1. Spontaneous Phenomena
In this section are to be found descriptions of personal experiences of naturally occurring psi or other anomalous phenomena, mainly as reported by members of the public. The most frequently reported seem to be precognitions, usually in the form of dreams interpreted as precognitive, and telepathic communications. Precognition became a major topic with the publication in the 1930s of books by JW Dunne and others, recording coincidences between dreams and actual events they seemed to precognise, which may have stimulated public interest in recording and reporting such events.
A number of reports deal with significant coincidences, apparitions (see also Section 8), psychokinesis, retrocognition and animal psi.
Other reports cover such phenomena as stigmata, auras, religious visions and miracles, fairies and crop circles. Methodological papers relating to the investigation of spontaneous cases can also be found here.
keywords: spontaneous psi, precognition, dreams, telepathy, apparitions, psychokinesis, retrocognition, animal psi, stigmata, aura, crop circles
Wyld, George. CLAIRVOYANCE, Proceedings 1, 1882-3, pp. 156-7. Summary of a paper describing anecdotal cases of clairvoyance. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/
Anon. A RARE TYPE OF TELEPATHY, Journal 1, 1884, pp. 45-6. Example of ‘waking telepathic transference’, in which a woman has a vivid dream of seeing a friend in bed staring at the ceiling, and the friend, lying in bed awake, has a vivid impression of the woman entering the room and looking down at her, although the door did not appear either to open or close. spontaneous psi/telepathy/dreams
Twain, Mark. ON THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE, Journal 1, 1884, pp. 166-7. Typically light-hearted letter from the American writer on his telepathic experiences. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Lach-Szyrma, W.S. MODERN PROPHECIES, Journal 1, 1885, pp. 284-5. Briefly lists historical prophecies which the author considers to be worthy of examination. These include St. Malachi, Nostradamus, the Empress Josephine, Merlin, the fall of Poland in the 17th century, the House of Brandenburg, and the Delphic Oracle. spontaneous psi/precognition
Sidgwick, Eleanor. PREMONITIONS, Journal 3, 1888, pp. 290-92. Brief report of a paper on premonitions written and read by Sidgwick, summarising the evidence and research issues. spontaneous psi/precognition
Sidgwick, Eleanor. ON THE EVIDENCE FOR PREMONITIONS, Proceedings 5, 1889, pp. 288-354. Sidgwick considers a class of anecdotal evidence gathered by the Society which is suggestive of precognition, if not in her view as convincing as the evidence of telepathy. About two thirds of the material is dreams and the remainder various kinds of hallucination. The character of apparitional cases is similar to that of crisis apparitions, with the added element that the event perceived is some hours or days in the future. Headings include: recognised apparitions (293), unrecognised apparitions (300), symbolic visual hallucinations (302), precognition of sounds (305), symbolic sounds (306), general discussion of dreams (311), recognition of dream scenery (314), dreams foreshadowing deaths (317), dreams of accidents (332), dreams of trivial incidents (343), symbolic dreams (351). spontaneous psi/precognition/apparitions/hallucinations/dreams
Anon, Miss X. A RECORD OF TELEPATHIC AND OTHER EXPERIENCES,
Proceedings 6, 1890, pp. 358-97. More of the author’s and friends’ experiences in telepathy, involving impressions or apparitional hallucinations concerning events later found to have occurred in fact. spontaneous psi/telepathy/hallucinations/apparitions
Sidgwick, Eleanor. ON THE EVIDENCE FOR CLAIRVOYANCE, Proceedings 7, 1891, pp. 30-99. Documents several cases in which subjects become telepathically aware, through dreams or hallucinations, of accidents, deaths and other objective facts. Includes the ‘Wilmot’ case, discussed by commentators to the present day, in which a woman felt herself to be transported to the side of her sleeping husband aboard a ship on a transatlantic crossing. Independently her husband dreamed that she entered his cabin and caressed him and, when he woke, a man sharing his cabin remarked that he was ‘a pretty fellow to have a lady come and visit you in this way.’ Reports of amateur experiments involving a hypnotized subject are also given, in which the subject seemed to become aware of facts she could not normally have known. Telepathy is indicated in some cases, but there are several in which the facts were not known, or known inaccurately by other people involved, and were given correctly by the subject. SUPPLEMENT, pp. 356-9. spontaneous psi/telepathy/clairvoyance/apparitions/bilocation/dreams
Sidgwick, E. et al. DISCUSSION: CLAIRVOYANCE, Journal 5, 1891, pp. 1-4. Sidgwick reads a paper on clairvoyance: other members offer comments and experiences. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance
Anon, Miss X. THE APPARENT SOURCES OF SUPERNORMAL EXPERIENCES, Journal 6, 1894, pp. 258-61. The author describes the subjective nature of her spontaneous experiences: ‘the impulse to deliver a statement which seems to owe its genesis to something apart from one’s own consciousness, to be independent of reason or memory, perhaps analogous to the messages of clairaudience or automatic writing, but having no corresponding sense impression;’ etc. spontaneous psi/telepathy/clairvoyance
Anon, Miss X. ON THE APPARENT SOURCES OF SUBLIMINAL MESSAGES, Proceedings 11, 1895, pp. 114-44. Describes various personal experiences of seeming telepathy and clairvoyance. For example, on meeting a stranger the author has a clairvoyant impression of a ‘Hindoo’ standing next to him. On his urgings she described the figure in detail and later hears from him that a clairvoyant servant has spontaneously described the same figure as being beside him (126). spontaneous psi/telepathy/apparitions
Myers, Frederic W.H. THE SUBLIMINAL SELF: CHAPTER 8 - THE RELATION OF SUPERNORMAL PHENOMENA TO TIME RETROCOGNITION AND PRECOGNITION, Proceedings 11, 1895, pp. 334-593. Six years have elapsed since Eleanor Sidgwick’s paper in Proceedings 5 ‘On the evidence for Premonitions’, in which time twice as much anecdotal material has been assembled as she had available to her. Myers offers some reflections, followed by anecdotal cases. A priest hears the first lines of a letter spoken to him hours before he receives it in the post (346); a woman describes the sensation of being a child again and calling out to her sister at night, and receives a letter from her sister saying she had been awakened the night before by the sound of her name being called (355); a man dreams he is involved in a train accident that causes a fatality, and later finds the details confirmed in an actual accident that happened at the same time (370); a man in a light sleep dreams of an accident to a diver in a harbour, which corresponds with an actual accident (378); a dentist working on the manufacture of false teeth obeys the command of an unseen voice to run to the window, narrowly escaping injury when his chemical apparatus explodes (424); a man dreams he makes a business visit and is asked to look at a number of photographic transparencies, an event which takes place in reality unexpectedly some days later (458); etc. SUMMARY & DISCUSSION, Journal 7, 1895, pp. 82-5. spontaneous psi/precognition/telepathy/dreams
Anon, Miss X. A PROVISIONAL ACCOUNT OF AN ENQUIRY INTO SECOND SIGHT IN THE HIGHLANDS, Journal 7, 1895, pp. 2-5. Results of a questionnaire on clairvoyance in Scotland are analysed (summary and discussion). See also pp. 182-6. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance
Anon. THOUGHT-READING IN YOUNG CHILDREN, Journal 7, 1895, pp. 29-30. Brief report of thought-reading by a young child published in a French Journal. The child appears to know a number of languages and to perform arithmetic effortlessly, but is considered to be reading the thoughts of the person asking him questions. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Lang, Andrew. QUEEN MARY’S DIAMONDS, Journal 7, 1895, pp. 116-9. Lang investigates a case of retrocognition, which he says comes close to satisfying the standards required to make an impression on common sense. spontaneous psi/retrocognition
Anon. PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 8, 1897, pp. 147-8. The writer describes how the details of a dream mentioned to him by his wife seemed accurately to match a rail accident in which he was involved a few days later. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. CURIOUS KNOCKINGS, Journal 8, 1898, pp. 233-8. Villagers in Berkshire report hearing rapping sounds near their homes at around midnight, and reject the explanation of practical joking. CORRESPONDENCE, p. 272. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis/hallucinations
Anon. PSYCHICAL HEREDITY, Journal 8, 1898, pp. 264-8. A clergyman describes psychical episodes in the life of his father, himself and, more briefly, his daughter. spontaneous psi
Anon. ‘SOUNDS FROM THE UNKNOWN’, Journal 9, 1899, pp. 89-90. Following the death of their seventeen-year old son a couple hear mysterious chimes. The music comes and goes over several months, changing character and intensity. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis/hallucinations/survival
Johnson, Alice. COINCIDENCES, Proceedings 14, 1899, pp. 158-330. Study including many personal anecdotes of surprising coincidences. Johnson defines terms; discusses chance, probability and expectation; and classifies coincidences under two headings. Coincidences clearly due to chance include: two clergymen approach each other, both feeling they have met somewhere before but uncertain in what circumstances, and both introduce themselves as ‘the Rev. Charles Bingham’ (194); a rail worker injured years before by an accident involving a runaway train dies at the same moment that an identical accident takes place on the same spot (203); a gambler picks up a horseshoe for luck, notes numbers in the street, bets on the numbers and wins; etc. Johnson then turns to coincidences with a strong claim to causal production, which include those apparently due to ‘subliminal action’ and those possibly due to telepathy. Appendices cover the construction of an artificial chance series, preminitory dreams, and a guessing competition. spontaneous psi/coincidences
Part, J. Shepley. A FEW NOTES ON OCCULTISM IN WEST AFRICA, Proceedings 14, 1899, pp. 343-7. Examples of clairvoyant communication experienced by a colonial administrator. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance
Anon. AUTOMATIC PHENOMENA IN A CASE OF HYSTERIA, Journal 9, 1900, pp. 333-9. Translation of an Italian pamphlet describing an 1853 case containing evidence of clairvoyance and xenoglossy. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/xenoglossy
Anon. AN UNFULFILLED PRESENTIMENT, Journal 10, 1901, p. 69. T.H. Huxley’s biographer records an incident where the scientist hears an inner voice warning him not to travel, ignores it, and nothing happens. spontaneous psi/precognition
Wallace, Abraham. DIFFICULTIES AND DISAPPOINTMENTS IN THE PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF PSYCHICAL RESEARCH, Journal 10, 1901, pp. 82-4. Subtitled: The case of the missing stockbroker, Mr Percy L. Foxwell. Describes the contribution of a clairvoyant to the discovery of a dead man. Followed by remarks by Podmore, who points out the difficulty of accepting evidence of this nature as conclusive (summary of reading and discussion). spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/mental mediumship
Anon. CASE: THOUGHT TRANSFERENCE BY MEANS OF CRYSTAL VISION, Journal 10, 1901, pp. 115-6. An imaginary scene stimulated by a crystal ball is transferred telepathically to the mind of a companion. See also pp. 260-63. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Hales, F.N. A CASE OF SUPPOSED THOUGHT-READING, Journal 10, 1902, pp. 241-50. An investigator concludes that the child’s feats are the effect of unconscious whispering by the mother. spontaneous psi/telepathy/xenoglossy
Mercier, C.A. REMINISCENCE OF A LONG-FORGOTTEN LANGUAGE DURING DELIRIUM, Journal 10, 1902, pp. 279-83. Describes the case of an elderly patient who during a fever reverts to speaking Hindustani, last spoken when she was three years old. The author compares this with the case described by the poet Coleridge, in which a woman, also in a fever, recited phrases from Greek and Hebrew, languages of which she was ignorant apart from having heard them spoken by a previous employer. However a correspondent (Journal 11, 1903, pp. 16-8) casts doubt on the authenticity of this case. spontaneous psi/xenoglossy
Piddington. A CASE OF DOUBLE MISRECOGNITION, Journal 10, 1902, pp. 303-4. A mystery that might have been claimed as an instance of veridical hallucination is recognised to be just a mix-up. spontaneous psi/apparitions/hallucinations
Anon. NOTE ON THE ALLEGED PREDICTION OF THE SERVIAN MURDERS, Journal 11, 1903, p. 132. Doubts are expressed about the genuineness of a clairvoyant’s warning. spontaneous psi/precognition/mental mediumship
Anon. APPARENT PREMONITIONS, Journal 11, 1903, pp. 141-7. Two cases: an army officer correctly identifies the winner of the Derby, a horse named Sir Hugo, apparently prompted by having earlier read a book by Victor Hugo (the officer himself ascribes this to chance coincidence). And a theatre-goer, having watched a play involving a cannonade, dreams of a ‘stupendous explosion’ which he later links with a volcanic eruption on Mount Pelée. spontaneous psi/precognition
Fisher, Robert. THE ‘WASTING LOAVES’ AT RAIKES FARM, BEVERLEY, Journal 11, 1904, pp. 171-6. Normal explanations are sought for a wonder widely reported in the press, in which bread loaves are unaccountably tampered with. The witnesses are inclined to attribute the event to some unseen agency; however some suspicion also falls on an adolescent girl in the household. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis/cheating
Tuckey, C. Lloyd. AN UNFULFILLED VISION, Journal 11, 1904, pp. 179-80. A woman has a vision seemingly purporting to announce the death of her soldier son, which proves to have no foundation in fact. spontaneous psi/precognition
Anon. A TRADITIONAL HALLUCINATION, Journal 11, 1904, pp. 191-3. A young woman ‘sees’ fairies in a Cornwall creek. spontanteous psi/apparitions/hallucinations
Anon. NEWSPAPER FABRICATIONS, Journal 11, 1904, pp. 194-6. A prophecy of doom, given in Welsh by a three-month old baby, and published in a newspaper, is discovered to be an invention. precognition/cheating
Fryer, A.T. PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF THE WELSH REVIVAL 1904-5, Proceedings 19, 1905, pp. 80-161. Illustrated. An account of the highly-publicised outbreak of religious enthusiasm in Wales, which produced claimed instances of prediction, change of appearance, telepathy, voices, religious visions, and blue-coloured lights, the phenomena which attracted the most attention at the time (97). Includes several letters of testimony. LUMINOUS APPEARANCES IN CONNECTION WITH THE WELSH REVIVAL, Journal 13, 1907, pp. 40-42. Two more cases of mysterious lights. spontaneous psi/beliefs/hallucinations
Anon. THE JOURNALIST AT LARGE IN PSYCHICAL RESEARCH, Journal 12, 1905, pp. 65-8. More on the bogus Welsh case, and a haunting case, also fabricated, in Brighton. psi/cheating
Anon. AUTOMATIC REVIVALS OF MEMORY, Journal 12, 1905, pp. 102-4. The whereabouts of mislaid film negatives are revealed in a dream. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/dreams
Anon. NEWSPAPER FABRICATIONS, Journal 12, 1906, pp. 190-92. Three more unfounded ghost stories. psi/apparitions/hauntings/cheating
Anon. RAPPING MAGPIES, Journal 12, 1906, pp. 343-5. Unexplained night noises are found to be caused by large birds. spontaneous psi/hallucinations
Anon. LUMINOUS APPEARANCES IN CONNECTION WITH THE WELSH REVIVAL, Journal 13, 1907, pp. 40-42. Describes mysterious lights seen in Bay Chaleur, New Brunswick, said by local witnesses to be a ‘fire-ship’ that appears before a storm. spontaneous psi/beliefs/hallucinations/apparitions
Anon. CASES, Journal 13, 1907, pp. 116-21. Cases of clairvoyant visions, simultaneous dreams, and thought-transference. See also pp. 130-35 and 153-5. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/dreams/telepathy
Anon. NOTE ON THE VISIONS OF ANNA K. EMMERICH, Journal 13, 1907, pp. 122-3. Note on a German nun who experienced stigmatas and ecstatic visions, which led to the discovery of a ruined mediaeval church. psi/beliefs/stigmata
Leaf, Walter. VIS-KNUT, Proceedings 21, 1908, pp. 136-48. Describes the feats of a Norwegian clairvoyant, well-known throughout Scandinavia in the late nineteenth century. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/mental mediumship
