Randall Fontes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 3/25/11 3:57 AM

Randall Fontes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Randall G. Fontes (born October 20, 1945) is an Randall G. Fontes, M.A.

American psychology professional known particularly for
his research in the fields of parapsychology and
psychophysics. He received a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in
Psychology and India Studies in 1973 and in 1977 he
was awarded a Master's degree (M.A.) in Psychology
from Sonoma State University. [1]

When he spent a semester studying Eastern Philosophy in

India in 1971[2] he met an Indian astrologer who told
him that in the future he would be conducting scientific
Randall Fontes works with the Play of Light
research in the field of consciousness. Meditation Mandala and Resonant Light
Projector
Upon returning home in Spring of 1972 he was
introduced to an IBM Chemist named Marcel Vogel. [3] Born October 20, 1945
After spending several hours of conversation Marcel said, Hayward, California
“You are the person who will carry on my research into Residence United States
plants sensitivity and Human Consciousness”. Marcel Nationality American
gave Fontes all the equipment he needed to begin the
Fields Psychology
work.
Parapsychology
Altered States of Consciousness
Counseling
Contents Alma
Sonoma State University
mater
1 Research Begins Known for Organic Biofield Sensor Report
2 The Secret Life of Plants Electronics and Bioengineering
3 Stanford Research Institute (SRI) Laboratory
3.1 Organic Biofield Sensor S.R.I Project 3194 (Task 3)
November 1975 by
4 DeAnza College H.E. Puthoff and
5 The Exploratorium Science and Art Museum R. Fontes
6 Play of Light Meditation Experience Influences Dr. Harold E. Puthoff
7 See also Dr. David Van Nuys
8 References Dr. Norman Goldstein

Research Begins
Fontes began his research at Sonoma State University [4] with help from his adviser Professor Dr. David
Van Nuys. [5][6] In June 1973 he was invited to California State University, East Bay (California State
University Hayward)[7] as a guest researcher in the Biology Department by Professor Dr. Norman
Goldstein. The project was to research action potential in the Algae Nitella, and the parenchama cells

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of the Mimosa pudica to determine their sensitivity to various external stimuli.

The Secret Life of Plants

Fontes’ research was highlighted in the bestselling book "The Secret Life of Plants" [8] In the course of
promoting the book, Fontes and Author Peter Tompkins appeared on radio and television shows such as
the David Susskind Show, [9] the Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson [10] and the Encyclopædia
Britannica’s Wild Science documentary series.[11] He was featured in the popular documentary movie
"The Secret Life of Plants (film)" [12] directed by Walon Green and musical sound track by Stevie Wonder
and album/CD called the “Journey through the Secret Life of Plants”.

Stanford Research Institute (SRI)

In the Fall of 1972 Dr. Harold E. Puthoff and Russell Targ began research at SRI for the CIA-Initiated
U.S. Government program to investigate paranormal abilities;. [13] which eventually became, code
name "Stargate Project" a Remote Viewing program. They applied for and received a research grant to
probe plant sensitivity. In Fall of 1973 they brought Fontes to Stanford Research Institute (SRI) to
conduct Plant and Human Consciousness Research, also known as “Primary Perception” or the
“Backster Effect” discovered by Cleve Backster a polygraph expert who had worked for the CIA.

Fontes worked with Remote Viewers Ingo Swann, Hella Hammid [14] and Pat Price. The product of this
work culminated in a final report "Organic Biofield Sensor" by H. E. Puthoff and R. Fontes;. [15][16] dated
November 1975.

Organic Biofield Sensor

VI Summary and Conclusions

"The purpose of the investigation reported here was to

Organic Biofield Sensor
Electronics and Bioengineering
Laboratory
assess the feasibility of the use of a special class of
device (organic sensor) for real-time contactless
measurement of psychological stress or other
psychological or physiological state in a human subject
being monitored. To this end special detectors were
developed so that the electrical activity and
micromovements of plants (Philodendron oxycardium,
Mimosa pudica) and algae (Nitella) could be monitored.
The activity of these sensors while in close proximity to
a human subject viewing slides of varying emotional
content was then examined. The sensors were located
inside Faraday cage electrical shielding to eliminate
trivial electrical artifacts. To provide an objective
indicator of emotional response during viewing, the
subject's GSR (galvanic skin response) was recorded to
provide a signal to cross-correlate with the organic

