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J t r i l t r k t l r r f , S r ' l t " r t l l l i t E t 1 t 1 o y 1 l , 7 i 1 7 1 1 . \li-r\l. N o . l.pp. 19-]6.

:{nq D8q:--1-11i)log

RES8.4 IICII

An Automated Test for Telepathy in Connection with Emails

Rupnrr SgrlnRlxE ANt) LeoNrn.csAvRaelttoEs


Per rctt- llit r rick Prujct't
20Willou"Rel
L<mdoil. firgftlrr/it'l}'J lTJ. UK
(tnei [: rshekl ruke@t la ra.ut.uk

.'\hstrart-C:ut people senseteleprthically who is sendingthern an ernail bc.ftrre


they receiveit'l Subjects.aged from l2 to 66 yenrs.registeredonline wirh the
nalnesand entail addrr"'ssesof 3 senders.A cornputerselecteda senderat rnndonr.
and asked hitn to send an email nlessageto the subject via the computer. The
cotnputer then asked the subject trr guessllrc sender's narne.and delivered thc.
Inessagb- after receiving the gue$s.A test ctrrrsistedof 6 or 9 trials. In a total of
-tl9 trials. incltding data from inconrpletetests.there were 175 hits Al.8Vol,
significantlv ahovethe 33.3% r"-harrce levt--l1p : .0001). Hit rates in incolnplete
tests were higher than in conrplete tests. There was no significant difference
benreen hit rateswith male and female subjects.The highesthit rates were with
subjectsin the 20-29'year age group. The ettect size in these tests was lower
than in previoustelephoneirndelnail telepathytests.in spiteof the fact that they
were unsupervised.One reasonlnay be that subjectswere being asked to guess
who had sentthenra tnessageseveralminutesearlier.ratherthan thinking about
thern sintultaneously.

Kn'v'on Is: ernai I messnges-telepathy-ES P-a utolnatedtest

Introduction
IMostpeoltlc claitn to ltavc cxpericnccdtclcpathy.cspurciallyirr c(ulncctiorrrvith
tclcpltttrtcculls {Brown & Shckh'rkc.ICX)l: Slrcklrirkc.2fX)0.2003).Typically.
;xoplc sav thal tlteY havc lhought ol'st>lnconr'lil' no appilrcntrcils()n.and tlrcn
tltal 1rcrsonclllctl. crr lltcy knew rvlru u.'ascalling rvlrcn thc phonc rung l,,,*l'trrc
itnswcringil or looking at a callr-rr idcntilicationdisplav.
Tclc'pltottctclcpathy lrirs [rccn invusligatctlcxpcrinlcnlall]' by nrcansol' ran-
tlonrizctltrials itt wlticlt sutrjcctsrcccivcda call frorn onc ol' lirur potentialcallcrrs
(.$hcldrakc& Stttart.l(X)-l:r.h:.Sltcldrakc et al..2O0{). Thcsc lirur pcoplc wcrc
n(ullittate(lin utlvitttcclrV lhc participall(stltctttsclyes. and wctt gsutlly peplrle
tltcy krtcrvrvcll. In a givcn trial. thc callcr wits Picketlat lantlollrtry lhe r.'x1xri-
tltcnlcr.Whc'trlhc tclcph()ncrilng. the participitnt$ucsscdrvlrorvascalling tretirrc
thc trthcr pcrs()nsPolig.Thc grtcssu,aseilhcl righl or wroflg. B,r clrance.partici-
Jran(stvoultl havc hccn right abiltrtonc lirrtr-'in lirrrr.ln it l()titl ol 17 | I'itlcotaFd
t r i i r l s . - 1 5 'o, il ' t l t c g u c s s c s w e r c h i t s ( c l ' l i ' c t s i z c t ) .l -t t<5l : x l 0 * : S h c l d r a k e&

