Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Haunted Great Lakes (2004 Documentary)


Haunted Great Lakes (2004 Documentary) by debunkerbuster

JM Talboo Paranormal Investigator Bio

JM Talboo is a paranormal investigator currently located in Western Pennsylvania and can be reached at jmtalboo@gmail.com for investigation requests in that area of the state, or near Youngstown Ohio. He is the co-founder of the DebunkingDeath.BlogSpot.com Paranormal Investigation Team, which is seeking new members. He is also the co-founder of the now defunct paranormal investigation group PROOF Paranormal (Positive Reality Or Only Figment), which was based in Indianapolis Indiana. The PROOF investigation team was featured in the book Encyclopedia of Haunted Places: Ghostly Locales from Around the World. Talboo has a diploma in paranormal studies from Flamel College.

Talboo contends that solo investigators or groups of two are ideal, as it majorly limits the possibility of contamination of, or disputes over, what constitutes good evidence. He is well-versed in purported methods for ridding homes of various types of hauntings and is happy to provide info about and in some cases attempt such methods with clients if they choose. Although he makes no 100% guarantees that anything will work.

Of the many investigations conducted by PROOF Paranormal were a series at the famous Indianapolis haunted mansion known as The Hannah House, where the group hosted tours and overnight stays. During one investigation the team captured a video of a self-illuminated floating ball of light. The camera in use was a conventional tape based unit recording in a very dark room. The original intention was to leave a lamp on as a light source, but the lamp was never turned on. Thus there was no infrared camera in use that could have lit up a piece of dust or a bug in the viewfinder. Nor was there any possibility that it was an out of focus lighting bug, as it was the dead of winter. All investigators and home owners involved claimed to have never entered the room during the investigation. The team tried to recreate the anomaly with the various types of flashlights on hand to no avail. The investigator and/or parts of the room were always lit up in the attempted recreations and the light didn't look the same in general.

Piano keys being played were heard, only to later find out the piano in the home did not work. Whistling was heard in a hallway where no one else was near. A Class A EVPs was also captured in the home as well, which answered "yes" (in a robotic sounding voice) to either one of two questions asked to close together... Is there a god? Do you believe in ghosts? This query ironically was captured by one of the more skeptical investigators, who was very surprised to actually get an answer and was certain no one had hoaxed him!

Another fruitful investigation for PROOF was a location featured in a book on Indiana hauntings known as the Innes Mansion. The full bodied apparition of a male child was reported by the residents of the home. During the team's investigation a voice was captured on tape that sounded to many who heard it to clearly be a Class A variety EVP of a male child, intelligently answering the question of whether his picture could be taken with the response "I think.". There were no children present in the home.

Stepp Cemetery – Martinsville

Haunted Indiana - Occult World

Stepp Cemetery has a long reputation for being haunted. Today, the grounds are tucked away five miles inside the dark Morgan-Monroe State Forest. The cemetery was originally a pioneer cemetery started in the early 1800s.
Locals tell the sad story of a woman who tragically lost her baby son during the mid-1930s and had the baby buried in the nearby Stepp Cemetery.
She then became a recluse, spending most of her time at the cemetery watching over her baby’s grave and singing to it. She, too, eventually passed on, and that is when the accounts of ghosts began to roll in.
Around the mid- 1950s, visitors to the cemetery began to report seeing a woman in black sitting on a tree stump in the cemetery near a baby’s grave. People would witness her sitting there one second and being gone the next.
Rangers have said they’ve heard the cry of a woman in the woods, but upon inspection, they found nothing. Also, there have been reports of a black ghost dog, watching over the baby’s grave and protecting it.
Being five miles back into a huge, dense forest doesn’t always make for the easiest investigation of a two-century-old cemetery. PROOF Paranormal had seen photos of a gate in front of the path to the cemetery and we were thrown off a bit because there are actually two almost identical gates that are about a quarter mile from each other.
At the second/correct gate that marks the path to Stepp Cemetery, we proceeded down the path for about 200 yards or so before we started seeing the first of the headstones. History and possible hauntings aside, this place is very impressive. A feeling of walking back into the past is in the air as you stroll into the clearing deep within the woods.
During a second investigation of Stepp Cemetery, we captured a strange, red glow in one of our numerous photos. Strange noises were heard throughout the investigation, as well as several footsteps passing by at least one member. This was, interestingly enough, in the same area of the cemetery as we had previously experienced a cold spot.
Maybe we were hearing the infamous Black Lady on her nightly walk to her favorite spot by the child’s grave?
STEPP cemetery
MORGAN MONROE STATE FOREST
SOUTH OF MARTINSVILLE, INDIANA
Last updated: July 4, 2014 at 10:08 am
Back to Haunted Indiana
Back to Home

