April 25, 2008
Rare events and paranormal experiences
As adults most of the time we go about our lives following a fairly regular routine. It isn't often that we encounter something that really needs explanation.
Here in Indiana we have had two such events recently.
As described below a military jet accidentally broke the sound barrier over a populated area where supersonic flight is not normally allowed.
In addition we also experienced a magnitude 5.2 earthquake and its associated aftershocks.
This resulted in several articles where residents who experienced the quake initially misidentified it as the work of a ghost. [1], [2], [3]
An earthquake of that magnitude is an exceedingly rare event here in Indiana. It probably will happen less than half a dozen times in a typical human lifetime. Because it is so rare our brains are not able to understand it immediately. Strange paranormal ideas sometimes jump in and try to fill this gap between strange phenomena and our understanding.
I am not the type of cynic who thinks people who experience strange things are crazy. Strange and very rare events do indeed occur in our world. Things even more rare than earthquakes in the Midwest are possible. The important thing is that these strange events need to be evaluated using the scientific method. It is the most powerful tool we have for getting real explanations for strange events.
The paranormal ideas that may leap to mind when our day-to-day routine is interrupted by a very strange event may seem mysterious and interesting at first. However, much like junk food filled with empty calories paranormal explanations ultimately don't do us any good or increase our knowledge of the universe.
Posted by nolandda at 05:50 PM
August 07, 2006
August Strangeness
In an Indianapolis Star article (2006-08-02) we learn about Historic Indiana Ghost Walks and Tours. This entirely uncritical article appears to be free advertisement for their spooky tours.
The Fort Wayne Gazette (2006-08-04) points out that The Northeastern Indiana Better Business Bureau is warning consumers about psychics and loan scams. The BBB does good work, but some additional critical thinking education could make their job much easier and save victims of these frauds lots of time, money, and heartache.
Finally in this Indianapolis Star article (2006-08-05) we receive another warning about the importance of using one's critical faculties. This warning is brought to us by documentarian Stanley Nelson in his film Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple. This documentary details The Peoples Temple, a cult which started here in Indiana and famously committed mass suicide at Jonestown, Guyana in 1978.
Posted by nolandda at 07:20 PM
September 28, 2005
Carl Baugh Brings Texas Style Creation "Science" to Indiana
A hotly-debated education issue is making its way into Indiana. Dr.
Carl Baugh wants students in the state's public schools to learn about 'creation science.' He talked about it with some lawmakers at the statehouse Monday.
Baugh says nine other states are considering legislation to make educators teach creation alongside evolution in the classroom and he thinks Indiana should be next.
More information on Dr. Baugh:
- Doctor Carl Baugh's personal homepage.
- He is the founder and director of the Creation Evidence Museum in Glen Rose, Texas. Which presents "evidence" that humans lived with dinosaurs.
- There is some controversy concerning the degrees that the "doctor" claims to possess.
- Dr. Baugh believes that every human who lived before the biblical flood was a giant. To prove this, the museum is building a suitably titanic 'hyperbaric biosphere', in which it hopes to reproduce 'Earth's original pre-Flood environment': lots of oxygen and lots of atmospheric pressure in order to grow dinosaurs.
Posted by nolandda at 07:06 AM