What is Para-Class?

Para-Class is a new initiative by the Paranormal Research Association of Boston to give you the chance to learn the main techniques used in a scientific paranormal research team. Whether you want to get more education, start your own team, be a better candidate to join an existing team or just enjoy the TV shows and want to lean more, Para-Class is for you.
This course is a variation of the training received by PRAB trainees. There is no aspect of psychic / mediumship as the PRAB does not utilize these services as we do not believe they enhance our scientific ethos.
All instructors are senior members of the PRAB, with some guest speakers from other teams.

How long does the class run?

The class runs for 6 weeks in the evening time. Each session is only 2 hours long. Remember, this is an introduction to the science of paranormal research.
The class is split into 6 sessions covering

Session 1: Introduction to Paranormal Research
Session 2: Introduction to Equipment
Session 3: Data Analysis: Audio
Session 4: Data Analysis: Visual
Session 5: Interview Techniques for the Paranormal Investigator
Session 6: Starting a Paranormal Research Team

How much does the class cost?

$60.

Course Code #5111F

When is the class to be held?

Para-Class starts on September 21st at Braintree Community Continuing Education Center, 128 Town Street, Braintree, MA, 02184 in Room 226

You can view the BCCE’s website here

Enrollment is available here and online here

Please note, enrollment and completion of Para-Class does not infer membership in the PRAB.

Trainee Paranormal Investigator

NOTE: Final application date is Monday, 12th September 2010 at 23:59 EST – No Applications will be processed after this date

To apply, please fill in the form here

Position Discription:

Position on Offer:
Trainee Paranormal Investigator

Position Description:

The Trainee Paranormal Investigator works within a team that provides a scientific investigation into supposed paranormal phenomena. The successful applicants will undergo training in paranormal investigation and use of equipment along with discussion in emerging theories of paranormal research.

Benefits to the Trainee Paranormal Investigator.

A rare opportunity to become part of a paranormal investigation association on the ground level. This association intends to become a large part of the paranormal community.

About the Paranormal Research Association of Boston

Founded in September 2008, the Paranormal Research Association of Boston is a non-profit association who exclusively use scientific means to investigate claims of paranormal activity. When we enter a client location, we go in with an open and scientific mind to verify or provide alternative theories to supposed paranormal events.
We do not employ psychics or sensitives in any of our investigations, as evidence from these sources cannot be verified by scientific means at this time.
We provide investigations free of charge to members of the public, businesses and supposedly haunted locations. In addition to this, we also give talks and presentations in an attempt to educate the public in the science of paranormal research.
The Paranormal Research Association of Boston is founded on the same fundamentals of Ian Murphy’s previous endeavor, the Paranormal Research Association of Ireland. In it’s 4 years, the PRAI became one of Ireland’s leading paranormal associations and will continue to grow.

Requirements

The successful candidate will:
*Have a strong interest in the science of paranormal research
* Be 20 or over.
* Enjoy solving problems and working in a structured environment
* Be focused and helpful to all out clients
* Be bound by the PRAB Confidentiality Agreement
* Experience is a plus, but not necessary as all training will be provided
Promotion prospects:
As this is a start-up Association, the primary management members will be taken from the pool of applicants. These positions include but are not limited to Training Officer, Deputy Lead Investigator and AV Analyst.

Remuneration:

As the PRAB is a non-profit Association, no benefits or payment can be offered.

Trainee Paranormal Investigator reports to:

Lead Investigator, Organizational Unit Leaders and Core Members

Note: The Paranormal Research Association of Boston has been certified by the Criminal History Systems Board for access to conviction and pending criminal case dat

a. As an applicant for the position of trainee paranormal investigator, a criminal record check will be conducted for conviction and pending criminal case information only and that it will not necessarily disqualify you.

Our friend Autumnforest over at Ghost Hunting Theories Blog has a wonderful series of interviews of paranormal teams from around the world.  I met Autumnforest in the blogosphere a while back, and I’m a frequent reader over at her blog.

