Million for psychic abilities. Illusionist James Randi: biography, award and educational foundation. The emergence of skepticism

Almost a century ago, Scientific American magazine established the first prize for demonstrating paranormal abilities, promising to pay the winner $2.5 thousand. Last week, a similar project appeared in Russia. Three applications have already been submitted for the award: the first candidate claims that she has the gift of clairvoyance, the second that she is a medium and can communicate with the dead, the third reports thirty years of experience in contact and non-contact treatment of herself and others. The organizers announced that within two weeks they will decide which tests each of the participants will undergo and will contact them.

The established prize is named after Harry Houdini.

“We didn’t choose the name Houdini by chance: this legendary illusionist and hypnotist struggled with charlatanism all his life, which is why he even quarreled with his close friend, who was a fan of spiritualism,” says Ph.D. and a representative of the award's organizing council. — By the way, it’s interesting that in modern society Harry Houdini is perceived as a cross between a magician, a mystic and a hoaxer."

The founders of the award guarantee that whoever demonstrates paranormal abilities within the framework of a correctly conducted scientific experiment, will receive a payment in the amount of 1 million rubles. and the ability to read the entire genome. “During this analysis, all the genetic characteristics of the Harry Houdini Prize winner will be revealed,” the project organizers say.

According to the rules published on the award website, abilities that contradict the scientific picture of the world are considered supernatural. Thus, the organizers of the project invite everyone who can prove that they have telepathy, clairvoyance, telekinesis or levitation to participate. The slogan of the award is the words of an American astrophysicist and outstanding popularizer of science: “Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.”

It is curious that the idea of ​​​​experimentally testing the abilities of psychics is liked by some representatives of religious movements.

“I think that the gift of influencing people’s lives with the help of prayer, an icon or holy water can also be classified as a paranormal ability and tested,” the candidate ironically notes biological sciences, senior Researcher Institute for Information Transmission Problems, part of the organizing committee and expert council of the Houdini Prize.

“There are two categories of “psychics”: those who are well versed in psychology and business, and those who are sincerely mistaken and believe that they have supernatural abilities,” says the illusionist, who is part of the expert council of the Houdini Prize. - The second category, like all of us, from time to time sees dreams similar to reality and assumes that it correctly predicts events, and simply forgets about unfulfilled predictions. By the way, in the book for illusionists there is a warning that when techniques, such as fortune telling, are practiced on many spectators and become a skill, there is a chance that you yourself will begin to believe in the supernatural. I once fell into a similar trap myself! I think I'm not the only one."

Members of the Houdini Prize organizing committee shared with a Gazeta.Ru correspondent stories of interactions with people posing as psychics.

“Once I was in a small town, where a man of about fifty was performing on the stage of the local recreation center, showing ordinary tricks and passing them off as amazing abilities your brain,” says Mikhail Lidin, a skeptic and video blogger. — For example, he invited viewers to write different words on the board behind him, and then “guessed” these words. In fact, the speaker did not possess any telepathy, but simply, with the help of simple tricks, could see what was written behind his back. I also gave him the opportunity to “count” the words I said. They were ordinary words like “alphabet” or “elevator,” but I wrote them backwards on the board. If the speaker really were a telepath, he would have called them as intended. But he, of course, read the words as they were written: “tivafla” or “tefill” - and did not understand their meaning. By the way, after several of my critical remarks about the “psychic,” I discovered that some viewers turned into skeptics.”

“One of my relatives’ friends was working as a healer in the city hospital,” recalls Stanislav Nikolsky. — It was the mid-nineties, and no one thought it strange. Then there was a huge number of all kinds of “healers” who worked only with those who “believed in their power.” At the same time, such people did not demonstrate visual miracles. By the way, one of my friends died suddenly, having chosen sessions with paranormal representatives instead of official medicine.”

