...... e Vol. 251 October 18 1974 Release 2803iiNHS e1A RBP96 E10:78FRE100:700060002 0 251 No. 5476 October 18, 1974 Published weekly by Macmillan Journals Ltd London 4 Little Essex Street, WC2R 3LF Telephone: (01) 836 6633 Telex: 262024 Telegrams: Phusis London WCZR 3LF Washington III National Press Building, DC 20045 Telephone: (202) 737 2355 Telex: 64280 Editor David Davies Deputy Editor Roger Woodharn Editorial staff Gillian Boucher Colin Norman* John Gribbin Sally Owen John Hall Allan Piper Eleanor Lawrence Miranda Robertson *Mary Lindley Fiona Selkirk Peter Milford Robert Vickers Peter Newmark Mary Wade* John Wilson *Washington office Publishing Director Jenny Hughes Display advertisement enquiries to: London Office :. Classifled advertisement enquiries tor T. 0. Scott and Son Ltd, 1 Clement's Inn, London WC2A 2ED Telephone: (01) 242 6264 and (01) 405 4743 Telegrams: Textualist London WC2A 2ED Subscription enquiries to: Macmillan Journals Ltd, Brunei Road, BaE4njotoke, Hants, RG21 2XS Teiiiphone : Basin&stoke 29242 Publication address in the United States The Win Byrd Press Inc., 2901.Byrdhill Road, Richmond, Virginia 23228' Second Class Postage for the USA paid at Richmond, Virginia US Post aster, please send form 3579' m lo Nature, 711 National Press Building, Washington DC 20045 Price L22 per year-excepting USA and Canada (:E28 per year) Registered as a newspaper at the . British Post Office I . OPYright a Macmillan Journals Ltd, October 18, 1974 Cover Picture A hundred years ago Nature was reviewing E. J. Marey's Animal 41echanism (page 518, October 29, 1874). These cumbersome mechanisms Were soon to be. replaced by Muy- bridge,s zoopraxi-scope camera. On Page 567 we look at a Muybridge sequence and-a century later-what happens when the light is switched on. Volume 252 October 18, 1974 Investigating the paranormal 559 For those in peril on the factory floor 560 INTERNATIONAL NEWS 562 NEWS AND VIEWS 569 ARTICLES Human reproduction and family planning: research strategies in developing countries- A. Kessler and C. C. Standley 577 Compositional variation in recent Icelandic tholefites and the Kverkfj6ll hot spot- G. E. Siffvaidason, S. Steinthorsson, N. Oskarsson and P. Imsiand 579 Properties of hybrids between Salmonella phage P22 and coliphage X- D. Botstein and L Herskowitz 584 LETTERS TO NATURE-Physical Sciences Distance to Cygnus X- I @CC. Cheng, K. J. ff. Phillios and A. M. Wilson 589 mign energy rawation trom white holes-J. V. Narlikar, X. M. V. Appa Wao ana N. Dadhich 590 Spectrum of the cosmic background radiatio n between 3 mm and 800 Pm- E. 1. Robson, D. G. Vickers, J. S. Huizinga, J. E. Beckman and P. -E. Clegg 591 A new solar-terrestrial relationship-G. M. Brown 592 Rainfall, drought and the solar cycle-C. A. Wood and R. R. L@_vett 39-4 Dynamic imr)lications of mantle hotsoots-M. A. Khan 596 Ilf noise with a low frequency white noise limit-K. L. Schick and A. A. Verveen 599 -_- _- -1 1-, - - " -- Information transmission under conditions of sensory shielding-R. Targ and ff. Puthoff 602 LETTERS TO NATURE-Biological Sciences H. A. Beagley 608 Imprinting and exploration of slight novelty in chicks-P. S. Jackson and P. P. G. Baleson 609 Microbial activation of prophenoloxidase from immune insect larvae-A. E. Pye 610 Elevation of total serum IgE in rats following helminth parasite infection- . E. Jarrett and H. Bazin 612 Alternative route for nitrogen assimilation in higher plants-P. J. Lea and B. J. Miflin 614 Evolution of cell senescence, atherosclerosis and benign tumours-D. Dykhuizen 616 Insulin stimulates myogenesis in a rat myoblast line-J.-L. Mandel and M. L. Pearson 618 L. J. de Asua and E. Rozengurt 624 Control of cell division in yeast using the ionophore, A23187 with calcium and magnesium-J. H. Duffus and L. J. Patterson 626 Antigen of mouse bile capillaries and cuticle of intestinal mucosa- N. 1. Khramkova and T. D. Beloshapkina 627 Ultrastructural analysis of toxin binding and entry into mammalian cells- G. L. Nicolson 628 Serum dopamine 0-hyoroxylase activity in developing hypertensive rats-T. Nagatsu, T. Kkno, Y. Numata (Sudo), X Ikuta, H. Umezawa, M. Matsuzaki and T. Takeuchi 630 For UUZ_U 631 Approved For Release 2003104118 : CIA-RDP96-00787ROO0700050002-0 SS9 A A 3EJ Volume 251 October 18, 1974 Investigatm*g the paranorm'al WE publish this week a paper by Drs R. Targ and H. puthoff (page 602) which is bound to create something of a stir in the scientific community. The claim is made that information can be transferred by some channel whose characteristics appear to fall "Qutside the range of known perceptual modalities". Or, more bluntly, some people can read thoughts or see things remotely. Such a claim is, of course, bound to be greeted with a preconditioned reaction amongst many scientists. To some it simply confirms what they have always known or believed. To others it is beyond the laws of science and therefore necessarily unacceptable. But to a few-though perhaps to more than is realised-the questions are still unanswered, and any evidence of high quality is worth a critical examination. The issue, then, is whether the evidence is of sufficient quality to be taken seriously. In trying to answer this, we have been fortunate in having the help of three indepen- dent referees who have done their utmost to see the paper as a potentially - important scientific communication and not as a challenge to or confirmation of prejudices. We thank them for the considerable effbrt they have put in to helping us, and we also ftnk Dr Christopher Evans of the National Physica'! LaboTatory whose continued advice on the subject is reflected in the content of this leading article. A general indication of the referees' comments may be helpful to readers in reaching their own assessment of the paper. Of. the three, one believed we should not publish, one did not feel strongly either way and the third was guardedly in favour of-publication. We first summarise the arguments against the paper. (1) There was agreement that the -paper was weak in design and presentation, to the extent that details given as to the precise.way in which the experiment was carried-out were disconcertingly vague. The referee@,felt that insuf- ficient account had been taken of the established method@ ology of experiment 'al psychology and that in the form originally submitted I the paper would be unlikely to be accepted for publication in a psychological journal on these uounds alone. Two referees also felt that the authors had not taken in-to account the 4essons learnt in the past by Parapsyrhologists researching this tricky and complicated area. (2) The three referees were particularly critical] of the method of target selection used, pointing out that the choice of a target by "opening a dictionary at random" is a naive, vague and unnecessarily controversial approach to randomisation. Para psychol ogi9ts