Recently, she spent some time speaking with our Lead Investigator and Founder, Ian Murphy.  You can read the full interview here.

Keep up the great work, Autumnforest and we look forward to seeing you back here soon!

Ian Murphy, Lead Investigator for the Paranormal Research Association of Boston presents his acclaimed talk at the Brookline High Scool on June 22, 2010. The Science of Paranormal Research is designed to educate members of the public in the basics of scientific paranormal research. It offers people interested in paranormal research the opportunity to experience the scientific aspect of research of this very interesting subject.

We had a great time at the talk – amazing turnout, and great audience participation.  The video series is eight parts, so enjoy!

“Science has the answer to every question that can be asked.  However, science reserves the right to change that answer should additional data become available.” 

–Mary Roach, from her book Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife.

I’m currently reading a fascinating book by Mary Roach, called Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife.  Roach uses engaging prose for one thing, and she discusses many examples of how scientists have examined the scientific basis for life after death.  One chapter, that I found particularly interesting, deals with EMF and altered brain function.

The author visited the lab of Michael Persinger, a neuroscientist at the Laurentian University, in order to experience artificial paranormal experiences caused by controlled EMF exposure in what he calls his “Haunt Box” – a soundproof chamber fitted with a chair and a hefty EMF-emitting helmet.  

Persinger explains his theory on EMFs and “hauntings”, saying that exposure to electromagnetic fields lowers melatonin levels in the brain.  Melatonin is an anti-convulsive, so if you have less of it in your brain, your right temporal lobe may be more susceptible to tiny epileptic microseizures and the associated hallucinations, or feelings of “presences”.

Of the nearly one thousand test subjects who have experienced Persinger’s “haunt box” stimulation to their right temporal lobes, eighty percent have reported feeling a presence.  It is also true that people suffering from naturally occurring microseizures – such as patients with complex partial epilepsy - often experience hallucinations as well.

It’s a very interesting physiological explanation for the phenomenon of “ghost” encounters.  Most of us have heard about the link between EMF and paranormal experiences, but Mary Roach discusses a very detailed theory involving melatonin and altered brain function.  So, the next time you see a ghost, stop and think for a moment – you might be having a seizure instead.

Roach, Mary.  Spook : Science Tackles the Afterlife.  W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.  New York, N.Y. 

Last night’s Ghost Hunters episode (Click for full episode) featured an experiment with a flashlight at the NJ Bar and Grill with Britt and Amy.  The theory was this: by loosening the lid of a Maglite flashlight, the entity could signal by slightly ”turning” the lid and completing the circuit to turn on the light.  Britt and Amy put the light down and said the light turned on ONLY when the entity was asked to do so.  However, I see several problems with this experiment.

First, we were not shown most of the experiment. It is possible that the light flickered on and off the whole time, and we were selectively shown instances where the light turned on after being prompted.  Jason later said that here were over 40 minutes of footage, but we only saw a few seconds.

Next, in order for this to be a truly controlled experiment, the same procedure should have been repeated at a different, non-”haunted” location, to rule out random chance.  For instance, if you took the same flashlight, loosened the lid, and went to the local McDonalds, would you see the same random on-off flickering in response to questions?  Ideally, this would be repeated several times and statistics would be used to compare the NJ Bar and Grill location to McDonalds to see if there is a significant difference.

Although it offers a dramatic effect, the Ghost Hunters flashlight test is yet another example of a non-scientific, biased experiment employed by a paranormal group to impress clients and television viewers.  As such, these procedures serve to reduce the scientific field of paranormal research to nothing more than a circus sideshow or a series of parlor games.  Come on, Ghost Hunters.

