28 September 2013

Lecture 4: "The Reality of ESP: A Physicists Proof of Psychic Abilities": The Vividness Problem

"Other ways of knowing." Strength of belief vs. strength of proof. Prima facie evidence. Miracles. Scientific ability is domain dependent. Disciplinary Matrix as a safety net. Patrick Price. Remote Viewing. Occult chemistry. Helen Duncan. Madame Blavatsky. Subjective Validation.

A companion course guide can be downloaded here: http://jref.swmirror.com/20730

27 September 2013

Lecture 3: Perceptual and Cognitive Biases: Fast and Slow Thinking

Reflective Mind/Algorithmic Mind/Autonomous Mind. The Cognitive Miser. Mindware Gaps. Contaminated Mindware. Finished Files. Assimilation /Contrasts. Invisible Rectangle. Attneave's Cat. Shepard's Tables. 7C→7S

A companion course guide can be downloaded here: http://jref.swmirror.com/20730


Psychic Fraud News - Episode 6 - Woo Woo

Any serious psychic who makes grand claims should do the James Randi challenge, or another equally as strict scientific test to confirm it's not a question of faith.

26 September 2013

Lecture 2: How The Key Got Bent

Student descriptions of the key bending event. Impossibility of describing everything. Observation has to be selective. Problem of relevance. Informal observation is retrospective, unsystematic, and contaminated by the limitations and quirks of human memory and cognition. Scientific observation is prospective, planned, systematic, calibrated and productive of trustworthy data.

A companion course guide can be downloaded here: http://jref.swmirror.com/20730


Jury finds ‘psychic’ Rose Marks guilty on all 14 fraud charges, faces possible 20 years in prison

WEST PALM BEACH — A federal jury in West Palm Beach has found ‘psychic’ Rose Marks, guilty on all 14 charges of fraud.

Marks was immediately taken away to jail, and faces a possible 20 years in prison when she is sentenced on Dec. 9.

On Wednesday, federal prosecutors wrapped up one of the most bizarre trials in recent history, asking jurors to suspend cynical notions about people who would give millions to a fortune-teller.

Instead of judging the victims — even a woman who became convinced she was destined to marry heart-throb Brad Pitt and revered diplomat Colin Powell — the jury should instead focus on how Marks preyed on desperate people who believed she could help them deal with dead children, bad marriages, unrequited love and health problems, prosecutor Larry Bardfeld said.

In closing arguments of the $20 million fraud trial, Bardfeld addressed the skepticism that has silently permeated the month-long trial. “Who would be foolish enough, gullible enough, naive enough or stupid enough to give large amounts of money to a fortune teller?” Bardfeld asked.

But, he insisted, that isn’t the question jurors should ponder when they begin deliberations today.
“The question is what was going on in these victims’ lives that they would fall prey to this outlandish scheme?” he said.

Read More at
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/news/breaking-news/jury-finds-psychic-rose-marks-guilty-on-all-14-fra/nZ8CG/

25 September 2013

Lecture 1: The Keys to Critical Thinking

Uri Geller. The Geller Effect. Two students attempt to bend a key with their minds. The problem of unplanned observation. Eyewitness testimony. GIGO. "As described is not the same as "as it happened."

A companion course guide can be downloaded here: http://jref.swmirror.com/20730


Talking to the Dead: James Van Praagh Tested

James Van Praagh and other practitioners of so-called channeling & communica­ting with deceased people have consistently avoided James Randi's Million Dollar Challenge test to prove their psychic abilities. In this video, Miklos Jako, a knowledgeable layman, tests Van Praagh's ability simply by having a session with him and analyzing what went on.

The results, though not strictly scientific, are pretty conclusive, as well as entertaining.

Miklos Jako is a retired teacher, who has investigated religion and related topics all his life. He is the author of Confronting Believers (Infinity Publishing). He graduated from Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, and Colby College, ME.


Jon Stewart and Richard Dawkins Will It Be Science or Religion That Dooms Us All - The Daily Show 24/09/13

Jon Stewart and Richard Dawkins Will It Be Science or Religion That Dooms Us All JonStewartDaily