Materialization
The procedure through which a ghost appears. Materialization can be sudden or gradual, resulting in an entity that is indistinct or seeminglyquite solid.
Matrixing
The natural tendency of the human mind to add details to sensory input (perceived through the visual, auditory, olfactory or tactile senses) so as to create a familiar or easily understood pattern. In effect, matrixing is mentally "filling in the blanks."
Negative Intenty
The same as an "inhuman entity." An entity that likes to harm human beings.
Ouija Board
A wooden board preprinted with letters, numbers, and words, used by mediums to receive supernatural communications.
Bibliography
Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman, Pocket Books, 2009
Monday, February 28, 2011
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Ghost hunting terminology part 5
Globule
A ball of light, often seen in groups, that is visible to the naked eye. Its presence is believed to be an indicator of paranormal activity.
Haunting
The manifestation of a ghostly presence attached to a specific person or lo
cation.
Incubus
A male demon who lies on top of women as they sleep in order to have sexual intercourse with them.
Inhuman Entity
A demon or other spirit intent on causing harm to living beings. Also known as a negative entity or a denomic entity.
Intelligent Haunting
A supernatural entity that is aware of its surrounding and/or observers and is capable of interacting with them.
Bibliography
Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman, Pocket Books, 2009
A ball of light, often seen in groups, that is visible to the naked eye. Its presence is believed to be an indicator of paranormal activity.
Haunting
The manifestation of a ghostly presence attached to a specific person or lo
cation.
Incubus
A male demon who lies on top of women as they sleep in order to have sexual intercourse with them.
Inhuman Entity
A demon or other spirit intent on causing harm to living beings. Also known as a negative entity or a denomic entity.
Intelligent Haunting
A supernatural entity that is aware of its surrounding and/or observers and is capable of interacting with them.
Bibliography
Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman, Pocket Books, 2009
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Ghost Hunting Terminology Part 10
Religious Provocation
The use of prayer, holy water, and/or religious artifacts to make an inhuman entity show itself and leave a lo
cation. Only those trained in this kind of ritual should consider employing it.
Residual Haunting
A scene from the past that continues to be played out over and over again, like a recording, with the witness of the phenomena essentially peering into a formeer era. The ghostly participants in these time displacements often seem unaware of their living observers.
Sensitive
A medium, psychic, or clairvoyant. A sensitive can see or feel people, objects and events in the realm of the paranormal.
Thermal Imaging Digital Camera
A device that records images of long-wavelength infrared radion (i.e., heat) that are invisible to the human eye. The thermal imaging camera facilitates the capture of images in darkness, smoke or fog.
Vortex
An anomaly that sometimes shows up in still photographs taken at the site of a suspected haunting, appearing as a translucent white tube or funnel-shaped mass. Some researchers believe vortices may be portals to the spirit realm.
Bibliography
Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman, Pocket Books, 2009
The use of prayer, holy water, and/or religious artifacts to make an inhuman entity show itself and leave a lo
cation. Only those trained in this kind of ritual should consider employing it.
Residual Haunting
A scene from the past that continues to be played out over and over again, like a recording, with the witness of the phenomena essentially peering into a formeer era. The ghostly participants in these time displacements often seem unaware of their living observers.
Sensitive
A medium, psychic, or clairvoyant. A sensitive can see or feel people, objects and events in the realm of the paranormal.
Thermal Imaging Digital Camera
A device that records images of long-wavelength infrared radion (i.e., heat) that are invisible to the human eye. The thermal imaging camera facilitates the capture of images in darkness, smoke or fog.
Vortex
An anomaly that sometimes shows up in still photographs taken at the site of a suspected haunting, appearing as a translucent white tube or funnel-shaped mass. Some researchers believe vortices may be portals to the spirit realm.
Bibliography
Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman, Pocket Books, 2009
Ghost Hunters Terminology Part 4
Exorcism
Ritual expulsion of invading spiritual or demonic entities froma person or dwelling. The term was brought into the common vernacular by the 1973 The Exorcist.
