# How to put the Paranormal to rest. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 4, 2010, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462 "2010-11-04T15:04:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/261 "2010-11-09T01:32:05Z")
> [@John DiFool](#): > > What was it someone once said-a theory is only accepted once the old guard who denied it die off, replaced by the young guns? I think it was the guy who assured us that he’d developed cold fusion. > [@Tethered\_Kite](#): > > So I think it’s good to keep the door of possibility open just a tad. Depends on what the door leads to. And then there’s the point at which one’s mind is kept so open that one’s cerebral cortex comes tumbling out. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/262 "2010-11-09T01:58:23Z")
> [@Tethered\_Kite](#): > > Perhaps that’s because, due to personality type, you may be a person who isn’t comfortable with things unless they are either black or white. But rarely this is true. I’m not such a person. Heck, I’m fine with the concept of ghosts and esp and stuff like that. I’d just like some evidence that they actually, y’know, exist. > [@](#): > > I will admit to some distain for people (and I’m not so sure that you are one) who demand absolute certainty. Because we are always in flux. Even scientific principles that once appeared written in stone are called into question and theory is revised as times/situations change. > > Absolutely nothing can move faster than the speed of light. Truth written in stone? It once was. Physicists are currently discussing the possibility that our truth may be too small. Fine, let’s assume some supralight particle or whatever is shown to exist in experiments that are replicable and after a few years we’ve developed technology exploiting this new information and have tachyon-speed spaceships and such. Everything that _currently_ works will continue to work. The addition of tachyons is a refinement to our theories - it doesn’t smash them to bits. I recommend an Isaac Asimov essay called “The Relativity of Wrong.” He discusses at length the refinement process by which scientific theories are improved and dismisses the folk-belief that scientists routinely discard theories to replace them with other theories that themselves will be discarded. > [@](#): > > So I think it’s good to keep the door of possibility open just a tad. Even to the point of uncertainty. The world doesn’t shatter if humans don’t have all the correct answers. Indeed not, but the promoters of woo are nothing if not confident in their beliefs. They’ve already decided that crystals and Orgone energy and Xenu and such are real. I’ll accept the _possibility_ that they are, but without evidence, I have no incentive to go beyond that. > [@](#): > > And that doesn’t mean that being skeptical of one possibilty means absolute endorsement of it’s opposite. That’s black and white thinking. Science isn’t the opposite of woo. If anything is the opposite of woo, it’s competing forms of woo. > [@](#): > > My sole respect for superstition lies in how it affects society. And it does - both in positive ways, such as a child’s enjoyment of folk tales, and negative ways, as in when a black and white thinker demands others accept his superstitions. Example of such a thinker and such a demand and such superstitions, please. I assume this is something more significant that a person who says “there’s no such thing as ghosts.” > [@Czarcasm](#): > > How do you show _what_ is not a fake?? A “Ghost”"? I believe the correct spelling is “G-G-G-G-Ghost!” ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/263 "2010-11-09T13:21:28Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Give us the solid reason why we shouldn’t frackin’ give up and walk away from this several-thousand-year-old dog and pony show. While you’re at it, tell us why you think developing the perfect test will do jack in discouraging new ghost stories from popping up elsewhere. To piggyback on this post, why aren’t we spending money and effort investigating Phlogiston? Or epicycles? How much should we spend on phrenology? Or the Hollow-Earth theory? Or the Bates method of vision correction (cover your eyes with your palms and “swing” your vision back and forth between imaginary points in the darkness–or close your eyelids and point your face at the sun. Either way, it’ll correct any vision problem. I’m not making this up.) Should we divert anti-HIV or Cancer research funds to investigate bodily humors? Because there’s just about exactly the same amount of empirical evidence for those things as ghosts: none. There’s limited money and limited time that can be spent on this sort of thing. Ma and Paw Kettle hear a creaking in their attic and choose to believe it’s the ghost of Cleopatra’s hairdresser? Oh well. There are also, right now, people who believe in a Flat Earth. I don’t see any need to investigate their claims either. If the OP’s saying there’s a business model for a “ghost investigator” to go around and find out that Maw and Paw Kettle’s “ghost” is really a leaky gas-pipe causing hallucinations, cool. Groovy. Frankly I suspect the business goes under in 90 days because Maw and Paw Kettle, if they accept ghosts to begin with, aren’t going to be swayed by proof. Someone who’s first thought upon encountering a “cold spot” in the room is “O noes! Goblins!” rather than “Shit. Honey, there’s a “cold spot” in the room. Where’s my damned caulk gun? I gotta plug the draft” isn’t gonna change his mind over this. ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/264 "2010-11-09T13:42:03Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > If the OP’s saying there’s a business model for a “ghost investigator” to go around and find out that Maw and Paw Kettle’s “ghost” is really a leaky gas-pipe causing hallucinations, cool. Groovy. Frankly I suspect the business goes under in 90 days because Maw and Paw Kettle, if they accept ghosts to begin with, aren’t going to be swayed by proof. > > Someone who’s first thought upon encountering a “cold spot” in the room is “O noes! Goblins!” rather than “Shit. Honey, there’s a “cold spot” in the room. Where’s my damned caulk gun? I gotta plug the draft” isn’t gonna change his mind over this. snip. My interest is nothing more than a geeky hobby. Recreational pseudoscience if you like. “Paranormal investigation” is like a series of puzzle games for me, each time I can debunk a claim, science wins. In addition, you get to explore weird places and learn interesting historical information. It is no more serious then those people who spend all weekend re fighting WWII battles, or whacking each other with foam swords, or playing video games, etc… The only difference is that occasionally when you debunk something, it gives credulous people some peace of mind. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/265 "2010-11-09T13:51:52Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > If the OP’s saying there’s a business model for a “ghost investigator” to go around and find out that Maw and Paw Kettle’s “ghost” is really a leaky gas-pipe causing hallucinations, cool. Groovy. Frankly I suspect the business goes under in 90 days The key to success may be non-profit status. [This outfit](http://www.finderscreepers.org/) will send a team to your house to professionally scrutinize your vapors and spirits. They drive a cool van that any homeowner would be proud to see in their driveway\*. And there’s room for folks like the OP to get involved in the fun! _Contact us today and we will consider adding you to our team of professional Ghost Hunters and Paranormal Investigators! We don’t require prior experience, just a professional attitude, calm nerves, a sound mind and the desire to learn!"_ \*as opposed to the van I saw in a neighbor’s driveway last week, emblazoned with the logo “1-800-Insects”. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/266 "2010-11-09T14:00:00Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > \*as opposed to the van I saw in a neighbor’s driveway last week, emblazoned with the logo “1-800-Insects”. ☹ I hate insect vans, too. I much prefer the ones that get rid of insects. ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/267 "2010-11-09T14:01:36Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > The key to success may be non-profit status. [This outfit](http://www.finderscreepers.org/) will send a team to your house to professionally scrutinize your vapors and spirits. They drive a cool van that any homeowner would be proud to see in their driveway\*. > > And there’s room for folks like the OP to get involved in the fun! > > _Contact us today and we will consider adding you to our team of professional Ghost Hunters and Paranormal Investigators! We don’t require prior experience, just a professional attitude, calm nerves, a sound mind and the desire to learn!"_ > \*as opposed to the van I saw in a neighbor’s driveway last week, emblazoned with the logo “1-800-Insects”. ☹ A chevy HHR?..I dunno man…😉 ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/268 "2010-11-09T15:42:05Z")
> [@Acid\_Lamp](#): > > My interest is nothing more than a geeky hobby. Recreational pseudoscience if you like. “Paranormal investigation” is like a series of puzzle games for me, each time I can debunk a claim, science wins. Not unless you have the same amount of PR as all those woo shows on television. The very expensive setups you propose in this thread first would have to be approved by the people who own the house, they would then have to let go of their superstitions and accept your conclusions, and even then you have no way to insure that what you told them will stick. Your accomplishment will not be televised or published, and in the meantime a couple thousand people, spending little to no money whatsoever, will spread new woo. Science has no need for expensive boondoggles that are nothing more vanity projects-science needs better PR and more influence in our school systems. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/269 "2010-11-09T15:51:47Z")