The organizers of the award admit that their source of inspiration is the foundation of the former illusionist, skeptic and debunker of pseudoscientific theories, James Randi. The American organization promises to pay $1 million to anyone who can demonstrate paranormal abilities under the conditions of a correct experiment. Over the 19 years of the fund’s existence, not a single applicant has walked away with the promised amount. Tried to get an award Russian girl Natasha Lulova, who claimed that she could read words and distinguish colors without the aid of sight. However, James Randi determined that the “psychic,” due to the unusual concavity of the bridge of his nose, was simply peeking through the bandage. By the way, modern illusionists willingly demonstrate tricks during which they “see”, wearing similar and even more reliable headbands.

“Some “psychics” come up with excuses in advance for why they won’t be able to demonstrate their abilities under experimental conditions,” says Alexander Panchin. — On this subject it is appropriate to quote a remarkable passage from work of art"and methods of rational thinking."

“Imagine: someone tells you that there is a dragon at home. You answer that you want to look at him. You are informed that this is an invisible dragon. Great, you say, in that case you want to hear it. They tell you that this is a completely silent dragon. You announce that you will throw flour into the air to see its outline. They explain to you that flour passes right through this dragon. And, having said all this, the explainer knows in advance what exactly the result of the experiment he needs to explain in his favor. He knows that everything will go as if there were no dragon, he knows in advance what he must invent an excuse for. Perhaps this someone is only claiming that the dragon exists. Perhaps he believes that he believes that the dragon exists. This is called "conviction within conviction." But he doesn't actually believe that the dragon exists."

It's the same with psychics. Some of them are scammers and they know they won't pass the test. Such people will not even try. Only those who are sincerely confident in their abilities will come for testing. We will interact with such people. But, most likely, they will be disappointed.”

When showing the first season of the “Battle of Psychics” on TNT, it was said when determining the winner: she will now be able to take tests at the James Randi Foundation.
It's better than that Mikhail Vinogradov, a criminologist was asked, were the finalists of the Battle tested there? For what Vinogradov replied that Randy is a scammer, the million is not paid in money, but is promised only in shares of this Fund. It was mentioned that you have to pay for everything out of your own pocket: hotel, food, transportation. There are no details, but these sufficiently hint at what is apparently Vinogradov with Vorotnikova Apparently we've been there.
And so they sent me a link on my website about an article about how others passed a test like Randy’s:

By chance I came across the article “Exposing James Randi”, which confirms that James Randi is avoiding any excuse to spend his million. He is not at all interested in the opportunity to prove that there are people with supernatural abilities. He simply had the opportunity to live comfortably at the expense of the collected million, so such people are a threat to his wealthy life.

Sincerely, Mark Komissarov ».

“A famous American illusionist, TV presenter and popularizer of science” - this is how the former magician was described James Randi one of the printed publications. In fact, his achievements in popularizing science are rivaled only by Torquemada- Grand Inquisitor of the Middle Ages. And is it even legitimate to talk about any kind of rivalry when it comes to like-minded people? This is not a rivalry, but just a friendly competition in the number of new sprouts roughly trampled into the dirt and ruined.

I take the liberty of making such a statement because I know Mr. Randy firsthand. Fate wanted to bring us together. The fact is that I do what the American Association for the Progress of Science defines as “Parapsychology”, and people in everyday life call “Clairvoyance”.

In particular, we work with the human brain’s ability to Perceive Information about the World around us. That is, to our brain receiving information from the outside directly, without using the senses for this. We are doing this quite successfully, and our results can really impress an uninitiated person as a miracle. My students, wearing tight blindfolds, read and write, move around the room, play with a ball, and even box. They are able to look into the past, read text from a blank computer monitor, see through walls, and much more.

Quite by accident, about a year and a half ago, I came across a newspaper publication dedicated to James Randi and his appeal to any person with paranormal abilities. It said, in particular:

« I, James Randi, undertake to pay the amount of 1,000,000 US dollars through James Randi Educational Foundation any person (or group of persons) who demonstrates any psychic, supernatural or paranormal ability of any kind under satisfactory conditions of observation».

After reading this message, I thought that this is for us great opportunity declare that paranormal phenomena are not fiction, but objective reality. Yes, if at the same time our school can receive a financial base in the amount of a million dollars, then this will give us good opportunity for further development.