Floating Orb
A spherical image, usually a translucent white though sometimes a reddish or bluish hue, which inexplicably registers on film or videotape. Its presence is thought by some to be an indicator of supernatural activity.
Ghost
The soul or spirit of a dead person, reflecting the appearance of his or her living body but less substantial Ghosts may exist in a state of semi-awareness or be completely cognizant of their living observers,
Ghost Hunter/ Investigator
A personwho attempts to gather evidence of ghosts or other paranormal activity. This may be accomplished by means of still photography, video, audi, EMF recording, EVP recordings, or other means.
Bibliography
Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman, Pocket Books, 2009
Ritual expulsion of invading spiritual or demonic entities froma person or dwelling. The term was brought into the common vernacular by the 1973 The Exorcist.
Floating Orb
A spherical image, usually a translucent white though sometimes a reddish or bluish hue, which inexplicably registers on film or videotape. Its presence is thought by some to be an indicator of supernatural activity.
Ghost
The soul or spirit of a dead person, reflecting the appearance of his or her living body but less substantial Ghosts may exist in a state of semi-awareness or be completely cognizant of their living observers,
Ghost Hunter/ Investigator
A personwho attempts to gather evidence of ghosts or other paranormal activity. This may be accomplished by means of still photography, video, audi, EMF recording, EVP recordings, or other means.
Bibliography
Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman, Pocket Books, 2009
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Ghost hunters haunt old mental asylum
Tasmanian ABC News: Ghost hunters haunt old mental asylum
Do you believe in ghosts or are you a sceptic?
In the Tasmanian town of New Norfolk stories about apparitions, strange sudden smells and unearthly happenings at the site of the former mental asylum have been circulating the local community and more recently the internet.
A former mental health hospital, Willow Court has unofficially become a drawcard for people who believe in the supernatural.
Now the Derwent Valley Council is determined to find out once and for all if there is any truth to the stories.
Councillors recently voted in favour of a paranormal investigation in at least two of the wards still standing.
A team of three from the Australian Paranormal Investigation Unit are now planning a two or three night stay in ward C and Alonnah that once housed the criminally insane.
Decommissioned by the Tasmanian Government in the 1990s, some of the wards have been knocked down to make way for development. Others are still empty - trashed by vandals.
Glenn Hevey, Nick Jarvis and Aiden Sullivan have long held an interest in Willow Court and the supernatural.
"I've loved it all my life," former New Norfolk boy Nick Jarvis said.
"What spurred my interest even more was the paranormal side of Willow Court and almost on a daily basis I've been getting reports of people seeing things and hearing things."
Three years ago, the three young men decided to get serious and set up the Australian Paranormal Investigations Unit.
They contacted the local Derwent Valley Council and the small team of ghost busters were given official council approval to investigate three wards that once housed the criminally insane.
"We went through the appropriate channels went through council, the committee endorsed it and it was voted on and approved. So it was a long process and we're pretty happy to be in that position," Mr Jarvis said.
The three men are certain there is a spiritual presence at the site, but believe it or not they have never had the camera when a spirit has appeared.
"When I was driving down the main avenue here at Willow Court, I was driving over some of the speed humps and the headlights shone on a white apparition figure," Mr Jarvis said.
This time they are determined to record a presence.
"We've got voice recorders to capture electronic voice phenomena, including static or stray noises. We've got electromagnetic field metres to hopefully capture any presences. We've got cameras, and we've got temp guns which we use with temperature readings to work out if there are any temperature spikes or drops," Mr Jarvis said.
Sceptic Leyon Parker wishes the team luck, but holds little hope for success.
"I think it's a waste of time," he said.
"I suppose people can choose to waste their time any way they like. If these people want to waste their time looking for ghosts that don't exist it's not my job to tell them they shouldn't do that."
To be convinced he says he would need "photographic evidence, there would have to be electronic recordings of some sort, the clearer the better, probably accompanying eyewitness accounts and it would certainly help if there was a sceptical mind there at the time this occurred".
There are some people in Tasmania hoping no such evidence is found, in fact they would prefer if Willow Court's history as an asylum for the state's mentally ill was not dragged up.