:e

scex-23{1-23.inckt 29 2rnm 1:10:04


PM
.10 R. Sltcldrakc& L. Avnrantitlcs

Smar't.l(}0]trt. Callcrsund plrtieipantsu'crein sonlcclscs tlxrusands ol'kilonrc-


tt'osa$,a\,liorn clclt rilltcr.In a rc;llicalirual lhc Univcl'silytll'Arnslcrthrttthc ltit
mtc rvasalso signilicantlvatrovcehance(Lolrach& Biernran.2($.{).
A sirnilal' kind ol' apparcnl tclcpalhy occurs in conncctionwith crnails:
s()nlc()nL' thinks rlf a pL'rsonlirr no ilpparenlrea.sonartl soonalicrwiu'dsrcccil'cs
ln crnail tittnt that pcr'son(Shcldlakc.2tx)-l). Tltis pltcnornenon hasbcen investi-
galcd cxpcrimentrllyusing a sirnilarprrrccdurcto thc telephonelelc'palh1' tcsts.
Palticipantshatl lirur potcntialcrrtailcrsand in cach trial thc scrndcrwas sclcclctl
at ranrlonr.Onc nrinutehclixc the cnrail rvasdtrc to bc scrrt.thc suhjcct gucsscd
rvlrtrnril u'oultl hc lirlnr. ln l17 vidcota;,*-tllrials, thc hit lalc rvas 17(:l't . signili-
cantf,vi1$1)ve thc clrlneclcvclol'25t/iftt : 0.5.p < | x lO{, Sltcldrakc& Srttiu't.
2005).
wc cfcscritrcan autr)rlratc(l
In this l'rill-,\-*r procctluret() lcsl litr crttail tclcpathl'.
Plcviorts rcst'arclr rvith autornilL'dtclepath.v(c'stshls involved ltrtcntct-basetl
lrrtrcedul'es (Sheltlrukc& Lrnthclt. 2{l$7) lnd a test involving tcxt nlcssagcs(rn
rnolrilctclcPhoncs(Shc'ldlirke ct al.. in prcss).hut llris is the lirst tinrc an luto-
malcdenrailtclepathylesl hirsbeencarricdtlttt.Thc purpxrse ol"thisinvestigatittn
was kr ctpklre:the lt'asihililyof such a tcst.Tlrc cxpc'rinrcnts rvcrt carlictl ottl
trnderunsupcrvisctl conditionsso we cannotlrc surcthal noneol'lhc parlicipants
wctr chcating. Hcrtcc thc rcsults cannol lrrovidc strong cvidcncr' lir tc1*t']t,tt.
Irowcvcr positivc lhcv ntay bu. But dcvelopingaulorttatcdprocedureslhat can
hc trsccltrntler"real-lit'e" contlitiotrsalntostanvrvhere in the wtrrld ()pcnsup tltc
pnssibility ol' inde'p,.--nclcnt.suJrcrl'iscdtcsting lrv organizcdgroulrs in scltools.
collcgesand clsc'rvhcre. This autontatcdrnethodrninirnizcscxpcrirlrr'rttercfl'ccts
antl pcrtttit s rvitlcsprcadpalti ci ltatirtn.
ln the.light ol'rersultslionr pt'eviousrcse'archon lclcphone.ernail and lnternel
trrlcPathv.ortr hypothcsiswus tlrat ltit ratcs irt thr' autonlrte(letnail lclcpittlty tcst
w()uld trc alroveclrance.trut that thc cfiL'ctsizc would tx srnallcrthan in previous
tclcplxlncand cnrailtclcpilthy(cstslix tlo rcasons.
First. in c'xpcrinlenlson tclcphoncarrl clnail tclcpathy.participantsrvcrc
r'ecluitudon tlrc trasisol' lhcir apParcnttelcpathicscnsitivity.wltr-'rcasin the
cxperimcnltlest:ribcdhclc tlterc was no suclrsr'lcctitln.
Second,in thc lelephoncand c:rnailcrJrcrirncnts.participattlswere askcd to
Fucsswho tt,aserlling or enrailirtgwhilc (he olhcr pt:rsonwas acluirllvttn thc
tclcphoncor rvliting thccrnail.[n theautomatcdcrnailtclcpatltytcsts.participants
n,cle lrskcdto guesswlto lratl scnt an cntail severalrtrinutcsatr('r,or sotttctintes
rn()rethan hall'an hour hclirrcthcy madc thcir guess.Thus thc tclepatlticconlact
n,asnol sirnullancotrs. and wc hypothcsizctl lhirl this u'ouldtrtlucc'tl'rcc'l'll'ct.