I entrusted one of my best students, Natasha Lulova, to represent our school in Randy’s challenge. This ten-year-old girl perfectly demonstrated the ability to visually perceive the world around her without using her visual organs. On her behalf, through a lawyer, an application was submitted to James Randi Educational Foundation. I will say right away that our attempt James Randi failed successfully. The desire to understand the technology of such a “skill” made me take up the pen.

So a few years ago James Randi shouldered an extremely difficult and honorable (in his opinion) mission - to publicly expose charlatan mystifiers who presented their clever tricks as miracles and called them paranormal manifestations. Mr. himself Randy, as a former magician, of course, did not believe in miracles, did not like amateur magicians, and therefore took on the task of exposing them with all the fervor of his restless soul.

Although, it must be said that the very concept of a “miracle” in Mr. Randy was somewhat specific. However, as well as about the methods of exposing it.

…Imagine that by the will of fate you find yourself a guest of an Indian tribe in the jungle of the upper reaches of the Amazon River. This tribe, in its development, is still in the Stone Age, and you, wanting to amaze them, show them a radio, a video camera and cellular telephone. And then ask the aborigines if there are miracles in the world? You can be absolutely sure that they will answer you positively. What to take from them - savages...

James Randi was born in 1928. As a child, he had a bicycle accident, and, according to doctors, it should have permanently deprived the boy of the ability to walk. But willpower and self-confidence forced little James disprove all forecasts and recover. Perhaps this is what defined him future fate, because already at the age of 17, James Randi began performing magic tricks in road shows.

While performing his tricks, the young man met with many illusionists, learning from them the science of “working miracles.” In 1946, he himself began his career as an illusionist, performing shows, participating in television shows, and performing at the Alice Cooper Theater. Creating miracles with his own hands every day, James Randi gradually became a skeptic and already in the 70s. publicly engages in debunking reports of paranormal activity.

James Randi Foundation and the promise of a $1,000,000 prize

In 1996, Randy founded his own foundation. His activities are related to the promotion of skepticism and scientific methods of study. Every year, American students whose work can claim to be scientific and critical receive awards of several thousand US dollars. A critical approach to the chosen direction, great potential and the use of scientific methods of knowledge are the key to guaranteeing receipt of rewards from the fund.

But, of course, it was not student awards that made the James Randi Foundation famous throughout the world. Interest in it is attracted by the official statement of the founder that he will pay $1,000,000 of his own funds to anyone who can prove in an experiment that they have paranormal abilities. To become an applicant, one of the following conditions must be met:

1. Publication about unusual abilities in any print media, official announcement on television (own publications are excluded).
2. Officially certified recommendations from a doctor of medicine, scientist, academic organization.
3. Professionally filmed high-quality video (must not be filmed by the applicant himself).

Unbelievable but true

Over the 18-year life of the fund, not a single applicant has managed to receive a prize. Moreover, many famous psychics, spiritualists and other owners of paranormal abilities refused James Randi's offer to take part in testing. Among them:

• American writer and psychic Sylvia Brown, who publicly stated that receiving this award was a piece of cake for her
• Israeli psychic Uri Geller, whose career was repeatedly damaged by James Randi's public revelations
• Spiritualist Gary Schwartz
• French homeopath Jacques Benveniste

However, this does not stop those wishing to receive money, and the fund receives thousands of applications every year. Russians were also candidates: it is known for sure that a 10-year-old girl, Natasha Lulova, participated in the experiment (testing was not completed).

Today, any adult can take part in testing, regardless of race, citizenship, education, etc.

James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF)- private educational fund, created by James Randi. Registered in the USA. Engaged in research and scientific verification of facts presented by various individuals and organizations as so-called “paranormal phenomena”.

Story

The award proposal has been edited several times, currently version 2.0 dated March 9, 2011 is current.

The introductory part of the sentence states:

The JREF will pay US$1,000,000 (One Million US Dollars) (“The Prize”) to any person who demonstrates any psychic, supernatural, or paranormal ability under satisfactory observation. Such demonstration must take place under the rules and limitations described in this document.
(JREF will pay a prize in the amount of USD $1,000,000 (one million US dollars) to any person who demonstrates any psychic, supernatural or paranormal abilities under valid experimental conditions. Such demonstration must be carried out within the rules and restrictions described in this document.)

