Do paranormal investigators really investigate things of substance or do they just study thin air?

Question

Do paranormal investigators really investigate things of substance or do they just study thin air?

Answer 1

If one is feeling like a student he/she founds a Teacher.

Answer 2

When I go out on an investigation, I try to debunk the obvious.

Sometimes I can't find an explanation as to what I had witnessed.

But I always keep an open mind.

Answer 3

Obama sucks, listen to his speech on Youtube 52 seconds

"I’m the only major candidate who opposed this war from the beginning. And as president I will end it. Second, I will cut tens of billions of dollars in wasteful spending. I will cut investments in unproven missile defense systems. I will not weaponize space, I will slow our development of future combat systems. And I will institute an independent defense priorities board to ensure quadrennial defense review is not used to justify unnecessary spending.  Third, I will set a goal of a world without nuclear weapons. To seek that goal I will not develop new nuclear weapons, I will seek a global ban on the production of missile material, and I will negotiate with Russia to take our ICBM’s off hair trigger alert. And to achieve deep cuts in our nuclear arsenals"

He's nuts!

Answer 4

EVPs...undeniably substance<electronic voice phenomona>

Answer 5

they investigate the substance paranormaly by studying thin air....

Answer 6

We examine reported Paranormal Activity in a Objective, Scientific manner.  We open each Examination from a Skeptical viewpoint, attempting to Explain Logically (i.e."de-bunk") the reported Activity.  We are able to do so about 80% of the time.  The other 20% defies explanation, and withstands the most intense scrutiny.

I have been a Paranormal Examiner since 1980, after having my own Experience that I couldn't understand, nor get a  Logical Explanation for.  

We use State-of-the-Art Recording Equipment in the Audio, Video, and Digital realm. We also use equipment to measure Temperature (meters and Thermal Cam) and Electro Magnetic Field variations.  

We will only accept  Activity that has been Verified with multiple methods as "evidence".  I have been accused of being too "narrow-minded" for not accepting personal experiences as "evidence" ...for without conclusive Recorded Datum to support the Experience.....it's just a Story.  We do not use "mediums" or "psychics" or "demonologists" in the course of an Examination...for those are Subjective, subject to Interpretation by multiple standards.  

Without the PROOF, supposed Activity is just a nice story to tell around the campfire toasting marshmallows...where all good "ghost" stories belong.

Answer 7

yeh they study areas,buildings,rooms,items,etc

Answer 8

Well I also am into cryptozoology.  I find strange critters in the forest and give them to a friend that is a herpetology teacher at the collage.  We have some cool snakes here, one with a scale pattern on its head that looks like an extra eye.  My interest is in anything that should not be, but is!

Answer 9

There's some honest ones that post right here.Most though they see the paranormal in everything.They're making most of it up and it's obvious.The honest investigators see the boasters as a bad joke.

Answer 10

The only thin air that I have ever investigated is the sort of air that is usually found between the ears....as for substance, that is not a judgement call.  I listen to what the problem seems to be with a potential client and if they need help, I will try to help if I am able.

Answer 11

They study anything out of the ordinary that could show signs of paranormal activity.  Air, houses, rocks, water, and other objects.  Like, if a chair flies across a room, they study the chair and the room, the air, and even the people in the place, for signs of something out of the ordinary.  Some investigators do try to find a normal cause of activity first before declaring the odd occurrence paranormal.  They make sure it's not something normal, like gravity, or a squirrel in the attic.

Answer 12

A few months ago I saw a program on the Discovery Channel that showcased people who invented machines that did not operate within the principles of accepted science.  For example, one machine appeared to put out more energy then it consumed.  I do not remember the name of the program.  Sorry.  But reading your question reminded me of another case presented on the show.  One man, a Canadian, used military surplus equipment and created a machine that levitated objects.  I am not talking about magnetic levitation.  It levitated Styrofoam cups, glass objects, and all sorts of non-ferrous materials.  He contacted numerous organizations including the US DOE about his discovery, anti-gravity.  Of course they came and witnessed the objects floating themselves.  When interviewed, the DOE spokesman said that he doubted it was anti-gravity but was more likely the guy who thought he discovered anti-gravity doing it with his mind.

I am relating this because I think it was more palatable to think he had telekinesis then to think he violated the laws of physics.

Then there is the nearly on-line super-collider at CERN.  Billions of dollars spent to look for ghosts or theoretical particles.

I am chattering.  Forgive this wondering mind.  To the point, I think there are parapsychologists and the are parapsychologists, much the same as there are theoretical physicists and kitchen scientists.  I can't use a broad paint brush when addressing an entire group of people. I think that  some are trying legitimate quantitative and qualitative methods to prove or disprove the existence of the unseen (like those particle guys at CERN and Fermi)and others are seeing proof where others see thin air.

Answer 13

I don't "investigate"..but I know from experience that there are unexplainable things "out there".  I think some of it is done by people astral traveling and other psychic things..but that doesn't account for everything. I'm not aware of anything happening in my life anymore...but that doesn't mean it isn't. I don't know what makes some people more aware than others..or why I'm not so aware anymore..maybe because I've refused to "listen". I used to "listen" for God..as we were told to do in church..but I believe I  was deceived. So now I don't "receive" anything anymore.But that doesn't mean that other people don't. (BTW...where do you find this "thin air". Almost all air is polluted now.)

Answer 14

It depends on what you consider substance and the approach of the individual investigator.

For example the study of human experience (seeing a ghost) is the study of thin air (human experience is not the same as a brick building). However, it may be a substantial experience in the person's life.

Other investigators like William Roll study the environmental factors where paranormal activity is reported attempting to correlate those factors with the experience. In this sense substance (EM fields, power lines, underground water sources, faulty wiring, sonic frequencies, etc,) is being studied.

Psi

Answer 15

All depends on what you believe...however...in my case, I've had a couple of things happen to me that could not be explained by physics, or anything "worldly"...

I'm a 49 year old, erudite female...and sometimes, I think there is "energy" still around that cannot be explained with what is considered "rational" explanation...

There are some people who have never had any experience of any kind and therefore put no credence in those of us who have,,,

Answer 16

There are some legitimate paranormal investigators out there who approach the subject as objectively as possible, but unfortunately many (if not most) seem to have less interest in investigating the paranormal than they do in proving ghosts exist.  Their m.o. is to find an anomaly and declare it a ghost.

Answer 17

They have a show with real people from penn state univ that investigate these things and some are fake but some are real deals also.My mom passed suddenly leaving me with her newly adopted son and when she died i would get phone calls at all times of the night and no one would be there' and then the operater would come on and say if you want to make a call hang up .I know it was my mom and still i hear noises and light bulbs burn out in a day or just blow out.people believe what they want but i know and can tell that's my mom ' checking in and letting me know she is still around us..

Answer 18

Our group's approach is to see what is causing whatever the home owner is experiencing.  If they hear doors slam, we try to see why the door slammed:  open window, slanted floor, a pet, if lights are flickering, we check the lamps, bulbs, wiring...if we can't re-create the incident, THEN we consider it paranormal in nature, and go from there.  We offer research on the property if the owners don't know anything about the house, we'll look up former owners, newspaper archives to see if there was something that happened in that house, etc.  There's more to actual investigating than sitting in the dark. The real work begins when you go home and check your data.   So, I'd say no, we don't investigate thin air.