Anon. DREAM CASES, Journal 13, 1907-8, pp. 136-43. Telepathic dreams of accidents and death that proved to correspond to actual events. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Sage, M. THE ALLEGED MIRACULOUS HAILSTONES OF REMIREMONT, Proceedings 21, 1908, pp. 405-35. Describes an event in France in which unnaturally large ‘hailstones’ were seen to fall ‘slowly, heavily and at a distance from each other’ (409) and in some instances carried an image of the Virgin. spontaneous psi/hallucinations/apparitions
Anon. COINCIDENT DREAMS, Journal 13, 1908, pp. 282-85. 1) A dream is thought to coincide with the report of an accident in Rome. 2) A woman tells her husband of a dream in which she suffers a torn finger nail; he husband describes how during the night he attempted to close the window shutters, tearing his finger nail. See also pp. 327-8. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/telepathy/dreams
Anon. REMINISCENT CRYSTAL-VISIONS, Journal 13, 1908, pp. 298-301. See also pp. 333-6 and Journal 14, 1909, pp. 151-5, 321-4. Record of clairvoyance aided by a crystal; and subsequent discussion. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance
Anon. DREAM, Journal 14, 1909, pp. 72-4. A woman dreams of an earthquake and wakes to find one reported in the paper has having occurred in Italy. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Anon. DREAM, Journal 14, 1909, pp. 155-58. A woman dreams a friend comes to her in distress because of something that may have happened to her husband. He subsequently returns late at night, having had his car break down. spontaneous psi/dreams/clairvoyance
Lodge, Oliver. OCCASIONAL UNEXPLAINED RINGING OF HOUSE-BELLS, Journal 14, 1909, p. 160. Offers a natural explanation involving static electricity. spontaneous psi/physics
Morison & Lamon [assumed names]. AN ADVENTURE, Proceedings 25, 1911, pp. 353-60. Original book by two Englishwomen describing their ‘retrocognitive’ experience in Versailles when they seemed to be transported back to the time of Marie Antoinette. The reviewer concludes that the evidence they present is too slight to be of interest to the Society. In a review of the fourth edition (Journal 27, 1931, pp. 139-40), the writer rebuts claims by the book’s authors that its adverse comments were owing to its not having seen supporting documents. book review/spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
Anon. PROPHETIC DREAM, Journal 16, 1913, pp. 51-6. A woman dreams an acquaintance shows her some illustrations of his poems, an event which subsequently occurs in fact. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. A TELEPATHIC IMPRESSION OF THE ‘VOLTURNO’ DISASTER, Journal 16, 1914, pp. 176-92. A passenger ship en route to New York catches fire, causing 136 casualties through drowning and burning. At the time of the worst of the fire, an SPR member holding an impromptu séance with friends experiences the sound of dripping water followed by the smell of burning. One of the company is convinced that a ship is on fire and that passengers are being drowned and burned. News of the disaster is only published the following day, more than 24 hours later. Detailed testimony is provided from various sources. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance
Anon. A CASE OF STIGMATISM?, Journal 16, 1914, pp. 225-35. A woman experiences the visible symptoms of a disease afflicting her husband, seemingly brought on by obsessive worry. See also pp. 258-63. Discusses a theory that the symptoms, which manifest as stains on the feet, are caused by a discoloration due to the dye in the wearer’s stockings. spontaneous psi/stigmata
Verrall, Helen. A SUPPOSED CASE OF CLAIRVOYANCE, Journal 17, 1915, pp. 8-14. Discusses the report of a German clairvoyant, commenting on the investigator’s failure to adequately distinguish between clairvoyance and telepathy, but agreeing that the case is seemingly a strong one. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/telepathy/mental mediumship
Bjarnason, A. AN ICELANDIC SEER, Journal 17, 1915, pp. 53-76. Report by an Icelandic professor of psychology on a local clairvoyant, nicknamed Dreaming Joe. This consists mainly of recollections by witnesses and the subject himself of incidents in which he was seemingly able to perceive events and objects at a distance while sleeping. Verrall, H De G. AN ICELANDIC SEER: FURTHER COMMENTS ON PROFESSOR BJARNASON’S REPORT, pp. 78-82. Critique of the report, agreeing that it shows some evidence of clairvoyance, although the records are too imprecise and lacking in detail to support this conclusively. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/dreams/mental mediumship
Anon. COLLECTIVE HALLUCINATION, Journal 17, 1915-16, pp. 118-23. Visitors to a ruined abbey in a deserted location hear a sound, apparently of monks singing. spontaneous psi/hallucinations
Bayfield, M.A. SOME RECENT CASES OF PREMONITION AND TELEPATHY, Proceedings 29, 1916, pp. 350-75. Describes accurate wartime premonitions by a young woman, a friend of the author: foreknowledge of her husband’s death in the Dardanelles, a Zeppelin raid, the sinking of a submarine. spontaneous psi/precognition
Bayfield, M.A. SOME RECENT CASES OF PREMONITION AND TELEPATHY, Journal 17, 1916, pp. 126-47. The wife of a submarine commander demonstrates accurate knowledge of her husband’s posting to the Dardanelles before the declaration of war against Turkey. After his departure she is convinced she will not see him again alive. She experiences a powerful sense of his death which proves to have occurred at the time of the premonition. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/precognition
Schiller, F.C.S. WAR PROPHECIES, Journal 17, 1916, pp. 185-92. Also page 199. Critique of various predictions relating to the First World War, mostly based on numbers. spontaneous psi/precognition
Anon. QUERY - COINCIDENCE? OR WHAT?, Journal 19, 1919, pp. 9-10. A man is staying in a hotel waiting for an important letter, which never arrives. As he is about to give up and leave, he sees what seems to be ‘the shadow of an arm and hand’ sweep by a window in the door. He opens the door to investigate but sees nothing. Then a piece of furniture next to the door starts to stir and creak. He moves it to see what is causing the noises and finds the missing letter underneath. spontaneous psi/coincidencespsi/psychokinesis/apparitions
Doyle, Arthur Conan. PIAVE, Journal 19, 1919, pp. 10-11. The writer records an incident in which he wakes feeling that he has been given important and consoling information in his sleep. He remembers only a single word, ‘Piave’, and communicates this fact in a sealed letter to the SPR. Subsequently, a small victory is won by the Allies at Piave in Italy on a date that marked the turning point of the war in the Allies’ favour. spontaneous psi/precognition
Thurston, Herbert. A SIXTEENTH CENTURY INSTANCE OF ‘ELONGATION’, Journal 19, 1919, pp. 51-6. Describes the case of an Italian nun who was prone to fall into extended ecstasies, during which she appeared to levitate off the ground and, on occasion, increase her height. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis
Wales, Hubert. REPORT ON A SERIES OF CASES OF APPARENT THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE WITHOUT CONSCIOUS AGENCY, Proceedings 31, 1920, pp. 124-217. A young woman in London is found to have accurate impressions of what a friend in Ireland and, subsequently, the author, also at a distance, are doing and thinking. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Thomas, Ernest S. THE REGISTERING OF SUB-CONSCIOUS IMPRESSIONS, Journal 19, 1920, pp. 198-201. Reports instances of seeming clairvoyance where telepathic transmission of ideas or the subliminal registering of impressions may more justly be suspected. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/telepathy
Thurston, Herbert. THE PHENOMENA OF STIGMATIZATION, Proceedings 32, 1921, pp. 179-208. Compares historical and recent cases of stigmata. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 20, 1921, pp. 188, 267-8, 344-7. spontaneous psi/beliefs/stigmata
Lodge, Oliver. TESTIMONY TO A CHILD’S IMPRESSION OF FAIRIES, Journal 20, 1921, pp. 63-70. A woman describes in detail memories of being able to see fairies as a child, beings between four and six inches, with dragon-fly wings. She also describes encounters with spirits of the dead. spontaneous psi/beliefs/apparitions/hallucinations
Anon. A REMARKABLE CASE OF PRECOGNITION, Journal 20, 1921, pp. 119-20. Childhood incident remembered: a five-year old dreams of going for a walk with his sister and nanny and seeing a dog kill a duck. He recounts this to his mother and then goes for the walk, where the incident takes place in fact. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Wales, Hubert. A SERIES OF APPARENT TELEPATHIC COMMUNICATIONS VARIOUSLY MANIFESTED, Journal 20, 1921, pp. 134-43. A sensitive describes telepathic impressions of people and events at a distance, that are discovered to be accurate. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/telepathy/mental mediumship
Anon. THE CASE OF MISS NANCY SINCLAIR, Journal 20, 1922, pp. 294-327. Describes the author’s personal experiences with a sensitive intimately known to himself and his wife. The woman has no training or interest in psychism but manifests a psychic ability in a number of areas: telepathy, clairvoyant impressions, analgesia, light and deep trance, automatic writing, precognition, dreams, crystal visions, etc. The author notes that attempts to control and exploit this ability in experiments often fail: the faculty seems to work best when her mind is not focused on it. However he succeeds in eliciting evidence, seemingly of clairvoyance, in card tests. spontaneous psi/telepathy/clairvoyance/dreams/precognition/automatic writing/mental mediumship
Sidgwick, Mrs Henry (Eleanor). PHANTASMS OF THE LIVING. AN EXAMINATION AND ANALYSIS OF CASES OF TELEPATHY BETWEEN LIVING PERSONS PRINTED IN THE ‘JOURNAL’ OF THE SOCIETY SINCE THE PUBLICATION OF THE BOOK ‘PHANTASMS OF THE LIVING’, BY GURNEY, MYERS AND PODMORE, IN 1886, Proceedings 33, 1923, pp. 23-429. A substantial contribution to the literature on apparitions, this paper considers cases received by the Society in the 36 years since the publication of Phantasms of the Living and not published elsewhere than the Society’s Journal. Chapter subjects are: experimental cases (31); internalised impressions (90); externalised hallucinations and dreams (151); collective and reciprocal cases (354). Individual episodes are described and special characteristics noted. spontaneous psi/apparitions/methodology/theory
Barrett, W.F. A REMARKABLE PREMONITORY CRYSTAL VISION, Journal 21, 1923, pp. 157-64. A clairvoyant, pressed to give a crystal reading for a female client, sees a vision of a man committing suicide, having apparently made a rendezvous with the intention of killing someone else also. Three days later she is visited by a man who tells her he is on his way to meet this woman’s husband. Seized with a premonition, she succeeds with difficulty in delaying him. A little while later he phones to tell her that as he entered the building he heard a shot and found the man dead on the floor, having shot himself. The servant informs him that the dead man had been trying to reach him on the phone, and the appearance is that had he not been delayed he too would have been shot. spontaneous psi/precognition/mental mediumship
Anon. A CASE OF THOUGHT TRANSFERENCE, Journal 21, 1923, pp. 170-75. Material received at a Dutch spiritualist séance is discovered to have originated in the mind of a neighbour. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Anon. CONCERNING TELEPATHIC COMMUNICATION WITH ANIMALS, Journal 22, 1925, p. 27. Brief letter urging the study of telepathy in animals and including a description of giraffe’s moving ‘as though in obedience to some signal’. spontaneous psi/telepathy/animal psi
Anon. A PREMONITORY HALLUCINATION, Journal 22, 1925, pp. 88-91. A visitor to a casino sees a phantom ball on a particular number in a roulette wheel and successfully bets on it. spontaneous psi/precognition
Anon. TELEPATHIC DREAM, Journal 22, 1925, pp. 120-22. A woman describes how she and her sister have dream images that relate closely to what the other is experiencing. spontaneous psi/telepathy/dreams
Anon. TELEPATHIC IMPRESSION, Journal 22, 1925, p. 122. A middle aged couple staying in a Swiss hotel recall in conversation the name of a friend of their late son, wondering what became of him. The friend appears a short while later and introduces himself to them. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Anon. TWO COINCIDENTAL DREAMS, Journal 22, 1925, pp. 123-6. A couple simultaneously have a nightmare involving devils. spontaneous psi/dreams/coincidences/telepathy
Besterman, Theodore. SAVAGE TELEPATHY, Journal 23, 1926, pp. 2-4. Describes an incident experienced by an army officer serving in South Africa in 1878: native bearers approach the officers to inform them of a major breakthrough against British forces by Zulus and their subsequent check at Rorke’s Drift. The location is some 300 miles away and there is seemingly no way the natives could have learned of these events by normal means. Official news arrives two days later. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/telepathy
Hall, A.J. A COINCIDENCE, Journal 23, 1926, pp. 10-11. A woman hears a song over the radio containing the line ‘a green apple tree grew out of his grave’, at the same moment that her brother is reading lines in a book that describe a similar image. spontaneous psi/coincidences
Dallas, H.A. A FORGOTTEN MEMORY REVIVED IN A DREAM, Journal 23, 1926, p. 12. The whereabouts of missing Christmas cards is revealed in a dream. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/dreams
Anon. A PREMONITORY DREAM, Journal 23, 1926, pp. 102-5. A woman dreams her husband breaks his arm and collar bone during a fall while hunting. She warns him to take care: he does fall and break his arm but not his collar bone, from which he surmises that the dream warning is based on the interpretation of an image, not actual foreknowledge. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. TELEPATHIC IMPRESSION, Journal 24, 1927, pp. 53-7. A man dozing in the evening dreams of a lifeboat’s crew struggling to get the vessel through the surf, and awakes to find his wife in the next room has been listening to a radio programme on that subject. spontaneous psi/dreams/telepathy/coincidences
Doe, George M. TELEPATHIC INCIDENT, Journal 24, 1927, pp. 156-7. The writer is seized by a strong feeling about keeping bees and returns home to find that during the day a swarm of bees had settled in his garden and been removed. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/coincidences
Anon. CASE: A TELEPATHIC DREAM, Journal 24, 1928, pp. 379-87. Details in a dream of a train accident are found to correspond closely to an actual event that occurred at the same time. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/dreams
Lee, Blewett. THE CHANGE OF THE LAW OF NEW YORK RELATING TO SPIRITUALISM, Journal 25, 1929, pp. 173-5. A new statute recognises that ‘where the prediction is made as a part of the public service of a Spiritualistic Church, the act of prediction falls within the protection of the constitutional guarantee of religious liberty’. spontaneous psi/precognition
Anon. A PREMONITION, Journal 27, 1931, pp. 18-20. Clarissa Miles, a recently deceased member, is said to have refused to make plans to move to another flat on the expiry of her lease, in the certain expectation that this would not be necessary. She did not specify her reasons, but died the day before she would have had to leave. spontaneous psi/precognition
Besterman, Theodore. A PROPHECY IN OLD MOORE’S ALMANACK, Journal 27, 1931-2, pp. 182-3. An apparently accurate prophecy of the National Government of 1931 prompts an analysis of the publication’s previous attempts. However they are found to be consistently unreliable. spontaneous psi/precognition
Brown, William. PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHICAL RESEARCH, Proceedings 41, 1932, pp. 75-88. A psychologist describes personal experiences of telepathy, many with patients suffering from nervous diseases and being given suggestion treatment, who report receiving mental images that correspond to events happening on the other side of a screen. Also describes a poltergeist-type movement occurring in synchronicity with the death of a child, and experiences at a Rudi Schneider sitting. spontaneous psi/telepathy/psychokinesis/poltergeist/hypnosis
Besterman, Theodore. REPORT OF AN INQUIRY INTO PRECOGNITIVE DREAMS, Proceedings 41, 1932, pp. 186-204. An attempt to repeat findings reported by J.W. Dunne regarding precognitive dreams. Forty-three subjects, including Dunne himself, put forward a similar number of dreams, of which eighteen are regarded by the author as possibly indicating precognition, two of them quite strongly. However he does not regard any of them as conclusive. Each coincidence is briefly described. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams/coincidences