Nlethods

Pntcedure
Particilrantslegislcrcdonlinc lhrrruglrRupc'rlShc'ltlrakc's(RS's) Web silc.
rvu'rv.sl'tclth'akc,org. ctrlcrL'(ltheir lirst tnd sccond nattres.!ir:\. ilgr'
Thc sutr.iccts

scer-23-U1-23.irEf, gl zjnrffi 1:10:(XPM


An Autr)ntatcdEnrlil TclcpltlrvTcst _11

andcrnailirtldress. itndals()cntcrctlthc nanresol'thrcecontircts(lirst nanrcsonl))


togcthcrrvith llrr-'irenrail addrcsses.
All participantsreccivctla rvclcontccrnail rlrcsslge.antl thcrsutrjcctwas told
thal sla-could stopthertcstal any tirnc by crnailingSTOPto thc syslcnr.Thc'nlhc
tcsl pnrceedcdas lirllows:

l. Aller a randorntitttedelay ol'hctwccnI and4 rninulcs.lhc systcnrsclcctcd


onc ol' the con{itcl.sitt rilndotttand .sentlrinr il nle.\silgr'rcarling."'This is
tlte tclcpalhytcst. Plcascscndln clnail rcply rvhich w*illbc lirrw,,r.1*,,u
Isubje'ct's nat]ref. hr not alterrtptlo c11s11',.,
Isubjcct'snanleltlircctll,.Thank
Iou.''
2. Thc contact lhen wnrtc a mLrssilgc to thc subjectand sent il hack tt-rlhc
svstent.rvlticlt thcn itnnrcdiatclyscnl a tcxt nrcssagct() thc suh.icctrcading
"Dcar lsuhjcct'snatttcl()nc()l your contaclslrasscnty()ua nlcssitgc. Plelse
rcpll'and guess rvhohassentil. Thank )'ou."
-1. Tlrc suh.iecl tltcnscnlan crnailhackltr lhe systemrvith(lrcnarrrcsheguessc'tl.
Wltcn this hatl lrscn rcceivLrd[ry tltc systcrtrand thc data rccordcd. lhc
Incssagcli'txtrtltc cottlltctwAssr'nton to thc suhjcct.wlro thcrclirrcrer:civu'tl
itttnrctliltutlc'cdhitck;ts[o whctlterthc gucsswils c()tTcclor not.
-1. After a mndottt titttc tlclav tlris proccsswits rcPcatcduntil thc strtlcct hatl
conlplclcd 9 trials. at rvhich stilgcthc tcsl was c()nlplete.Slrc thcn rcccivcd
it nlessa$csaying "Thrnk you lirr tlking part in this tcst. Yrru scorcd
Inunttrt:rof hitsl corrccl trul ol'9 trials. Plea.sctcxt lhc rvtx'dSTART il'you
rvisltto tlo llrc'lcsl again."Alicr thc lilst ,4lnonlhsrll'testing.lhc nulntxr ol
trials 1'rcrtest rvas rsduuctllirur 9 to 6. hut cverytlringelsc rcrnirincdthc
silntc.
Tlte data wcrc' stofcd tttt lttt onlirtc tlatalrase.accessihlcb\, thc usc of il pass-
wottl.Whcn group lcaclcrs wcrc r'ccruitingsubjccts.lhcy askedthcrnall to lcgistcr
rvitlt tltc sanle group nilnre. and try using tlris group nilrnc as il pitssword.thc
leadel crluld access lltc data fronr all rncrnbcrsof his gr'oup.Thc tlatat'rasc
displayctla chronologicallist ol'rcsulls.with onc linc pcr tr-.st. giving ttrcsuhjcct's
nanlr. tttrt suhiect's scx and rtgc. tltc tlatc lnd tirnt: at which thc tcst startctl.
tltc nuttthelol'trials and thc nurnherol'lrits. Also. scparirtccolurnnsshorvcdthc
nuttrbc-r rtl'lrialsand ltits tlratoccurcd lessthan J lninutcsal'tcrllre crlnl{cl sentI
rnessalicto thc sttbjcct.tlrosethal occul'rctl-1-lO rnintrtcsirltcrrvartls.antl thusc
tltal rlccuncrlrttorcthan lO nrinutesaftcrwal'ds, In tddition. lor cach tcst it rvas
1-rossitrlcttl displaylll the dctailstrial hy triul. antl a l'ull list ol-all rnessagcsscnt
anrl reccivctllty thc svstcntduring thc lcsl, togetherrvith tlrc tinrc at whiclr tlrcy
wcrc st'nl ur reccivcd"rccordetlto {hc ncill'cslsccond.