have long rejected such methods of target selection and, as one referee put it, weaknesses of this kind reveal "a lack of skill in their experiments, which might have caused them to make some other mistake which is less evident from their writing". (3) All 1-he referees fek that the details given of various safeguards - and precautions introduced against the pos- (to use one phrase). This in itself might be sufficient to raise doubt that the experiments have demonstrated the existence of a new channel of communication which does not involve the use of the senses. (4) Two of the referees felt that it was a pity that the paper, instead of concentrating in detail and with meti- culous care on one particular approach to extra-sensory phenomena, produced a mixture of different experiments, using different subjects in unconnected circumstances and with only a tenuous overall theme. At the best these were more "a series of pilot studies . . . than a report of a completed experiment". On their own these highly critical comments could be grounds for rejection of the paper, but it was felt that other points needed to be taken into account before a final decision could be made. (1) Despite its shortcomings, the paper is presented as a scientific document by two qualified scientists, writing from a major research establishment apparently with the unqualified backing 'of the research institute itself. (2) The authors have clearly attempted to investigate under laboratory conditions phenomena which, while highly implausible to many scientists, would nevertheless seem to be worthy of investigation even, if, in the final analysis, negative findings are revealed. If scientists dispute and debate the reality of extra-sensory perception, then the subject is clearly a matter for scientific study and reportage. .(3) Very considerable advance publicity-it is fair to say not generated -bv the authors or their institute-has preceded the presentation of this report. As a result many scientists and very large numbers of non-scientists believe, as the result of anecdote and hearsay, that the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) was engaged in a major research programme into parapsychological matters and had even bean the scene of a remarkable breakthrough in this field. The 'publication of this paDer, with its muted claims, sug- gestio'rs of a limited research programme, and modest data, is, we believe, likely to out the whole matter in more reason- able perspective. (4) The claims that have been made by, or on behalf of, one of the subjects, Mr Uri Geller, have been hailed pub- fidly as indicating total acceptance by the SRI of allegedly sensational powers and may also perhaps now be seen in true perspective. It must be a matter of interest to scientists to note that, contrary to very widespread rumour, the paper does not present any evidence whatsoever for Geller's alleged abilities to bend metal rods by stroking them, influence magnets at a distance, make watches stop or start by some psychokinetic force and so on. The publi- cation of the paper would be justified on the grounds of allowing scientists the opportunity to discriminate between the cautious, limited and still highly debatable experi- Mental data, and extravagant rumour, fed in recent days by inaccurate attempts in some newspapers at precognition of the contents of the paper. (5) Two of the referees also felt that the -paper should be published because it would allow parapsychologists, and all 6ther scientists interested in researching this arguable sibility of conXious org nsc . f d on the art of field t au th luafity of the Stanford research and 5gis rau one or othei Rwqy s Z1114 d, C 00 ZROAMBOWtO parapsychology., @*7 Nature@ Vol.. 251 Ociober 18 1974 _.-(6),,1Vature;-7aIthough i.o 4ff 8u ti a As- 6b 2s e@@zmongst -I% Fo '1i0i15Vong4v2%t' .-some, to ze.-Pa M;(6etfJedxpp grim"Ws",wit i-evendm_le,,caution. anost'-Tespected jouTnalra ota§ov respect- ability., We believe-that our readers expect us to'be a home To'.this end the tNew Scientist.doesa service --byglublishing for -the occasional 'high-risk' type of paper. This is hardly to this week the @Tes ,ults of Dr Joe Han on s own-investiga- -assert -that we regularly fly -in the face of referees' Tecom- tions inw-a wide Tange of -phenomena -surrounding Mr -mendations.(we always -consider the possibility of publishing, @Gelle,r. -If the,@subject is to @be -.investigated -further-and no as. in -this case, a summary of their objections). It is to scientist -is likely' to.accept more than that the-SRI experi- say -that the unusual must now and then be allowed -a ments provide a prima facie. case for "More irivestigations- toe-hold in the literature, -sometimes to flourish, more the experimental technique will have to take account of often to be forgotten within a year or two. Dr Ha 'nion's strictures, those of our own referees and those, The critical. comments above were sent to @.the. authors doubtless, of others who.will be looking. for -alternative who have modified their manuscript in response to them.- -explanations. " _ I _@_ - - -1 4. We have also corresponded informally.with the authors on Perhaps the -inost important issue -Taised by- the -circum. one or two issues such as whether the targets could have stances surrounding the publication of this-paper is whether been forced by standard magical tricks, and are convinced science has yet @developed zthe .-competence to" confront that this is not the case. As a result. of these exchanges claims of the paranormal. Supposedly paran6irnal events -and the above considerations we have decided to publish -frequently cannot be investigated in the 'calm,. @. contr'Olled in the belief that, however flawed the experimental pro7 and meticiilous:way that scientists are expected -to work, cedure and however difficult the process of distilling the -and so there is-always.a danger that the 'investigator, swept essence of a complex series Gf events, into ..a scientific, up in the :.confusion that , surrounds @,many - experiments, -manuscript, it was on balance preferable to,,publish and abandons his -initial intentionsin order to go along with his 'maybe stimulate and advance the -controversy rather 1han -subject's desires.'