Paranormal activity is a phenomenon described in popular culture, folks, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose understanding is beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. A few examples of paranormal beliefs are ghost hunting, exorcism, spiritualism, telepathy, etc.
The term exists in the English language since the 1920s. It means the scientific explanation of the world around is normal, and anything above, or beyond that is ‘para’.
Paranormal activity can be thought of as a subset of pseudoscience, however, the beliefs like witches, ghost hunting, UFOs, etc., set it apart from pseudoscience. Faith healing, human energy shields, are some of the topics discussed as psychic forces and have a dedicated community on the internet.
Paranormal activities involve many subjects, and the discussion can go on for a long time, but we have discussed the major and most interesting topics:
Ghost hunting
Ghost hunting is defined as investigating the places that are reported to be haunted by ghosts. Typically, a ghost hunting team will collect evidence, in support of the paranormal activity. Ghost hunters might use a variety of electronic devices like EMF meters, digital thermometers, video cameras, night-vision goggles, and audio recorders. Sometimes, they might prefer traditional techniques like interviewing or researching the haunted site.
Ghost hunters might refer to themselves as ‘paranormal investigators. Ghost hunting has been the basis of the blockbuster movie Ghostbusters. Notable ghost hunters, Ed and Lorraine Warren’s experiences have been the basis of movies like Conjuring and Annabelle. Ghost hunters use various devices and methods for investigating alleged paranormal activity.
- It is said dogs barking, or cats looking at a certain area are said to show haunting.
- An Ouija board is used to communicate with spirits.
- EMF meters: To detect unusual fluctuations in an electromagnetic field.
Ufology
Ufology is defined as the study of unidentified flying objects, which are believed to contain extraterrestrial life or alien species. There have been many governments, private investigations on UFOs, but ufology has been termed as an example of pseudoscience. Area 51 is one of the greatest examples of aliens.
The roots of Ufology can be traced as early as the late 1890s when “mystery airships”, and “foo fighters” were spotted by Allied men during World War II in the 1930s. The Kennet Arnold “flying saucer” incident of 1947 popularized the concept of flying saucers. Ufology, despite governmental and private investigations, has been characterized as pseudoscience by science educators and skeptics.
A few well know ufologists are Fabio Zerpa, Juan Posadas, Joseph Allen Hynek and Jacques Vallée. The latter two developed descriptive systems for identifying objects, and for organizing the work.
Cryptozoology
Cryptozoology is defined as the study of folk legends like Bigfoot, Yeti, Loch Ness Monster, they are known as cryptids, coined by the subculture. It is neither a branch of zoology nor folklore studies, it was founded in the 1950s by zoologists Bernard Heuvelmans and Ivan T. Sanderson. Cryptozoology like ghost hunting and ufology has been noted parallels in pseudoscience.
Young Earth Creationism is a major subset of cryptozoology. It promotes Biblical convention rejecting modern science, and promotes the concept of “living dinosaurs”. According to a 2013 interview of renowned paleontologist Donald Prothero, “people who actively search for Loch Ness monsters or Mokele-Mbembe do it entirely as creationist ministers.
They think that if they found a dinosaur in the Congo it would overturn all of evolution. It wouldn’t. It would just be a late-occurring dinosaur, but that’s their mistaken notion of evolution.” Media outlets are known to disseminate information uncritically about cryptozoologists, and they have often been termed as ‘monster hunters. A few major cryptozoology organizations are:
- Centre for Fortean Zoology- UK based non-profit organization
- Kosmopoisk- Russian organization with interests in cryptozoology and ufology
- International Society of Cryptozoology- American organization existing from 1982-1998
What do Paranormal Activities Mean?
A paranormal event has its connection with the appearance of a ghost and this phenomenon, cannot be explained by any scientific laws. It is considered as a form of strange power or unknown forces which is beyond normal explanation.
Many times Science can provide some explanations for these paranormal phenomena but they are not believed by many people.
For many years humans have been surrounded by a lot of paranormal beliefs which directly or indirectly play an important role in the shaping of their mentality related to paranormal events. We have always been mesmerized by folk, non-scientific bodies of knowledge, and popular culture which very beautifully describes the phenomenon related to Paranormal events.
We are so much into all these contexts that we forget to realize that their existence is described beyond any scope of normal scientific understanding which is hard to believe i.e. if it’s an illusion made to satisfy it or contains some reality.
Some of the most common paranormal beliefs include extrasensory perception which is also known as telepathy, the science of ghost hunting, spiritualism, ufology, and cryptozoology.
Everyone has different beliefs related to paranormal happenings that’s why it is always considered as one of the most controversial issues and people mostly tend to avoid this topic. The paranormal world has always been a lot shady but then also many people are a lot interested in it.
Are Paranormal Activities Real?
The standard scientific models try to explain that most of the paranormal events that occur are usually a misunderstanding, anomalous variation of natural phenomenon, or misinterpretation but due to the lack of evidence or any intense urge to investigate we come to a weird conclusion circulated by a group of people we start to believe that it’s because of the power of ghost.