ond P rogranuni ng
S.t'.rt{,rrr
Tltr: systcnl was tlcvclopctl antl operatedbv N'lotrili Lttl. ir Short N{cssagc
Scrvicc(SMS) solutionsand applicationlrrovitlcr.Mohili had an crnail gatcwa]'
(()scntlatttlrcccivcclttitil tllLrssilgcs.
tltitl cnahlccl(:tls(()tllel's

scex-2$01-23.ird, 31 antffi PM
1:10:u4
1: R. Sltcklrake& L. Avraanritlcs

The prrtgrarnttting cnvironmcntwils lvlicrosoll Visual Studio. utilising tlrc


Ttxrlslor M.S.SQLScn'cr.Thc coru ol'lltc applicalionrvaswriltcn in T:SQL. thc'
languagclirr opcrltions rvitlr tlirlabascsin SQL scrvcr'.Thc vcrsion usetllor this
applicalion\uasSQL Scner 2([O. Miclosol'lSQL has its own tlevekrperutilities
wlticlt tt'r-'rcsul'licicnt lirr rlcvclrtpingthis rpplica{ion. Thc stantlardMicrosol't
SQL procctlttrcslirr gencratingscetlnutnbcrsand nrndornntunhcrswcrc usctl (rr
sclcctlhe conlac(sltx'cach(cst.
Partstrl'tlre aPplicalionwcrL'pr'()granlnrctl in VB Scl'ipl(Visull Basic Scrilrtl.
This script wils uscd to prust'rtltlu rcsultson tlrc Wch. All thc Wcb pagcswcrc
ASP pagcs.a vcrsionol'VB Script.
Tltc rpplication scnt cntail rllessilgcsusing SQL sr'rvcrand SMTP .*.*r\iet'.
lnboundcrttails\r'crercceil'edusinga vcrsionol'an erlttailclie'ntrvhich pri-
otlicitlll''c()nncclsto a P()P.l '..-r'velittttl dtrwt'rltxuls
and copiesall ncwlv reccirctl
nlcssagcsto x .1u,.,rasc.Tltis l'crsion tll' the crnilil client \ras pr()gl'arnnrcdirr
MicrrrsollVisualSttrdio6.o anrlin languageC++.
Thc higgcst techtticrl protrlcnl wc cttcottntcrcdwas that sornc spnrl liltcrs
l'rloekedenrails li"orttlhc systcnrand hr:ncc s()ntc patlicipantsdid not rccsive
cttutils llrrtn it. Ttr ctunk-rracttltis. rvc lskcd all PafliciPantslo put llrc cnrail
addrcssul-tltu sYstcnlin tltcir adtlrcsslrook. rtt othcrlisc try to stop thcrspanr
lillers hlttcking tltc tncssrtgcs. But sr)fl1splr'licipanlswcre still unahle lo stop
lltc tttcssages bcing bltrku'd itntl hcncecould ltot lnke pilrt in lhc tcst.Alstl. s()nlc
cntail systcnts.likc ltotntail.cont.ditl not alwavs furrctionproperly rvith our
applicatittn.antl hencc sorncpiuticipanls\\,crc'cxcludcdli'onrthc systcnt.

Partieiprnnts
Parlicipatttswcrc rccruitctlin trvo \uavs.First. tlrroughRS's \LIcbsilc. rvhc^rc
ilny()nccould vtlluntccrto titkr-'part, Sccond.lry scvcrirlRcst-'irfclt
Hcl;rrs, volun*
lccrs rvho rvcrctlking pilrt undcrthe aegisol'thc Pcrrott-WarrickPrrrject.ol-rvhiclr
R..S.is Dircctor'.Tltcsc\!'crr'pc()Pleu,ho rvishctlkr gain s()nlcrssc'archcxpcricncc.
Each ol' lherttwas itskctllo drl lhe tcst lhcnrsc'lvcsanil thcn recruit othcr sub.jccls
lionr uttong lhcir li'ientlsund lirmily nrcrnhcrs.Thcy thenrsclvcsusuallyservctlas
u contactin thc testswith the palticipantsthev rccruitr-rd and usuallvregistercdtlre
sulriects.
Sulticctswerc hctwcen l2 antl 66 yclrs old. with thc nra.iorityrged hetwcen
30 and l!).