.1t -may be that all experiments -of this sort -keep it out of circulation for -a further period. -should be'exactly -prescribed beforehand -by.one, group, done Publishing in a scientific journal is not a process of by another @unassociated group and evaluated in terms of receiving,a seal of approval from the -establishment; rather performance by the first group. Only by increasing austerity it is the serving of notice on the community that there is of approach by scientists will there be any major progress something worthy of their attention and scrutiny. And this in this field. For those in per,ii on the' factory floor In this article Peter J. Smith argues -that a.greater commitment (in.deed ' as well as word) ..to community -science by the Scientific Establish- -ment might help the -world of science' @regain some of -the public respect it has.lost. .1he title hints, the object of Socialist Worker is nothing Jess.than the com- plete overthrow of the-capitalist system; and one of the ways of achieving this aim, it seems, ii to give strident pub"7 city to defects in the capitalist-indus- trial system. Fortunately, one can easily avoid a sharp turn to the left and still admit that what some British workers have been subjected to in the name of asbestos production is beyond the limit of acce .ptability in a bumani- tarian society. ]For what clearly emerges from the rhetoric of the pamphlet in question is a picture of men and women.reacting in some bewilderment to the long-term ill effects of a technological activity. 'The chief consequence is, of course, asbestosis--a killing disease acquired by breathing in asbestos fibres. The bulk of the pamphlet is devoted to case -histories of men to whom ashes- tosis has come as a shock after a decade or so in the industry. But more, instructively, there is also a short ac- ccount of the fight for safety put up by a small group of the 7/162 Glasgow insulation work&rs' branch of the Transport and General Workers 'Union against.the obStiuction of the asbestos companies, the indifference of politi- cians, the weakness of the Factory Inspectorate, the silence of much of the press, the impotence of health authorities, the equivocal official stance of unions in general, and, last but not least, apathy among many of The ...asbestos -workers -themselves. And -there is. certainly -something to fight. about. According to Patrick Kinnersly (The.Hazards of Wor Ik: How ao Fight Them, -Pluto 'Press, 1973), asbestosis is taking -an increasing toll: 64 are known to have died in 1965, 101 in 1970 and .113 -in 1971, The number of new cases diagnosed rose from 82 in 1965 to 153 in 1970. Moreover, asbestosis is only one of the asbestos-induced diseases. Lung cancer appears to require a smaller exposure to asbestos. There is also another form of cancer known as mesothelioma which involves growths in the linings of the lungs'and stomach. Almost all. mesotheliornas are caused by asbestos; but no one knows bow many workers in Britain are killed b), them, partly because they take so long to develop and partly because they are not -always identified. The TUC Cen- tenary 1nstitute of Occupational Health has suggested that, 30 years after first exposure, -about one in 200 will be -found .,to have died of mesotbeliorna; but Dr Irving J. Selikoff of Mount Sinai Hospital in New -York is ap- parently more pessimistic. Be has recently been quoted as saying that, for every 100,000 workers entering the asbestos industry under the safetY standards obtaining in the United States as recently as 1971, he would expect 20,000 to die of lung cancer, 7,000 of mesothelioma and 7,000 Of other cancers and asbestosis. THE question of who speaks, or should - speak, on behalf of the scientific com- munity has been debated on many oc- casions, most of-ten without result. On the face of it, such lack of resolution is hardly unexpected, for scientists and scientific institutions are not noted for their ready ability to achieve con- sensus. Yet there is no doubt that they can put up a pretty collective front when they feel so moved. The one famous occasion on which a near con- .sensus was reached was when -the scientific community sawitsclf put.at risk financially by the 'Rothschild pro- - posals. Then individuals and institu- tions miraculously found a common cause of self-preservation. But when it comes to the'defence of -less privileged groups it is quite a dif- ferent story; the voice of the British scientific community is seldom to be, heard, whether taking a moral stance, exerting humanitarian pressure, supply- ing expertise or even simply providing information. A good case in point is provided by a new Socialist Worker Pamphlet entitled Asbestos: The Dust that X411s in the Name of Profit. As Approved For Release 2003/04/18 : CIA-RDP96-00787ROO0700050002-0 41602 xLegon poses, as'aicha .4"pAFdTlrWqqbWa§b4 8/04118 -4ork, from The mix@ing --of`,Vwo--ideal gases,in --an -isolated - system of constant total volume., U is -elementary ,thatlif the mixture is allowed to form by -merely withdrawing ia 'partition 'between -the gases we have -a' - good, example W a completely irreversible -process with -maximal entropy creaition (+ 11.53 J, K` 4f we -started -with I -mol of each 2t 300 K) and no performance or storage of work. - On 1he -other hand, by introducing into the system -a -suitable. machine, the uniform mixture could be allowed to form in such a way that a weight within the system -was Taised. (The machine described by Planck (ref. 8, page 219) may be readily adapted for this -purpose.) At the end of :the latter mixing process the isolated system would -accordingly contain more mechanical energy than it did at the begin- Tung. From the First Law it follows that the system must necessarily contain less thermal energy; -that is, its tempera- ture must have fallen. In the limit, where the mixing was reversible, the maximum possible work zwould have been performed and -transferred to the weight (2369 j.,if the gases were monatomic) and -the temperature @ -would. -have fallen -to 189 K. ---In this Teversible case - the -chang-e in entropy arising frommiixing (+ 11.53 J K-1) -is Lexactly counterbalanced by --that attributatile to coolifig (-11.53 @J K-'):-no entropy is created. At this point it might be objected that the change in'the gases is not exactly the same as if they had -mixed irreversibly, because their thermal energy and temperature have decreased. This is a simple consequence of the First Law which applies equally no -matter whether one is considering an isolated system, a non-isolated one or the whole Universe, If a change is conducted in such a -way -that a weight is lifted -then all the other bodies -involved -cannot possibly end up in'the same state as if theweight had not been lifted. Failure to applyAo, -nonisothermal systems.- Legon ex- presses doubts about the. validity of the -equation'__f&i entwy' creation (refs 3 and 4) save -for 'tthe. trivial case for which the iemperature T. of the environment is, equal to the temperat 'ure T of the system throughout the -process"'. On ;what grounds are these doubts based? Legon does not discuss, let alone dismiss, any of the sources quoted in my article', Other relevant sources which should be considered are Keenan and Hatsopoulos" and the classic accounts by MaxweU" and by Gouy". Legon's quotation from Planck (ref. 8, page 104) con- cerning "dissipated energy" deserves close consideration. It seems to state that the maximum work is a definite quantity only for isothermal processes. If true this would directly contradict the views of Thomson" (later Lord Kelvin) "On a universal tendency in Nature to the dissi- pation.of mechanical enerjY'. On pages 113-117 of ref..8, however, Planck discusses his own statement (ref. 8, page 104) and we see that there is in fact no contradiction. What Planck demonstrates is that although the change in.Helm- holtz free energy, -dA = -d(U-TS), measures,wu. under isothermal conditions, it cannot conveniently be used to determine w,= under nonisothermal conditions because the term S dT that then appears is frequently indeterminate. 