About The Author

Justin Hammans and John-Michael – Talboo Co-Founders, PROOF Paranormal
Edited for the Web by Occult World

http://occult-world.com/stepp-cemetery/

Monday, June 20, 2016

Mark Zuckerberg: You Will Be Plugged into "The Matrix" in the Future



birdieberry 
Here's the thing about the West: The "Age of Reason" rejected Spirituality and Associative Thinking and embraced Logic and the Scientific Method, thus only the Mind and Body is acknowledged. In the East, the "trinity" of Mind, Body, and Spirit were (and is) understood as a whole. NOW, the Western secular society, on the premise of "There is no Spirit", uploads the Mind into an abstract-virtual reality, which according to "religious/magical" thinking will destroy the Spirit. ==> The Spirit is the "bonding agent"/liason between the Mind and Body. Anyone who "uploads" onto the Transhumanism Train will be Spiritually dead.

Related:

Gnosticism and Buddhism in The Matrix - Annotated Edition

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Ask the Virtual Magic Eight Ball


ask

Ghosts Of Shepherdstown S01E01 Welcome To Americas Most Haunted Town


Ghosts Of Shepherdstown S01E01 Welcome To... by debunkerbuster

Michael Savage on Atheism

“So you’re an atheist and you say, “Well how do you know there’s a God?” So what is there, nothing? So nothing created you? So you believe in nothing? Therefore, you believe in something – but that’s nothing. You believe in nothingness. I believe in God. That’s all. How can you believe in nothingness? How is it possible to believe in nothingness? How can something come from nothing? It’s a violation of all the laws of physics! Something cannot come from nothing. It violates physical science, biological science, and theological science. It violates all the laws of reason! It violates all the laws of nonreason.” ― Michael Savage from Train Tracks: Family Stories for the Holidays

Related:

Near-Death Experiences of Atheists

Close Friends of Atheist Forrest J. Ackerman Claim He Contacted Them After His Death

Reports of the Supernatural at Alcatraz


Reports of the Supernatural at Alcatraz by debunkerbuster

Sunday, June 12, 2016

Phantom Voices

by Tom Butler
Previously published in the Fall 2012 ATransC NewsJournal
Abstract
A frequent source of consternation for people who are asked to listen to EVP examples is their failure to hear what is reported. It is expected there will be some disagreement between listeners and practitioners. That is the nature of EVP (see Online Listening Study). However, a problem develops when listeners report hearing only noise, and doing so with example after example from the same practitioner when the practitioner insists there are paranormal voices in the examples. The question necessarily must turn to why the practitioner is hearing what others do not.
For this study, sound file containing only noise were presented to ATransC.org online listeners who were told there was only noise and were then asked to report what they heard. The study confirmed the prevalence of people who report hearing "phantom voices." the study includes a discussion as to why this may be.