Locals have never been keen to admit having a relative at Willow Court, a family secret often considered more sensitive than a person's convict ancestry.
For that reason there are some councillors who are against a paranormal investigation.
Barry Lathey believes the asylum's more recent past should be left alone.
"I think this site is a bit too close to the people that were incarcerated in here and I think it would have, or may have, an adverse affect on their families," he said.
Former Mayor Tony Nicholson worked at Willow Court many years ago.
With strong memories of the patients, he believes the supernatural investigation is disrespectful.
But the ghost busters say finding a spiritual presence at Willow Court could silence the sceptics and have economic spinoffs for the area.
Do you believe in ghosts or are you a sceptic?
In the Tasmanian town of New Norfolk stories about apparitions, strange sudden smells and unearthly happenings at the site of the former mental asylum have been circulating the local community and more recently the internet.
A former mental health hospital, Willow Court has unofficially become a drawcard for people who believe in the supernatural.
Now the Derwent Valley Council is determined to find out once and for all if there is any truth to the stories.
Councillors recently voted in favour of a paranormal investigation in at least two of the wards still standing.
A team of three from the Australian Paranormal Investigation Unit are now planning a two or three night stay in ward C and Alonnah that once housed the criminally insane.
Decommissioned by the Tasmanian Government in the 1990s, some of the wards have been knocked down to make way for development. Others are still empty - trashed by vandals.
Glenn Hevey, Nick Jarvis and Aiden Sullivan have long held an interest in Willow Court and the supernatural.
"I've loved it all my life," former New Norfolk boy Nick Jarvis said.
"What spurred my interest even more was the paranormal side of Willow Court and almost on a daily basis I've been getting reports of people seeing things and hearing things."
Three years ago, the three young men decided to get serious and set up the Australian Paranormal Investigations Unit.
They contacted the local Derwent Valley Council and the small team of ghost busters were given official council approval to investigate three wards that once housed the criminally insane.
"We went through the appropriate channels went through council, the committee endorsed it and it was voted on and approved. So it was a long process and we're pretty happy to be in that position," Mr Jarvis said.
The three men are certain there is a spiritual presence at the site, but believe it or not they have never had the camera when a spirit has appeared.
"When I was driving down the main avenue here at Willow Court, I was driving over some of the speed humps and the headlights shone on a white apparition figure," Mr Jarvis said.
This time they are determined to record a presence.
"We've got voice recorders to capture electronic voice phenomena, including static or stray noises. We've got electromagnetic field metres to hopefully capture any presences. We've got cameras, and we've got temp guns which we use with temperature readings to work out if there are any temperature spikes or drops," Mr Jarvis said.
Sceptic Leyon Parker wishes the team luck, but holds little hope for success.
"I think it's a waste of time," he said.
"I suppose people can choose to waste their time any way they like. If these people want to waste their time looking for ghosts that don't exist it's not my job to tell them they shouldn't do that."
To be convinced he says he would need "photographic evidence, there would have to be electronic recordings of some sort, the clearer the better, probably accompanying eyewitness accounts and it would certainly help if there was a sceptical mind there at the time this occurred".
There are some people in Tasmania hoping no such evidence is found, in fact they would prefer if Willow Court's history as an asylum for the state's mentally ill was not dragged up.
Locals have never been keen to admit having a relative at Willow Court, a family secret often considered more sensitive than a person's convict ancestry.
For that reason there are some councillors who are against a paranormal investigation.
Barry Lathey believes the asylum's more recent past should be left alone.
"I think this site is a bit too close to the people that were incarcerated in here and I think it would have, or may have, an adverse affect on their families," he said.
Former Mayor Tony Nicholson worked at Willow Court many years ago.
With strong memories of the patients, he believes the supernatural investigation is disrespectful.
But the ghost busters say finding a spiritual presence at Willow Court could silence the sceptics and have economic spinoffs for the area.
