Freethought & Rationalism Archive

Lobstrosity · 03-08-2003, 03:15 PM

So seriously, tell me what numbers I'm thinking about right now...

Just · 03-08-2003, 03:48 PM

I don't know.
The things I have done were all in person and not as open ended as what number. there are an infinate number of possibilities.
My ability is not very good anyway. I have tried online psi-tests and am not very good at them

Spaz · 03-08-2003, 03:56 PM

I've been to that site before, I've always wanted to be able to move things with my mind so I could be lazy

.

How about this test, I have a favorite color, between these, which is it?

blue, orange, black, red, green

I won't actually judge your ability using this because it's a pretty bad test, but go for it

Just · 03-08-2003, 04:48 PM

I could try, but it would just be a guess:
Black.

Colours aren't such a good thing to do either for me, since I use darkness (black) to clear my mind of other thoughts when I do this.

Mad Kally · 03-08-2003, 07:33 PM

Blue! His favorite color is blue! Did I win?

Philosoft · 03-09-2003, 08:33 PM

Blue! No, yellow!

AAAHHHHHHHH!!!

Happy Wonderer · 03-10-2003, 10:14 AM

Compare that to your hit rate with the cards face up....

Seriously, it would be more interesting with 244 cards and five trials...

HW

Mageth · 03-10-2003, 10:29 AM

Go to Vegas. You could win some serious money at blackjack...til you get blacklisted, that is.

And let us know when you win the World Series of Poker.

Mageth · 03-10-2003, 10:31 AM

Thoughts?

If you have to ask, you're not telepathic.

(As someone else said, the card experiment is ESP, or more specifically remote viewing, not telepathy).

Baloo · 03-10-2003, 01:25 PM

I would wager my life savings, house, car, and half my income for the next 20 years, against a 60 cent can of soda from you (I'm kind of thirsty right now) that you do not have ESP/telepathy/or any other such abilities; rather, you simply have a healthy lack of understanding of how to run a well-controlled, double-blind, randomized experiment. This is not meant as an insult, but merely as a reflection of how common it is for people to pass their own flawed psychic tests with flying colors, only to be utterly shocked when their abilities "vanish" during better controlled tests.

If you honsetly think you have something, and you care more about knowing the *truth* about your psychic abilities than the pride you get from bragging about being psychic, then I recommend you try the following:

1) Get a friend/family member to help (tell him it'll only take 10 minutes - offer to buy him a drink for his troubles). Give him your 5 pictures, labeled 1 through 5, a 6-sided die, and a paper numbered 1 through 50.
2) Sit in a separate rooms, where a wall completely prevents you from seeing each other, or seeing what the other is doing.
3) Have your friend roll the dice, pick up the respective card (6=roll again) and say (or shout, if needed) "Ready!", then have him write down the actual value of the card while holding the card in the air.
4) As your friend holds the card, you should "envision" the picture on the card he has held up and write your prediction on your own paper (also numbered 1 - 50). Do not speak your guess, just say "Done".
5) When your friend hear's you say "Done" he can set the card down, and roll again.

Repeat 3, 4, and 5 for 50 tests, without interruption or further communication. If you can guess a card in 5 - 10 seconds, this really should be over in about 10 minutes.

With pens/pencils set aside, both yourself and your friend should tally the results. Report them here if you'd like a statistical breakdown.

Disclaimer1: This experiment assumes you do not need to see the back of the card you are trying to guess. If you do, we'll need to add some additional safeties (making sure you can't "barely" see through the card, that there aren't subtle identifying marks on the cards, etc.... all things that people tend to do during their own experiments without even realizing they are doing it).

Disclaimer2: Please note that I'm simply setting this up as a cheap and quick way for YOU to verify to YOURSELF whether you possess psychic abilities, by avoiding many of the common pitfalls people run into when assessing their own psychic abilities. You will only convince *me*, or any other skeptic, by having a reputable, independent third party to set up and run a double-blind experiment in which not you, nor any other potentially biased person, can influence the results before they are disclosed.

Anyway, let me finish by commending you for having the savvy to take a step back and say "hey, maybe I should look into this a bit further before I go trumpetting my newfound powers to the world." For an even better (bt probably more scathing) analysis, you may wish to get other opinions from the discussion board at http://randi.org.

Happy experimenting!

03-10-2003, 10:14 AM	#17
Happy Wonderer Veteran Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Washington, the least religious state Posts: 5,334	Re: Is telepathy possible? Compare that to your hit rate with the cards face up.... Seriously, it would be more interesting with 244 cards and five trials... HW

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03-08-2003, 03:15 PM	#11
Lobstrosity Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 719	So seriously, tell me what numbers I'm thinking about right now...