> [@Acid\_Lamp](#): > > The only difference is that occasionally when you debunk something, it gives credulous people some peace of mind. I disagree. Sure there are some people who think “Jeepers! A cold spot! I wonder what it could be? Could it be…_supernatural_?!” and then, when Captain Science and his merry band of Woo-Fighters appears and says it’s just that they forgot to close the flue on the chimney will say “:smack: You’re _right_ Captain Science! How could I have been so foolish? Bless you (in a scientific, non-religious way of course)!” But most–and I mean like 90% of the people at a guess–who think Jeepers! A cold spot! I wonder what it could be? Could it be…_supernatural_?!" upon encountering a cold spot will ignore Captain Science and the Woo-Fighters and say “Up yours, you anti-spiritual guy! The cold spot was caused by _GOBLINS_…the _same_ goblins that opened the flue to _fool_ you and your science-based rabble!!” So…yeah, maybe 10% of the potential woos out there will be helped, but for the other (say) 90%, you’re wasting your time. If someone’s first thought about an unexplained phenomena is anything other than calling for a repair guy or reaching for the tool box to fix stuff, it’s generally a waste of time to bother trying to argue them out of their religious beliefs. ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/270 "2010-11-09T15:59:08Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Not unless you have the same amount of PR as all those woo shows on television. The very expensive setups you propose in this thread first would have to be approved by the people who own the house, they would then have to let go of their superstitions and accept your conclusions, and even then you have no way to insure that what you told them will stick. Your accomplishment will not be televised or published, and in the meantime a couple thousand people, spending little to no money whatsoever, will spread new woo. > Science has no need for expensive boondoggles that are nothing more vanity projects-science needs better PR and more influence in our school systems. Man, you really do like to rain on everyone’s parade don’t you? What would you suggest? I have no idea if I could get on TV to do a serious show, and regular science isn’t exactly TV friendly. Nobody wants to watch a bunch of techs meticulously go through lines of genetic code, or do maths. It’s boring, visually at least. As for schools, I vote, I participate when appropriate: (My wife is a media specialist at a college prep school) By volunteering for science and arts field trips. I even teach a few workshops on special effects and sculpting. We don’t have kids, so we’ve got a lot of free time. Paranormal investigation is entertaining. Vanity project? I’ve never asked for, or received any recognition. What does it matter to you how I spend my recreational time? I’d love to go on real science trip vacations, but they are extremely expensive to volunteer on, and are usually quite selective. Grad students and the like eat up all the free/ low cost spaces quickly, and the ones left are usually reserved for those who can pay a lot to be there, which I can’t. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/271 "2010-11-09T16:06:11Z")
> [@Acid\_Lamp](#): > > Man, you really do like to rain on everyone’s parade don’t you? What would you suggest? I have no idea if I could get on TV to do a serious show, and regular science isn’t exactly TV friendly. Nobody wants to watch a bunch of techs meticulously go through lines of genetic code, or do maths. It’s boring, visually at least. As for schools, I vote, I participate when appropriate: (My wife is a media specialist at a college prep school) By volunteering for science and arts field trips. I even teach a few workshops on special effects and sculpting. We don’t have kids, so we’ve got a lot of free time. Paranormal investigation is entertaining. > > Vanity project? I’ve never asked for, or received any recognition. What does it matter to you how I spend my recreational time? I’d love to go on real science trip vacations, but they are extremely expensive to volunteer on, and are usually quite selective. Grad students and the like eat up all the free/ low cost spaces quickly, and the ones left are usually reserved for those who can pay a lot to be there, which I can’t. “Paranormal investigation” that isn’t done under strict scientific structure, that is done for entertainment purposes, does nothing but spread the woo. For this reason, your proposal is anti-science and shouldn’t be supported. ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/272 "2010-11-09T16:14:09Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > “Paranormal investigation” that isn’t done under strict scientific structure, that is done for entertainment purposes, does nothing but spread the woo. For this reason, your proposal is anti-science and shouldn’t be supported. That’s funny, it seems that was exactly what I was asking about while I was fending off hijacks and wading through the buckets of shit you dumped all over this thread. Got anything to off other than idiotic catch 22’s ? You can’t join a strict team since nobody is doing that without good first evidence that you can’t gather because you aren’t a member of a strict team. Yeah, that’s helpful. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/273 "2010-11-09T16:24:37Z")
> [@Acid\_Lamp](#): > > That’s funny, it seems that was exactly what I was asking about while I was fending off hijacks and wading through the buckets of shit you dumped all over this thread. Got anything to off other than idiotic catch 22’s ? You can’t join a strict team since nobody is doing that without good first evidence that you can’t gather because you aren’t a member of a strict team. Yeah, that’s helpful. :rolleyes: Several hundred years without any good evidence works for me. Now, it seems that(from your own OP) > [@](#): > > In the efforts of advancing science, is not so true-you want to ignore all previous research that has has put forth the only conclusion when it comes to woo of this sort, just so you can be entertained. IMHO, there is more than enough of that kind of “entertainment” surrounding us and putting a chokehold of this country’s scientific advancement. Edited to add: I’m sorry if you think I, and others, are raining on your parade. In my opinion you are doing nothing more than adding your own float to a parade that should have ended many years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/274 "2010-11-09T16:34:12Z")
> [@Acid\_Lamp](#): > > … occasionally when you debunk something, it gives credulous people some peace of mind. It would be nice if it worked that way, but it rarely does. Most credulous people continue to be credulous, indeed, they _want_ to be credulous. ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/275 "2010-11-09T17:04:46Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Several hundred years without any good evidence works for me. Now, it seems that(from your own OP) is not so true-you want to ignore all previous research that has has put forth the only conclusion when it comes to woo of this sort, just so you can be entertained. IMHO, there is more than enough of that kind of “entertainment” surrounding us and putting a chokehold of this country’s scientific advancement. > Edited to add: I’m sorry if you think I, and others, are raining on your parade. In my opinion you are doing nothing more than adding your own float to a parade that should have ended many years ago. **Czarcasm** , You may not be intending it, but all I’m hearing from you is : "You’re stupid, this is stupid, anyone who is interested in this is stupid. I can’t even begin to hypothetically play along with this thread because it is so stupid. In fact, it is SO stupid that it is my bound duty to make certain that it never even starts, even if that ruins everyone’s fun in the process. " Get over yourself. My stupid little hobby doesn’t hurt anyone. if I can’t find anything I don’t call it ghosts. When I DO find something I make it a point to walk the person through the steps of how it happens and what we will do to fix it. eg: " There is an old cut off pipe in the wall that is causing the groaning noise when it is overly hot during the day. As pressure builds up, the rainwater tries to escape and makes it vibrate like a horn. See? ..We can stop that by cutting a bigger hole in the top of it up on the roof." In the process I got to explore a cool old building, learn about some neat local history and actually eliminate a “woo” event. If that isn’t at least a net neutral then I don’t know what is. ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/276 "2010-11-09T17:09:12Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > It would be nice if it worked that way, but it rarely does. Most credulous people continue to be credulous, indeed, they _want_ to be credulous. Yeah, I know. I don’t have any illusions about vanquishing all credulousness from society though it’d be nice. Most of the calls I’ve been on though have been little one weird thing type calls. Sometimes you can even figure it out without going, like the EVP examples you gave. One of the cool by products of doing this sort of thing is that you get to learn a little about a lot of different things, like plumbing, hvac, old construction, weird radio reception and the like. It isn’t the same thing as being a serious researcher or expert in any discipline, but it is fun. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/277 "2010-11-09T17:12:56Z")