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Laboratory
S.R.I Project 3194 (Task 3) sensor output."
November 1975
by H. E. Puthoff and R. Fontes
"Pilot experiments with the algae Nitella indicated that
they were nonresponsive to the activity of human
subjects in close proximity, and therefore
experimentation with Nitella was terminated early in the program. With regard to plant
sensors, however, experimental findings with twelve subjects indicated that the electrical
activity of plants in close proximity to a human subject viewing slides of putative emotional
content, although not in one-to-one correspondence with subject GSR, nevertheless did
show in some cases (20%) statistically significant evidence of correlation with subject GSR.*
Furthermore, such electrical activity is found not to be an artifact of plant micromotion, the
latter being uncorrelated with either subject GSR or plant potential, nor is it a system artifact
due to slide tray activity signals in the GSR channel. Thus, although we must reject the
hypothesis that subject GSR and plant potential fluctuations of a nearby electrically shielded
plant are in general correlated, there is evidence for a degree of correlation beyond that
expected by chance."

Subject S-3: p < 4.2 X 10-4; p < 0.024, replication experiment.

Subject S-4: p < 0.038.

This Report supports the possibility that plants may respond to human consciousness as contended by
Cleve Backster.

In Harper's Magazine a hypothesis was offered that may explain how this phenomenon could occur:

“Dr. Harold Puthoff, a laser physicist at the Stanford Research Institute, surmises that the
subatomic particle known as a tachyon may hold the answer. Tachyons, from the Greek
meaning "swift," are supposed to travel faster than light. Postulated in 1967 by Columbia
University physicist Gerald Feinberg, they have so far not been experimentally
detected.” [17]

DeAnza College
From April 1977 through June 1981 Fontes taught Psychology 7, Introduction to Parapsychology now
cataloged as Psychology 57 [18] at DeAnza College in Cupertino, California. This class taught the
scientific approach to paranormal phenomena and was fully accredited and transferable to the
University of California. [2]

The Exploratorium Science and Art Museum

In May 1987 Fontes, M.A. joined the staff of the Exploratorium Science and Art Museum. In 1993 he
became a “Life Sciences Project Designer” in the Biology department, under National Science
Foundation funding. While working at the Exploratorium one program that he designed exhibits for was
the Human Genome Project (HGP). [19] This work was funded by the United States Department of
Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory Genome Program (DE-FG03-93ER61583).[20]

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The founder of the Exploratorium was Physicist Dr. Frank Oppenheimer who believed Science and Art
should be experienced together as different views of the same truth; that they should be seen to
reinforce each other.

In August 2000 Fontes began to independently focus his full attention to the integration of Science, Art
and Spirit and for the last eight years he dedicated himself full time to the exploration and development
of the Play of Light Meditation Experience (http://www.ebdir.net/enlighten/enlighten.html) .

Play of Light Meditation Experience

Kirby Seid introduced Marti Spiegelman to Fontes. She hosts Awakening Value
on The VoiceAmerica™ Talk Radio Network who interviewed him in January of
2010. Ms. Spiegelman says of Fontes' work:

“Randall’s current work, Art and Science in the Service of Spirit: A Journey
into the Play of Light, rises from his botanical research in the ‘60s and the
publication of The Secret Life of Plants. Randall’s research focused on the
reaction of plants to human emotions, and expanded to research at the
Stanford Research Institute on plant and human consciousness. As the new The Play of Light
millennium began, Randall’s work evolved to the integration of science, Meditation Mandala
art, and spirit with his Play of Light Meditative Experience. [21] As he
describes it, ‘The Play of Light is about the beauty of light, of sound, and of form. As each of
these is deeply resonant with the other, the underlying unity that they share is revealed
within their dance, and can be realized through direct experience. Within this experience,
the mind becomes still and spontaneous meditation arises.”[22]

Listen Now » (http://www.voiceamerica.com/voiceamerica/vepisode.aspx?aid=43636)

See also
Randall Fontes - From the Secret Life of Plants to The Play of Light
(http://www.ebdir.net/enlighten/)
Plant perception (paranormal)
Jagdish Chandra Bose#Plant research