03-08-2003, 03:48 PM	#12
Just Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Melbourne Posts: 22	I don't know. The things I have done were all in person and not as open ended as what number. there are an infinate number of possibilities. My ability is not very good anyway. I have tried online psi-tests and am not very good at them

03-08-2003, 03:56 PM	#13
Spaz Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: 6th Circle of Hell Posts: 1,093	I've been to that site before, I've always wanted to be able to move things with my mind so I could be lazy . How about this test, I have a favorite color, between these, which is it? blue, orange, black, red, green I won't actually judge your ability using this because it's a pretty bad test, but go for it

03-08-2003, 04:48 PM	#14
Just Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Melbourne Posts: 22	I could try, but it would just be a guess: Black. Colours aren't such a good thing to do either for me, since I use darkness (black) to clear my mind of other thoughts when I do this.

03-08-2003, 07:33 PM	#15
Mad Kally Banned Join Date: May 2001 Location: LALA Land in California Posts: 3,764	Blue! His favorite color is blue! Did I win?

03-09-2003, 08:33 PM	#16
Philosoft Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Southeast of disorder Posts: 6,829	Blue! No, yellow! AAAHHHHHHHH!!!

03-10-2003, 10:29 AM	#18
Mageth Contributor Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Deep in the heart of mother-lovin' Texas Posts: 29,689	Go to Vegas. You could win some serious money at blackjack...til you get blacklisted, that is. And let us know when you win the World Series of Poker.

03-10-2003, 10:31 AM	#19
Mageth Contributor Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Deep in the heart of mother-lovin' Texas Posts: 29,689	Thoughts? If you have to ask, you're not telepathic. (As someone else said, the card experiment is ESP, or more specifically remote viewing, not telepathy).

03-10-2003, 01:25 PM	#20
Baloo Regular Member Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: St. Louis, MO Posts: 417	I would wager my life savings, house, car, and half my income for the next 20 years, against a 60 cent can of soda from you (I'm kind of thirsty right now) that you do not have ESP/telepathy/or any other such abilities; rather, you simply have a healthy lack of understanding of how to run a well-controlled, double-blind, randomized experiment. This is not meant as an insult, but merely as a reflection of how common it is for people to pass their own flawed psychic tests with flying colors, only to be utterly shocked when their abilities "vanish" during better controlled tests. If you honsetly think you have something, and you care more about knowing the truth about your psychic abilities than the pride you get from bragging about being psychic, then I recommend you try the following: 1) Get a friend/family member to help (tell him it'll only take 10 minutes - offer to buy him a drink for his troubles). Give him your 5 pictures, labeled 1 through 5, a 6-sided die, and a paper numbered 1 through 50. 2) Sit in a separate rooms, where a wall completely prevents you from seeing each other, or seeing what the other is doing. 3) Have your friend roll the dice, pick up the respective card (6=roll again) and say (or shout, if needed) "Ready!", then have him write down the actual value of the card while holding the card in the air. 4) As your friend holds the card, you should "envision" the picture on the card he has held up and write your prediction on your own paper (also numbered 1 - 50). Do not speak your guess, just say "Done". 5) When your friend hear's you say "Done" he can set the card down, and roll again. Repeat 3, 4, and 5 for 50 tests, without interruption or further communication. If you can guess a card in 5 - 10 seconds, this really should be over in about 10 minutes. With pens/pencils set aside, both yourself and your friend should tally the results. Report them here if you'd like a statistical breakdown. Disclaimer1: This experiment assumes you do not need to see the back of the card you are trying to guess. If you do, we'll need to add some additional safeties (making sure you can't "barely" see through the card, that there aren't subtle identifying marks on the cards, etc.... all things that people tend to do during their own experiments without even realizing they are doing it). Disclaimer2: Please note that I'm simply setting this up as a cheap and quick way for YOU to verify to YOURSELF whether you possess psychic abilities, by avoiding many of the common pitfalls people run into when assessing their own psychic abilities. You will only convince me, or any other skeptic, by having a reputable, independent third party to set up and run a double-blind experiment in which not you, nor any other potentially biased person, can influence the results before they are disclosed. Anyway, let me finish by commending you for having the savvy to take a step back and say "hey, maybe I should look into this a bit further before I go trumpetting my newfound powers to the world." For an even better (bt probably more scathing) analysis, you may wish to get other opinions from the discussion board at http://randi.org. Happy experimenting!

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