Baldwin, Emily. ORIENTAL WORDS IN A DREAM, Journal 27, 1932, pp. 292-3. A woman dreams she is being consulted on a point of religion by a group of orientals, who use the word Mifta-taleen. A few weeks later she learns that this phrase has a meaning both in Persian and Arabic: ‘the key of the teaching’. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition/coincidences
Wunderle, G. THE KONNESREUTH CASE, Journal 28, 1933, pp. 157-8. A German Catholic priest expresses doubts about the supernatural claims concerning Therese Neumann. spontaneous psi/stigmata
Lyttelton, Mrs A. PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS, Proceedings 41, 1933, pp. 331-44. Reflects on the faculties of telepathy, clairvoyance and precognition with reference to her own mediumistic abilities. Lyttelton argues that the hypothesis that the human mind under some conditions can penetrate ‘another field of existence and gather information’ (343) is to be preferred to the notion of communicating spirits. spontanenous psi/telepathy/clairvoyance/precognition
Solovovo, P-P. PROPHECY VERSUS PERSPICACITY, Journal 28, 1933, pp. 67-74. Argues that a strikingly accurate prophecy of the course and outcome of the First World War can be explained as shrewd political analysis rather than as psychism. spontaneous psi/precognition
Broad, C.D. REVIEW OF: A NOTE BOOK BY T.BRAILSFORD ROBERTSON, Journal 28, 1933, pp. 112-4. Posthumously published notebook in which a biochemist records personal instances of telepathy and precognition. book review/spontaneous psi/telepathy/precognition
Saltmarsh, H.F. REPORT ON CASES OF APPARENT PRECOGNITION, Proceedings 42, 1934, pp. 49-103. A total of 349 cases of ostensible precognition reported in the Society’s records are classified and analysed. The majority are found to be in dreams (136), followed by hallucination (87), mediumship (62) and impression (51). A few borderland (hypnagogic) and crystal gazing cases are also reported. Of the dream cases, 76 are reported to be highly evidential and 40 significantly so. Hallucinations are 17 and 45 respectively, mediumship 20 and 31, and impressions 14 and 25 (see table on page 51). The most numerous of the incidents foreseen is death, mainly natural but also accidental, followed closely by incidents classed as trivial. The author discusses the character of the material and suggests that quantum theory may be the key to understanding the space-time principle that makes precognition possible. An index of the cases is included. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 28, 1934, pp. 204-6, 219-23, 240-44, 259-61. spontaneous psi/precognition
Graham, John William. PSYCHICAL EXPERIENCES OF QUAKER MINISTERS, Journal 28, 1934, pp. 179-81. Collection of Quaker cases involving telepathy and religious visions. spontaneous psi/telepathy/hallucinations/beliefs
Williams, John H. DREAM OF THE RESULT OF A RACE, Journal 28, 1934, pp. 216-8. An octogenarian, dozing in the morning, dreams he is listening to a radio report of a Derby horse race, to be run that afternoon. He tells friends about the dream before the event, including the name of the winner, which happens as forecast. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 240-42. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Hansard, A.G. TELEPATHY AND SLEEPWALKING, Journal 28, 1934, pp. 265-70. The writer describes how he hides the keys to his house to prevent his wife, who suffers from episodes of sleepwalking, from going outside at night. However he learns that she is frequently able to locate the keys, having dreamed he told her where to find them. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/dreams
Anon. A PREMONITION, Journal 29, 1935, pp. 2-3. Brief description of a dream of someone being mauled by lions, the night before a newspaper report of a zoo keeper mauled by lions at Whipsnade Zoo. spontaneous psi/precognition
Anon. LOST OBJECT FOUND AS A RESULT OF A DREAM, Journal 29, 1936, pp. 272-3. A couple go into the country for a picnic and separate while the man does some fishing. On his return he finds a key has fallen through a hole in the pocket. He does not think of looking for it, as he has walked for some distance through a dense wood. That night his wife dreams she is sitting on a fallen tree trunk and sees the key near a mossy stone. The following day she walks through the wood, where she has not been before, finds the tree trunk, sits on it, and within a few minutes sees the key exactly as she saw it in her dream. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/dreams
Anon. CORRESPONDENCE: SCARCITY OF ACCOUNTS OF SPONTANEOUS CASES IN THE JSPR, Journal 29, 1935-36, pp. 171-2. A member suggests three reasons for the decline of reports of spontaneous cases: that they occur less frequently; that they are being sent to the Society less often; that the Society attaches less importance to them than before. See also pp. 215-6, 249-50, 264-5, 312. spontaneous psi
Jones, Lawrence J. A FULFILLED PREDICTION, Journal 30, 1937, pp. 29-30. Claims a medium predicted the recent abdication of Edward VIII in 1902. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 123-4. spontaneous psi/precognition/mental mediumship
Broad, C.D. AN OSTENSIBLY PRECOGNITIVE DREAM UNFULFILLED, Journal 30, 1937, pp. 82-3. A dream premonition of the death of the king during or after the recent coronation is recorded as having been unfulfilled. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. CASE OF APPARENT EXTRA-SENSORY PERCEPTION IN THE FORM OF EXTRA-OCULAR VISION, Journal 30, 1937, pp. 137-8. A patient recovering from a cataract operation, her eyes bandaged beyond the possibility of seeing anything, indicates that she is nevertheless able to ‘see’ psychically. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance
Norfolk, C. et al. A PRECOGNITIVE OR CLAIRVOYANT DREAM, Journal 30, 1937, pp. 143-5. A farmer’s brother dreams that a bull is chasing him through the streets. The next day the farmer finds that his bull has actually escaped and is roaming around the farmyard. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. AUTOMATISM IN FINDING A LOST RUBY, Journal 30, 1938, pp. 180-82. A woman misses a ruby from her ring. Having given it up for lost she feels herself being bodily twisted round until she could see it on the floor. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/psychokinesis
Anon. A VERIDICAL RECURRENT DREAM, Journal 30, 1938, pp. 197-8. A man has a recurrent dream of finding money to the amount of £60 pounds in his mother’s desk. He subsequently learns that this sum was withdrawn from the desk by his sister, following their mother’s death. spontaneous psi/dreams/clairvoyance
Calder, A.M.Fyson. A DREAM SUGGESTING PRECOGNITION, Journal 30, 1938, pp. 198-9. A woman describes how she has dream visualisations of houses that she later occupies. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Lyttelton, Edith. SOME CASES OF PREDICTION: A STUDY, Journal 30, 1938, p. 190. Selection of precognitive episodes sent by listeners following the author’s broadcast on television. spontaneous psi/precognition
Soal, S.G. PRELIMINARY STUDIES OF A VAUDEVILLE TELEPATHIST, Journal 30, 1938, p. 191. Paper on tests carried out on Joseph Kraus, a stage performer known as Marion. Evidence is found of considerable skill, not paranormal ability. spontaneous psi/telepathy/mental mediumship
Herbert, C.V.C. INDIVIDUAL TESTS OF PARANORMAL FACULTY, Journal 30, 1938, pp. 210-15. Record of two investigations, one of a woman claiming an ability to predict winners of horse races by identifying any unusual images that present themselves to her mind, and the other of a woman claiming to be able to use a pendulum to determine the sex of the writer of a letter. No significant results are found in either case. spontaneous psi/precognition/clairvoyance/mental mediumship
Sturge-Whiting, J. R. THE MYSTERY OF VERSAILLES, Journal 30, 1938, p. 260. Critical review of the retrocognition claims made in An Adventure, arguing that the two principals ‘were gradually led into construing perfectly normal scenes and persons of 1901 and 1902 as scenes and persons of the time of the French Revolution’. This independent investigation reaches the same conclusions as those stated in Proceedings 25, p. 353. book review/spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
Anon. A DREAM SUGGESTING TELEPATHY, Journal 30, 1938, pp. 284-8. A man has a dream in which he sees someone handling an adder and calls out to them to put it down. During the previous day, he learns later, his daughter was present at a picnic when one of the party, a teenage boy, is bitten by an adder he has picked up. spontaneous psi/dreams/clairvoyance
Tenhaeff, W.H.C. A WELL-EVIDENCED PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 31, 1939, pp. 2-6. Details in a dream seem to prophecy a motor accident involving a member of the Dutch royal family. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. A COINCIDENCE OF DREAMS, Journal 31, 1939, pp. 14-15. Two people independently dream about the loss of a yellow suitcase on the same night. spontaneous psi/dreams/telepathy
Anon. A DOCTOR’S IMPRESSION SUGGESTING DISTANT TELEPATHY FROM A PATIENT, Journal 31, 1939, pp. 34-7. A doctor travelling abroad on holiday has a vivid impression of a patient in need of his assistance. Returning home he discovers that on the day in question this patient had called at his house and was later attended to by a colleague. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Anon. A DREAM ANTICIPATING FUTURE EVENT, Journal 31, 1939, pp. 47-53. An American congressman secretly recruits a new secretary who later reveals that before the event he had dreamed he was the secretary of a congressman in Washington, although at the time he had no plans in this direction. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Jones, Lawrence. A VERIDICAL IMPRESSION OF NON-EXISTENT WORDS IN A LETTER, Journal 31, 1939, pp. 53-4. A woman staying with her sister receives a letter from her daughter containing the information that a member of the household is ill with bronchitis. Although this fact turns out to be correct, the patient denies having told the daughter, who confirms that she did not know about it and so could not have mentioned it in the letter. The letter is subsequently re-examined and found to contain no mention of the illness. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/telepathy
Anon. THE DETECTION OF A THEFT THROUGH INFORMATION GIVEN BY A MEDIUM, Journal 31, 1939, pp. 81-3. Also pp 95-6. A maid is arrested for the theft of jewels, but protests her innocence. A medium indicates the real thief, who confesses and returns the jewels. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/mental mediumship
Richmond, Zoe. THE QUESTION OF MOTIVE IN AN APPARENTLY PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 31, 1939, pp. 83-5. A woman dreams she sees four charabancs occupied by foreign students visiting London, all wearing astrakhan caps. The next day she witnesses this scene in reality, with the single variation that the students are wearing black berets. She surmises that this detail was supplied by her subconscious to indicate the idea ‘foreign’, using an association that had recently been present in her mind. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Salter, W.H. MISSING PAPERS LOCATED BY AN APPARENTLY PARANORMAL PROCESS, Journal 31, 1939, pp. 123-4. Salter describes how he unerringly identified the place where some papers being sought in vain by his wife and been put by accident. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance
Ehrenwald, Hans. PSYCHOPATHOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF TELEPATHY, Proceedings 46, 1940, pp. 224-44. Illustrated. Argues that psi often functions as a compensatory mechanism for various neuropathic disorders. Ehrenwald considers this interpretation in the case of Ilga K., a nine-year-old girl suffering from congenital word-blindness but capable of remarkable feats of telepathic reading. Shows how the child’s most outstanding ‘supernormal’ performances seemed to correspond with just that order of functions which proved to be impaired by her overriding congenital defect. Explores what this observation implies regarding the nature of psi and its place in the biological order of things. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/telepathy/clairvoyance
Trefusis, Dorothy M.E. COINCIDENT DREAMS, Journal 31, 1940, pp. 161-2. Woman ?’ and woman ‘B’ simultaneously dream that woman ‘B’ is being murdered. spontaneous psi/dreams/telepathy/coincidences
Bishop, G.M. FOREKNOWLEDGE IN DREAMS, Journal 32, 1941, pp. 50-59. Prompted by the J.W. Dunne’s book An Experiment With Time, the writer starts to record her dreams, which she finds frequently coincide with letters or newspaper reports she sees the next day. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Ehrenwald, Hans. TELEPATHY IN MACBETH?, Journal 32, 1941, pp. 99-102. Psychological analysis of the witches’ prophecy in Macbeth, with reference to the origin of telepathic phenomena in indicating ‘the role of repressed, unconscious tendencies in the mind of the potential agent’. spontaneous psi/precognition/telepathy/witchcraft
Campbell, H.R. A DREAM SUGGESTING PRECOGNITION, Journal 32, 1942, pp. 135-6. A dream in which the writer’s daughter gives the news of a TB relapse is followed by a scene that corresponds in important details. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Broad, C.D. AN APPARENTLY PRECOGNITIVE INCIDENT IN A DREAM SEQUENCE, Journal 33, 1944, pp. 88-90. Details in a dream concerning a potential accident in a moving train coincide closely with an actual incident that occurs two days later. spontaeneous psi/dreams/precognition
Sassoon, Mrs Siegfried. A HALLUCINATION INCLUDING A VERIDICAL ELEMENT, Journal 33, 1945, p. 160. The wife of the poet Sassoon describes a dream vision of her husband, then on wartime service in North Africa, looking sunburnt and wearing a grey flannel suit which he was in fact wearing at the time. The percipient was Mrs Richard Gatty, Mrs Sassoon's sister-in-law. spontaneous psi/dreams/clairvoyance/coincidences
Collins, B. Abdy. A CASE OF PREDICTION OF ILLNESS, Journal 33, 1945, pp. 177-8. A medium foresees a serious illness suffered by the writer. spontaeneous psi/precognition
Soal, S.G. A RADIO EXPERIMENT IN TELEPATHY, Journal 33, 1946, pp. 216-19. Submissions for a telepathy experiment involving listeners to a BBC programme are analysed and found to result in a significantly negative deviation. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Anon. TELEPATHY IN DREAMS, Journal 33, 1946, pp. 230-32. 1) A dream of sparrows caught in a box is found to relate to an incident that occurred elsewhere at about the same time. 2) A dream of a volcano erupting in Italy coincides with the actual eruption of Vesuvius. 3) The dreamer’s husband, away on military manoevres, appears in a dream to be struck on the right thigh by ‘a green fiery object’ and is later found to have been accidentally struck by a phosphorous bomb. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition/clairvoyance/coincidences
Hodgson, Kenneth W. A CASE OF PREVISION, Journal 33, 1946, pp. 254-6. Dream visualisations of the date August 10, occurring during June 1940 and taking a form as would appear on a calendar, warn the writer that he may be vulnerable to injury or death on that date. An air raid takes place on that date but it is light and nothing transpires. However his fiancée cuts her leg in an air raid shelter on that date and nearly dies of tetanus. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. CASE: PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 34, 1947, pp. 21-2. A woman dreams she entertains two German prisoners-of-war to tea, and the following day the event occurs exactly as she has foreseen it. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. FORECASTS OF HORSE RACES, Journal 34, 1947, pp. 63-8. A man dreams he is reading the next days racing results and is able to identify the winners. He backs them and the horses win. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 124-5. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. A CASE OF PREMONITION, Journal 34, 1947, pp. 69-70. A woman dreams she sees her son dead in his bath. She takes extra care, but two years later an accident occurs in which he becomes unconscious in the bath, with visual details corresponding to her dream (however he survives). spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition/coincidences
Anon. A CASE OF APPARENT RETROCOGNITION, Journal 34, 1947, pp. 74-80. Detailed account with illustrations of walks by a rocky coastline in Devon, in which the author experiences on more than one occasion a heavy, oppressive atmosphere, and sees details of the landscape that are sharply different to those that he sees when the atmosphere returns to normal. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 95-6, 125-9. spontaneous psi/retrocognition