References
1. ^ San Francisco Examiner & Chronicle - Sunday January 6, 1974, Book Review By John White “Relation of
Plants and Mankind”
2. ^ a b The Daily Review - Friday, August 5, 1977, By Glennda Chui “Castro Valley men probe the secret life of
plants” Hayward, California
3. ^ The Press Democrat - Sunday. September 31, 1972, By Staff Writer “talk nice to plants....they may be
listening!” Santa Rosa, California
4. ^ Steven Halpern (http://www.allonenow.org/StevenHalpern.html) , Louis M. Savary (1985) “Sound health: the
music and sounds that make us whole” Harper & Row, pg. 46
5. ^ Shrink Rap Radio (http://www.mevio.com/episode/145121/197-scientific-parapsychology-with-dean-radin)
Dr. David Van Nuys interviews Dr. Dean Radin, Senior Scientist at the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS)

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6. ^ Ocala Star-Banner - Thursday, July 7, 1977, Sixth sense By Dr. Van Nuys “What's This About Plants That
Communicate (http://news.google.com/newspapers?
nid=1356&dat=19770707&id=StATAAAAIBAJ&sjid=6QUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1993,1283153) ?” Ocala, Florida
7. ^ San Francisco Examiner - Monday, March 28, 1977, Ivan Sharpe “E. Bay pair prove that plants lead secret
lives”
8. ^ Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird (1973) "The Secret Life of Plants" Harper & Row, Publications pg. 32
9. ^ David Susskind Show, Part II “The Secret World of Plants” (http://www.historicfilms.com/n_clip_view.php?
id=537635&kws=RANDALL+FONTES&keywords=RANDALL+FONTES&how=and&search_category=) (July 20,
1975) Randall Fontes, Richard Champion, Ralph Snodsmith
(http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/21/garden/21snodsmith.html) , Professor Arthur Galston, Peter Tompkins
10. ^ Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson (February 28, 1974) Peter Tompkins, Randall Fontes
11. ^ Encyclopedia Britannica’s “Wild Science (http://news.google.com/newspapers?
nid=1798&dat=19740423&id=G3Y0AAAAIBAJ&sjid=Mo0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=7070,2231611) ” documentary
series on NBC narrated by Peter Falk April 26, 1974
12. ^ Walon Green, Director (1979) - "The Secret Life of Plants (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvCHcJ14Tx4) "
(film clip)
13. ^ CIA-Initiated Remote Viewing At Stanford Research Institute
(http://www.biomindsuperpowers.com/Pages/CIA-InitiatedRV.html) by Harold E. Puthoff, Ph.D.
14. ^ Hella Hammid (http://www.ebdir.net/enlighten/hammid.html) Remonte Viewer, BBC Video Documentary
(1983)
15. ^ "Organic Biofield Sensor” Electronics and Bioengineering Laboratory S.R.I Project 3194 (Task 3) November
1975 (http://www.ebdir.net/enlighten/index.html#obs) By: H. E. Puthoff and R. Fontes
16. ^ Jude Currivan (http://www.judecurrivan.com/about/) , PH.D. (May 2007) – “The 8th Chakra: What It Is and
How It Can Transform Your Life By” Hay House, Inc. pg. 116
17. ^ Harper's Magazine – November 1972, By Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird “Love Among the Cabbages
(http://www.harpers.org/archive/1972/11) ” bg. 93
18. ^ http://www.deanza.edu/gov/academicsenate/pdf/socialscience2008-2009.pdf
19. ^ The Human Genome (http://www.coldrain.net/bruen/elsi/db/er61583.html) : Science and the Social
Consequences Interactive Exhibits and Programs on Genetics and the Human Genome
20. ^ DOE Human Genome Program Contractor-Grantee Workshop IV
(http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/publicat/94SANTA/elsi/carlson.shtml) , Santa Fe, New
Mexico, November 13–17, 1994
21. ^ San Francisco Chronicle - Monday, December 22, 1997, By Charles Burress "Tinkerer's Paradise in Berkeley
"Young old inventors are offered tools techniques and inspiration (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?
f=/c/a/1997/12/22/MN54547.DTL) "
22. ^ http://www.voiceamerica.com/voiceamerica/vguest.aspx?gid=5588
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randall_Fontes"
Categories: Parapsychologists | Psychologists | Consciousness researchers and theorists | Psychedelic
drug advocates | Botanists | 1945 births | Living people

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