> [@Acid\_Lamp](#): > > **Czarcasm** , You may not be intending it, but all I’m hearing from you is : "You’re stupid, this is stupid, anyone who is interested in this is stupid. I can’t even begin to hypothetically play along with this thread because it is so stupid. In fact, it is SO stupid that it is my bound duty to make certain that it never even starts, even if that ruins everyone’s fun in the process. " > > Get over yourself. My stupid little hobby doesn’t hurt anyone. if I can’t find anything I don’t call it ghosts. When I DO find something I make it a point to walk the person through the steps of how it happens and what we will do to fix it. eg: " There is an old cut off pipe in the wall that is causing the groaning noise when it is overly hot during the day. As pressure builds up, the rainwater tries to escape and makes it vibrate like a horn. See? ..We can stop that by cutting a bigger hole in the top of it up on the roof." > > In the process I got to explore a cool old building, learn about some neat local history and actually eliminate a “woo” event. If that isn’t at least a net neutral then I don’t know what is. Your own title reads “How to put the Paranormal to rest”, but everything you have proposed so far would do the exact opposite. You get to investigate, those who promote this crap get to say yet again, “There must be something to it, because it is being investigated”, and your conclusions will be downplayed, misplayed or ignored. Woo wins because you have added to the myth, you win because you are entertained, and science loses because time has been wasted fighting woo using all the wrong weapons. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/278 "2010-11-09T23:17:05Z")
Heck, I once saw a home inspector using incense! Seriously, he had a stick of incense and was looking for drafts in a house my girlfriend was considering buying. He told me other inspectors use various chemicals to make smoke to indicate drafts, but it was more expensive, not any more effective, and didn’t smell as nice. As an epilogue, she ended up buying the house. It is now undergoing significant renovation. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2010, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/279 "2010-11-10T15:09:51Z")
The thing is, the OP’s project would ruin science in general if it was applied consistently. Let’s say I want to know how a match works. I have a vague idea that it has something to do with friction and the match-heads composition. So I ask a chemist about it. And the Chemist can confidently answer without ever seeing any of the matches I have ever lit. If we apply the OP’s logic here, we’d have to investigate every single match before we could rule out the theory that there might be alternate explanations for some matches working. We have explanations for so-called paranormal phenomena. We don’t need to investigate every single reported instance of paranormal activity to apply those explanations. The only reason it’s even brought up is because, unlike matches, people have a strong desire to believe in the paranormal, due to grief for lost loved ones and their search for higher meaning in the Universe. This is human and understandable, but it shouldn’t guide research. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2010, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462/280 "2010-11-10T15:36:19Z")
> [@Larry\_Borgia](#): > > The thing is, the OP’s project would ruin science in general if it was applied consistently. > > Let’s say I want to know how a match works. I have a vague idea that it has something to do with friction and the match-heads composition. So I ask a chemist about it. And the Chemist can confidently answer without ever seeing any of the matches I have ever lit. If we apply the OP’s logic here, we’d have to investigate every single match before we could rule out the theory that there might be alternate explanations for some matches working. > > We have explanations for so-called paranormal phenomena. We don’t need to investigate every single reported instance of paranormal activity to apply those explanations. The only reason it’s even brought up is because, unlike matches, people have a strong desire to believe in the paranormal, due to grief for lost loved ones and their search for higher meaning in the Universe. This is human and understandable, but it shouldn’t guide research. It does seem as if the OP’s intent is to lock paranormal investigation into a process that pretty much guarantees that woo can go on forever. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-put-the-paranormal-to-rest/559462.md?page=13)