The dictionary definition of the word Paranormal:

par-a-nor-mal

ADJECTIVE

of or pertaining to the claimed occurrence of an event or perception without scientific explanation, as psychokinesis, extrasensory

perception, or other purportedly supernatural phenomenon.

WHAT IS THE PARANORMAL?

The term paranormal is used to describe a wide variety of activity and phenomena. According to the Journal of Parasychology, the

term paranormal descirbes "any phenomenon that in one or more respects exceeds the limits of what is deemed physically

possible according to current scientific assumptions." The actual word is derived the Latin use of the prefix para meaning "outside

or beyond" what is considered normal.

Many people associate the term paranormal as only dealing with hauntings and ghosts. However, the term paranormal also

includes subjects considered to be outside the scope of parasycology including UFO's. cryptozoology, telepathy, ESP, faith

healing, clairvoyance, and many other subjects.

An anomalous phenomena is an observed incident or experience for which there seems to be no agreeable scientific explanation.

Because such observations do not easily fit into how many view reality, these incidents can be (and usually are) the subject of

controversy.

Since paranormal phenomena is not generally accepted as real by traditional mainstream scientists, most of these ideas and

theories about hard-to-reproduce anomalies are considered pseudoscientific (not a real science), partly because science needs

evidence to be reproducible in a controlled environment.

Some anomalies eventually get a scientific explanation, loosing their status as unexplained phenomena. For example, while the

idea of stones falling from the sky was once considered anomalous, meterorites are now acknowledged and generally well

understood.

Ghosts

So what exactly is a ghost? Ghosts are a phenomena which have several possible definitions:

1) The personality of a person after his or her own death which is not directly tied to the soul or spirit. A type of psychic memory

imprint.

2) The spirit or soul of a person who has died, which haunts a place which was of emotionl significance to that person when

living.

3) The character or memory of some being or thing which has died or, if it was never alive, has somehow been destroyed or

dissembled, which nethertheless remains existent (and sometimes detectable) in a semi-corporeal form.

While some individuals accept ghosts as a reality, many others are sceptical of the existence of such. Much of the scientific

community believes that ghosts, as well as other supernatural and paranormal entities, do not exist. Sceptics often explain ghost

sightings with the principle of Occam's Razor which basically states that the explanation of any phenomenon should make as

few assumptions as possible. In short, when given two equally valid explanations for a phenomenon, one should embrace the

less complicated formulation. Some examples of such would be:

1) Ghosts are often associated with a chilling sensation, but a natural response to fear is hair raising which can be mistaken for

a chill.

2) Peripheral vision is very sensitive to motion, but does not contain much colour or the ability to sharply distinguish shapes. Any

random motion outside the focused view can create a strong illusion of an eerie figure.

3) Soundwaves with frequencies lower than 20 hertz are called infrasound and are normally inaudible, but British scientists

Richard Lord and Richard Wiseman have concluded that infrasound can cause humans to feel a "presence" in the room, or

unexplained feelings of anxiety or dread.

Psychological factors may also relate to ghost sightings. Many people exaggerate their own perceptions, either when visiting a

place they believe to be haunted, or when visiting a site which they know unpleasant historical events have occurred. Certain

images such as paintings and movies might "program" a person to automatically associate a certain structure or area with ghosts.

Also, the psychological phenomenon of pareidolia (seeing recognisable shapes and patterns in every day objects) may cause

people to perceive human-like faces or figures in the otherwise mundane surroundings of their environment, particularly in

conditions where vision is partly obscured, as in dark corridors or at night. sceptics also apply this theory to EVP's (when

anomalous voices , often purported to be of supernatural origin, are reportedly heard on audio recordings - Electronic Voice

Phenomena).

Place Memories

Some hauntings have an eerie resemblance to life, where appiritions are observed performing activities that are common to

living people such as walking around a property, or even working. Some people describe these hauntings in several ways. The

first is that the entity is simply doing something that he/she did frequently in life. The second assumes that the concept of time-

space continuum is real and that sometimes two time frames overlap. The third explanation is referred to as a "place memory" or

"stone tape theory", which is like a recording of a past event that has imprinted itself on the environment, these are also called

residual hauntings. Images and sounds are impressed upon a place and later replayed in a phenomenon that is similar to

watching a loop of a movie film. And despite what you may think, these experiences are not acted out by just the departed, it is

reportedly possible to experience witnessing yourself in one of these "memories", this is known as the doppleganger effect.

"What ever you belief or view is on the paranormal, there is no doubt that it is a very fascinating subject. In time it is possible that

science will deliver tangible answers to some if not all paranormal phenomenon, however, in the meantime it is the mystery of the

unknown that excites human nature into investigating and researching the paranormal".

All of mankind's knowledge on the paranormal is purely based upon theories, experiences and personal beliefs, no one

knows for sure what we are really dealing with, so the methods and techniques we employ to try and capture ground

breaking proof of the paranormal is not truly scientific and is purely based upon those theories and beliefs. When we

talk about a haunting there are two aspects we are looking at, is it a residual haunting or an intelligent haunting. A

residual haunting is just a recording of a period in time just playing over and over again, for example, 'the ghost of the

old grey lady can be seen walking across the same landing every night at 12midnight'. With a residual haunting you

cannot interact with that ghost, google the 'Stone Tape Theory'. An intelligent haunting is a spirit that you can interact

with, you are able to communicate with these spirits using tools such as the PS-7 Spirit Box or Quija Board plus many

other methods of communication. When you ask direct questions you get an intelligent response from these kind of

spirits. As for our style of investigating, we are not looking for answers or the truth about ghosts, spirits and the

afterlife, we are only in the quest to validate or debunk claims of paranormal activity with a view of capturing compelling

hard evidence of the paranormal.