Anon. PSYCHIC PHENOMENA IN INDONESIA, Journal 34, 1947, pp. 80-85. Illustrated. Incident in which a local psychic discovers a grave underneath a house that seems to be interfering with attempts to develop film. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis
Anon. THREE APPARENTLY PRECOGNITIVE DREAMS, Journal 34, 1947, pp. 91-2. A doctor’s wife describes dreams apparently of future events, including the winner of the Derby horse race. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Anon. A PREDICTION OF THE DATE OF THE END OF THE WAR, Journal 34, 1947, pp. 103-7. A French soldier, former prisoner of war in Germany, describes how in 1940 he used a pendulum to predict the exact date of the end of the war. spontaneous psi/precognition
Anon. AN UNFULFILLED PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 34, 1947, p. 124. A horse dreamed of as a winner is backed but comes in seventh. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Anon. CASE: COINCIDENCE OF PRECOGNITION?, Journal 34, 1948, pp. 155-7. The thought of a friend, not seen for two years, precedes his actual appearance by a few moments. spontaneous psi/precognition/coincidences
Thomas, H. Ballard. CASE: AN APPARENTLY PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 34, 1948, pp. 157. As a group meeting takes place the author realises that it corresponds closely to a previous dream. CORRESPONDENCE, p. 182. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Tyrrell, G.N.M. FAMILY TELEPATHY, Journal 34, 1948, pp. 196-206. Explores the idea that telepathy occurs most frequently between family members, with reference to several documented cases. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Anon. THE ESARP TRAGEDY, Journal 34, 1948, pp. 263-7. A psychometrist accurately describes details of a woman who drowned in suspicious circumstances. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/mental mediumship
Thouless, R.H. EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH AND THE STUDY OF SPONTANEOUS CASES, Journal 35, 1949, pp. 60-63. Argues that research is needed both in terms of experimental quantitative studies and those of spontaneous cases, elucidating the nature and challenges of each. spontaneous psi/psi/methodology
Rhine, J.B. THE VALUE OF REPORTS OF SPONTANEOUS PSI EXPERIENCES, Journal 35, 1949, pp. 63-6. Emphasizes the importance of research into spontaneous experiences. spontaneous psi/methodology
Rhine, Louisa E. THE DUKE SURVEY OF SPONTANEOUS CASE REPORTS, Journal 35, 1949, pp. 66-7. Briefly describes key characteristics emerging from studies at Duke University. spontaneous psi/methodology/theory
Price, H.H. TWO PARALLEL DREAMS OF DEATH, AND THEIR SEQUELS, Journal 35, 1950, pp. 238-44. The author recounts two personal dreams of dying followed by experiences in which he felt as though he might be dying. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Anon. A PARANORMAL DREAM, Journal 35, 1950, pp. 339-41. A clergyman reports a dream which seems to foretell a train crash. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Smythies, E.A. A CASE OF LEVITATION IN NEPAL, Journal 36, 1951, pp. 415-26. A 22-year old porter is seen having a fit, in which he levitates two feet in the air. The incident is discussed and closely analysed. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis
Anon. TWO ‘ARRIVAL’ CASES, Journal 36, 1951, pp. 467-72. Examples of dreams that appeared to be linked to future events. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Lambert, G.W. & Gay, Kathleen. THE DIEPPE RAID CASE: A COLLECTIVE AUDITORY HALLUCINATION, Journal 36, 1952, pp. 607-18. Two women holidaying in a hotel near Dieppe on the Normandy coast are awakened by what sounds like an aerial and sea bombardment. The noises are intense, continue for some time and are heard by both, but apparently not any anyone else. The authors compare the witnesses’ statements with the actual events of the Allied raid of 1942. They conclude that the experience ‘must be rated a genuine psi phenomenon’, of which little or nothing was derived from previously normally acquired knowledge. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 691-5; Journal 44, 1968, pp. 355-8. spontaneous psi/hallucinations/retrocognition
Heywood, Rosalind. CONDITIONS FAVOURABLE TO ESP, Journal 36, 1952, pp. 736-9. A psychic concludes from certain personal experiences that both strong emotion between intimates and an encouraging atmosphere can be conducive to psi. spontaneous psi/methodology/theory
Dalton, G.F. HUMAN TARGETS FOR ESP EXPERIMENTS, Journal 37, 1953, p. 109. Points out that spontaneous ESP differs from experiments, and suggests that experimental methodology should be modified accordingly (letter). spontaneous psi/methodology
Blundun, Jessie. A DREAM WITH APPARENT PARANORMAL ELEMENTS RELATING TO TWO SEPARATE BUT PARALLEL FUTURE EVENTS, Journal 37, 1953, pp. 90-95. Precognitive dream. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Lambert, G.W. ANTOINE RICHARD’S GARDEN: A POSTSCRIPT TO AN ADVENTURE, Journal 37, 1953-4, pp. 117, 266-79. A detailed re-examination of the case of seeming retrocognition reported by two English tourists at Versailles (see Books and Book Reviews below). The author points out various inconsistencies with the historical record, but suggests that these might accord with plans and ideas in the mind of a palace gardener of the period. He proposes that, rather than a vision of the past, the two subjects experienced a kind of telepathic communication from an agent, living or dead. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 219-24, 249-53, 320-22. spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
Humphrey, Betty M. ESP TESTS WITH MENTAL PATIENTS BEFORE AND AFTER ELECTROSHOCK TREATMENT, Journal 37, 1954, pp. 259-66. Significant results are reported from ESP experiments with patients suffering from schizophrenia. spontaneous psi/telepathy/clairvoyance
Lambert, G.W. ANTOINE RICHARD’S GARDEN: A POSTSCRIPT TO ‘AN ADVENTURE’. A SUPPLEMENTARY NOTE, Journal 38, 1955, pp. 12-18. An experience in the garden of Versailles closely similar to that experienced by Moberly and Jourdain is described. NEWS AND NOTES, Journal 38, 1955, pp. 155-8. Includes a reference to a claim - dismissed as dubious - that Moberley, one of the two authors of An Adventure, confessed on her deathbed that the story was a hoax. spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
Heywood, Rosalind. AN APPARENTLY PARANORMAL DREAM, Journal 38, 1955, pp. 195-7. A man dreams he encounters a bulldog belonging to friends and places a penny on its head. The next day he visits the friends and mentions the dream. It transpires that two puppies in a recent litter have a round black mark on the top of their heads and are often referred to as the two ‘penny on the heads’. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Lambert, G.W. ANTOINE RICHARD’S GARDEN: SOME FURTHER NOTES, Journal 38, 1956, pp. 365-9. New details strengthen the author’s conviction that the visions are not the product of imagination. spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
Pearce-Higgins, J.D. SOME PRESUMED PSYCHIC PHOTOGRAPHS - A FALSE TRAIL, Journal 38, 1956, pp. 267-9. Seemingly psychic effects on photographs are found to be caused by accidential double exposure. spontaneous psi/photography
Anon. ‘SOMETHING TOLD ME TO GO ON TO VICTORIA’, Journal 38, 1956, pp. 248-9. A woman returning home receives a mental impression that if she takes a certain route she will find herself sitting next to her husband on a certain seat on a bus. The impression turns out to be accurate in every particular. spontaneous psi/precognition
Fairfield, L. THERESE NEUMANN, Journal 39, 1957, pp. 164-73. Review of the case of the Bavarian stigmatic. spontaneous psi/stigmata
Iremonger, Lucille. THE GHOSTS OF VERSAILLES, reviewed by G. W. Lambert, Journal 39, 1957, pp. 83-6. Critical examination of the retrocognition ‘adventure’. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 149-50. book review/spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
West, D.J. COMMENTS ON A NEW APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF PARANORMAL DREAMS, Journal 39, 1957, pp. 181-6. An Italian psychologist records details of a patient’s precognitive dreams for the benefit of investigators prior to their being fulfilled. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Heywood, Rosalind. [Prophecy], Journal 40, 1959, pp. 145-6 [PROPHECY], pp. 145-6. Account of a detailed an apparently accurate vision of the First World War from a German perspective. spontaneous psi/precognition
Heywood, Rosalind. [Case study], Journal 40, 1959, pp. 271-2. Recounts the case of a strong telepathic link between a mother and son. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 375-6. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Heywood, Rosalind. CROSSWORDS AND THE M.I.5., Journal 40, 1959, pp. 430-31. Refers to the cluster of crossword puzzle answers which happened to correspond to code words for the D-Day landings in Normandy. spontaneous psi/telepathy/coincidences
Heywood, Rosalind. IMMEDIATE BACKGROUND TO CELIA GREEN’S ANALYSIS OF SPONTANEOUS CASES, Proceedings 53, 1960, pp. 94-6. Analysis of new cases which, though few in number, are said to be interesting as human experiences irrespective of whether they offer evidence of ESP. Heywood argues that when they are analysed as a group, under as many headings as possible, trends and patterns in the material can be found that will help further research and theorising. spontaneous psi/theory/methodology
Green, Celia. ANALYSIS OF SPONTANEOUS CASES, Proceedings 53, 1960, pp. 97-161. A study of some 300 spontaneous cases containing enough detail to be worth analysis. Green describes how they were examined and the criteria used to determine their evidential value. Each is broken down into its constituent elements, such as age of percipient and the type of ESP represented, to determine what factors are reported most frequently. Actual cases are provided to illustrate the kind of material analysed. Green concludes that the study is primarily of value for its suggestiveness, and for hints about how to conduct further studies. Appendices provide figures and graphs, also a summary of cases. In one, a young office worker dreams that the sister of a co-worker appears to be distressed and notes next to her the date on his desk calendar, set to April 1. When that day comes, the girl concerned appears in the office, seeming to have been crying, as represented in the dream. It transpires that her sister has collapsed in a coma requiring a delicate operation on the brain. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/methodology/theory
Stephens, Ian. LINKED PRECOGNITIVE DREAMS OF A MURDER?, Journal 40, 1960, pp. 334-42. Two friends find they have both dreamed at the same time of bloodshed, in one case of murder, and that this has coincided with an actual murder nearby. spontaneous psi/dreams/telepathy/coincidence
Gay, Kathleen. A PRECOGNITIVE DREAM OF A BOMBED HOUSE, Journal 40, 1960, pp. 359-60. A woman records a dream which occurs on May 10, 1937, in which a friend’s house has been destroyed. Four years later on May 10 the house is destroyed in a bombing raid. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Anon. PRECOGNITION OF A NEAR ACCIDENT, Journal 40, 1960, pp. 419-21. A man driving a car narrowly misses a child who has suddenly run into the street. Returning home he finds his wife has been anxious about him, having heard his voice saying ‘My God! That child... ‘ Despite many previous instances of apparent telepathic association between the two, there is a time disparity in this case. They later conclude that this was an instance of precognition, about which they had not known anything at the time. spontaneous psi/precognition
Salter, W.H., Heywood, R. & Green, C. 1959 REPORT ON ENQUIRY INTO SPONTANEOUS CASES, Proceedings 53, 1960-62, pp. 83-161. Cases of apparitions and waking and dream telepathy/clairvoyance/precognition are collected in a new survey and categorised. Two papers give the background to the research, beginning at the Society’s foundation with Phantasms of the Living and the Census of Hallucinations, and to the present study. Celia Green analyses the 300 reports (20%) of the total that provide sufficient detail, with classifications of percipients, conditions, types, veridicality, psychological or neurological interest, attitudes to the paranormal, motivation, situations, ESP themes, activity of percipient, etc. Appendices give the tables in full, also 29 of the reports of varying lengths, describing apparitions, premonitions of accident and death, precognition. spontaneous communication from the dead, out-of-body experience, etc. spontaneous psi/methodology/theory
Lambert, G.W. TWO SYNCHRONOUS DREAMS ABOUT A SHIPWRECK, Journal 41, 1961, pp. 193-8. A dream appearing to contain foreknowledge of a disaster at sea, and recorded by Frederic Myers in Human Personality, is discovered to be paralleled by a second instance of the same kind in relation to the same event. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams/coincidences
Hellstrom, Eva. PRECOGNITION OF GIRLS DANCING, Journal 41, 1962, pp. 252-4. A woman has a dream-vision of a ballroom where a crowd of teenagers are dancing. A few days later she is in a theatre watching a musical and sees the vision reproduced. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Lambert, G.W. RICHARD’S GARDEN REVISTED, Journal 41, 1962, pp. 279-91. Refutes attempts of sceptics to explain the episode away as having been due to temporary indisposition, bad memory, wishful thinking, possible manipulation of the data after the event, etc. See also Salter, W.H. ‘AN ADVENTURE’: A NOTE ON THE EVIDENCE, Journal 35, 1950, pp. 178-87. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 318-9; Journal 63, 1998, p. 60. spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
Ellison, AJ. SOME RECENT RESEARCHES IN PSYCHIC PERCEPTIVITY, Journal 41, 1962, pp. 355-64. Experiments with a medium suggest that the claim of psychics to ‘see’ human emanations are due to ‘unconscious dramatisation’, and that the greyish wisps some claim to see if finger tips are placed near those of the opposite hand are due to the effects arising from the random movements of the eyes, fatigue, and to persistence of vision. The effectiveness of ‘Kilner’ screens and goggles believed to reveal the human aura is criticised. The role of unconscious dramatisation is further discussed in relation to successful psychometry experiments. Concludes with a suggestion to focus on the mind as a means to understand the universe. spontaneous psi/aura/experiments/theory
Lambert, G.W. & Zorab, G. THREE PRECOGNITIVE DREAMS, Journal 42, 1963, pp. 20-24. An account of three possibly precognitive dreams. The first, by G.W. Lambert, is the record of a dream of a subway accident that was received by the Society the day before a similar accident occurred. The second by G. Zorab, recounts a detailed dream of a house that closely corresponded in appearance and situation to an actual house that the percipient’s mother would move into some five months later. The third, also by Zorab, concerns a statement made by a semi-comatose and mentally disturbed woman that was apparently fulfilled the next day. PsiLine CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 265-7. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Lambert, G.W. A DOG SAVED BY A DREAM, Journal 42, 1963, pp. 128-9. A Jack Russell disappears into a sandy burrow in pursuit of a fox. Attempts to dig it out fail. Following a dream in which the dog is revealed to be alive, but in a slightly different location to the one being searched, it is recovered. See also Proceedings 33, pp. 219-31. spontaneous psi/dreams/telepathy/animal psi
Heywood, Rosalind. CASE OF RAPPORT BETWEEN MOTHER AND DAUGHTER, Journal 42, 1963, pp. 187-9. An account of a woman who went into labour in Israel at the same time her mother, in England, suffered labour-like pains which only ceased when her daughter’s baby was born. The baby was about a month earlier than expected, so the mother had no reason to think her daughter would be in labour at the time. (PsiLine)CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 268-9. Heywood corrects an error of timing that tends to reduce the coincidence. spontaneous psi/coincidences/telepathy
Anon. EXCERPT A, Journal 42, 1963, pp. 209-12. Relates an ESP experience of J. Hewat McKenzie and an account of an apparition by novelist Pamela Frankau. Also her experience of being psychic when in Ireland. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/apparitions
Koestler, Arthur. CHANCE COINCIDENCE?, Journal 42, 1964, p. 264. The novelist receives two letters bearing the same date, both from friends of his father who died 24 years earlier. spontaneous psi/coincidences
