Paranormal Occurrences And Its Explanation: Science Approach

According to culture, ghost/phantom/apparition is the spirit of a dead person who appear to be living. The description varies from lifelike visions to translucent view of wispy shapes. For the past couple of decades, there are numerous attempts to communicate and contact with the deceased person which usually known as necromancy. In 2014, a social survey was conducted in United Kingdom which found that 52% of the participants believed in the supernatural which is a significant increased compared to the studies conducted in 2005 and 2009. 1 out of the 5 candidates claimed they have some sort of paranormal experiences which raised the questions, are ghost real and if they do, what are they?

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Recently, supernatural has become a big hit in the entertainment industries with some of the movies and television shows depicted stories which are related to ghosts. There are some properties or places that are claimed to be occupied by ghosts i.e. Dover Castle, Dunster Castle and Blickling Hall. In 2015, Chapman University conducted a survey which found that 40% of the American population believe that spirit can haunts places. Most of the occurrences ever reported were unexplained in terms of science but in some cases, the cause of the ghostly presence can be explained.

In the 19th century, Michael A. Persinger, a natural philosopher and neuroscientist argued that all of the phenomenon related to spiritual and paranormal experiences can be explained by universal physical mechanism and verified by using appropriate scientific method. He hypothesized that, pulsed magnetic fields can cause unusual activity patterns in the temporal lobes which made people feel as if something appear to be in the room with them. Through a meticulous study on people in his lab, he found that, an exposure to a specific pattern of weak magnetic field for 15-30 minutes can cause a false perception of an invisible presence in the room.

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There are numerous research being done to push back this theory but often Persinger has his way of explaining the different nature of the research protocol being done than his own. In 2003, Richard Wiseman, conducted an experiment in two location which have considerable reputation for being haunted which are South Bridge Vaults in Scotland and Hampton Court Palace in England. He found that the paranormal experiences felt by the participants correlate significantly with abnormal magnetic fields. Whenever the participants reach the area with unusual electromagnetic activities, they started to feel some kind of ghostly presence. This does not necessarily meant there are some ghostly activities but can be as a result of a mechanism of respond with the presenting factors in their surrounding.

In 1998, Vic Tandy, an engineer working for a medical equipment manufacturer has reported hearing and seeing paranormal things including an apparition which he deems similar to a ghost. He became depressed and feeling uncomfortable whenever he has to work at the particular but eventually, he discovered that, the lab was home to a low frequency standing wave coming from a fan which caused all of the disorientation. There are multiple studies in the past which proved the effect of low-frequency noise on heart rate, blood pressure and any other effect that can be associated with seeing a ghost. This shows a significant correlation between infrasound and disorientating sensations which can give us chills down the spine.

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In 1921, a doctor named W. H. Wilmer published an interesting article in the American Journal of Ophthalmology about a family who have been living in the haunted residence for some times. They have been hearing strange voices in the night, feeling weak and felt some kind of strange presence which they described as an apparition. At some point, they couldn't even get away from the bed, as they claimed they were held down by ghosts. As it turned out, the paranormal experiences was caused by a faulty furnace which evidently, filled their house with carbon monoxide causing hallucinations. What they felt is not paranormal, it's carbon monoxide poisoning! After the furnace was fixed, the family lives normally without any reports of unusual occurrence.

Even though in some cases, the root for the cause can be identified, but there are plentiful which were not. Paranormal experiences is not only of significant values to the medical communities but also cultures. Some cultures believe that, paranormal occurrences were caused by weak spirituality. In some sense, it is true, because other than physical and emotional, spiritual is an important aspect to lead a healthy life. Although it is clear for some, it might not for the others. As it is still a grey area in science, we must keep an open mind to any possibilities that might explain why, we experience it in the first place.