The Science of the Paranormal

The Science of the Paranormal exposes students to information literacy, the wonders of the universe and human consciousness, the limitations of the scientific method, and the mental health benefits of meditation.

I originally developed The Science of the Paranormal as an Honors elective, which included three years of intensive research in the field of parapsychology. This version of the course received strong reviews and I was encouraged by the director of the Honors program to convert the course to a University Seminar. It has been among the most highly-enrolled electives at Arcadia University each semester it has run. 

Drs. Barry O'Connor, Tracey Levine, Daniel Schall, Terrie Lewine, and Helene Klein oversaw the development of the course and worked with me to refine my ideas. 

The following sources were used in the development of the course:

COURSE-SPECIFIC RESEARCH                                                                                                                                                        

Books:

Gharwang, Zurmang. How to Visualize, Recite, & Dissolve

Gharwang, Zurmang. A Precious Gift

Gilbert, Elizabeth. Eat, Pray, Love

Newberg, Andrew & Waldman, Robert. How God Changes Your Brain: Breakthrough Findings from a Leading Neuroscientist

Weber, Max. The Sociology of Religion

Breen, Michael. The Koreans

Kottak, Conrad Phillips. Mirror for Humanity

Kyongsan. The Functioning of a Buddha’s Mind

Chwasan. We Live as We Believe

Lewis, James. The Dream Encyclopedia

Nisbett, Richard. The Geography of Thought

Pinker, Steven. How the Mind Works

Horgan, John. The Undiscovered Mind

Begley, Sharon. Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain

Talbot, Michael. The Holographic Universe

Pabongka, Jampa Tenzin Trinley Gyatso. Liberation in Our Hands. Part Two: The Fundamentals

Gharwang, Zurmang. Opening the Door to Dharma

Prime Dharma Master Emeritus Chwasan. We Live as We Believe: The Principle of Belief and Its Awesome Power

Prime Dharma Master Kyongsan. The Functioning of a Buddha’s Mind

Kuhn, Thomas. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions

Burpo, Todd. Heaven is for Real

Armstrong, Karen. A History of God

S. Radhakrishnan. Eastern Religions & Western Thought

Ratey, John. Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain

Carroll, Sean. The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself

Long, Jeffrey & Perry, Paul. Evidence of the Afterlife

Linn, Dennis. The Gifts of Near-Death Experiences

Tucker, Jim. Life Before Life

Capra, Fritjof. The Tao of Physics

Griffiths, Bede. A New Vision of Reality: Western Science, Eastern Mysticism, and Christian Faith

Huxley, Aldous. The Divine Within

Holmes, Jamie. Nonsense: The Power of Not Knowing

Graham, Aelred. Contemplative Christianity

Hoff, Benjamin. The Tao of Pooh

Pinker, Stephen. The Better Angels of Our Nature

Schroeder, Gerald R. The Science of God

de Blij, Harm. The Power of Place

Nicholi, Armand. The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud

Christopher Chabris & Daniel Simons. The Invisible Gorilla: And Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us

Lilienfeld, Scott F. 50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology: Shattering Widespread Misconceptions about Human Behavior

Kean, Leslie. Surviving Death: A Journalist Investigates Evidence for an Afterlife

Kelley, Mira. Beyond Past Lives

Newton, Michael. Life Between Lives: Hypnotherapy for Spiritual Regressions

Newton, Michael. Journey of Souls: Case Studies of Life Between Lives

Weiss, Brian. Many Lives, Many Masters

Rohr, Richard. The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See

Bargh, John. Before You Know It: The Unconscious Reasons We Do What We Do

Rosenberg, Larry. Breath by Breath: The Liberating Practice of Insight Meditation

Benkovic, Johnnette. The New Age Counterfeit: A Study Guide for Individual or Group Use

Strassman, Rick. DMT, The Spirit Molecule: A Doctor's Revolutionary Research into the Biology of Near-Death and Mystical Experiences

Examples of Articles:

Exploring and Nurturing the Spiritual Life of College Students, Journal of College & Character

Psychobiology of Altered States of Consciousness, the American Psychological Association

What Meditation Can do for Us, And What It Can’t, The New Yorker

Guide to Effective Self-Hypnosis, The Hypnosis Agency

The Eyeless Sight of Rosa Kuleshova, Rob Schwarz

Karma and Reincarnation, Elizabeth Prophet

Miracles on Trial: Wonders and Their Witnesses in Eighteenth-Century France, Angela Haas

Healing in the 18th-19th Centuries, Voice of Healing

Why Pansychism is Probably Wrong, The Atlantic

Eastern Religions and Western Man, CQ Researcher

The Revolution that Didn’t Happen, Victor Stenger

Dissociative Identity Disorder, Encyclopedia.com

Seeing God in the Third Millenium, Oliver Sacks

Proof of Heaven: A Doctor’s Experience with the Afterlife

Influence of Religious Aspects and Personal Beliefs on Psychological Behavior: Focus on Anxiety Disorders, National Center for Biotechnology Information

Dispelling Myths about Dissociative Identity Disorder, Margarita Tartakovsky

Esoteric Christianity, Norman Livergood

Near Death, Explained, Mario Beauregard

The Science of Near-Death Experiences, Gideon Lichfield

Birthmarks and Birth Defects Corresponding to Wounds on Deceased Persons, Ian Stevenson

Quantum Physics and Conscousness: The Quest for a Common, Modifed Conceptual Foundation, Thomas Filk

The Myth of Quantum Consciousness, Victor Stenger

Contemplation Education: A Systematic, Evidence-Based Review of the effect of Meditation Interventions in Schools, Educational Psychology Review

Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-Being: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis, American Medical Association

Evidence for the Impact of Mindfulness on Children and Young People, Katherine Weare

Intellect Breathing: How it Works

Slow Breathing and Hypoxic Challenge: Cardiorespiratory Consequences and Their Central Neural Substrates, National Center for Biotechnology Information