Introduction
The evidence is very clear that there are examples of Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP) that contain clearly understood messages. EVP are empirically demonstrated phenomena. Yet, a commonly heard complaint is that websites concerned with the paranormal often have examples of EVP that sound like simple noise.
Website visitors have used the contact tool to announce that they are receiving astoundingly long and important EVP, which on close examination, have proven to only contain noise. Yet, others have provided excellent, clearly heard examples. So what is the difference? What leads one person to hear messages where there is only noise while others do not?
The prevalence of this “phantom voices” phenomenon is increasingly evident as more people become involved in EVP. The resulting confusion is seen as an obstacle to useful collaboration amongst practitioners and certainly must warn off potential researchers.
Listening Test
To develop more understanding of the problem of phantom voices, the ATransC conducted an online listening study using two sound files. One contained simple brown noise (emphasis on voice-frequencies) and the other contained broad-spectrum noise modulated with audio pulses that simulate the cadence of speech. It was clearly stated that neither example contained voice. Possible explanations about what might cause a person to hear phantom voices were included above the hearing test and what was in the files was clearly stated.
Results
Of the 111 submissions, 15.3% (17) reported hearing voices in the brown noise file and 27.8% (33) reported hearing voices in the modulated file. That means that 39% (43) reported voice in one or both of the files.
Participants were also asked if they had a history of hearing voices not heard by others. Thirty-six percent (40) of the respondents said that they did. Most indicated they were likely in a hypnogogic state of awareness.
Interestingly, many respondents reported hearing music or musical tones. While hearing music might be an associated characteristic of the phantom voices phenomenon, the question has not been addressed here.
Analysis
This was an informal study in the sense that there were no controls. Although respondents were asked how the samples were listened to, it is mostly unknown if the samples were heard under optimum conditions. It is also reasonable to ask if respondents would be candid about hearing voices they were told were not present. There is probably a natural selection of respondents which biases the results away from “hearing voices” reports. The website receives nearly a thousand visitors a day and receiving only 111 responses to the study over more than a year suggests that many who might have read the discussion prior to listening to the sound files, and subsequently heard voices, chose not to respond. For the purpose of future study, it is hypothesized that at least 43% might hear voices in sound files which are not present.
Theory
The phantom voices phenomenon appears to have a number of possible causes ranging from mental illness to the natural human tendency to make sense of ambiguous stimuli. Mental illness does not appear to be a factor for EVP; however, in the most extreme examples, there does appear to be a complex of common behaviors which may imply a situational fixation on hearing voices. This is addressed below in “Listener Fatigue.”
There are a number of mental characteristics described in the psychological literature that touch on this experience, but hypnagogia seems to be a key concept. It is defined as: Inducing sleep; soporific [sleepiness]; drowsiness preceding sleep; relating to the images or hallucinations sometimes experienced in this state. According to Gurstelle and de Oliveira,1 “...daytime parahypnagogia (DPH) is more likely to occur when one is tired, bored, suffering from attention fatigue, and/or engaged in a passive activity....”
The mind will naturally seek order in chaotic stimuli (see “Perceptual Order” below). The order is apparently based on what is in the person’s memory, so the almost-heard sounds have a familiar feel for the experiencer. A common report received by the ATransC is hearing voices or music for which the source cannot be found or recorded. In most reports, the sounds are described as a distant conversation or the sound of a radio program that can “almost” be made out, but no specific words or songs can be identified. As it happens, the phantom voices are often associated with a person who is distracted by activities that permit the person’s mind to wander. They may also be experienced at the beginning and end of sleep time.
Experiencers often resist mundane explanations, and insist they are experiencing something paranormal.
Audio Illusion
There are also a number of types of auditory illusions that have been identified. A good article about these is “Audio illusions that will fool your ear (and brain)” by Rich Pell.2 One such illusion is described as “The phantom words illusion,” which is simply the same two words being repeated over and over but time displaced between the left and right channel. This demonstrates how easy it is to hear words and phrases that are not there, and even hear them change, as the brain attempts to make sense of the aural ambiguity. This is a pretty interesting effect!
Passive Concentration
Perhaps a better term for hypnagogia would be “passive concentration” because the person has focused attention, but not with concentrated awareness. This distraction from the inner chatter of the brain leaves the mind open for unnoticed inputs.
In principle, the hypnagogic state of mind is ideal for our etheric communicators to commune with our otherwise too busy mind. Passive concentration is a spontaneous version of mindful meditation which is a deliberately cultivated technique for communing with one’s inner senses and is an important technique for mediumship. The important point is that we must recognize the part these natural tendencies play in our perception of phenomena.
Apophenia and Pareidolia
Apophenia is a term used in psychology for the mind’s natural tendency to identify patterns where none exist. Pareidolia is a subset of apophenia which applies to finding meaning in sound or images that does not exist. Skeptics love to use these terms to explain away reports of paranormal experiences. When applied to all reports with no examination of the evidence, these terms are, in effect, psychobabble used to explain why people reporting paranormal experiences are imagining things. The term, “apophenia” does not apply to simple cases of misidentification such as a balloon being identified as a UFO or a fellow investigator’s reflection being mistaken as a ghost in a mirror. It applies to the result of the mind’s need to find order in chaos. When presented with information the mind is unable to identify or make sense of, its natural reaction is to offer up the next best fit. If the person is intent on finding voices in noise, the mind will probably offer a likely word or two.
Some reports of the paranormal may be instances of apophenia. The study of things paranormal often involves poorly formed images and hard to understand sound files which must be carefully studied. A person who is unfamiliar with the concept of mediumship, and who does not know it is possible to sense subtle energy, may be inclined to express a natural fear of the dark as a “sense of a nearby evil entity.” Such responses to unfamiliar experiences are not evidence of a psychological flaw, but are natural human attempts to relate to circumstances. The “antidote” is education.
Perceptual Order
In Gestalt psychology, the whole is seen as being different than the sum of its parts. In this, the observer might find understanding where there is little or no substantiating information. The Gestalt laws of perceptual organization3 also provide possible explanations for the natural human tendency to find order in chaos. They include:
The Law of Similarity: Similar stimuli or elements that are close together tend to be grouped.
The Law of Closure: Stimuli tend to be grouped into complete figures.
The Law of Good Continuation: Stimuli tend to be grouped so as to minimize change or discontinuity.
The Law of Symmetry: Regions bound by symmetrical borders tend to be perceived as coherent figures.
The Law of Simplicity: Ambiguous stimuli tend to be resolved in favor of the simplest.
Clairaudience
Clairvoyance or “clear seeing” has become a catchall term for the ability to sense information in subtle energy. This may be in the form of voices, images, smells or a general “knowing.” It is possible that a person might hear voices in a sound track containing only noise, via clairaudience, if none are physically present. However, in the study of EVP, the voices are either physically there or they are not. If they are there, then others should be able to experience them. They are objective, meaning they have physical form. Understanding this point is central to the study of how transcommunication is experienced.
Listener Fatigue
EVP practitioners spend a lot of time listening to often noisy audio recordings. The expected EVP are usually mostly hidden by the noise and one must listen very carefully to distinguish them. Once isolated, the paranormal utterances are usually Class C, meaning they are not very easily understood. This makes it necessary for the practitioner to concentrate and listen to the sound segment many times. This situation is a formula for noise to be mistaken as anticipated EVP.
Discussion
The first documentation of EVP was in 1959 and the phenomenon remains poorly understood today. Fundamentally, the examples are just sound tracks usually containing a lot of noise and a few, often poorly formed words.
With proper training, usually gained by trial and error with feedback from friends or from other ATransC members on the Idea Exchange, the practitioner learns to recognize the difference between actual voices transformed out of background noise and imagined messages. However, in cases in which this learning has not occurred, practitioners have been known to find meaning which does not exist in the noise. For all of the reasons one might propose to explain this, the most available means of avoiding problems with phantom voices is education.
This study should provide a sense of how common it is for individuals to mistake mundane information as something paranormal. The phantom voices effect is not unique to EVP, but can be seen in virtually all forms of transcommunication including visual ITC and mediumship. While this report addresses what has been called here, “phantom voices,” the larger phenomenon might be referred to as a form of hyperlucidity as the experiencer’s mind goes to extremes in an attempt to assign meaning.
References
  1. Gurstelle EB, de Oliveira JL., Daytime parahypnagogia: a state of consciousness that occurs when we almost fall asleep, William Paterson University, Wayne,ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14962619, Reviewed 5-3-2012
  2. Pell, Rich, Audio illusions that will fool your ear (and brain), eetimes.com/electronics-blogs/audio-designline-blog/4033473/Audio-illusions-that-will-fool-your-ear-and-brain-, Reviewed 5-3-2012
  3. Saw, Jim, "Design Notes: Art 104 Sesign and Composition," Palomar College, daphne.palomar.edu/design/gestalt.html, Reviewed 1-9-2015
Related:

