The darkness of superstitions recedes a bit more

[Urban Ranger]

Ghosts 'all in the mind'

A chill in the air, low-light conditions and even magnetic fields may trigger feelings that "a presence" is in a room - but that is all they are, feelings.

This explanation of ghosts is the result of a large study in which researchers led hundreds of volunteers around two of the UK's supposedly most haunted locations - Hampton Court Palace, England, and the South Bridge Vaults in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Dr Richard Wiseman, of the University of Hertfordshire, and his colleagues say their work has thrown up some interesting data to suggest why so many people can be spooked in the same building but provides no evidence that ghosts are real.

This interesting study confirms the skpetic's contention, that ghosts are nothing but just tricks played by one's mind.

[Lorizael]

Does this explain some of the interesting light phenomena people encounter, such as glowing spheres and such?

[Urban Ranger]

Glowing spheres?

[Lorizael]

A good many people claim to have witnessed glowing spheres, sometimes more than one, in places said to be haunted. There have also been a lot of photographs captured of these spirit whatever thingies, though any photograph's authenticity is immediately suspect.

[Urban Ranger]

Those glowing spheres, if they exist, should be a rather definitive proof of the existence of ghosts/souls. So far, though, as you said, nobody could provide undisputed evidence of these spheres.

[MRT144]

UR, how do we know they are ghosts and souls though if they do exsist. one is assuming thats what they are if they see them. if you document them then its definitive proof they are glowing spheres of light, nothing more.

[Zero]

the amount of people died would indicate that there should be at least trillions of ghosts floating around. A bit unrealistic Id say.

Unless you say u need some special dumb reasons. Like you have to think that u're not dead or some really gay ones.

[Al B. Sure!]

Zero:

the thing i never understood about ghosts is that they are always found on battlefields, forts, or old buildings and are, in the US, always from the Civil War era or the Prohibition era...

if ghosts existed, then people would be seeing them in the streets of ever major city all the time and from all time periods...

i think the fact that we don't is proff that ghosts do not exist.

[Shi Huangdi]

"the amount of people died would indicate that there should be at least trillions of ghosts floating around. A bit unrealistic Id say."

[devil's advocate] Not nessecarily. Just because some people become ghosts doesn't mean all people do. It could simply be that there is something special we don't understand about those who do become ghosts.[/devil's advocate]

[GeneralTacticus]

[devil's advocate #2]Besides, even if everyone who dies becomes a ghost, that doesn't necessarily mean we would be able to see them. It could be just a tiny minority who are visible, or choose to become visible. [/devil's advocate #2]

[Lord Merciless]

It's scientifically proven that human cells emit large amount of energy (in forms of EM waves) before the body finally shuts down. Could ghosts come from people whose cells emitted extra-ordinary amount of energy?

Also, science is still in its infancy. Of the 4 fundamental forces, only electro-magnetic force is well understood and characterized. We still know very little about the strong nuclear force, the weak nuclear force, and the gravitational force.

[Ted Striker]

Psalm 46:10

[Ted Striker]

what's the difference between strong nuclear force and weak nuclear force?

[GeneralTacticus]

IIRC, strong nuclear force is what holds atomic nucleii together, while weak nuclear force is what holds protons and neutrons together (or the other way around, I'm not entirely sure).

[Sandman]

It's surprising that the South Bridge Vaults are considered haunted, I mean, they're just underground storage rooms, how many people could have died in them?