.9tatistics
Tltc rcsultstucfr]attah,scdttsingtltc hinorttiitltcsf: llu chancc;rrohability ol'tt
Itit rvas.3.1.Sinplc-sidctlPvulucsrvcrcusctl.Thc null hvpotltcsisrlas tlrirttlrc hit
ratc in tlte testsu'uuld n()l he signilicantlydil'l'crcntl'rorntlte chartcclevcl. For
cotttparisonsof clil'll'rcntsctsol'tlata. c.g.. li'onr rnalc'and lL'rurlcsub.iccts. lhc
I x 2 chi-xlttlrc lcsl was trscd.Cohcn's cl't'cctsiz.cr/ was calculatcclaccorilirrg
trr l h e l ttrn tu l i ttl : (p (l ri l so bscrvutl-) 0.-l ,l )/ sq[t(0.]" ix O.6(r).w ' hcrcP (hi ts
olr:er'\'cdlis llte Prrrlrru'liort tll'hils.

scer-23-O1-23.irfi, 32 ?ffi|ffi 1:1O:O4


PM
An AutorturlcdErrtirilTclcgrltltl.'
TLst 11

Resrdts

OverallRcsrrltr
I n a lolal ol'4l9 lrials.thcrcwcrc 175hits (-ll .Sti l. signiticunllvnrorctlrantht:
3J.J{,icxpcctctllry chancctp : .(XX)l).
Not all the sub.iectscrtntplcte'dthc prcslrccilietlnurtthcr ol' trials in l tcst.
In some'casLrs rtncol'thcir contactstlid not rcsl'xurd. in ()thcnithcy had lo sloJrthe
tcst lrccausethey riln out of tirnc. in sonrcthere were lcclrnieallirultswith thc
systenl thal tcrnrinatedthc test l(x) s(x)n. and in so111g thcy nral' sinrply lravc
deciclc'dtr) stop. This raiscs tltu Ptrssibilityof rn "optional stopping" artclacl.
rvhcrct'rvgreoplcrvith lorv lril ratcsstogrlntl onlv thoscrvith high hit ratcsr()nlpL'te
thc lcsl. H(')wevcr. tlrcrcwcre 37 urntpletete'sl.s u'ilh a lolll ol'276 trials.in u'hir.'h
tlrclc rvclc 106 trits{ltt.,{fi'.p :.{)l}. Ol'thesc tcsts. l7 had hit ratcsabovc llrr-r
chancclcvcl. lo rvereat tlrcchancelevcl.and I I u'crc txlorv it. In thc irtcturplctc
tc s ts .th c l c w c rc l 4 J tri a l sr vi th 69 hi ts t4X ." l l l :1t .= .Ofi )l ). Tl rr' hi t ratc i n thc
inconrplclclcsls rvirsirr l'nctsigniliclntly ltiglrcr (l) : .O5)tltun in tlrc conrplctc
tc s ts .
In thc cornqrlctc tcsls.lhc hit ratc in the lirst 3 tlials rvus-lfl oul o[ | I I l-1.].1'lI
contptredrvith 5tt out ()l'165(35.2{,{} in thc subscqucnt trials.This difiL'lrnccwits
nrrtsignilicitntal lltc p .= .()5lcvcl.

Effects of Delateel Ouesses


Thc txginrting ol'cach trial took placc rvitlr a randorutirnc dcliry a[tr-'rthc
cnding of thc prcvioustrial. Thcl'cwct'calso variahlcdclaysin llrc rcsp(urscb ()l'
thc contrcls hr the rc.qucstlo sentll rr'rcssilgc. sr)nlcol"which rvcrc duc to unprc-
dictabledcluysin thc dclivel'icsu[ crnailstty thc lntcrnetsystcnlartdalsovlrilhlc
delays in thc [csl)()nscs of tltc c()ntilcl\.
Alier lltc' contact scnt his tttc'ssagcto tlte systcrtt,tltc systt.'nlsenl an etttail
witlrin a l'crvsccontlsto thc subjectasking |re'rto glucsstvhonr tlrc ntessagcwas
ll'tlrn. Thcre rvcrc variablctlclays br.'lirretlrc suhjcct rtratlehcr gucssantl scnt it
trackto tlrc syslc-rtt. variahledclaysin thc transntissiontlf thc cntail to the subicct
by the Intcr'rrctsyslcrn.and viu'ilt'rledchys in thc suhjcct respondingt() the tcxl
n'lcssflSe .
Thc cract tirncsat rvhichall rtresslgcswelc sent lnd rcccivcdwcrc lecortlctltttt
thc datatrase [o thc nearestsccond.The delaysin rcsponscsby thc sutriectsalicr'
thc ctrrttactsscnt thcir nressagcs wcrc groupettinto thrcc cittcgorics:dclaysol'lcss
tl ri rnJ rn i n u te s-l. -1 0 n ri n utcsandrnol r than l Onri nutes.In l 6l out of -l l 9 tri al s
1.1t1(,/r l. thc litttc hctwccntltcconlilclscndinslris ntcssagcand the sub.icctrttaking
hcr guessrvaslcs: than 3 rninutcs(Tirblcl). Thc hit ratc in tlrcsctrialsrvas42.JQ
( 1 t: . 1 1 1 r .
In 7t{ lrials thc del:ry*'as t',.-luccrt .l antl lO nrinules.and lrcrc thc hit ratc rvas
-l 2 .l l i . s l i g h tl vl rc k x vth c c l ranccl cr,cl l.l thougl t not si gni l i canl l so.
v l l l l l {Ol l i al s
tfrs dclavs wcl'c nlurg ll111p l0 rninutcs:llrc hit rale rvas -15.6(i (1.t: .0(X)J).