Tart, Charles T. A POSSIBLE ‘PSYCHIC’ DREAM, Journal 42, 1964, pp. 283-99. A couple who experimentally tape-recorded details of their dreams over a period of several weeks one morning discover that the same details seems to have occurred independently to both. The author explores possible reasons for the parallels, including ESP, a common life experience, sleep-talking, etc. spontaneous psi/dreams/telepathy/coincidences
Heywood, Rosalind. APPARENT PRECOGNITION BY JULIET LADY RHYS-WILLIAMS, Journal 42, 1964, pp. 348-52. An economist describes five cases of apparently precognitive experiences: ‘hearing’ a radio report of racist disturbances a day before the event; ‘seeing’ a press report and picture that actually appeared only the following day; etc. spontaneous psi/precognition
Heywood, Rosalind. AN ARCHAEOLOGIST’S DREAM, Journal 42, 1964, p. 422. An archaeologist searches in vain for a published version of an article he wishes to refer to in his own work. He dreams that he is sitting next to the author at a dinner party, who tells him where he can find it. The next day he successfully locates it. Years later he meets the author, who uses the same words he heard him say in the dream. spontaneous psi/precogniton/dreams
Eiserman, Russell. ‘CASPER’ AND THE PROFESSOR’S JACKET, Journal 42, 1964, pp. 422-3. An academic dreams that a colleague is warned that he may not receive the Ph.D for which he is studying. Told of this, the colleague confirms that he has indeed received such a warning. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Lambert, G.W. A PRECOGNITIVE DREAM ABOUT A WATERSPOUT, Journal 43, 1965, pp. 5-10. An account of a peculiar dream which is regarded as a possible forecast of an event that happened some two days later. None of the details of the dream could be verified as applying to the actual happening, save for the main features of a waterspout accompanied by torrential rain. Discusses the incident according to the criteria needed to establish a connection between an ostensibly precognitive dream and the event it allegedly foreshadows. PsiLine CORRESPONDENCE, p. 101, 157-9. spontaneous psi/precognition
Heywood, Rosalind. AN APPARENTLY TELEPATHIC DREAM, Journal 43, 1966, pp. 252-5. An account of a possibly telepathic dream in which a father, a sceptic regarding all things paranormal, dreamed that his eldest daughter was gasping and choking for air. The next day he learned from press reports that his daughter had been nearly drowned. To the investigator the man’s experience would not be evidential, for dreams are too frequent to be good evidence and he did not mention it before hearing of the corresponding event. But the author cites the case as an illustration of how many sceptics have had their attitudes modified by personal experiences which they would not credit if reported by another person. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Zorab, G. AN INTERESTING LONG-TERMED PRECOGNITION, Journal 43, 1966, pp. 309-17. An account of a complex prediction made by Kitty Voorzanger, a Dutch sensitive, with regard to the affairs of a businessman known in the report as ‘Mr. R.’ The predictions, many quite specific and detailed, were practically all fulfilled over a period of ten years. Also includes a number of other examples of Mrs. Voorzanger’s remarkable prognostic powers. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/precognition
Green, C.E. SPONTANEOUS ‘PARANORMAL’ EXPERIENCES IN RELATION TO SEX AND ACADEMIC BACKGROUND, Journal 43, 1966, pp. 357-63. A survey of 115 students intended to measure the frequency of deja-vu experiences, lucid dreaming, out-of-body experiences, hallucinations, and ESP in relationship to the gender and academic backgrounds of the respondents. Tabulates the percentage of affirmative and negative responses obtained. Notes that the results seem to be independent of sex and academic orientation. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/personality/methodology
Heywood, Rosalind. AN APPARENTLY PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 44, 1967, pp. 163-4. Account of a precognitive dream a woman had concerning the death of a colleague of her husband. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Barker, J.C. PREMONITIONS OF THE ABERFAN DISASTER, Journal 44, 1967, pp. 169-81. The Aberfan disaster - in which an avalanche of coal slid down a mountainside onto the Welsh mining village of Aberfan killing 144 persons, 128 of whom were schoolchildren - was such an unusual calamity that the author thought it would provide an excellent opportunity to investigate precognition. He appealed through the media for persons claiming any foreknowledge of the event to communicate with him and describe their experiences. Of the answers received, 35 contained sufficient detail to warrant analysis. These ranged from vague prognostications of doom involving dead or dying children to astonishingly accurate pictorial impressions of screaming children buried by an avalanche of coal in a Welsh mining village. In 21 of the cases there is evidence that the experience occurred before the percipient learned of the disaster normally. The author discusses the cases in the light of the several criteria necessary to establish a connection between a precognitive experience and a future event. Concludes that the evidence for precognition presented in this study is prima facie only, and recommends that a central registry for premonitions be established so that researchers will no longer have to wait until after the event. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/precognition
Heywood, Rosalind. AN APPARENTLY TELEPATHIC IMPRESSION OF ILLNESS, Journal 44, 1968, pp. 237-9. An account of an apparently telepathic impression of the illness of the percipient’s daughter. The subject had no cause for alarm about the state of health of his daughter, who was on vacation at the time, but awoke with the strong feeling that something was wrong. The time of this attack of acute anxiety did not correspond with the actual time his daughter had taken ill, but did correspond with the approximate time that his wife in another country had learned of the fact. Full documentation is provided. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/telepathy
Bayless, Raymond. COINCIDENTAL DREAM AND OBSESSIVE THOUGHT, Journal 44, 1968, p. 267. Spontaneous case involving obsessive thoughts on the percipient’s part which turned out to coincide with the dreams of Cecil E. Smith involving the murder of an old woman and carrying her head around. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/dreams/coincidences
Lambert, G.W. STRANGER THINGS: SOME REFLECTIONS ON READING ‘STRANGE THINGS’ BY JOHN L. CAMPBELL AND TREVOR H. HALL, Journal 45, 1969, pp. 43-55. A review and discussion of the story of Fr. Allen Mcdonald, Ada Goodrich Freer, and the SPR’s enquiry into Scottish ‘second sight’ (1968) by John L. Campbell and Trevor H. Hall. Argues that the evidence presented by the authors confirms the charge against Ada Goodrich Freer originally brought by Richard Hodgson, of having made extensive use of materials about Scottish folklore without due acknowledgement. The information about Freer’s origin and career, though interesting in itself, does not sustain the wholesale aspersions on her character which the authors derive from it. The book, in short, shows too many examples of the perils of arguing from circumstantial evidence and from negatives. Many illustrations of this failing are provided. (PsiLine) CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 183-6. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/precognition
Hastings, Robert J. AN EXAMINATION OF THE DIEPPE RAID CASE, Journal 45, 1969, pp. 55-63. Reveals that a dredger had been at work in the area during the night on which the ladies recorded their experiences (see Lambert, G.W. & Gay, Kathleen. THE DIEPPE RAID CASE: A COLLECTIVE AUDITORY HALLUCINATION, Journal 36, 1952, pp. 607-18). The author points out that there had been a very high tide, suggesting that what they heard may have been partly the sound of the sea, distorted perhaps by the surrounding cliffs which are about 250 feet high. Meanwhile, their hotel being located on an established cross-channel air route may provide a normal explanation for the aircraft sounds heard by the percipients. The author also argues that being visitors, they were not familiar with the normal night sounds in the area, essential as a basis for comparison before paranormality can be postulated. (PsiLine)
Lambert, G. W. COMMENTS, pp. 63-6. Asks why, if the experience was due to ordinary noises heard in an unfamiliar environment - some of them described as ‘very loud’ - no one else heard them? Argues that the door still remains open for a paranormal explanation. PsiLine CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 144-6, 314. spontaneous psi/apparitions/hallucinations/retrocognition
Zorab, G. A PRECOGNITION OF DEATH, Journal 45, 1969, pp. 141-4. Describes an accurate prediction, in which a woman died on the exact day specified, although she was in good health. The author suggests that whenever specific dates are mentioned in death premonitions, and the idea of dying at that time is accepted with calmness, the chances are that these are true precognitions of death. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/precognition
Zorab, George. EXCERPTUM: A PRECOGNITIVE DREAM IN CONNECTION WITH AN EXAMINATION QUESTION, Journal 45, 1969, pp. 146-7. Precognitive dream of an examination question. The experience was noted in the diary of the percipient, a well-known German historian F. Gregorovius (1821-1891). (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
MacKenzie, Andrew. OSTENSIBLE MOTHER-CHILD ESP, Journal 45, 1969, pp. 165-7. An account of a number of coincidences between a mother’s feelings of anxiety about her daughter and the daughter’s actual situation at the time. Finds no normal reason that would account for the coincidences. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/telepathy/coincidences
Wilkins, Aline. AN APPARENTLY PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 45, 1969, pp. 170-71. An account of an apparently precognitive dream in which a woman seemed to have the same experiences at the dentist that a friend would go through the following day. The dream was quite specific and detailed, including the order of events, what was said when the tooth was extracted, the position of the dental chair relative to the door, etc. The woman had never been to that dentist before. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Beloff, John & Bate, David. A PRECOGNITION VERIFIED, Journal 45, 1970, pp. 316-7. A Dutch psychic accurately predicts a slight injury to an astronaut returning from a moon landing, including some specific details. The prediction is witnessed and recorded in writing ahead of the event. spontaneous psi/precognition
Dodds, E.R. SUPERNORMAL PHENOMENA IN CLASSICAL ANTIQUITY, Proceedings 55, 1971, pp. 189-237. Presents examples of psi phenomena from the records of ancient Greece and Rome. Dodds includes instances of presumed telepathy, clairvoyance, precognition, mediumship, and PK, illustrating both the culturally-determined differences between ancient and modern evidence and indications of an underlying identity of experience. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/telepathy/clairvoyance/precognition/psychokinesis
Inglis, Brian. [SMELL OR PSI?], Journal 46, 1971, pp. 207-8. Comments on the ability of animals to make contact that seems to transcend any physical capability. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 255-6; Journal 46, 1972, 2nd section! pp. 52-3. spontaneous psi/animal psi
Heywood, Rosalind. AN APPARENTLY TELEPATHIC DREAM, Journal 46, 1971, pp. 208-9. A couple independently dream about the same thing on the same night. spontaneous psi/dreams/telepathy/coincidences
Beloff, John. A NOTE ON AN OSTENSIBLY PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 47, 1973, pp. 217-21. Presents evidence and analysis of a precognitive dream case. The case is not evidentially strong but is considered to have some interesting features. The dream report and subsequent evidence is reviewed. The subject’s dream contained the name of a dead man (unfamiliar to her) whose wife’s maiden name was her married name; the name of a disease the subject later contracted; and a character who might be interpreted to represent the subject’s doctor. Analysis showed that the dream representation reversed the disease with the man’s name, an example of a dream displacement. Coincidence is dismissed as not offering a satisfactory explanation. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Livneh, Gilad. AN OSTENSIBLE PRECOGNITION OF THE ARAB SURPRISE ATTACK ON THE DAY OF ATONEMENT, Journal 47, 1973, pp. 383-6. Author’s abstract: An ostensible precognition of the Arab surprise attack in the Suez Canal and the Golan Heights in October 1973 is reported. The percipient is an English housewife who had a vision about an Arab attack two weeks before the actual event took place, Four days before the Arab assault the percipient sent a premonitory letter to the Israeli Prime Minister, Golda Meir, reporting her vision. The letter, however, arrived at the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem after the outbreak of hostilities. When Golda Meir read it she was stunned. The precognitive aspect of the vision is discussed. spontaneous psi/precognition
Heywood, Rosalind. [ESP INCIDENTS], Journal 48, 1975, pp. 127-8. A TV producer describes how a medium he was inviting to appear on a programme about ESP began making accurate statements about his contacts and affairs. spontaneous psi/telepathy/clairvoyance/mental mediumship
Treadgold, Mary. [MULL SIGHTING], Journal 48, 1975, pp. 186-7. A coach passenger travelling on the island of Mull spies a perfectly formed being 18 inches high, a young man, digging beside the road. spontaneous psi/hallucinations/apparitions
Heywood, Rosalind. [UNCONSIDERED TRIFLES], Journal 48, 1975, pp. 253-4. Instances of telepathic rapport between the author and her husband. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Bayless, Raymond. [EARLY METAL BENDING INCIDENT], Journal 48, 1976, p. 322. Apropos of Uri Geller, recalls a metal bending instance in a nineteenth century poltergeist case. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 49, 1977, pp. 474-5. Another early example, from an eighteenth century poltergeist episode in Bristol. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 622-3, 680-81, 848-50, 977-8. Controversy concerning the paranormal interpretations of such incidents. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis/poltergeist
Nisbet, Brian C. AN OSTENSIBLE CASE OF AUDITORY ESP, Journal 49, 1977, pp. 440-45. On 9th June 1976 the writer was awakened by what appeared to an SOS morse signal being tapped out from her bedside radio set. She was disturbed and depressed by this incident and the next morning told her brother about it. The following evening she learned that her grand-daughter had been seriously assaulted during the time of the incident and required hospital treatment. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/telepathy/clairvoyance
Fraissard, Henri. [TELEPATHIC INCIDENT], Journal 49, 1977, pp. 559-60. A Frenchwoman escaping German-occupied France through the mountains into Spain is overcome by fear when coming close to a precipice and cries out. Her husband, thousands of miles away in Dakar, awakes from sleep hearing her voice and has a vision of the scene that is later found to correspond closely to the facts. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Meulen, Henry. [ANIMALS AND PK], Journal 49, 1977, p. 566. Letter in full: ‘Is it not interesting that there is apparently no record of cases of psycho-kinetic or materialization phenomena in which an animal was the medium? Since such phenomena occur when the medium is unconscious of their production, they would appear to be purely physical, and one would expect to find animal mediums’. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis/animal psi/apparitions
Costigan, Phyllis. M. [PRECOGNITION INCIDENTS], Journal 49, 1977, p. 568. A woman describes her mother’s faculty for foreseeing future events. spontaneous psi/precognition
Nisbet, Brian C. AN OSTENSIBLE CASE OF PRECOGNITION, Journal 49, 1977, pp. 608-11. On 8th September 1975, Mrs. Lickiss, a qualified social worker, aged 50, of 3 Highfield, Sutton, Hull, North Humberside, wrote to the Society for Psychical Research describing a symbolic dream of the death of a man, a Mr. G, whom she had not seen for about 16 years. She had this dream on the night of 9th April 1975 and, on waking the following morning, told her husband. That morning she drove her car to visit a friend and during her drive was surprised to recognize the man of her dream driving another car. She told her friend, Mrs. F (who had known Mr. G) of her dream and of having seen Mr. Gin the car. Mrs. Lickiss then continued on her calls for the day. On returning home she found a message asking her to telephone Mrs. F. She did so and was told that Mr. G had apparently continued in his car to the centre of the town but, while stopping at some traffic lights, had had a heart attack and died there and then. (PsiLine) CORRESPONDENCE, p. 686. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Mundle, C.W.K. A CASE OF ESP, Journal 49, 1977, pp. 674-5. An amateur psychic accurately describes a recent occurrence in the life of her client’s father. spontaneous psi/clairvoyance/telepathy/mental mediumship
