Dr. Imants Baruchs of the University of Western Ontario in London, Canada, conducted two studies to test whether the dead could communicate with the living using electronic devices.
In the first experiment, this phenomenon was only partially reproduced. The study was published in the Journal of Scientific Exploration in 2001.
Dr. Imants Baruš and his assistants recorded radio sounds between stations. When they spoke to spirits that might be nearby, they heard something similar to phrases or words. The results of the experiment showed that the so-called "Electronic Voice Phenomenon" (EVP) may indeed exist, but unambiguous confirmation has not been received.
In a second experiment, conducted in 2007, he tried to eliminate some of the shortcomings of the first experiment. Instead of using radio, which allows for biased interpretation, he used a computer program that randomly generated letters and words. They wanted to see if any unusual phrases came up.
The emergence of logical and unusual phrases that cannot arise as a result of random typing could be evidence that the device is being influenced by a spirit trying to convey a message.
He also used an electronic voice generator, a device that slices sound files and glues them together at random. The idea was to see if there was any connection between the random word generator and the electronic voice generator.
The result was ambiguous: one significant sequence of words appeared, but many abnormal signals were not observed. The most interesting results came with another computer program that randomly generated the words "yes" or "no". The researchers asked 11 questions that could be answered yes or no, nine of which were answered correctly.
The two questions that were answered incorrectly could be interpreted in different ways. The wrong answer was given to the question: "Do we live in London?", Although the scientists do live in London, Ontario, Canada. Baruchs noted that the question was incorrectly worded, it sounded as if it was about the more famous British London. The second question asked: "Does the assistant have five children?" The answer was yes, but she actually has three children and two dogs. Baruchs believes that if the generator was really influenced by some creature, it could count the dogs along with the children.
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In any case, 9 out of 11 correct answers is "a unique coincidence in terms of statistics." In this program, the probability of getting such a result is 4.2%.
Most of the entries and the results of the random phrase and word generators did not show that the spirits were trying to communicate. However, Barushs noted other curious details of the experiments.
The experiment involved a woman who considered herself a medium. She was invited in the hope that she could sense the presence of spirits trying to communicate through electronic devices and give advice on how best to conduct the experiment.
During the session, the scientists asked the question: "What do we need to know and what we do not understand enough in this matter?" The medium immediately heard the electronic voice generator give out the word "opportunity." At the same moment, the generator of random phrases was activated and created the phrase "there was a clear opportunity and a name." Baruchs and the other scientist did not hear the word "opportunity" at that moment, but they did hear it on the tape.
During another session, scientists asked the question: "What should we do to improve the work?" The generator of random phrases issued: "We take the measurement when it is hopeless to continue." Baruchs and his colleagues wondered if the word "continue" was a signal that they should not stop testing. They again activated the phrase generator, and he issued: "Feel reach the light figure out the figure of the logical people to continue." The word "continue" was repeated.
The random letter generator did not produce any impressive results, Barush emphasized.
The medium said that from her point of view, a huge effort is needed for spirits to influence electronic devices, and few people will do it. But she said she received messages from deceased scientists, including a former colleague of Baruchs, who "discussed quantum theory and the connection between mind and matter in a very similar manner." He and the medium tried to meditate before the experiment, as recommended by the spirit through the medium.
“Since we are conducting experiments in such a hypothetical area, I and the medium began to feel that we were entering a zone of uncertainty. This is contrary to the clear criteria that are necessary for scientific research, - writes Barush. “But we thought that such uncertainty could be useful, at least at this stage, so that this phenomenon could take clear forms.”
He continued: “For example, during the 11th session we decided not to use the yes / no generator, because that would immediately save us from ambiguity. We experimented with the yes / no generator only during the 25th and final session, asking questions we know the answers to."
Baruchs also believes that a computer program may not produce a sufficiently arbitrary set of letters. As a result, no creature tries to influence him. Another possibility is that the devices are influenced by the consciousness of the scientists themselves. Experiments carried out at the Princeton University Anomaly Research Laboratory (PEAR) have shown that human consciousness can physically affect electronic devices.