scex-23{1-23.inttt 3g 2lnfM 1:1O:(FPM


]J R. Slrcldrlkc ct L. Ar,raitnritlcs

TABLE I
Hit Ratesin Trialswith DifferentDela;-shetrueen
ContactSendingr lr4essage
and
theSubjc'clResponding

Delaytnrin) Trials trt) Hils (n) Hits tr.,?i

<,- ,) t6t 68 .{:.2


t-r0 78 25 32.l
,:.-lO r80 82 45.6

slightlyhiglrcr'thanilr trialswith lcssthanJ tninu(csdclay.but this dillL'rLrncc


$'its
not stiltislica
ll.vsignilicant.

Effects of Subjects'Se.rand Age


With nrlle subjct:ls(hcrc rvcrc 265 tr'ialsrvilh ll5 hits (4.1.-+',4 ). antl rvith
ll'nule subicctsl5-l trirls rvith 6() hits t39.{)rl). Thc higlrcrhit ratc wilh rtrak's
th a n[c n ml c sw a s n o t s ta ti s l i cnl lsi (p : .37).
y gni l i cant
Tlrc hit rutc'slirt suh.jects ol'tlitlbrcnl agcsarc slxxvn in Tatrlel. Thc higlrcst
rllcs wcrc in thc l{}-19-vcar irgcgr()upantl lhc krwcstin thc .1(}-39gr{}up.

Dlscussion
( )trr hypothesisrvitstlrul lrit ralcsin an Aul()rniltc(l test rvould
cnrail tclePatlty'
tx lbor;e chancc lcvcls. but thc r-'ll'cct sizc rvoultl be snraller than in prcvious
tclcplroncanrlcrnail tclepntllycxpcrimcnts.in rvhiclrllrc ctlntactsrvcrelirussing
on thc suh.jcctrvhcn slrc rnadehcr guess.antl in rvhich rvc clrosc suhjectsu'ho
wcrc unusullly' scnsitivc.Wc cxpectcda lorvcr cll'ect sizc bccausr'thc suhjects
in this autornatcdcrnail cxpcrirncnlrvcrc not sclcctcdon lhc basisof apparcnt
lclcpathicability. and llso lrrcau.,,* thc stthjcclsguc'sscdrvholurd scn(thcrna nres-
sagconl,valicr thc nrcssagchud r',Lcnscnt.Ttrc o\rer'illlhit ratettf J I .lJ{,4rvasittrove
thr'clrancclLrvclof 33.1{./r {;r: .fiX)l). but the clft'ct sizc (d: O.2)rvasintlc.ed
srrtitllcrthan in lclcphrrnctclepatlrytcsts(r/ : 0.5: Shc'ldrake & Srtttrt. 2tx)ih)
(d: {} .5:S l rcl drakc
a n d s i n ru l ta n c o ucsn ra i ltc l c p i l th)' tests We
& S nral t.2(n} 5).
havc also carricclottl a sitrtilar itulotnaletlcxJrcrintenlinvolving SMS tlcssaftcs

TABLE 2
Hit Rnteswith Sutrjects
of Ditl'erentAges

Age Trials {rr) Hits (rrt Hitl (':rt


!,vr)
l5-t 9 {{ 2 50.0
:o-19 I t)1 5rt 52.9
-10-39 ll6 J9 -t6.I
-{f}--19 +9 l8 -16.7
50-5e 25 t0 {o.0
00-69 -rl r0l .1o.8

s@x-23-01-23.irdt 34 2mrffi 1:10:05 PM


An ArtlorttalctlErrtliI Tr'lcpath1''
TL'sI ,15

rathcr thartcnrails.antl hctc t(x) tlrcrcrvasa krrvcl'lcctsizc. Jrrotrablylirr thc snnte'


