Will They Show Themselves?
There are stories of some sightings. Usually an apparition or a foggy shadow. This is very spooky if you witness it. It may involve mirrors. The best thing to do is continue to be calm, and to let them know you are not a threat.
How Can I Make Them Go Away?
After awhile you may luck out that they have finally found the answer to their problem and they will vacate on their own. If it goes on for some time, you might want to hire the service of a paranormal hunter to help determine what you are dealing with and to give you pointers on how to have them move on. They have electronic devices that can let you know if your home is affected or not and where they are vacating. They may be able to help.
If it is a visiting loved one however, you may feel that presence your whole life. And that is someone who you know, that wants to look after you, not to have you feel haunted in the night. So you probably don’t want that to go away at all. That is something you should cherish.
Summary
Any information obtained through stories or your own viewing should be passed around to others so they are aware of the differences. A lot of people are scared of hauntings and they don’t understand what they mean. They are also afraid of the feeling of someone being there with them, and that might be the spirit they feel.
Tags: being, body, difference, fear, ghost, haunting, home, inhabit, material, night, object, person, spirit, supernatural, trapped, trouble Posted in ghosts, Paranormal Phenomena, spirits, Uncategorized | No Comments »
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