'The same point has already been made in -a footnote -by Gouy (ref. 15, page 506) who had also given -the correcti equation for determining wow under nonisothermal con- ditions. Accordingly I find no, substance in Legon's objec- tions under this -heading. If it is thought that there is conflict between the . work' view of thermodynamics and the 'entropy' view it is high time that the idea was abandoned. The two views are different, but symmetrical, aspects of the -same reality. Spontaneous processes of all kinds fall somewhere within the Pattern shown in Table 1, their position depending on the efficiency of the machinery used for the extraction of work. Nature Yol..251 @Ocloher 18 1974 --CIA-FZDF'96-00787ROOD70005olk2%-- ILKIE D;Wrr@enr of -Physiology, University College London, Gower Street, Landon, WCJE 6BT, UK Received December 3, 1973; , revised June, 4, '1974.' Bridgman, P. W., The Nature of 'Thermodynamics, 116 (Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 'Massachusetts, 1943). Everett, D. H.', Chemical Thermodynamics, -216z;(Longman, London, 1971). Legon, A. C., Nature, 244, 431 (1973). Wilkie D. R., Nature, 242, 606 (1973). Wilkie: D. R., Nature, 245, 457 (1973). Butler, J. A. V., Chemical Thermodynamics,@@Iourth ed, (Macmillan, 1955). - @--,.... @ !!% , Cianot, S., Reflections on the motive power -of fire (1824), translation (Dover, New York, 1960). Planck, M., Treatise on Thermodynamics, third -ed., trans. from seventh German ed., 1922 (Dover, New York, 1958), Joule, J. P., -Phil. Mag Series 4 .5 1,@1853). Maxwell, J. C., Theor;'of Heat,'fi?th ed.,,chapter -All (Long. mans Green, London, 1877). Thomson, W., Phil. Mag., Series 4, -3,- 102 (1853). Guggenheim, E. A., Thermodynamics, third ed. (North Hol- ,land, Amsterdam, i1957). _-- - .. - -i @, Keenan, J. H., and Hatsopoulos, 0. N., Principles,of General Thermodynamics (Wiley, New York, 1965). Gouy, M., J. de Phys., 21 serie, -t.VIIl (Novembre 1889). H'Thornson, W., Phil. Mag., Series 4, 4, 304 (1852); corrections in ibid, S, viii. Inforlinafion transmission under y shieldiing' condifions of -sensor WE present resultsof experiments suggesting the existence of one or more perceptual modalities through which individuals obtain -information about their enviroriment,"-although this -information.is -not:presented to any known!sense. The litera- :turel,s and our observations lead us to conclude that such abilities can be studied under laboratory conditions. @ We have investigated the ability of certain people to describe graphical material or remote scenes shielded against ordinary perception. In addition, we performed pilot studies to determine if electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings might indicate perception of remote happenings even in the absence of correct overt responses. We concentrated on what we consider to be our primary responsibility-to resolve under conditions as unambiguous as possible the basic issue of whether a certain class of para- -normal perception phenomena exists. So we conducted our -experiments with sufficient control, utilising visual, acoustic and electrical shielding, to ensure that all conventional paths of sensory input were blocked. At all times we took measures to prevent,sensory leakage and to prevent deception, whether intentional or unintentional. Our goal is not just to catalogue interesting- events, but to uncover patterns of cause--effect relationships that lend them- selves to analysis and hypothesis in the forms with which we are familiar in scientific study. The results presented here constitute a -first step towards that goal; we have established under known conditions a data base from which departures as a function of physical and psychological variables can be studied in future work. REMOTE PERCEPTION OF GRAPMC MATERIAL First, we conducted experiments with Mr Uri* Geller in which we examined his ability, while located in an electricallY shielded room, to reproduce target pictures drawn by exper" menters located at remote locations. Second, we conducted double-blind experiments with MT Pat Price, in which we measured his.ability to describe remote outdoor scenes manY miles from his physical location. Finally, we conducted Pre' Approved For Release 2003/04/18 : CIA-RDP96-00787ROO0700050002-0 Sature M. 251 0c&VrRY@*,For Release 2003/04/18 CIA-RDP96-00787ROO0700050002-0 603 liminary tests using EEGs, in which subjects were asked to perceive whether a remote light was flashing, and to determine whether a subject could perceive the presence of the light, even if only at a noncognitive level of awareness. In preliminary testing Geller apparently demonstrated an ability to reproduce simple pictures (line drawings) which had been drawn and placed in opaque sealed envelopes which he was not permitted to handle. But since each of the targets was Known to at least one experimenter in the room with Geller, it was not possible on the basis of the preliminary testing to discriminate between Geller's direct perception of envelope contents and perception through some mechanism involving the experimenters, whether paranormal or subliminal. So we examined the phenomenon under conditions designed to eliminate all conventional information channels, overt or subliminal. Geller was separated from both the target material and anyone knowledgeable of the material, as in the experiments of ref. 4. in the*first part of the study a series of 13 separate drawing experiments were carried out over 7 days. No experiments are deleted from the results presented here. At the beginning of the experiment either, Geller or the experimenters entered a shielded room so that from that time forward Geller was at all times visually, acoustically and electrically shielded from personnel and material at the target location. Only following Geller's isolation from the exp eri- menters was a target chosen and drawn, a procedure designed to eliminate pre-experiment cueing. Furthermore, to eliminate the possibility of pre-experiment target forcing, Geller was kept ignorant as to the identity of the person selecting the target and as to the method of target selection. This was accomplished by the use of three. different techniques: (1) pseudo-randorn technique of opening a dictionary arbitrarily and choosing the first word