Paranormal phenomena include extrasensory perception, ghosts, poltergeists, life after death, reincarnation, faith healing, and human auras. The explanations for these phenomena are phrased in terms known as “psychic forces”, “human energy fields”, and the list goes on. This is in contrast to many scientific explanations for many Paranormal phenomena, which, although are explained by very bad science but are still accepted for their scientific terms.
There are many proposals made regarding the paranormal events that had taken place according to the scientific evidence and that clearly show that scientific observations are a way lot different from hypotheses or speculations. This can be because scientific ideas are mostly grounded in experimental data and empirical observation which is gained through a scientific method.
Many of the people contrast with the idea of scientific research as they have a strong urge for believing in supernatural activities and they mostly don’t base their arguments on empirical evidence but rather on anecdote, testimony, and suspicion.
Reason Behind Paranormal Activities
Not only Indians but people in the West also believe in paranormal activities and it is also estimated that nearly one in every five has claimed that they have actually seen a ghost.
Due to the increase in the paranormal beliefs of many people psychologists have taken the path to understand that why are people not able to shake off the beliefs that had been set in their brains due to an increase in superstitions and folklore. There are many hidden virtues that make a person believe in paranormal activities.
Some paranormal beliefs and experiences can easily be explained based on the activities performed by our brain. There are many reports in which a person starts believing that an object is moving on its own but the doctors have claimed that this is due to the damage in certain regions of the right hemisphere of the brain that is responsible for our visual processing. This can also cause a spooky feeling Making a person feel That you are being haunted by someone who is not visible making them feel that a lot of faceless shadow people are accompanying them.
All these experiences are due to the neurological phenomena due to which certain visual illusions can create many mythical beings.
Many times all these kinds of persistent paranormal beliefs are caused by the combination of drugs, alcohol, exhaustion, and also due to reflection, refraction, and tricks caused by lights which help a lot in contributing to isolated, single sightings.
Paranormal myths
Paranormal myths can be defined as false ideas about the existence of a particular phenomenon, creature, or supernatural being. These are called “myths” as they originate from a very true event, but are converted to paranormal events by the normal human being.
A few paranormal myths are mentioned as follows:
- Chupacabra– A misshapen creature that is believed to exist in North America and is said to drink the blood of livestock.
- Werewolf– A person believed to transform into a wolf on a full moon night.
- Vampire– A creature from folklore who is known to survive on vital essence usually blood.
- Kraken– A deep-sea creature looking like a squid, known to cause shipwrecks and then devour the sailors.
- Cerberus- The famous three-headed dog in Greek mythology known to guard to House of Hades. It devours anything that tries to escape the lord of death and denies entry to living humans to the Underworld.
- Zombie- A speechless and will-less creature who has been supernaturally created, who is automated to only a single movement, usually walking and eating human flesh.
Controlling the myths
People have been believing in myths for a long time, and it’s not easier to tell that it’s all wrong. However, we can put a control on the extent they believe. We cannot just tell people that their beliefs are baseless, but we can tell them to believe based on proof. For example, tourism earns a huge amount by selling haunted stories. And privileged sections of society are lured by these offers.
Many times, gangs spread the rumor of an old building being haunted, but have you questioned, why are only old buildings haunted? why new buildings can’t be haunted. We, personally feel you cannot ask people to stop believing but, using valid points and proofs we can show them the truth.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ques. What is the meaning of paranormal?
Ans. The word consists of two parts: para and normal. This means the scientific explanation of the world around us is ‘normal’ and anything above, beyond, or contrary to it is ‘para’.
Ques. Are Paranormal activities real?
Ans. Nothing has been proved to know if Paranormal activities are real or not because they are based on the beliefs of people rather than scientific research.
Ques. Do people believe in paranormal activities?
Ans. There are a lot of people all over the world who believe in paranormal events and it has also been said that one out of every five people believes in paranormal activities.
Ques. Are ghosts real?
Ans. Different theories state different things. Many people claim that they have seen a ghost and they have encountered something supernatural but on the other side many people believe that it’s just an illusion caused by the malfunctioning of the brain.
Ques. Is it rare to come across any paranormal experience?
Ans. It’s not a rare experience indeed many people have told their experiences and struggle after suffering or going through paranormal events.
Ques. What are some factors associated with the existence of ghosts?
Ans. Some factors associated with the existence of ghosts are:
- Room temperature suddenly falls
- An unexplainable smell fills the room
- Your pets start to act strange
Ques. What is some equipment used in ghost hunting?
Ans. Some important equipment used in ghost hunting are:
- Infrared thermometer
- Digital voice recorder
- EMF sensor
- Camera with night vision
- Ghost box
Ques. What is Area 51?
Ans. Area 51 is a secret Nevada base known for all alien conspiracies.
Ques. Are spirits and witches real?
Ans. People have tried to communicate with spirits for ages, but science has no proof of their existence. We feel they are the figments of the imagination of the human mind.