Are Orbs Todays Cheesecloth
In the early to mid parts of the 20th century spiritualists would try to convince people that the cheesecloth they were pulling from their mouths etc was really ectoplasm and con their audiences into believing they were watching a spirit manifest before them.
In the early to mid parts of the 20th century spiritualists would try to convince people that the cheesecloth they were pulling from their mouths etc was really ectoplasm and con their audiences into believing they were watching a spirit manifest before them. Today popular television programmes and certain individuals try to convince people that dust caught on digital cameras is really the first signs of a manifestation. Why? I think the answer lies in the fact that people need something visual to believe in the paranormal and orbs are something the popular media can take advantage of and even create on demand if need be. The first orbs I came across were probably 7 or 8 years ago and it was a televison producer at a haunted location who brought them to my attention.
Orbs & Cheescloth
Again I was reading about UFO’s and came across the story of a child Alex Birch, in Sheffield, Yorkshire, faking a UFO pic in 1962 with friends – despite the variations in their story the photo was taken as real and used as proof – despite its similarity to the faked photos of George Adamski apearing around the same time – hence one fake gave reality to another, and even after Alex confessed to his forgery the story seemed to have gained a reality all of its own.
The Cottingly Fairies is a similar tale. It seems people will always believe a story more if there is a photo, no matter that it is a fake.
I think the interpretation of orbs is a sad indication of the state of education today – the explanation given is exactly that.
The earth is also round, but sometimes it’s the theories that argue the opposite to logical thinking that stand out for a while before fading away. People love a mystery, and will ignore science as long as possible to keep themselves entertained.
Give it a few years though and maybe all it will take once more is a piece of cheesecloth to appear on ‘most haunted’ to get people scared all over again.
Orbs & Cheesecloth
Thing is, Science still won’t always explain mysteries, which will, inevitably, remain mysteries. The application of science to the whole orb fiasco, leading to it’s debunking, does not negate the possibilities of ghosts. So why ignore it? Even in this day and age people still seem to want to live in the dark ages when it comes to explanation. They’re happy for science to build this bubble of comfort around them and their lifestyles, but not prepared for it to test their curiosity and really pull at their willingness to learn and progress.
Orbs & Cheesecloth
Your right Urisk.
Just because there is an explanation for orbs does not mean we are any closer to knowing what the scientific explaination for ghosts or any other of the subjects that can be branded paranormal. As an investigator I am happy to ignore orbs now and concentrate on occurrances that cannot yet be explained. However there will be investigators out there seriously researching orbs still.
Ghosts and orbs
I think we can explain a great many ghost sightings – namely misperception or hallucination. Neuroscience is uncovering new stuff everyday that shows just how the brain, operating perfectly normally, can sometimes ‘fill in the gaps’ where we can’t see something properly. The most surprising thing is that ghost researchers appear, in the main, to be totally unaware of these developments even though they are incredibly relevant to their subject.
As for orbs – it was known from the first that these were photographic artefacts. The problem was that, until recently, no one took the trouble to unravel them properly, explaining all possible variations. In the meantime, the orb myth has spread uncontrollably. I can’t think of any serious paranormal researcher who thinks they are anything other than artefacts but there are plenty of members of the public who do.
Your keyword there,
Your keyword there, Mysteryshoppe, is the word ‘serious’.