'Ghost Hunters' returns for it's seventh season
Deseret News: 'Ghost Hunters' returns for it's seventh season
The Atlantic Paranormal Society (TAPS) crew is back for the seventh season of "Ghost Hunters," beginning with its first-ever investigation of an entire city.
In Wednesday's episode (7 p.m., Syfy), Grant and Jason lead the team to the historic Alexandria, La.
Does the entire-city approach change things up at all? No, not even a little.
At this point, you're either a fan of "Ghost Hunters" or you are not. You either really believe the TAPS team is picking up voices from beyond the grave on their digital recorders, or you see the group as midlife kids who believe clubs are just as cool today as they were in third grade.
From the archive
New 'Ghost Hunters' season for devoted fans only – Feb. 21, 2011
Are ghosts among us? Many believe in spirits, but churches offer stern warnings – Sept. 3, 2010
Hotel guests roam halls seeking a nice scare – Aug. 22, 2010
Scott D. Pierce: CBS' 'Cold Case' may be closing up shop for good – April 30, 2010
Scott D. Pierce: George Lopez welcomes Conan O'Brien to TBS – April 15, 2010
In either camp, there is a certain element of fun to the show. There is some part of each of us that wants to believe in ghosts, no matter how underwhelming the physical evidence. Only, after six seasons, the non-believers are probably getting a little bored with the formula, and the first two episodes of Season 7 do little to shake things up.
In Wednesday's episode, city officials call in TAPS to look at three paranormal "hot spots." The first is the historic Hotel Bentley, which was built in the early 1900s. Guests claim they've seen the original owner, and others even claim to have been tripped while descending stairs.
The next spot, Finnigan's Wake Tavern, presents an owner who's afraid to go into his own establishment alone. Reports of shadowy figures and tipping glasses have him asking TAPS for answers.
And finally, the Diamond Grill, a jewelry-store-turned-haunted-restaurant, has staffers telling stories of flickering lights and moving trays.
The investigation results are presented during a town hall meeting, and without giving away too much, they're pretty much the same results you've seen in every previous episode of "Ghost Hunters."
On March 2, the team does another asylum episode. The Pennhurst Asylum in Pennsylvania has a history far scarier than anything from the possible netherworld, but Syfy fans demand EVPs (electronic voice phenomena). So the TAPS team sets up cameras, laser grids and digital recorders to capture whatever strangeness they can.
Again, nothing new, but there are some genuinely creepy moments.
"Ghost Hunters" has a dedicated following that is pretty happy with two-word whispers and the occasional bump in the other room. For the casual viewer who is hoping to see an apparition on screen every week, there isn't likely much to be excited about — at least not from the first two episodes.
Short of proton packs and a few more "holy grail" shots, "Ghost Hunters" Season 7 is a core-fan only affair.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Ghost Hunter Terminology Part 3
Ectoplasm - A filmy, quasisolid substance that supposedly issues from the bodies of mediums while they are in trance states. Ectoplasm may issue from the mouth, the nostrils, the eyes, the ears, the navel, or the nipples. In photographs, ectoplasm resembles muslin fabric soaked in water.
Electromagnetic field recorder - A decvice used to record data on electromagnetic fields (EMFs). Its use is controversial among ghost hunters, in that EMFs from power lines, television sets, kitchen appliances and so on surround us constantly, and it has yet to be categorically proven that ghosts emit EM energy. On the other hand, some researchers say ghosts disrupt EMFs.
EVP - Electronic Voice Phenomena. Audio devices may record disembodied voices and other supernatural sounds that are not directly audible to the human ear.
Bibliography
Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman, Pocket Books, 2009
Electromagnetic field recorder - A decvice used to record data on electromagnetic fields (EMFs). Its use is controversial among ghost hunters, in that EMFs from power lines, television sets, kitchen appliances and so on surround us constantly, and it has yet to be categorically proven that ghosts emit EM energy. On the other hand, some researchers say ghosts disrupt EMFs.
EVP - Electronic Voice Phenomena. Audio devices may record disembodied voices and other supernatural sounds that are not directly audible to the human ear.
Bibliography
Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman, Pocket Books, 2009
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