JAMES+-+Psychics

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What scientific or reasoned evidence, if any, can we use to be able to prove that psychics actually exist? Whether psychics are real or not is still a topic which is widely debated in todays society. My TOK question is basically saying what and how much evidence is needed to draw the conclusion to whether or not they exist.

There are countless articles and stories told by people that claim psychics have helped them in some way to find something, connect with a dead loved on etc. however, these are just personal accounts. There is no way to prove they are true. This is the underlying problem that we face when trying to answer this question.

__Different Opinions__

 * The Believer** - Someone who has had an accurate reading or knows someone who has may genuinely believe psychics are real. In this example, the believer is a professor who through experiments has come to believe in psychics.

Dr. Gary Schwartz - Wrote a thesis where he tested psychic ability, and concluded the results proved that psychic abilities did indeed exist. //The Afterlife Experiments,// an investigation of the ability of mediums to communicate with the dead.

"I can no longer ignore the data and dismiss the words, they are as real as the sun, the trees, and our television sets, which seem to pull pictures out of the air." - Dr. Gary Schwartz


 * The Skeptic** – The majority of people remain sceptical about psychics. How they have reasoned this is different from person to person but the theory that somebody can know stuff about you just from touching/looking at you seems to much for people to believe. In this example, the skeptic is also a professor who has studied in the area and through his experiments, concluded that they in fact not real.

Dr. Ray Hyman - Wrote a thesis in response to Dr. Gary Schwartz, criticizing the conclusions made and offering alternative conclusions. //How Not to Test Mediums: Critiquing the Afterlife Experiments//

"All language is inherently ambiguous and depends much more than we realize upon the context and nonlinguistic cues to fix its meaning in a given situation..." - Ray Hyman

"Accuracy is Subjective" - Ray Hyman
 * __Bibliography__**

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Opposing Viewpoints: Paranormal Phenomena. Ed. Karen Miller. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2008. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Dulwich College Shanghai. 1 Feb. 2010>======

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At Issue: Is There Life After Death? . Ed. Rebecca K. O'Connor. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2005. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Dulwich College Shanghai. 1 Feb. 2010>======

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