Esp Essay, Research Paper

ESP

ESP is one of our weakest senses. Compared to our other five senses, ESP is definitely our weakest. This seems to be true because our other five senses are so easily seen, but seeing that we all have ESP, it cannot be so easily seen, but we know that it is there. This is why ESP is one of our weakest senses.

ESP, or extrasensory perception, is Perception that occurs independently of the known sensory processes (Encyclopedia Britannica, page 1). There are three known types of extrasensory perception. Those types are Precognition, telepathy, and clairvoyance. Research for extrasensory perception, precognition, telepathy, and clairvoyance has been conducted since the nineteenth century. Some evidence proving that extrasensory perception is real comes from data from experiments involving card-guessing games. One type of game that is used is when a certain subject will attempt to guess the correct symbols of cards hidden from their view. If the person gets a better than chance percentage of guesses right, that person can be a suspect in having extrasensory perception. Having extrasensory perception can be extremely helpful in that investigation teams can use them to search for missing people or things. Yet, having extrasensory perception can also be a nuisance in that sometimes you may not want to be able to see the future or read other peoples minds. Plus, you never know what could happen to you if the knowledge of your sixth sense ever got out into the public. Either people wouldn t believe you, or, if they did, you might be used as some kind of governmental experiment.

The first type of extrasensory perception is called precognition. Precognition is supernormal knowledge of future events, with emphasis not upon mentally causing the events to occur, but upon predicting those occurrences of which the subject claims has already been determined (Encyclopedia Britannica, page 1). Precognition s connection to extrasensory perception is that precognition is like telepathy and clairvoyance in that it is said to be used without recourse to the normal senses, and is in that way a form of extrasensory perception. There has been a long tradition of evidence in foreseeing the future in both dreams and in various objects such as noticing the way a bird flies or by examining the leftovers of a sacrificial animal. People who are tested for precognition have been required to predict the future of the order of a deck of cards, or the future of the results of dice that are about to be thrown. The results for precognition tests have been less convincing than results from experiments for telepathy and clairvoyance, generally.

Telepathy is the second type of extrasensory perception. Telepathy is direct transference of thought from one person (sender or agent) to another person (receiver or percipient) without using the usual sensory channels or communication, hence a from of extrasensory perception” (Encyclopedia Britannica, page 1). Even though the existence of telepathy has not yet been proven, some parapsychological research studies have produced favorable results using different techniques. Some of the different techniques that are used are 1. Card guessing using a special deck of five sets of five cards. 2. The sender will concentrate on the face of one card at a time while the receiver tries to think of the card symbol. The point/object of the game (the first one mentioned) is that the researcher will think of a random order of five card symbols while the subject tries to think of the order that the researcher is thinking of. Scores that are significantly above chance are extremely rare, particularly as testing methods have become more rigorous over the years.

The third and final type of extrasensory perception is clairvoyance. Clairvoyance is, in French terms, clear thinking . But in our terms it s knowledge of information not necessarily known to any other person, not obtained by ordinary channels of perceiving or reasoning; thus a form of extrasensory perception (Encyclopedia Britannica). Spiritualists use the word clairaudience, which means seeing or having the spirits of the dead that are said to surround the living. Certain tests that are used also involve card games, like all the others. One type of test is: a subject will have to call the order of cards in a shuffled deck. This particular test has yet to provide conclusive support for the existence of clairvoyance.