rcirsons:a lrit ratc ttl' 37.91 cornparcdwith .ll.3T cxpc'cledhy chancc{p - .1y11'
d : O . l t t S h e l d r a kcct : r 1 .i.n p r e s s )
\\/e cxJrcctedlhal lhc krngcrthe tlel:ryin thc rcsp()nseof tlrc subjcct.lhc lorvcr
lltc ltit nrtc rvoulclbc. With shortdclA,l'sol'lc'ssthan-l minutcs.hil ratcswrre alrove
chancc.artd lirr delays trctwecn-l and l0 rninutcs.hit ratcs did indcerldrup to
cltancelevels(T:rblc l). But lor dcl.ys' ol' ovcr l0 rninutcs.thc ltit ralcs u,ere
sliglttlylrighcrthanin trialswilh lessthan.1rninutes'tlclay. A similar pattcrnrvas
l'ou11r.1 in our auturnatedSMS tcsls(Sheltlrakect al., in press).Horvever'. in neithcr
casc\fils this dill'erencc significant. In llturc sludies.it rvrrultlhe possihlcto intru-
ducc random tlelays into the systcnrso tlurt a vu'iderangc of dclaycd respr)nscs
coulcl[x studicdsystentatically in ordcr to lind out whcthcrseerninglytelL'prthic
l'csp()nses llrll ol'f rvitlr tinrenllcr tlrc nlcssagr'is scrtl.or not.
In this crpcrinrcnt.thc hit ratein inconrplctetestswas highcrtllan in tlrec(lrn-
plclc lcsts.Why shoultlthis lte?()ne possihililyis thatsutriects harthighcrhit ratcrs
irt thc lirsl lbrv trials hceausetltcy rvcrc flx)rq involvctl: llrcy Inay havc lrccarnc
l'ro1g{or irnpaticntwith thc experirncnlas tinre wcnl on. T[r tcst this possihilitl''.
wc c(lnrparcdlhe hit rate in thc lirsl thrc'c(rials of thc conrpleletlteststvith tltc
latcr trials. Thc hit ratc rvasinclccdltighcr in the carlicr trials. 13.2q as ('rpp()scd
ltr 35.29i. lrul this dil'l'elenccwas nr)[ statislicallysignilicant. Nevcrtlrclcss.
it rvoultl trc rvollh lintling out in luttui: autornalctltcsts wlrcthcr lrit ra(cs arc
gcncmllv trighcrin earlicrtrials.
Thcsc lcsts u'cre unsulxrviscrd.and lhcrclillc lhe possibilityariscs that solnc
peoplervcrecltcating.Howcver.lfu hit ratcsrvcrrcrelativcly low. anrl rnanypcoplc
scoredat or trckrrvclrancelcvcls: chcrting cottld not hnvc lrcencortrllon. rilher-
rvisc'ltil rrtcs woultl havc becn nruch highcr.And nrosl pcoplrrhad no ntotivc ter
chcat:lhLryworc curiottsahoutthc'irorvnabilitiesand wantedto lind out htrv tltcy
u,ould larc in lhc tcst. Nevctthr-'lcss. wc cflnn()lt'ulL'oul thc lrossibili{ythat s()nlc
pcoplc cltsatlrclsomcof thc titrtc.
Tltc trcstway lo rule out chcatingis tti ciu'r'1,outsup,c-rvised testsin wltich lhct
suhjcclsarr-rlilrned con(inuously.and then thc lilrns arc cxanrinc'tlcarc'frtllyby
an inelc1,.*ntlent cvirlttrttrr'.so tlurt any trials can lrc tlisqualilicdin which suhjects
lcccivc telcphttnecalls or cntailsor lcttt ttlessitgLrs, or in rvlticlta third party passcs
()nlny inlirrnrationlo thcrn.Prrxcdulesof this kind ltavein lact becnuscdin tcsts
on telephonc(Shcklrakc& Snrart.1003b).urnail(Shclclrnkc & Srtrart.2005t lntl
SMS tc l c p a th )(S h e l d ra kc et al .. i n prcss).E vcn rvhenal l thcst' possi hlki c ntl sol '
cheal.ittgwcrc ruled ottt. the hit rates rvcrewcll ;rbtrvcchance.
Linsu;xrviscrlte'slsurc valuabh:in lhcir orvn right lilr an cxplorationo[ a ncw
rt'rr-'lhotf
. as irt lhc ptcx'rtl stu(lli.antl also lilr ctutparisonof viu'ilbles thal atL:ct ltil
ritlcs.In this exlo-rirncnl.r'r,'c studicdortll scr and rgc. and lountl ntt signilicant
rlil'l'crcnccs.
This cx1-*rirttr:nlslrorvstltat urttrunatcdcnrail tcrlcpalhytesls arc l'casihlc:.
trut tlrirl an ernail svs{cnrr)l' this kinrl is rof i1 goorl way' lo tcst lirr tcrlcplthy
sirnultancousl!. wlrich is lrurvit sccnrsto ou'cul'in lcal liti; {Sheltlrakc.2o0.11. All