that could be drawn (Experiments 1-4); (2)- targets, blind to experimenters and suoject, prepared independently by TARGET RESPONSE I RESPONSE 2 a TARoar 4, RESPONSE SRI scientists outside the experimental group (following Geller's isolation) and provided to the experimenters during the course of the experiment (Experiments 5-7, 11-13); and (3) arbitrary selection from a target pool decided upon in advance of daily experimentation and designed to provide data concern- ing information content for use in testing sp@cffic hypotheses (Experiments 8-10). Geller's task was to reproduce with pen on paper the line drawing generated at the target location. Following a period. of effort ranging from a few minutes to half an hour, Geller either passed (when he did not feel con- Adent) or indicated he was ready to submit a drawing to the experimenters, in which case ihe drawing was collected before Geller was permitted to 'see the target. To prevent sensory cueing of the target information, Experiments I through 10 were carried out using a shielded room in SRI's ficility for. BEG research. The acoustic and visual isolation is provided by a double-walled steel room. locked by means of an inner and outer door, each of which is secured with a refrigerator-type locking mechanism. Following target selection when Geller was inside the room, a oneway audio monitor, operating only from the inside to the outside, was activated to monitor Geller during his efforts. The target picture was never discussed by the experimenters after the picture was drawn and brought near the shielded room. In our detailed exan-dnation of the shielded room and the protocol used in these experiments, no sensory leakage has been found. The conditions and results for the 10 experiments carried out in the shielded room are displayed in Table 1 and Fig. 1. All experiments except 4 and 5, were conducted with Geller inside the shielded room. In Experiments 4 and 5, the procedure was reversed. For those experiments in which Geller was inside the shielded room, the target location was in an adjacent room at a distance of about 4 in, except for Experiments 3 and 8, in which the target locations were, respec- tively, an office at a distance of 475 in and a room at a distance of about 7 in. A.response was obtained in all experiments except Numbers 5-7. In Experiment 5, the person-to-person link was eliminated by arranging for a scientist outside the usual experimental grouo to draw a picture, lock it in the shielded room before Geller's arrival at SRI, and leave the area; Geller was then led PEVIL- f, 40 ODE TARGET RIWKWU I RESPONSE 2 RESPONSE 3 TARGET RESPONSE T6 TARGET RESPONSE e L - %- -e TARGET to @4-- URI r, -L RESPONSE TARGET RESPONSE f 9 Approved F.Qr Rele c&se 2 largetp m anq0raNAUQgY ',-4041 1/01. 251 October 18 1974 Nature - ____ Ap 4 pi Oved Fb= FM P Is- d "UJIV141 10 %A1A_MLJrUo_ I meemoto perception of'graphic material @ UU181ROOU700050002:6 Experiment Date Geller Location Target-Location Target Figure (month,.day year) 1 8/4/73 Shielded room 1* Adjacent room (4.1 m)t Firecracker la 2 8/4173 Shielded room Y Adjacent room (4.1 m) Grapes lb 3 8/5/73 Shielded room I Office 075 m) ' Devil Ic 4 8/5173 Room adjacent to 'Shielded room 1 Solar system Id shielded room I . (3.2.rn) 5 8/6173 Room adjacent to Shielded room I Rabbit No drawing shielded room 1 (3:2 m) 6 817/73 Shielded -room 1 Adjacent room (4.1 m) Tree 'No drawing 7 817/73 Shielded -room 1 Adjacent room (4.1 m). Envelope No drawing 8 8/8173 Shielded room I Remote room (6.75 m) Camel le 9 818/73 Shielded room 1 Adjacent room (4.1 m) Bridge if 10 8/8/73 Shielded room I A0jacent room (4.1 m) Seagull Ig 11 8/9173 Shielded room 2t Computer (54 m) Kite (computer CRT) 2a 12 8/10/73 Shielded room 2 Computer (54 in) Church (computer memory) .2b 13 8/10/73 Shielded room 2 Computer (54 m) Arrow through heart 2C -0 r CRT, zero c mpu'e ' intensity) *EEG Facilit y shielded room (see text). -t tPerceiv t di t d i t er s ances measure n me res. arge :SRI Radio Systems laboratory shielded room (see text). by the experimenters to I the -shielded room and asked to draw the picture located inside the room. He said that he got no clear impression and therefore did not submit a drawing. The elin-ina- tion of the person-to-person link was examined further in the second series of experiments with this subject. Experiments 6 and 7 were carried out while we attempted to record Geller's EEG during his efforts to pe=ive the target pictures. The taxget pictures were, respectively, a tree and an envelope. He found it difficult to hold adequately still for good EEG records, said that he ex i d culty in gettm` perienced iffi 9 =pressions of the targets and again-submitted no drawings. Experiments 11 through 13 were carried out in SRI's Engin. coring Building, to make use of the computer facilities available there. For these exp'erimenters', Geller was secured in@a double- Valled, copper-screen Faraday cage 54 m down the hall and around the corner from the computer room. The Faradaycas e, provides 120 dB attenuation for plane wave radio'frequency radiation over a range of 15 kHz to I GH7_ For magnetic fields the attenuation is 68 dB at 15 kHz and decreases to 3 dB at 60 H;L Following Geller's isolation, The targets for these experiments were chosen by computer laboratory personnel not otherwise associated with either the experiment or Geller, and the experimenters and subject were kept blind as to the contents of the target pool. For Experiment 11, a picture of a kite was drawn on the face of a cathode ray tube display screen, driven by the computer's graphics Program. For Experiment 12, a picture of a church was drawn and stored in the memory of the computer. -In Experiment 13, the target drawing, an arrow through a heart (Fig. 26, was drawn on the face of the cathode ray tube and then the display -intensity was turned off so that no picture was visible. To obtain an independent evaluation of the correlation be- tween target and response data, the experimenters submitted the data for judging on a 'blind' basis by two SRI scientists who were not otherwise associated with the research. For the 10 cases in which Geller provided a response, the judges were asked to match the resp6nse data with the corresponding target data (without replacemient). In those cases in which Geller made more than'onc dmwing as his response to -the target, all the drawings were combined as a set for judging. The two judges each matched the target data. to the response data with no error. For either judge such a corTespondence has an a priori probability, under the null hypothesis of no in- formation channel, of P - (10!)