staring experiment

[Guest guest]

, wrote:

In addition, the

> experiments will only demonstrate certain weird occurrences (such as

> knowing you are being stared at), yet provide no evidence of the

> mechanism by which they occur. Perhaps it is pheromonal or

> electromagnetic. certainly these experiments make no attempt to

> control for other possible mechanism than unmediated action at a

> distance.

 

 

The phenomena of knowing you are being stared is more likely due to the

supposed starer turning to look at the supposed staree when the staree's head

turns to check for the starer. In other words,if you didn't turn to look, the

person who you thought was staring at you would never have looked at you in

the first place. the movement of the head catches the eye and whole

phenomena is interpeted backward by the supposed staree. Experiments that

control for this variable and truly randomize the sequences show that

guessing you are being stared at occurs at no better than chance. Having

school kids do this type of bogus experiment and hype the results allover the

media is really reprehensible. Outsiders whose ideas cannot stand the true

test of scientific scrutiny always claim foul when mainstream researchers

dismiss them. The solution is not ot propose the outrageous idea that

laypeople and children can do controlled valid scientific expriments that

prove something as elusive as paranormal phenomena. to me, this smacks of a

few trends I hate. the idea that the uneducated masses are just as qualifed to

make decisions as experts in their fields. This is the dumbing down of

america writ large where all you have to do is convince the masses of

something and the inltelectuals and scientists can go to hell. I knew this

disturbing trend has overrun california politics, but now it is poised to

destroy science as we know it. Well, I am sure all you luddites are laughing

with glee.