Ghost stories have been around since the beginning of time.  I think they’re just an integral part of the human condition.  One of the earliest documented ghost stories comes from the experiences of the first century Greek philosopher Athenodorus of Athens.  The tale, as told later by the Roman philosopher Pliny the Younger, is as follows:

There was formerly at Athens a large and handsome house which none the less had acquired a reputation of being badly haunted.  The fold told how at the dead of night horrid noises were heard: the clanking of chains which grew louder and louder until there suddenly appeared the hideous phantom of an old man who seemed the very picture of abject filth and misery.  His beard was long and matted, his white hair disheveled and unkempt.  His thin legs were loaded with a weight of galling fetters that he dragged wearily along with a painful moaning; his wrists were shackled by long cruel links, while ever and anon he raised his arms and shook his shackles in a kind of impotent fury.  Some few mocking skeptics who were once bold enough to watch all night in the house had been well nigh scared from their senses at the sight of the apparition and what was worse, disease and even death itself proved the fate of those who after dusk had ventured within those accursed walls.  The place was shunned.  A placard “To Let” was posted but year succeeded year and the house fell almost to ruin and decay.

Enter the starving artist Athenodorus, who was desperate for a place to crash and decided to rent the place.  Not surprisingly, the first night there he was awoken by the sound of chains rattling.  The sound grew louder and louder until Athenodorus caught sight of the hideous phantom of the old man.  The spirit beckoned with a bony finger and led Athenodorus to the garden where he pointed to the ground and then disappeared.

The next day, Athenodorus had the garden excavated, and he discovered a human skeleton with rusted chains still shackled to the bones.  According to Pliny, on that day the haunting ended and the house was quiet once again.  Who knows how much of this tale was embellishment, but it’s fascinating to me how similar this tale is to accounts of many modern hauntings.  Perhaps it’s simply a timeless theme : tortured souls from beyond the grave who need a little help from the living.

Photo courtesy Kzappaster.

Further reading:

Cohen, Daniel.  The Encyclopedia of Ghosts.  New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1984.

So I was trying to think of a very early holiday gift to give our team, possibly for our upcoming live broadcast, and I remembered a gadget I heard about on MyPara.net:  a laser grid for use on paranormal investigations.

I did a quick search on ebay, looking for “2 in 1 lasers”, and I found the Disco Laser (and many others), for around $15.

Apparently, the theory behind it says you project the laser grid against a wall in the hopes of capturing a “ghost” on video crossing one or more of the many points of light.  Interesting theory, indeed, but I’m not too sure what I think about it.

For one, that assumes that whatever entity you’re looking for actually has the ability to reflect or refract light.  For this to be the case, it means we would be looking for a physical entity with some measurable mass.  Second, it assumes that the entity would have an interest in actually crossing the very conspicuous grid of green or violet light for a little camera time.  And third, it assumes that our cameras would be able to detect tiny changes in the light pattern and differentiate between a “ghost” and a stray dust particle or insect.

That’s a lot of assumptions, but hey, it sounds cool.  I think clients at a private residence might think your team is super awesome when you say: “Yeah, this room is where we’ll be setting up our laser grid for capturing ghost movement on video.”  Next, you might say something to your tech manager beside you, suggesting they remember to stay away from “crossing the beams”.

John’s Paranormal Blog did mention how TAPS used a laser grid on their recent Alcatraz investigation, although it wasn’t really discussed in the episode.  I guess I could see using a laser grid as a debunking tool, such as using it around a trigger object, to rule out any foul play like strings or other cheats.

I’m still on the fence about the disco ghost laser.  Does anyone have any personal experience using one that they’d like to share?  Even if it doesn’t capture evidence of a “ghost”, at least it would create a happy disco atmosphere for those long overnight investigations.

The Paranormal Research Association of Boston will be broadcasting a live paranormal investigation at Cape Cod’s historic Colonial House Inn, in Yarmouthport, Massachusetts on Monday night, April 12th.  Join us online at 21:00 EST to take part in the investigation LIVE in three different ways:

1. Follow us on Twitter @praofb for LIVE TWEETS during the investigation.

2. Join us here at Para-Blog, for LIVE CHAT during the investigation.

3. Join us at PRAB-Live, for a live video stream of the investigation. 

Please help spread the word, Tweet, Retweet, and we hope you can join us on the 12th! 

For some interesting information about the Colonial House Inn, including paranormal claims, click here.