-2 - 3 x 10-7. A second series of experiments was carried out -to determine whether direct perception of envelope contents was possible withobt some person knowing of the target picture. One hundred target pictures of everyday objects were drawn by an SRI artist and scaled by other SRI personnel in double envelopes containing black cardboard. The hundred targets were divided randomly into groups of 20 for use in each of the three days' experiments. On each of the three days of these experiments, Geller passed. That is, he declm6d-to associate any envelope with a drawing that he made, expressing dissatisfaction with the existence of such a large target pool. On each day he made approximately 12 Tecognisable drawings, which hefelt were associated with the entire target pool of 100. On each of the three days, two of his drawings could reasonably be associated with two of the 20 daily targets. On the third day, two or his drawings were very close replications of two of that day's target pictures. The drawings resulting from this experiment do not depart signific- antly from what would, be expected by chance. Ina simpler experiment Geller was successful in obtaining information under conditions in which no.persons were know- ledgeable of the target. A double-blind experiment was per- formed in which a single 3/4 inch die was placed in a 3 x 4 x 5 inch steel box. The box was then vigorously shaken by one of the experim enters.and placed on'the table, a technique found in control runs to produce a distribution of die faces -differing non- significantly fromchance. The orientation of the die within the box was unknown -to the experimenters at that time. Geller would then write down which die face was uppermost. The target pool wasknoNNM, but the targets were individually pre- pared in a manner blind to all persons involved in the experi- ment. This experiment was performed ten times, with Geller passing twice and se eight times. In the eight giving a respon times in which he gave a response, he was correct each time. The distribution of responses consisted of three 2s, one 4, two 5s, and two 6s. The probability of this occurring by chance is approximately one in 104. . In certain situations significant information transmission can take place under shielded conditions. Factors which appear to be important and therefore candidates for future investigation include whether the subject knows the set of targets in the target pool, the actual number of targets in the target pool at any given time, and whether the target is known by any of the experimenters. It has been widely reported that Geller has demonstrated the ability to bend metal by paranormal means. Although metal bending by Geller has been observed in our laboratory, we have not been able to combine such observations with adequatelY controlled experiments to obtain data sufficient to support the paranormal hypothesis. REMOTE VEEWING OF NATURAL TARC.ETS A study by Osis5 led us to determine whether a subject could describe randomly chosen geographical sites located several miles from the subject's position and demarcated by some wi @d th the Aporoved For Release 2003/04/18 : CIA-RDP96-00787ROO0700050002-0 ,FWZe1edse 2003/04/18: CIA.:KDP66-00787ROD0700050002-'o A %isYPq @1 , _251 Xafur_-.V appropriate means'(kernote- viewifig)., This experiment carried the experimenters and@ the subject were k@pt blind as to the out with Price, aformer California police commissioner and contents of the ta@get pool; which were used without replace- city councilman, consisted'of a series of double-blind, demon- ment. stration-of-ability tests inv6lviiig local targets in the San An experimenter was closeted with Price at SRI to wait V inin to Francisco Bay -area which could be documented by several inde- begin the darrative description of the remote location. The SRI locations from which the subject viewed the remote locations con- pendent judges. Wc planned the experiment considering that sisted of an outdoor park (Experiments L 2), the double-walled man-made sites that have natural geographical places or copper-spreeh Faraday caige.discussed earlie; (Experiments 3, 4, and ' existed for a long time are more potent targets for paranoTmal 6-9); and an office (Experiment 5). A second experimenter would then perception experiments than'are artificial targets prepared iii.the obtain a target location from the Division Director from 2i set of repared and rand6mised by- the Director travell iiij orders previously laboratory. This is based on, subject t)pinions that the use of . p The target demarcation team (two to and kept under his ,control artificial. targets involves a 'trivialisation of the ability' 'as com- . four SRI experimeniirs) then,proceeded directly to the target by pared with natural pte-exi@tin&, targets autombbile without communicating with the subject or experimenter In each of nine experiments involving Price as subject and remaining behind. Since the experimenter remaining with the subject SRI experimenters as a target@ demarcation team, a remote at SRI was in ignorancer both as to the particular target and as to the' target pool, he was free, to question Price to clarify his descrip- was -chosen in a double-blind protocol. Price, who location tions. The demarcation team then remained at the'target site for . SRI, was asked to describe this remote location, as remained at 30 min after the 30 min allotted 16i travel. During the observation . well as whatever activities might be going on there. period, the remote-viewifig subject would describe his impressions of Several descriptions yielded significantly correct data per- the target site into a. tape recorder. A comparison was then made when the demarcation team returrwd@ taining to and descriptive of the target location. Price's ability to describe correctly buildings, docks, roads, In the experiments a set of twelve target locafioris clearly gardens and so on, - including. structural materials, colour, from each other and within 30 min driving time differentiated ambience and activity, sometimes in great d6tail, indicated th& . from SRI had been chosen from a target-rich environment (more functioning of a remote perceptual ability.. But the descriptions than 100 targets.of the type used in the experimental series) contained inaccui-acies as well as correct statements. To obtain prior to the experimental series by an individual in SRI manage- a numerical evaluation of the accuracy of the remote viewing ment, the director of the Information Science and Engineering experiment, the experimental. results were subjected to inde- Division, not otherwise associated with the experiment. Both pendent judging on a blind basis by five SRI scientists who were Nature Vol.'251 October 18 1974 A,Se: i9,li%PEPP,9§&,P7jA7i"999000002-0 'Table 2 DAUM qo@Vt &9M%A"(k4/ ion oi Descriptions chosen by judges Places visited by judges 1 2 3- 4 5 6 9 Hoover Tower I ABCDE D Baylands Nature'Preserve 2 ABC E D D Radio Telescope 3 ACD BE Redwood City Marina 4 CD ABDE E Bridge Toll Plaza 5 ABD DCE Drive-In Theatre 6 A C E Arts and Crafts Garden Plaza 7 ABCE