Wadhams, Peter. A CASE OF PRECOGNITION?, Journal 49, 1978, pp. 763-4. A scientist dreams of being back on board a Canadian scientific ship, which he worked on seven years previously, and the following day receives a call inviting him on another expedition on the same ship. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Sherrard, Carol. THE EVEREST MESSAGE: ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATIONS AND THEIR STATUS, Journal 49, 1978, pp. 797-804. A number of incidents that occurred during the 1975 British Everest expedition have been seen as confirming a message, received through automatic writing, containing predictions of what would happen during the attempt. Each of these five predictions, while fitting the facts, is also broad enough to fit any of the several Everest expeditions, providing the automatist knew enough about the literature to make a few generalizations. The automatist in this case, C.J. Williamson, was not a mountaineer, but he had followed the progress of the various Everest expeditions with great interest. It should be possible with the published accounts of these prior attempts to work out just such a scenario as is contained in the list of predicted events. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/precognition
Beloff, John. A NOTE ON A PUTATIVELY PRECOGNITIVE DISASTER DREAM, Journal 49, 1978, pp. 854-57. Beloff writes: The subject in this case is a Mrs. Kathleen Preston, a retired schoolteacher and amateur folklorist (author of Tales Of Old Kendal), who lives in Kendal, Westmorland. This lady has corresponded with me for many years and has often sent me accounts both of dreams which she thought might turn out to be precognitive and of miscellaneous ESP experiences within the family circle. I have also met her on one occasion in Edinburgh. Although her accounts were of some parapsychological interest, they were connected for the most part with the small change of everyday life, often with television programs viewed by the subject on the following day, and accordingly, there was little scope for obtaining independent confirmation of the facts even if it had been worth doing so. The present case, however, which relates to a well publicized disaster, is very different. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Loble, Henry. [PREMONITIONS OF ACCIDENTS], Journal 49, 1978, p. 908. An American airman recalls two World War Two incidents in which pilots had accurate premonitions of disaster. spontaneous psi/precognition
Rogo, D. Scott. [DEATH RATTLE], Journal 49, 1978, pp. 980-81. Personal account of a ‘death rattle’, knocking sounds that are said to herald the death of a close relative. spontaneous psi/precognition/hallucinations
Nisbet, Brian C. ON SOME ENQUIRIES ANSWERED ON BEHALF OF THE SPR DURING 1978, Journal 50, 1979, pp. 77-83. The following is a report on the 49 ‘psychic’ inquiries which I have answered on behalf of the SPR during the year ending 31 December 1978. There were also numerous telephone calls, interviews with SPR members, visitors from overseas and others, many of whom contributed interesting information. I understand from our Secretary, Miss O’Keefe, that the inquiries which I have been asked to answer are typical of those received by the Society. It is, therefore, with regret that I have to report that very few of the incidents showed any signs of being paranormal. However, for those who are prepared to plough through the rubbish, I have found that about 1 or 2 per cent come up to the standards of evidence required by the Society. Last year none of my inquiries reached this standard but this year one case, reported by a Mrs. Gray, of ostensible auditory and visual ESP, was worth a detailed investigation. A full report has been sent to the Society. A brief note on this case is included here. Another 2 or 3 per cent of inquiries may be said to be of interest but due to circumstances beyond the control of those involved there was no confirmatory evidence. This does not mean that these cases are of no interest. Quite the reverse, especially if they throw light on the processes which may be involved, but they have to be treated with more caution. For convenience, I have analysed under the following headings the reports received. No paranormal explanation is necessarily implied by such classification. My object is to give some idea of the kinds of inquiry received by the Society during the year: Apparitions and ghostly experiences (10); Dreams (8); Poltergeist type disturbances (6); Coincidences (5): Automatic writings (2); Precognitions (2); Ouija board experiences (2); Miscellaneous (14). Some comments on a few of the inquiries are presented. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi
Orme, J.E. A NOTE ON THE NOSTRADAMUS PROPHECIES, Journal 50, 1979, pp. 163-6. The Nostradamus prophecies differ from the ordinary run of apparent predictions in three ways. First, they appear to be linked with events that are far away, rather than near, in time. Second, they largely refer to events beyond Nostradamus’s lifetime. Third, they relate to epic, important events rather than to personal ones. On the other hand, the circumstances of the predictions seem to be quite typical of those reported for precognitive experiences. In other words they occur, if not in dreams, then in other situations of altered awareness where the mind becomes in some way removed from the external here-and-now. This state of altered awareness (as in dreams) probably accounts for a great deal of the vagueness, ambiguity, and double meaning. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams/theory
Moberly, C.A.E. et al. LES FANTÔMES DE TRIANON, reviewed by Andrew MacKenzie, Journal 50, 1979, pp. 187-9. French update on the Versailles recognition case, including an account of a similar incident experienced by a Frenchman. book review/spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
Permutt, Cyril. [PARANORMAL PHOTOGRAPHS], Journal 50, 1979, pp. 259-60. Draws attention to the Bureau for the Invesigation of Paranormal Photographs, which offers advice to interested researchers and bodies,and maintains an archive with ‘large numbers of paranormal psychic and thought photographs of all kinds...’. spontaneous psi/methodology/photography
Hearne, Keith M.T. & Worsley, Alan. [TELEPATHIC JEALOUSY], Journal 50, 1980, pp. 489-90. One author observes that when he contacts a female friend his regular girlfriend appears to know, possibly by some psychic ability. An experiment is conducted to investigate a possible telepathic link, with no significant results. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Wood-Trost, Lucille. POSSIBLE PRECOGNITION OF THE TETON DAM DISASTER IN IDAHO, Journal 51, 1981, pp. 65-74. Wood-Trost outlines an investigation into possible precognitions of the bursting of the Teton Dam in 1976 and subsequent flooding of a large area of Eastern Idaho. After a brief description of her method of collection, Wood-Trost summarizes 18 individual cases of varying types (dreams, intuitions, etc.), time of experience relative to event (from a few moments to a year), and varying detail (from vague premonition to dreams containing one or more specific and veridical details). The author discusses the demographics of her experiencers and the phenomenology of the cases as well as their relationship to similar cases collected in 1967 after the Aberfan disaster in Wales by J.C. Barker and to general characteristics of L.E. Rhine’s collection. She compares time lapses between experiences and events to current thinking on likely clustering of precognition relative to time of the event. In addition, she discusses possible normal explanations, among them subliminal awareness of clues pointing to the disaster and first or second-hand technical knowledge of the dam’s construction and likelihood of failure. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Teng, Lee C. [ESP INCIDENT IN CHINA], Journal 51, 1981, pp. 181-3. The author outlines some impromptu investigations of a 12-year old Chinese boy thought to have ‘exceptional faculties.’ Teng describes ‘experiments’ in which the boy was apparently able to ‘read’ writing on crumpled paper inserted into his ear. Teng also gives some details of the child’s performance under different social circumstances and with varying degrees of success. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/clairvoyance
Hearne, Keith M.T. AN OSTENSIBLE PRECOGNITION OF THE 1974 FLIXBOROUGH DISASTER, Journal 51, 1982, pp. 210-13. Author’s abstract: The case of an ostensible precognition of the 1974 Flixborough chemical plant explosion (which resulted in 28 deaths) is reported. The woman involved thought she saw a TV newsflash about the disaster and told two persons shortly afterwards. In fact, the event did not happen until several hours later. The two witnesses confirmed her account. Recently, another ostensible precognition by the same woman concerned a non-injurious explosion in a local house. However, in this case the precognition was not communicated to others before the event. Personality and background information about the woman is given for use in any future scientific comparisons with other percipients. spontaneous psi/precognition
Williamson, C.J. A COLLECTIVE PHANTASM, Journal 51, 1982, pp. 257-8. Describes an instance of a collective phantasm described to the author in 1952 (at which time notes were made) and recently reinvestigated. The incident involved a report by two young men of seeing the figure of the father of one of them by the roadside, losing sight of him, and then coming across him further on. The author concludes that the father, who had cause to worry about the whereabouts of his son and companion and who habitually followed the same road to look for his son, had ‘projected’ a phantasm ahead of himself. It is suggested that a projection of this kind may account for the resemblance of the medium, Florence Cook, to her ‘control,’ Katie King. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/bilocation/apparitions
Hearne, Keith M.T. AN OSTENSIBLE PRECOGNITION OF THE ACCIDENTAL SINKING OF H.M. SUBMARINE ARTEMIS IN 1971, Journal 51, 1982, pp. 283-7. Author’s abstract: An ostensible precognition of the accidental sinking in harbour of the submarine H.M.S. Artemis in 1971 is reported. A fortnight before the incident, the female percipient (then aged 17) had met some of the crew at a dance when the vessel visited Grimsby, and had become friendly with one submariner. She had a dream a week before the incident in which she saw the submarine sink, in harbour. In the dream, she ‘knew’ that three men were trapped inside, that two of them were men she had met, and that two of the men would die. The percipient related the dream to several persons over the next few days. On July 1, 1971 the submarine did sink in Gosport harbour, and three men were trapped inside for 101/2 hours. There were no fatalities though. The percipient knew two of the trapped men, but they were not the two she had named. Personality and background information about the percipient is given for use in future comparative studies. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Hearne, Keith M.T. THREE CASES OF OSTENSIBLE PRECOGNITION FROM A SINGLE PERCIPIENT: 1. SADAT ASSASSINATION. 2. REAGAN ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT. 3. S.S. ACHILLE LAURO INCIDENT, Journal 51, 1982, pp. 288-91. Author’s abstract: Three seemingly premonitory dreams reported by a female percipient were investigated. Two sisters and a friend provided confirmation of the dream accounts and their occurrence before the actual events. A dream of an assassination in a Middle East country was remarkably similar to the killing of President Sadat of Egypt, three weeks later. Another dream described the shooting of a ‘pockmarked actor,’ while getting out of a car, by a ‘German S.S. man.’ President Reagan (former actor) was shot by John W. Hinckley (former member of a neo-Nazi group) three weeks later. In another dream three weeks before the fire on board the liner Achille Lauro, the percipient saw two coffins on that ship. Two passengers died in the fire and another was lost overboard. Aspects of the ostensible precognitions are discussed. Personality and background information about the percipient is provided. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Cox, W.E. AN AUDITORY PRECOGNITION WITHIN A RADIO NEWSCAST, Journal 51, 1982, pp. 378-81. Author’s abstract: This is an unusually well documented case of auditory precognition, where the source of the sound was the author’s radio within a routine newscast from a major station. It was quite as clear as any speech, and was heard three times, between four and eight hours in advance of the time of the automobile accident which it concerned. Name of the victim and its location were given, but there was no remembered mention of the time. Some theoretical concepts are discussed, and other exceptional precognitive instances are cited for comparison with this one. (PsiLine) spontaneous psi/precognition
Grattan Guinness, I. COINCIDENCES AS SPONTANEOUS PSYCHICAL PHENOMENA, Journal 52, 1983, pp. 59-71. Coincidence is normally studied in psychical research only when the appraisal of data against chance is being considered. In this paper I suggest that coincidences in ordinary life may be forms of spontaneous phenomena, which thus require explanation. A few features of coincidences are described, and their relationship to certain theories of psi is briefly discussed. (PsiLine)CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 157-8. spontaneous psi/coincidences
Haynes, Renée. [HALLEY’S PRECOGNITION], Journal 52, 1983, p. 153. The 17th century Astronomer Royal describes how a dream showed him a representation of the Island of St Helena, which he discovered to be ‘perfect’ when he later travelled there. spontaneous psi/dreams/clairvoyance
Rogo, D. Scott. [EVIDENCE OF THE HUMAN AURA], Journal 52, 1983, pp. 154-5. The writer relates the surprising discovery that his lodger, a 28-year old store manager with little discernible interest in parapsychology, claims to see ‘coloured atmospheres around people.’ The descriptions are found to be similar to traditional occult teachings about the human aura. spontaneous psi/aura
Hearne, Keith M.T. A SURVEY OF REPORTED PREMONITIONS AND OF THOSE WHO HAVE THEM, Journal 52, 1984, pp.261-70. Questionnaire data, personality information, and reports of ostensible premonitions (foreknowledge of unexpected events) were obtained from 88 persons (of 127 selected from 450) who responded to a request published in a national newspaper. Collations and analyses of data are presented with a categorization of premonitions and stated examples. It was observed particularly that (a) the overwhelming number of replies were from females, (b) most premonitions concerned death or unpleasant happenings, and (c) a significant negative correlation emerged between age at first premonition and number of offspring. It is speculatively proposed that those findings in conjunction suggest that premonitions are an evolutionary development in the human species. Premonitions might provide functional forewarnings of disasters, mediated principally through females and resulting in the replenishment of numbers as quickly as possible after losses. Various ways of inducing further premonitions in gifted subjects may be feasible. Subjects were revealed to be more neurotic than the normal population (p < .001), but did not differ on extraversion/introversion scores. The EPI lie-scale correlated positively with both reported accuracy and percentage of correct premonitions. The mean score was significantly higher than in the normal population (p < .001). Caution is therefore expressed about the reliability of some accounts. The results tend not to support the following explanations of premonitions: chance coincidence, the ‘death wish’ or ‘psychobolie,’ and telepathy. (PsiLine)CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 52, 1984, p. 334, pp. 403-4. spontaneous psi/precognition/methodology/theory
Playfair, Guy Lyon. KOESTLER, MANN AND SCHOPENHAUER: SUPPORTING EVIDENCE FOR A COINCIDENCE, Journal 52, 1984, pp. 377-9. Describes an incident that began during Arthur Koestler’s imprisonment during the Spanish Civil War. The writer is comforted when he recalls a passage from Thomas Mann’s novel The Buddenbrokes. Following his release he writes to Mann to thank him for the solace it gave him. Minutes before receiving the letter, Mann feels an urge to look at the passage himself, not having read it for 35 years. The coincidence, revealed by Mann in his reply, made a profound impression on Koestler, but could not be confirmed, owing to the German author’s letter having been lost during the Second World War. Confirmation now comes with the English translation of Mann’s diaries, in which he recalls the incident in the same terms. spontaneous psi/coincidences