scex-23-O1-23.indl 35 2f27tffi l:10:05PM


.16 R. Slrclth'akc.tL. Avraalnitles

tltcsctriitlsinvolveddclayst.*[t\ccnthc corrllctscntlingthc cnraillntl the'subjcct


gucssingrvlto ltitd scnt it. during *'hich tirnc the caflcr'sattcnlion has shitiL'tl
clscrvhere.Thc cll'cct sizc rvas low. cvcn in unsupcrvisetltrials rvhcrc clrcating
rvas lrossible.\Vc cone'ludcthat this 1v1yt)l'stu{y'ing tclepathVis ttttt ycfy cl'tl'c-
tivc. The sameis truc ol-SN{Stcstsyslenrs.which alstrsul'l'crlirrnrbuilt-indclays
lxtrvccn lltc cttnlactscndingtl'.* nlessagt"t
and thc suhicctlnaking il guess.
Tir avoidthe prtrblctnof dclavs.artaulornated systcnllbr testiltgtclc'pathylnust
involvelhe subir:ctntakingil gucssrvhilcthc conlactis lbcussingon hcr. Sirnultl-
rrcitv could bc aclticvcd bv ntcans ol' ln aul()rniltc(llcst lirr rJirscl tclephonc
telcpathyin n,hiclt llndorttly serlcctcd cont:rctstclcphonclltc subjccl via thc
svstern urtdare askedto holtl orrrvhilc thc sulrjcctrnakcslrergucss.Tlrc linc ()l,L-ns
up onll'al'tcrthe gucsshashcn rccortlctlhv thc svstern.and thc lwo can thcnlalk.
( )ur nu'xtcxlxrirnenlsrvill involvcan aut()nlater.l
systcnrol'this kind.

References
Browrr. D.. & Sheldrake.R. t2O0lt. The lnticiprtion of leleplpne calls: A survey in Californil.
Jturilal of Rtrapsv'ho/rr.g1l6-5,145-156.
Lolrach. E.. & Bierntan. D. J. t]0O*t. Who's calling at this hour'l Leral sidereal tinre ard telephorrc
telepathy.ht Pntceeding.rrf l/rt, JTth Annml Porztltst'c'ltologierr/A"rsocitttion
Cunrertliorrtpp. 9l-
97), Viennr.
Sheldrake. R. tl0OOl. Telepathic telephonecalls: T\r'o survevs. Jttunwl of the Sot'ien*Ji>r Pnrhiral
Research,61,?21-2]2.
Sfreltlrake. R. {2OO3l. The Senst ol Being Strtrpt/ At, trrul Other Aspet-tsol the Erteniletl Minit.
Crown.
Sheltlr*e. R.. Avnrunides. L.. & Novdk. M. (in press).Sensing the xnding ctf SNIS Inessages:
An :lulomatedtest. frp/on,.
Sheldralte.R.. Godu'in. H.. & Rtxkell. S. t20(Xt. A f lrned experimenton telephonetelepathl,with tlr
Nofan sislers.Journul of tht Sm-iet:'JorPsvchicalRcscarch,68,l6Ll'12.
Sheldrake. R.. & Lambert. M. t20O7). An auronratedonline telepethy test. Jtrrrnrrrl of Sdenti.lit'
Explttrution, ?/. 5l l-521.
Sluldrake. R.. & Srrmrt. P. (2003a). Erperinnntal testsfor telephonetelepathy.J<turnalof the Sotiett
-firr P,slr'ftictrl Rc.sr'ttrrft,67. l71-199.
Sheldrake. R.. & Srrtrrt. P. r2OO-1b1. Videotlped experiments on telephone (elepxthy. Jouttrul of
Para psvchohtgt',67, I 47-l 66.
Sheldrake.R...t Smart. P. t20O5t. Testing t-or telepnthy in connection u'ith e-ruails. kn'eptunl antl
llloktr Skills, I OI, 77 l-786.

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PM

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