Church 8 C AB Rinconada Park 9 CE AB Of the 45 selections (5 judges, 9 choices), 24 were correct. Bold type indicates the description chosen most often for-each place visited. Correct choices lie on the main diagonal. The numberof correct matches by Judges A through E is 7, 6, 5, 3, and 3, respectively. The expected number of correct matches from the five judges was five; in the experiment 24 such matches were obtained. The a priori probability of such an occurrence by chance, conservatively assuming assignment without replacement on the part of the judges, is F - 8.10-10. not otherwise associated with the research. The judges were asked to match the nine locations, which they independently visited, against the typed manuscripts of the tape-recorded nar- ratives of the remote viewer. The transcripts were 'unlabdiled and presented in random order, The judges were asked to find a narrative which they would consider the best match for each of the places they visited. A given narrative could be assigned to more than one target location. A correct match requires that the transcript of a given date be associated with the target of that date. Table 2 shows the distribution of the judges' choices. Among all possible analyses, the most conservative is a per- mutation analysis of the plurulity Vote of the judges' selections assuming assignment without replacement, an approach inde- pendent of the number of judges. By plurality vote, six of the nine descriptions and locations were correctly matched. Under the null hypothesis (no remote viewing and a random selection of descriptions without replacement), this outcome has an a priori probability of P -5.6 x 10-4, since, among all possible permutations of the integers one through nine, the probability of six or more being in their natural position in the list has that value. Therefore, although Price's descriptions contain in- accuracies, @ the descriptions are sufficiently accurate to permit the judges to differentiate among the various targets to the degree indicated. EEG EXPERIMENTS An experiment was undertaken to determine whether a physiological measure such as EEG activity could be used as an indicator of information transmission between an isolated subject and a remote stimulus. We hypothesised that perception could be indicated by such a measure even in the absence of verbal or other overt indicators.6-7. I .. D was assumed that the application of remote stimuli would result in responses similar to those obtained under conditions of direct stimulation. For example, when normal subjects are stimulated with a flashing ligh@ tiieir EEG typically shows 4 decrease in the amplitude of the resting rhythm and a driving of the brain waves at the frequency of the flashes'. We hypothe- sised that if we stimulated one subject in this manner (a sender), the EEG of another subject in a remote room with no flash present (a receiver), might show changes in alpha (9-11 Hz) activity, and possibly EEG driving similar to that of the sender. We informed our subject that at certain times a light was -to be flashed in a sender's eyes in a distant room, and if the subject perceived that event, consciously or unconsciously, it might be evident from changes in his EEG output. The receiver was ,ally. and electricaly seated in the visually opaque, acoustic shielded double-walled steel room previously described. The sender was seated in a room about 7 m from the receiver. I To find subjects who were responsive to such a remote stimulus, We initially worked with four,female and two male volunteer subjects, all of whom believed that success in the experimental situation might be po3sible. These were designated 'receivers. The sender@ Were either other subjects Or the experimenters. We decided beforehand to run one or two sessions of 36 trials each with each subject in this selection procedure, and to do a more extensive study with any subject whose results were positive. A Grass PS-2 photostim6lator placed about 1 m in front of the sender was used to present flash trains of 10 s duration. The receiver's EEG activity from the occipital region (Oz), referenced to linked mastoids, was amplified with a Grass 5P-1 preamplifier and associated driver amplifier with a bandpass of 1-120 Hz. The EEG data were recorded on magnetic tape with an Ampex SP 300 recorder. On each trial, a tone burst of fixed frequency was presented to both sender and receiver and was followed in one second by either a 10 s train of flashes or a null flash interval presented to the sender. Thirty- six such trials were given in an experimental session, consisting of 12 null trials--no flashes following the tone-12 trials of flashes at 6 f.p,s. and 12 trials of flashes at 16 f.p.s., all randomly intermixed, deter- mined by entries from a table of random numbers. Each of the trials fenerated an 11 -s EEG epoch. The last 4 s of the epoch was selected or analysis to minimise the desynchronising action of the warning cue. This 4-s segment was subjected to Fourier analysis on a LINC 8 computer. Spectrum analyses gave no evidence of EEG driving in any receiver, although in control runs the receivers did exhibit driving when physically stimulated with the flashes. But of the six subjects studied initially, one subject (H. H.) showed a consistent alpha blocking effect. We therefore undertook further study with this subject. Data from seven sets of 36 trials each were collected from this subject on three separate days. This comprises all the data collected to date with this subject under the test conditions described above. The alpha band was identified from average spectra, then scores of average power and peak power were obtained from individual trials and subjected to statistical analysis. Of our six subjects, H. H. had by far the most monochromatic EEG spectrum. Figure 3 shows an overlay of the three averaged spectra from one of this subject's 36-trial runs, displaying changes inher alpha activity for the three stimulus conditions. Mean values for the average power and peak power for each Table 3 EEG data for H.H. showing average power and peak power in the 9-11 Hz band, as a function of flash frequency and sender Flash Frequency 0 6' 16 0 6 16 Sender Average Power Peak Power J.L. 94.8 84.1 76.8 357.7 329.2 289.6 R.T. 41.3 45.5 37.0 160.7 161.0 125.0 No sender (subject informed) 25.1 35.7 28.2 87.5 95.7 81.7 J.L. 54.2 55.3 44.8 191.4 170.5 149.3 J.L. 56.8 50.9 32.8 240.6 178.0 104.6 R.T. 9.8 24.9 30.3 3 145.2 74.2 122.1 No sender (subject not 86.0 53.0 52.1 318.1 180.6 202.3 informed) Averages 56.8 49.9 43.1 214.5 169.8 153.5 03) - 12 Y. - 24 %(P < 0.04) -21%-28%(P-<0. Each entry is an average over 12 trials rorn thes channel M be obt odality. s --with )pears V Pal. hile a qi eoretical Lr experi ;,useful i may be e genera m-an mc ;@d. For Mnsider re -their j ir obser Approved For Release 2003/04/18 : CIA-RDP96-00787ROO0700050002-0 