Williamson, CJ. THE LIGHTS OF PAPA STOUR, SHETLAND, Journal 52, 1984, pp. 405-6. Describes the mystery of unexplained lights that regularly appeared all over the island during the winter of 1915-16. spontaneous psi/physics
Hearne, Keith M.T. AN OSTENSIBLE PRECOGNITION USING A ‘DREAM-MACHINE’, Journal 53, 1985, p. 38. Illustrated. Author’s abstract: A case is reported of an ostensible precognitive dream occurring to a female subject while using a portable bedside ‘dream machine’ invented by the author. The device was used in a mode whereby the subject was automatically woken by an audible alarm when her respiratory rate reached a pre-set level. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Anon. CORRESPONDENCE: A TRIPLE DEATH OMEN WHICH CAME TRUE, Journal 53, 1985, pp. 120-21. A dream in which a dog is bitten to death by a German Shepherd is fulfilled in detail. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Haraldsson, Erlendur. REPRESENTATIVE NATIONAL SURVEYS OF PSYCHIC PHENOMENA: ICELAND, GREAT BRITAIN, SWEDEN, USA AND GALLUP’S MULTINATIONAL SURVEY, Journal 53, 1985, pp. 145-58. Author’s abstract: During the last few years an increasing number of representative surveys on beliefs and experiences of psychic phenomena have been conducted - mostly by polling institutions - on national samples. The results of such surveys in Iceland, Great Britain, Sweden and the United States, as well as of a multinational survey by Gallup and affiliated companies in most countries of Western Europe, show interesting national differences, but on the whole a widespread belief in the existence of psychic phenomena. The percentages of respondents reporting a personal psychic experience also differed widely across countries. In Iceland, Great Britain and the United States more than half of the respondents reported a paranormal experience. In some countries education was positively related to reporting psychic beliefs and experiences. spontaneous psi/beliefs/theory/methodology
Hallson, Peter. [SPONTANEOUS CASES], Journal 53, 1986, pp. 331-2. Compares nineteenth century reports of spontaneous psychical experiences with those of recent times, finding that in the latter case they are reported more quickly and that apparitions tend to be unrecognized. Also finds that the reports are less well testified and corroborated, less clear, and less convincing. spontaneous psi/apparitions
Hearne, Keith M.T. AN ANALYSIS OF PREMONITIONS - DEPOSITED OVER ONE YEAR - FROM AN APPARENTLY GIFTED SUBJECT, Journal 53, 1986, pp. 376-82. Author’s abstract: A woman who had previously exhibited an apparently unusual ability at foreknowledge of unexpected world and local events, posted all her premonitions, on ‘reception’, to the author throughout 1982. The 52 accounts were split between 2 judges who rated any correspondences between the premonitions and events reported in the press over the following 28 days - not only for the actual year but also for a different control year. The judges were unaware of which year applied to each premonition. Using a non-parametric test it was found that, using rankings from both judges, an overall comparison between ? and C data approached, but did not reach, statistical significance at the 5 per cent level (z = 1.916, N = 51, 2-tailed). Separate data from each judge did not attain statistical significance. A few specific premonitions did appear to correspond very closely with later events, particularly one concerning an attack on the Pope. In addition, consistent latency periods (from premonition to event) noted in a previous paper on the percipient were again demonstrated. spontaneous psi/precognition
Rogo, D. Scott. AN ANALYSIS OF A PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 53, 1986, pp. 391-3. A parapsychologist analyses his own seemingly precognitive dream, finding that it confirms the view of psychoanalyst and parapsychologist Jule Eisenbud that ‘precognitive dreams are pregnant with underlying psychodynamic meanings even when they appear to be rather trivial’. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Hallson, Peter. [SPONTANEOUS CASES], Journal 53, 1986, pp. 331-2. Compares 30 spontaneous case reports sent to the SPR in 1984 with 27 such cases dealt with by the Society one hundred years earlier (1883-5). CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 54, 1987, pp. 82-4. spontaneous psi/methodology/theory
Coleman, Michael H. THE GHOSTS OF THE TRIANON: THE COMPLETE ‘AN ADVENTURE’ BY C.A.E. MOBERLY AND E.F. JOURDAIN, reviewed by Andrew MacKenzie, Journal 56, 1989, pp. 46-9. Comprehensive study of the much-discussed episode of retrocognition at Versailles, including the original reports and discussion of the subsequent criticism and analysis. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 56, 1990, pp. 186-7. book review/spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
Coleman, M.H. PHANTOM SCENERY, Journal 63, 1998-9, pp. 47-9. Proposes a natural explanation to a 1961 case of’phantom scenery’ such as that experienced by Moberly and Jourdain at Versailles, in which a boy and girl come across an imposing Georgian house near their house which they had not seen before, which locals denied existed and which they could not subsequently find. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 63, 1998, pp. 191-2, 250-52. spontaneous psi/apparitions
Tart, Charles T. A CASE OF PREDICTIVE PSI - WITH COMMENTS ON ANALYTICAL - ASSOCIATIVE AND THEORETICAL OVERLAY, Journal 55, 1989, pp. 263-70. Author’s abstract: A case study is reported in which the author, a psychologist, began spontaneously saying an unusual word, coup d’etat, aloud repeatedly, and then received a letter from a Mrs Coudetat the following day. Several psychological processes which may distort psi impressions or bury them under noise are then discussed with respect to this and other cases, namely analytical and associative overlay, which may add confusing analytical and associative material and theoretical overlay, which can bias interpretation of psychological factors. spontaneous psi/precognition
Tort, Cesar. THE TURIN SHROUD: A CASE OF RETROCOGNITIVE THOUGHTOGRAPHY, Journal 56, 1990, pp. 71-81. Author’s abstract: Thanks to the recent radiocarbon dating of the Shroud of Turin, it has been determined that it is late medieval in origin. However, the transfer mechanism of the image onto the cloth is still unknown. Normal hypotheses are untenable. On the other hand, most authenticity advocates’ views show theological bias. Reference from some analogous counterparts of the shroud led the author (an atheist) to hypothesize, as the basis of the aetiology of said image, a non-supernatural thoughtography appearance of Jesus’s corpose, unconsciously and (and retrocognitively?) catalyzed by fourteenth century French. (The repercussions for parapsychology were a permanent paranormal object to be acknowledged, must be left to the reader to ponder.) Keywords: TS; retrography (retro-thoughtography); MTAs; acheiropoietos; sindonology; STURP; C14 PPO. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 56, 1990, pp. 246-51; 313-5. spontaneous psi/retrocognition/photography/theory
Watt, Caroline. THE VALUE OF SPONTANEOUS CASES, Journal 56, 1990, pp. 273-87. Author’s abstract: The collection and study of spontaneous cases has so far failed to realize the full value of these cases as a source of information about the factors which cause people to have experiences which they interpret as psychic. This may in part be due to an incomplete use of the research tools of observation/description, hypothesis, prediction testing and theory. Studies using ‘top-down’ and ‘bottom-up’ research strategies have been informative as far as they go but could go further in exploiting the potential informative value of spontaneous cases. It is argued that an ‘integrated approach, making full use of the research tools, is most likely to advance our understanding of people’s spontaneous experiences. spontaneous psi/theory/methodology
Anon. [SYNCHRONICITY], Journal 57, 1991, p. 379. Points out a synchronistic correspondence of detail in adjacent articles that mention rings and circles. spontaneous psi/coincidences
Cay, Betty M.W. TWO TRANSIENT DOCUMENTS: A WELCOME BONUS, Journal 58, 1992, pp. 232-8. Illustrated. A historical geographer finds and records details from two eighteenth-century documents in a bundle of title deeds she is examining at a lawyer’s office, but on a subsequent visit discovers no trace of them or any indication that they were ever held at that office. spontaneous psi/hallucinations/psychokinesis
Milton, Julie. EFFECTS OF ‘PARANORMAL’ EXPERIENCES ON PEOPLE’S LIVES: AN UNUSUAL SURVEY OF SPONTANEOUS CASES, Journal 58, 1992, pp. 314-23. Author’s abstract: Twenty-two people, mostly SPR and Scottish SPR members, completed an unusual questionnaire about experiences that they believed might have been paranormal and that happened at least five years earlier. Unlike most studies of spontaneous cases, this study was not directed at determining whether the experiences were truly paranormal; in fact, the ‘paranormal’ experiences themselves were not the main focus of the study. Instead, most of the questionnaire was designed to find out about the experients’ views of cause and effect in different types of ‘paranormal’ experience, their feelings and reactions at the time of the experience, the social and professional support available to them, and the long-term social, philosophical, religious and practical effects upon the experients’ lives. The small number of cases of each type (precognition, RSPK, etc,) made most conclusions tentative, but it was clear that for some people an apparently paranormal experience may be a very important event (and, for some, one of the most important events) in their lives, and that the needs that they describe for responsible guidance and reliable information are not being adequately met. Starting points for further research on a larger sample were indicated, and some unusual approaches to spontaneous cases are discussed. spontaneous psi/methodology/theory
Henry, Jane. COINCIDENCE EXPERIENCE SURVEY, Journal 59, 1993-94, pp. 97-108. Author’s abstract: Reports on the first large-scale survey of coincidence experiences, arising from a questionnaire which appeared in the Observer Sunday newspaper. The survey asked people to answer some questions about their experiences, beliefs and personal circumstances and to describe one experience in greater detail. This paper reports on the answers to the survey questions. spontaneous psi/coincidences
Tort, Cesar J. ARE THE FACES OF BELMEZ PERMANENT PARANORMAL OBJECTS?, Journal 59, 1993-94, pp. 161-71. Illustrated. Reviews the literature, by parapsychologists and sceptical critics, on the phenomenon effaces which have spontaneously appeared over a period of years on the walls of a house in a Spanish town. The work includes attempts to analyse samples from the walls. The authors briefly consider the rival possibilities of fraud (by the use of appropriate chemicals) and of thoughtography, which however raises formidable problems for the parapsychologist. CORRESPONDENCE, pp. 317-8; Journal 60, pp. 346-8. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis/hallucinations/apparitions
Tort, Cesar J. SECOND THOUGHTS ON THE TURIN SHROUD, Journal 59, 1993-94, pp. 367-9. Following his introduction to sceptical literature, Tort expresses doubts about his earlier willingness to entertain the paranormalist idea of ‘thoughtography’ in relation to the shroud (Tort, Cesar. THE TURIN SHROUD: A CASE OF RETROCOGNITIVE THOUGHTOGRAPHY, Journal 56, 1990, pp. 71-81), which he now prefers to downgrade to the status of ‘a mediaeval mystery’. spontaneous psi/retrocognition/photography/theory
Keen, Montague. AN OVERVIEW OF CROP CIRCLES: ESSAY REVIEW OF JIM SCHNABEL’S ROUND IN CIRCLES, Journal 59, 1993-94, pp. 370-77. Keen offers a resume of the crop-circles story, from their first appearance in the late 1970s, the ‘quintuplets’ - big circles surrounded by smaller satellites - to the development of ringed circles and other formations. He looks at the various arguments against hoaxing, both those which are inadequate and those worthy of note. He focuses on those who became involved in the controversy, from early pioneers like Terence Meaden, who proposed an explanation in terms of whirlwinds, to the development of a rival camp of extraterrestialists led by Colin Andrews and Pat Delgado, the advent of obvious hoaxing and pranksters Doug Bower and Dave Chorley, and the fighting between the rival camps. He also looks at Jim Schnabel’s own involvement in ‘creating’ crop-circles. He notes a number of failings in the book, including breaches of confidence and the inclusion of mere malicious gossip, although he concludes that ‘as a work of sociology it is revealing and instructive [and] as a historical faction it makes excellent reading.’ spontaneous psi/crop circles
Cohn, Shari A. A SURVEY ON SCOTTISH SECOND SIGHT, Journal 59, 1994, pp. 385. Author’s abstract: The Scottish tradition of ‘second sight’, a special psychic ability associated with the Highlands and Western Isles, was studied. A large-scale survey, which used a random sampling procedure, was conducted to find out the incidence of people reporting second sight in the Western Isles, Highland, Grampian and Lowland regions in Scotland. The survey also looked at whether people who reported second sight differed from people without it with regard to the following characteristics: highland descent, gender, family members reporting second sight and knowledge of people other than relatives reporting second sight. The frequency of reported second sight ranged from 10% to 16% with the exception of Grampian, which reported 33%. In general, neither highland descent nor gender seemed to be significantly related to people’s reporting second sight, though this was not true for the Lowland region. People reporting second sight are more likely to know people other than relatives with second sight than those who do not report second sight, though this was not true for the Lowlands. Lastly, in all regions, people reporting second sight are significantly more likely to report second sight in blood-related family members. The implications of these findings for the traditional view of second sight are discussed. spontaneous psi/precognition
Tort, Cesar J. A HUNDRED WOLVES: ESSAY REVIEW OF JOE NICKELL’S LOOKING FOR A MIRACLE, Journal 60, 1994-5, pp. 38-42. Criticises the tendency to assume that the genuineness of miracles is suggested by the sheer number of their reports, with reference to books by Nickell, a sceptic and member of CSICOP, and the late D. Scott Rogo, a parapsychologist. Tort adopts a sceptical tone, claiming to be agnostic. book review/spontaneous psi/methodology
Thalbourne, Michael A. APOLLONIUS OF TYANA: A PARAPSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE, Journal 60, 1994-5, pp. 240-50. Describes the literature pertaining to a reputed miracle worker of the ancient world, a contemporary of Jesus of Nazareth, with comparable powers, who has also been compared to Sai Baba in India. The fullest account comes from Philostratus, which drew on sources no longer extant. Thalbourne refers to paranormal incidents descibed in this account, including a clairvoyant vision of the assassination in Rome of the emperor Domitian, a number of other instances of ESP, physical feats, healing and raising from the dead, and transportation. One instance of the latter, described here in more detail, involves Appolonius dematerialising while being interrogated by the emperor. The author acknowledges the unreliability of the accounts, but suggests that any value they may have is in providing parallels to the experiences studied by contemporary parapsychologists. spontaneous psi/beliefs/methodology
MacKenzie, A. PRECOGNITION OF A FATAL FIRE, Journal 60, 1995, pp. 258-60. Report of a belated investigation of an incident which occurred in 1971, when a six year old boy had a vision of the house across the street being on fire. The boy was punished for making up stories, but a serious fire did take place at the same house the following day, in which there were two fatalities. spontaneous psi/precognition
Romer, Chris. THE POVERTY OF THEORY: NOTES ON THE INVESTIGATION OF SPONTANEOUS CASES, Journal 61, 1996-7, pp. 161-3. Author’s abstract: Since 1993 the author has become involved in spontaneous-case investigation. He has discovered two possible approaches to dealing with each case as it arises, and to illustrate these briefly discusses a case he has been working on for some years. spontaneous psi/methodology