Official statement about the award, the Russian translation is not official

So far, not a single applicant has been able to achieve this award, although there were quite a lot of applicants - about 50 people a year apply for testing. One of the first testing experiments was to test a group of people who declared themselves dowsers and claimed that they could find water underground. To test dowsers, a method was developed, described later in this article. Not a single applicant passed testing according to this scheme.

At least one candidate for the award is known from Russia - this is Natasha Lulova (at the time of testing - ten years old, originally from Russia, for the last few years she has been living in the USA with her parents), who, under the leadership of a certain Mark Komissarov (also a native of Russia, by education - chemical engineer) tried to demonstrate the ability to distinguish colors and read words without the help of vision. The test was failed, but at the same time the solution to the “phenomenon” was found - the girl, due to the peculiarities of her face structure, could simply peek through a bandage that did not fit tightly enough.

Randy's repeated attempts to involve well-known “psychics” and “magicians” in testing were unsuccessful. His offers were rejected, in particular, by the Israeli psychic Uri Geller, famous for his ability to bend spoons with his gaze and stop and start watches from a distance, French homeopath Jacques Benveniste, and Arizona spiritualist Gary Schwartz, who demonstrated communication with the dead on a television show. Psychic Sylvia Brownie evaded testing, declaring on television that she could easily receive the Randy Foundation Award.

Since about 2007, only people who have published about their abilities in the media or have documents confirming their abilities issued by official academic organizations can apply for testing.

Test conditions and procedure

Any legally competent applicant who has reached the age of 18 is allowed to take the test, regardless of his gender, race or level of education. An application for testing is submitted in writing (the form is published) to the JREF office, in which the applicant must briefly (within 250 words) describe the essence of his paranormal abilities. In order for an application to be considered, the applicant must provide evidence of the declared ability. The following are accepted as such:

1. Formal recommendations from a professional scientist, academic institution, or medical doctor.
2. Publications in printed works or media (except those self-published by the applicant and/or published exclusively on the Internet).
3. High-quality professional video recording (recordings made by the applicant themselves are not accepted).

The first or second type of recommendations are preferable. In any case, each application and each set of recommendations is considered individually. If the application is accepted, the applicant is notified of this in writing, otherwise a justified refusal is sent. An applicant who provides only a video recording as a recommendation may be refused acceptance of the application without explanation.

The Randy Foundation accepts as evidence of psychic abilities only the results of its own testing, conducted in accordance with officially published rules. No other evidence, including documents, video recordings, or testimony of third parties, is grounds for payment of a premium. The Foundation also reserves the right to refuse the applicant if the experiment is highly likely to be dangerous to the life and health of the subject or other persons (in particular, it is associated with restrictions on food, water, breath holding, the use of narcotic or other dangerous or prohibited substances, the use of dangerous technical devices).

According to the official announcement of the James Randi Foundation, testing for paranormal abilities is carried out in accordance with the following basic principles:

1. The applicant must clearly and definitively state what specific abilities he will demonstrate.
2. It is agreed in advance between the award applicant and representatives of the foundation how the experiment will be carried out. Also, the parties must agree in advance what will be considered a positive and what will be considered a negative result of the experiment. The experiment is designed in such a way that the result is obvious to anyone to a normal person, who has familiarized himself with the agreement between the applicant and the fund on what is considered a positive and what is a negative result. Thus, the presence of a panel of judges and the possibility of disputes about the results of the experiment are excluded.
3. The applicant may be asked to conduct an informal demonstration of his or her abilities under conditions similar to the formal testing so that the parties can ensure that the experimental conditions are acceptable.
4. After a documented approval of the procedure, the applicant must undergo preliminary testing. Pre-testing is carried out once and must be successful. Only after passing it is the applicant allowed to take official testing, which, if passed, is the basis for awarding the award. The text of the proposal emphasizes that so far not a single applicant has reached the stage of official testing.
5. The official test will be conducted at the fund's office or other location of the fund's choosing. At the official testing, an independent observer is present, to whom the fund gives a check for $10,000. If, as a result of the experiment, according to its stipulated conditions, the applicant actually demonstrates the claimed paranormal ability, the observer must immediately hand over the check to the applicant. The rest of the premium is paid by the fund through the bank within no more than the next ten days.