P- Approved For Relea§e 2003/04/18-: -C'IA-RDP96-00787ROO0700050002-0 607 kature Val. 251 October 18,1974 of the seven experimental sets are given in Table 3. The power gleasures were less in the 16 f.p.s. case than in the 0 fp.s. in all seven peak power -measures and in six out of seven average power measures. Note also the reduced effect in the case in which the subject was informed that no sender was. present (Run 3). It seems that overall alpha production was reduced for this run in conjunction with the subject's expressed appre- hension about conducting the experiment without a sender. This is in contrast to the case (Run 7) in which the subject was not informed. Siegel's two-tailed t approximation to the nonparametric randomi- sation test' was applied to the data from all sets, which included two sessions in which the sender was removed. Average power on trials associated with the occurrence of 16 fp.s. was significantly less than when there were no flashes, Q - 2.09, df. = 118, P < 0.04). The second measure, peak power, was also significantly less in the 16 Lp.s. conditions than in the null condition (t = 2.16, d.L = 118, P<0.03). The average response in the 6 fp.s. condition was in the same direc- tion as that associated with 16 fp.s., but the effect was not statistically significant. Spectrum analyses of control recordings made from saline with a 12 kfl resistance in place of the subject with and without the addi- tion of a 10 Hz, 50 gV test signal applied to the saline solution, revealed no indications of flash frequencies, nor perturbations of the 10 Hz signal. These controls suggest that the results were not due to system artefacts. Further tests also gave no evidence of radio fre- quency energy associated with the stimulus. . I Subjects were asked to indicate their conscious assessment for each trial as to which stimulus was generated. They made their guesses known to the experimenter via one-way telegraphic communication. An analysis of these guesses has shown them to be at chance, in- dicating the absence of any supraliminal cueing, so arousal as evid- enced by signifleant alpha blocking occurred only at the noncognitive level of awareness. We hypothesise that the protocol described here may prove to be useful as a screening procedure for latent remote perceptual ability in the general population, 5 Hz 10HZ .15 HZ 3 'tal EEG spectra, 0-20 Hz, for one subject (H..H.) Fig , cip ive , showing amplitude changes in the 9-11 Hz act;r I r band aErfuecnection of strobe frequency. Three cases: 0, 6, and 16 fp.s.(IZ trial averages)..,'@ CONCLUSION From these experiments, we conclude, that* .:; ' *A channel exists whereby information aboutaremote location can be obtained by means of an as yet unidentified perceptual modality- 1. -, I . I ;-, . - . .. - *As with all biological.. systems, the information channel appears to be- imperfect,, containing nois*- along with- -the signal- *While a quantitative signal-to-noise ratio in the information--- theoretical sense cannot. as yet be determined, the7 results, of our experiments indicate. that the functioning is at ther level of useful information transfer. It may be that remote perceptual'ability is widely distributed in the general population, but bemuse the perception is generally below an individual's level of awareness it is repressed. or not: experiments in the area of so-called paranormal Phenomena can be scientifically conducted, and it is our hope that other laboratories will initiate additional research to attempt to replicate these findings. This research was sponsored by The Foundation for Parasen- sory Investigation, New Y o'rk City. We' thank Mrs Judith 8kutch, Dr Edgar D. Mitchell of the Institute of Noetic Sciences-es well as our SRI associates, Mr Bonnar Cox, Mr Earle Jones and Dr 'Dean Brown-for support and encouragement. Constructive suggestions by Mrs Jean Mayo, Dr Charles Tart, University of California, and Dr Robert Ornstein and Dr David Galin of the Langley Porter Neuro- psychiatric Institute am acknowledged. Russm.L TARo HAROLD PUTHOFF Electronics and Bioengineering Laboratory, Stanford Research Institute, Menlo Park, California 94025 Received March 11; revised July 8, 1974. Pratt, J., Rhine, 1. B., Stuart, C., and Greenwood, J., Extra Sensory Perception after Sixty Years (Henry Holt, New York, 1940). Soal, S., and Bateman, F., Modern Experiments in Telepathy (Faber and Faber, London, 1954). ' Vasilliev, L. L, Experiments in Mental Suggestion (ISMI Pub- lications, Hampshire, England, 1963). ' Musso, J. R., and Grancro, M., J. Parapsychology, 37, 13-37 (1973). a Osis, K., ASPR Newsletter, No. 14 (1972). 6 Tart, C. T Physiological Correlates of Psi Cognition, Int. J. ParapsycQogy, V, No. 4 (1963). r Dean, E. D., Int. J. Neuropsychiatry, 2 (1960. Hill, D., and Parr, G., Electroencephalography : A Sym sium on its Various Aspects (Macmillan, New York, 1963@ @@-Siegel, S., Nonparametric Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences, 152-156 (McGraw-Hill, New York, 1956).. The stability of a feasible random ecosystem THE weight of the evidence, and thebeliefs of most biologists, seem to support the view' that ecosystenis tend to be more stable, the larger the number of interacting species they con- tain. It is puzzling, therefore, that a variety of mathematical models of, complex ecosystems appear to give the contrary answer: that complexity makes for instabilitys. Prominent among such models is the complex system with and random interactions, studied in various forms by Gardner Ashby3 and May4; but their results cannot be applied as they -stand to ecological. systems. In an ecosystem, the interacting variables are species populations (or species biomass) which cannot take on negative values. Thus, for example, the equili- briurn population values must be positive, and it is convenient to denote this necessary -property of an ecosystem model by saying that it must be 'feasible'. The work referred to imposed no such constraint on equili- brium populations in'the samples considered. It is of some interest, therefore, to examine the stability of a random model capable of representing ecosystems, by imposing the restriction that the sample be feasible. I report here the results of computer calculations on- such a model. The interaction equations were of the well-known quasi-line-ar type, in which the rate of fractional increase of a species population is a linear function of the current populations 'in all Tspecies. That is, the number N, in the ith species obeys 110tioed. For example- two of our subjects(H. H. and P- P.)bad dNildt = Nt (bt + Zj a, j Nj). not considered the;@;elves to have unusual, perc'eptual ability before their particiAWQy"IFQ*RWWSd 2003/04/18 -'CWA'09b Ltht.self-regulatmir Ira Our Observation of the phenomena leads us t It as -7 eft Ri ent-wastbatthe@-.,,,,. 0 conclude that coefficients a