MacKenzie, Andrew. ADVENTURES IN TIME: ENCOUNTERS WITH THE PAST reviewed by K.M.T.Hearne, Journal 62, 1997, pp. 175-6. Discussion of the Versailles retrocognition case and similar episodes by an SPR investigator and author of several books on apparitions. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 62, 1998, p. 379. book review/spontaneous psi/retrocognition/apparitions/hallucinations
Alvarado, Carlos S. PROOF AND PROCESS APPROACHES TO THE STUDY OF SPONTANEOUS PARAPSYCHOLOGICAL PHENOMENA, Journal 61, 1996-7, pp. 221-34. Author’s abstract: Traditionally, spontaneous parapsychological phenomena have been studied following proof and process considerations. These approaches are discussed with examples from the literature published by the Society for Psychical Research. The issue here is not necessarily one of competing approaches. Rather, it is shown that both approaches coexist and can inform each other. Nonetheless, it is argues that parapsychology needs more process research in order for the study of spontaneous phenomena to achieve scientific progress. It is important for psychical research to move beyond questions of evidence, and to explore more fully the relationship of spontaneous phenomena to other variables so as to deepen our understanding of these occurrences. spontaneous psi/methodology
Somerville, Rona. ON THE WINGS OF A SWAN: AN ANALYSIS OF A PRECOGNITIVE DREAM, Journal 61, 1996-7, pp. 319-29. The author describes a complex dream, consisting of a series of scenes which accurately forecast the college at Oxford at which she would study, the untimely curtailment of her student career, a near-fatal poisoning and other events. spontaneous psi/dreams/precognition
Romero, Jose Martinez. THE FACES OF BELMEZ: ITS MYSTERY AND MESSAGE, Journal 61, 1996-7, pp. 337-9. Describes certain incidents pertaining to the case effaces appearing spontaneously on a wall in a house in Spain. In one a medium comes into contact with the image which appears to attack her, leaving bite and scratch marks. In another a journalist becomes unwell and later describes the sensation of having been caressed by an invisible hand. spontaneous psi/beliefs/psychokinesis/hallucinations/apparitions
Garlaschelli, Luigi & Polidoro, Massimo. TESTING A MIRACLE BY MEANS OF TAMPER-PROOF CONTAINERS, Journal 61, 1997, pp. 314-7. The authors tested claims of a ‘miracle’ in southern Italy in which a statue of the Virgin dripped olive oil and nearby containers, though sealed and empty, were also found to contain quantities of oil. Tamper proof containers were delivered to the group who made the claims and returned for examination. Some of the containers were found to contain a yellow liquid but also showed evidence of obvious tampering. The authors concluded that the containers - flame-sealed glass test tubes - can be a useful tool for researchers testing similar claims of macro-PK. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 63, 1998, p. 127. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis/experiments/cheating
Sheldrake, R. & Smart, P. PSYCHIC PETS: A SURVEY IN NORTH-WEST ENGLAND, Journal 61, 1998, pp. 353-64. Authors’ abstract: A telephone survey was carried out in Greater Manchester to find out how many pet owners had observed seemingly psychic abilities in their pets. 46% of dog owners claimed their animals knew in advance when a member of the household was on their way home, compared with 14% of cat owners. Most of these animals reacted five minutes or less in advance, but a substantial proportion reacted ten minutes or more in advance of the person’s return. 69% of dog owners and 48% of cat owners thought their pets knew when they were going out before they showed any physical signs of doing so. 53% of dog owners and 33% of cat owners thought their pet responded to their thoughts or silent commands; and similar percentages thought their pet was sometimes telepathic with them. Just over half of those who had kept pets in the past thought that some of these animals were telepathic. More dog than cat owners claimed to have had psychic experiences themselves, and a higher proportion of ‘psychic’ pet owners claimed that their pets exhibited psychic powers than ‘non-psychic’ owners. The potential for experimental investigations of the seemingly psychic powers of pets is discussed. spontaneous psi/animal psi
Fontana, David. BACK TO THE FUTURE: ESSAY REVIEW OF THE BIBLE CODE BY MICHAEL DROSNIN, Journal 62, 1997-8, pp. 266-71. Refers to a bestseller which demonstrates the apparent existence of a code accurately prophesying future events in the original Hebrew version of Genesis and other early books of the Bible (Torah). Fontana argues that criticisms of the book may be premature. He suggests that the failure of an academic responsible for discovering the code to endorse the book may be unfair, that the messages can be checked by anyone with a copy of the relevant computer program, and that statisticians have been impressed by the findings. If the code stands up the scrutiny, he suggests, the Torah could be considered a permanent paranormal object. But he points out that ‘extraordinary claims require extraordinary proofs’ and urges extensive attempts to replicate the findings before conclusions are reached. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 63, 1998, pp. 59-60. book review/spontaneous psi/beliefs/precognition
Brown, David J. & Sheldrake, Rupert. PERCEPTIVE PETS: A SURVEY IN NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA, Journal 62, 1997-8, pp. 396-406. Authors’ abstract: A telephone survey of 200 households was carried out in North-West California to find out how many pet owners claim to have observed seemingly psychic abilities in their animals. 132 of the households surveyed had pets. 45% of dog owners claimed their animal knew in advance when a member of the household was on the way home, compared with 31% of cat owners, and around 20% of these animals were said to react more than 10 minutes in advance. 65% of dog owners and 37% of cat owners said their pets knew that they were going out before they showed any physical signs of doing so. 46% of dog owners and 41 % of cat owners said that their pet responded to their thoughts or silent commands, and 42% of dog owners and 34% of cat owners said that their pet was sometimes telepathic with them. 49% of pet owners and 31% of non-pet-owners said that some of the animals that they had known in the past were telepathic. Significantly more pet owners claimed to have had psychic experiences themselves than non-pet-owners, and a significantly higher proportion of ‘psychic’ pet owners claimed that their pets exhibited psychic powers than ‘non-psychic’ owners. These findings are in general agreement with a previous survey in England. Some implications of these results are discussed. spontaneous psi/animal psi
Radin, Dean I. & Rebman, Jannine M. SEEKING PSI IN THE CASINO, Journal 62, 1997-8, pp. 193-219. Authors’ abstract: Correlations and predictive modelling tests were used to explore the possibility that some fraction of the daily fluctuations in casino gambling payout percentages might be due to periodic variations in average psi abilities in the general population. The study was based on upon examination of four years of daily gaming data from a Las Vegas casino. Payout percentages were predicted to be positively correlated with lunar cycle and with gravitations tidal forces, and negatively correlated with the planetary geomagnetic field flux. Nearly significant correlations were observed for tidal forces. These results are consistent with previous research indicating that some environmental factors may be related to predictable variations in psi performance. Artificial neural network and abductive network techniques were used successfully to predict casino payout percentages based on seven daily environmental variables. spontaneous psi/psychokinesis/precognition/physics/methodology
Dobinson, George. THE CASE FOR RETROCOGNITION, Journal 62, 1997-8, pp. 337-46. Author’s abstract: Several examples of apparent retrocognition are given and significant features discussed in an attempt to identify possible causative factors. Criticisms of the validity of the phenomenon are summarised but the focus is mainly on the hypothesis of Morphic Resonance as a possible modus operandi of retrocognition. Its significance as a hypothesis unifying psychical research, physics and mysticism is alluded to. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 63, 1998, p. 60. M. Coleman agrees with the author’s general criticisms of the weak evidential status of the Moberly and Jourdain testimony regarding their Versailles ‘adventure’, but differs in detail. spontaneous psi/retrocognition
Garlaschelli, Luigi. CHEMISTRY OF ‘SUPERNATURAL’ SUBSTANCES, Journal 62, 1998, pp. 417-23. Author’s abstract: A relic representing the blood of St Lorenzo, which peridocially liquefies from its usual clotted state in a purportedly supernatural manner, has ben examined and found to consist of a substance melting at about 30 degrees centigrade. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 63, 1998, pp. 60-61. spontaneous psi/magic/cheating/psychokinesis
Pablos, Fernando de. SPONTANEOUS PRECOGNITION DURING DREAMS: ANALYSIS OF A ONE-YEAR NATURALISTIC STUDY, Journal 62, 1998, pp. 423-34. Author’s abstract: The author has undertaken an analysis of his own dreams in order to discover spontaneous precognition. The dreams occurring during the calendar years January-December 1996 were investigated. A total of 223 dreams were registered during that period. Out of these, 23 dreams were considered precognitive by explicit criteria previously determined. Brief reports of the dreams and of the precognized events are given. Out of the 23 dreams, in 14 (60.80%) the precognized event occurred within 24 hours after the dream, in 5 (21.74%) the precognized event occurred within two weeks after the dream and in 4 (17.34%) the precognized event occurred within two and a half months after the dream. An analysis of the phenomenological characteristics of precognitive dreams allows us to classify them into two broad categories: realistic and analogical/realistic. A particular emphasis was made in analysing the phenomenological and psychological characteristics of precognized events. Most precognized events were unexpected, sudden and anxiety-provoking events which tend to disrupt the attentional process in the subject. Roughly half of precognized events were under volitional control of other people and the other half could be explained by chance occurrence. We found no case of a precognized event under the possible volitional control of the subject. spontaneous psi/precognition/dreams
Randall, John. [RELIGIOUS VISIONS], Journal 63, 1998, p. 182. Compares the ‘grey mist’ seen by a couple while a young girl is praying with the ‘cloud of God’s presence’ mentioned in the Bible (2 Chronicles 5, w 13-14), with a witness’s description of a ‘fog’ seen during a séance with Rudi Schneider. CORRESPONDENCE, Journal 63, 1998, p. 252. spontaneous psi/aura/beliefs/theory
Playfair, Guy Lyon. TELEPATHY AND IDENTICAL TWINS, Journal 63, 1998-9, pp. 86-98. Author’s abstract: The idea of a special bond between identical twins that enables them to share sensations at a distance has been widespread for at least 150 years. Despite abundant anecdotal evidence for such a bond, parapsychologists have failed to investigate it adequately, while psychologists have generally ignored it altogether. An outline of research to date is given, and reasons for the somewhat inconsistent results are discussed. spontaneous psi/telepathy/methodology
Cohn, Shari. A QUESTIONNAIRE STUDY ON SECOND SIGHT, Journal 63, 1998-9, pp. 129-57. Author’s abstract: Second sight, a psychic capacity for spontaneous prophetic visions, is reported by people from different cultural traditions. A 65-item questionnaire on second sight and other types of psychic experiences was sent to people living primarily in Scotland but also throughout the British Isles, Europe, North America, and other areas of the world. A total of 208 questionnaires were completed. The responses indicate that second sight is experienced by people of diverse ages, occupations, and religious and cultural traditions. Women tend to report more experiences than men; and an important factor related to having second sight was having had a religious experience in which there was a feeling of being at one with God or Nature. Second sight is also reported by agnostics and atheists. Second sight experiences are reported far less than other types of psychic experiences. Changes in the way of life have affected the manner in which second sight is expressed, especially those experiences closely bound up with particular local customs. Other studies in different traditions may help to elucidate further the possible cultural and genetic factors involved in second sight. spontaneous psi/precognition
Willin, Melvyn J. PARANORMAL MANIFESTATIONS OF MUSIC, Journal 64, 2000, pp. 93-108. Author’s abstract: A substantial investigation was made of places where it has been claimed that music from a paranormal source has been heard. The available literature was studied and where possible direct contact was made with the owners of such properties. With the exception of a few intriguing examples conclusive evidence was not obtained for the existence of such phenomena. spontaneous psi/hauntings/hallucinations
Sheldrake, Rupert. TELEPATHIC TELEPHONE CALLS: TWO SURVEYS, Journal 64, 2000, pp. 224-32. Author’s abstract: Many people claim to have thought about a particular person who then calls them on the telephone. Through informal surveys I have found that seemingly telepathic telephone calls are common. Two telephone surveys were carried out in London and Bury to investigate the frequency of these experiences in a random sample of the population. In both surveys, half the respondents said they had felt that someone was about to telephone them just before they did. In Bury, 45 per cent of the respondents said they had thought about a person they had not seen for a while who then telephoned the same day, and two thirds of the Bury respondents said they had telephoned people who said they were just thinking about telephoning them. In Bury, 37 per cent of respondents who said they had know in advance who was calling without any possible clue said this happened often. In both surveys significantly more women than men gave positive responses, and in both surveys more pet owners than people without pets gave positive responses. In London significantly more people claimed to have anticipated telephone calls than to have had psychic experiences. Telepathic telephone calls may be one of the commonest kinds of psychic experience in the modern world, and I suggest ways in which they can be investigated empirically. spontaneous psi/telepathy/methodology
Hallson, Peter. [SPONTANEOUS CASE REPORTS], Journal 65, 2001, p. 223. A letter which points out that poor case reports are offered to the Society eagerly, whereas significant and well-attested cases are often withheld by reticent witnesses. spontaneous psi/theory/methodology
Sheldrake, Rupert. APPARENT TELEPATHY BETWEEN BABIES AND NURSING MOTHERS: A SURVEY, Journal 66, 2002, pp. 180-84. Some nursing mothers claim that when they are away from their baby they often know when their baby needs them because their milk lets down. Some are convinced that this response is telepathic. In order to find out more about this phenomenon, 100 mothers who had recently had babies were surveyed and asked a series of questions about their experiences when breastfeeding. 62% had experienced milk let-down when away from their babies and 16% had noticed that this seemed to coincide with their baby needing them. Most of these women breastfed their babies for more than six months. In addition, 3 women said they had felt there was something wrong with their baby when they were away from home, and found that it was indeed in distress because of a fall or other accident, and 5 women commented that they often woke up shortly before their baby needed them in the night. spontaneous psi/telepathy
Smith, Matthew D. & West, Donald. INVESTIGATING AN ANOMALOUS HUMAN IMAGE ON CCTV, Journal 66, 2002, pp. 41-6. In April 1999 an ‘anomalous’ image of a male figure was captured by the CCTV system in the reception area of a Lancaster company. The two security guards on duty noticed the image on the television screen remained still for several minutes and were concerned for the man’s health. Upon investigating, the guards found nobody in the reception area. The guards continued watching the image for several more minutes before the image ‘disappeared’. This incident led the company’s facilities administrator to contact the Society for Psychical Research in the belief that the image may have been a ‘ghost’. This paper outlines the investigation of this case undertaken by the authors on behalf of the Society. The focus of this investigation was upon examining the video tape displaying the image and exploring conventional (i.e., non-paranormal) explanations for the image’s appearance. spontaneous psi/apparitions