In addition, a number of procedural rules and legal guarantees are stipulated, in particular:

1. Any correspondence regarding the application will be conducted in English only.
2. Any information materials obtained during the experiment, including photographs, video and audio recordings, etc., can subsequently be used by the foundation anywhere and anytime.
3. All expenses for travel to the testing site, accommodation, and meals are paid by the applicant himself.
4. The applicant in advance waives legal action against the Foundation and James Randi if the testing or its results cause moral, physical, material, professional or other harm to the applicant.
5. An applicant who fails the preliminary test may re-apply no earlier than 12 months after submitting the first. The same applicant cannot apply more than twice.
6. If the applicant is able to pass the official test, the fund will pay him a bonus and officially recognize the fact of passing the test and payment, but this will not mean that the fund recognizes the existence of supernatural phenomena.

Testing example (dowsing)

When the location of the pipes was discovered, it turned out that none of the dowsers passed the test. Borga carefully placed his markers, but the closest one was 8 feet from the active pipe. Borga said, "We lost," but after just two minutes he began complaining that he hadn't taken into account things like sunspots and geomagnetic variations. Two dowsers thought they had found natural water before the test, but they disagreed with each other where it was located, as well as with those who did not find it at all.

Notes

Links

• Application for testing in the JREF fund - Russian translation (by now the translation is outdated compared to the current edition of the fund's proposal).
• The myth of the million dollar challenge (English) - a critical article on the site of supporters of paranormal phenomena. The anonymous author (Greg) argues that the Randy Foundation's proposal does not serve in good faith scientific study paranormal phenomena, as it contains too high requirements that practically exclude receiving a bonus. See also the answer on randi.org - “The Grubbies Attack!” - where Randy explains why the high statistical criteria were chosen.

Literature

• Christopher, Milbourne (1975), "Mediums, Mystics, & the Occult", Thomas Y. Crowell Co., ISBN 0-690-00476-1
• Polidoro, Massimo (2003), "Secrets of the Psychics: Investigating Paranormal Claims", Prometheus Books, ISBN 1-59102-086-7
• Randi, James (1982), “Flim-Flam! », Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-198-3

see also

$1,112,000 for a miracle

The famous American illusionist, TV presenter and popularizer of science James Randi several years ago offered a prize of ten thousand dollars to anyone who unequivocally and unambiguously demonstrates any of the so-called parapsychological or extrasensory phenomena.

Telepathy, clairvoyance, levitation (lifting a person into the air without any technical devices), telekinesis (moving objects with the power of thought), spiritual contacts with the afterlife, surgical operations with bare hands, and other phenomena that do not fit into the ordinary ideas of science and common sense a. If only the demonstration, carried out under controlled conditions of a scientific experiment, was clear and indisputable.
Since the award was announced, more than 260 other people and organizations interested in the problem have contributed to the fund created by Randy, and by last spring the award had grown to one million one hundred twelve thousand US dollars. There were applicants to receive it, but none of them were able to undeniably demonstrate their supernatural abilities.

Our editors received the full text of the award announcement from the Internet. We publish its translation. Let us note that in the USA the English text is considered legally valid, so we ask our psychics not to send Mr. Randy leaflets from “Science and Life”, but to ask him to sign, as stated in the advertisement, the original text. It seems that in our country there are many phenomena who want to pick up the thrown gauntlet.
This statement outlines the general terms on which I make an offer to those who claim psychic, supernatural or paranormal abilities. Since applicants' applications will be very diverse in nature and scope, each applicant must have its own specific verification rules. However, all applicants must agree to the ground rules proposed herein before entering into any formal agreement with me. The applicant must indicate his consent by signing this text in the indicated place in the presence of a public notary and returning the signed text to me. Before any verification procedures can begin, both parties will need to agree on what the final verification procedure should be for the claimed abilities. We cannot pretend to be judges. The verification scheme will be developed only with the participation of the applicant. Before starting negotiations, each applicant must submit information about himself. Since the volume of correspondence can be significant, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope with your letter or, if you do not live in the United States, just a self-addressed envelope.