Undebunking EVPs

Know Your EMF Meters

How well do you know the equipment you use for paranormal investigations? Here is a closer look at some of the more popular EMF meters and related devices being used in the field, as well as a demonstration of some things that can give you false readings. Thanks to Randy Carver of Carver Paranormal for the inspiration for this video. *Correction* The Radio Frequency Range of the TriField Meter is 50 MHz (not 50Hz) to 3 GHz.*

Robert A Ferguson Ghost Photo


This photo was taken on November 16, 1968 when Robert A. Ferguson, author of 
Psychic Telemetry: New Key to Health, Wealth, and Perfect Living, was giving a speech at a Spiritualist convention in Los Angeles, California. Faintly appearing next to Ferguson is a figure that he later identified as his brother, Walter, who died in 1944 during World War II. At first glance, this might seem to be a double exposure or some kind of darkroom trickery, but this photo is a Polaroid (one of several taken of Ferguson at the time), making any kind of hoaxing quite unlikely.

paranormal.about.com

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

Ghostbusters: The REAL Reasons for the Backlash and Controversy

I for one am excited for the new Ghostbusters film, but this video makes some excellent points about how it is, so far as we can tell, lacking in some elements that made the original film what it was. I'm just going to try and like it for what it is. Which may very well be the movie Bridesmaids with proton packs. I like both of those things and the original Ghostbusters isn't going anywhere. It's gotta be as good as Ghostbusters 2, no!? As to pushing an SJW agenda, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. But if so, all I have to say is that I always thought Dana Barrett and Janine Melnitz were strong female characters!



GHOSTBUSTERS - Official Trailer (HD) by debunkerbuster

Update:

OK, I was taking a moderate stance on this whole deal, but the things brought to light for me featured in the below video are just too much. I was aware of people attacking James Rolfe for his refusal to review the film. I'm a big fan of his and to me he is clearly a very nice guy and not a misogynist or a loser as alleged. What I wasn't aware of was the extreme level of vitriol that Rolfe had received and how a female contemporary of his with similar opinions was being ignored. I was aware of director Paul Feig calling out geek culture as being full of assholes. He was butt-hurt, I can forgive, but I wasn't aware of the officially sanctioned censorship from Sony of well-written criticisms, while leaving misogynistic comments intact. Nor was I aware of how the stars of the film were continuing to advance the false narrative that misogynistic losers were at the heart of the heavy criticism. I also wasn't aware of the extreme politicization going on for Hillary Clinton and against Donald Trump. I'll still watch the film one day somehow, but I won't be paying for it in any way shape or form.