[net.misc] Parapsychology a Rigorous Science

presley (02/20/83)

The March issue of *Discover* has an interesting article on the efforts
of James "The Amazing" Randi.  It seems that he got two of his magician
acquaintances to present themselves in 1979 as psychics to the McDonnell
Laboratory (Washington University in St. Louis).  The lab investigates
psychic phenomena.  The two, Steven Shaw (then 18) and Michael Edwards
(17), spent over 120 hours over three years there and were considered
the only genuine cases of psychic ability.

The boys demonstrated psychokinetic powers such as bending wires, keys,
and cutlery, causing clocks to move, and turn the display on a digital
clock to gibberish.  They also gave examples of thought photography.

Needless to say, all of their psychic abilities were done with magician
tricks; they were never confronted with a charge of trickery.