This offering is currently provided and guaranteed by the James Randi Educational Foundation (JEF) in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The amount offered is constantly growing. You can ask the James Randi Educational Foundation about how big it has reached so far.

I, James Randi, agree to pay the sum of US$1,112,000 through the James Randi Educational Foundation to any person (or group of persons) who demonstrates any psychic, supernatural or paranormal ability of any kind under satisfactory conditions of observation. Such demonstration must take place in accordance with the following rules and subject to the following restrictions:

1. The applicant must clearly state in advance and agree with Mr. Randy exactly what powers or abilities he intends to demonstrate, as well as the conditions of the proposed demonstration (its time, place and other details), and what will be considered a positive and negative result.

3 . The Applicant agrees that all data (photographs, audio or video footage, recordings) of any kind collected during the testing may be used by Mr. Randi in any manner that J. Randi chooses.

4. The test plan will be designed in such a way that no judging procedure is required. The results must be self-evident to any observer and fit within the rules that both parties concerned will jointly develop before the formal testing procedure begins. No detail of the test procedure may be changed without the express consent of all parties concerned.

5. The applicant may be asked to first demonstrate his or her stated abilities informally before a representative designated by the OPDR if distance and time dictate such a need. This preliminary screening should help determine whether the applicant is truly capable of delivering what they promise.

6. Expenses, for example, for travel, accommodation or others, which are borne by the applicant, are paid by him.

7. By accepting this challenge, challenger waives all rights to sue Mr. Randy or OFDR to the extent possible under existing provisions. This applies to cases of any injuries, accidents and any other damage, physical or mental, financial or professional. This rule does not in any way affect the award of the prize.

8. Before the formal testing process begins, Mr. Randy will give a check for his share of the promised bonus ($10,000) to be held by an independent person selected by the applicant. In the event that the applicant successfully proves his or her ability within the mutually agreed upon terms, a check for $10,000 will be immediately given to the applicant by the holder of that check, and the James Randi Educational Foundation will begin notifying the 266 guarantors (who have promised to pay additional funds, bringing the award to March 31, 1996 up to 1,112,000 US dollars) about the need to pay the additional amounts they promised to the applicant. In any case, OFDR undertakes to pay the entire promised amount within seven (7) days, and assumes the obligation to collect the promised amounts from the guarantors. This will make it easier to pay full amount to the applicant.

9. Copies of this document are sent free of charge to any person who sends a request, enclosing a self-addressed and stamped envelope.

10. This proposal is being made by the James Randi Educational Foundation independently and not on behalf of any other person, agency or organization, although other parties may be involved in reviewing applications. Other individuals or organizations, if certain conditions are met, can add their own funds to the premium amount. Execution and testing are provided by J. Randi and (or) OFDR.

11 . This offer is open to all persons in any part of the world, regardless of gender, race, education, etc., and will remain valid until someone receives this award or until the death of James Randi. Randi's will states that upon his death, the amount designated for the award will be deposited in the name of the James Randi Educational Fund, which will administer the money. The Foundation is directed to continue to extend the offer of payment of the award for 10 years after the death of James Randi, after which the amount may be used by the Foundation for any purpose at its discretion.

12. Each applicant must agree in advance to the criteria by which it will be decided whether or not he has demonstrated his claimed ability or phenomenon.

By signing, notarizing and sending this document to the OFDR, the applicant expresses his agreement with all the above rules.

James Randi , on behalf of the James Randi Educational Foundation, c/o James Randi Educational Foundation, 201 S.E. Davie Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316-1815, USA .

Warning

Please keep in mind that several applicants have already put themselves in a very awkward position by failing the tests. I strongly advise you, before nominating for a prize, to independently conduct a double-blind experiment in accordance with all the rules of science to test the ability that you want to demonstrate. This advice has already saved me and many applicants a lot of time and trouble, since in preliminary experiments it was discovered that the declared abilities were only imaginary. Please check yourself and do not dismiss the need for such precautions.