[ShowMeTheCash]

I guess it really depends on you're definition to what a ghost is?
In order to gauge something to be super-natural you must first understand the natural.

I have a number of friends, actually more so older people I know who have claimed to have seen ghosts, heard ghosts or have had some kind of what they claim to be a super-natural experience.

I think people simply deem something super-natural when they themselves cannot explain it, then usually with a little imagination the story becomes more fantastical.

Infra-sound is a natural phenomenon which can cause unusual experiences, this would explain a number of events, but of course not all.
We have the individual, the experience and the environment.
Infra-sounds shows that something environmental can have an effect on the individual.

In many cases you then have to look at the individual, do they suffer from any mental disorders? anything that can cause unusual feelings? anything that can cause strange sensations or even hallucination? or something as simple as being over tired or even over stimulated?

There is an experience known as "the hag" which people all over the world have experienced. The experience usually is something that happens when the individual is in bed or laying down, the experience can include seeing ghostly apparitions and a feeling of being held.

In short the explanation is quite simple:
The brain operates differently when awake to when sleeping, when we sleep a chemical in the body is release to paralyse or disconnect the thoughts / dreams to the rest of the body. However the chemical sometimes is not released properly when we sleep, this is why sometimes as we dream we jump in our sleep usually waking us up completely.
The opposite can also happen when we wake and have the sensation of not being able to move, commonly known as sleep paralysis.

When we are tried the brain can take little nano sleeps, during this time it is almost like sleeping and being awake at the same time, where dreams can almost manifest when being partially awake.
This has explained a lot of so called ghostly apparitions more so the ones involving family members or people we actually know.

Usually people who claim to have seen ghosts are people who want to see ghosts. Seeing a ghost is no different than saying you have just seen flying aliens by claiming you just saw a UFO!

[the culture of deference]

Originally Posted by Little Acorn

Please don't ask me to explain these in great scientific detail, because I won't be able to, but I have heard a few other theories aswell.

Just so you know where I stand, I do believe in ghosts.

I don't know the reasons of why they are there, but I do believe they exist.

I have never seen a ghost,

So you dont know but you choose to believe anyway ???

[true-or-false]

Originally Posted by the culture of deference

So you dont know but you choose to believe anyway ???

But surely you don't know either?

It kind of has to come down to what you believe on the basis of what you think. Some people think that the absence of proof is enough for them to say they don't believe, and some people think that the absence of proof leaves them open to believe. I don't believe in ghosts myself, but if someone I know believed in them I wouldn't take it upon myself to "educate" them otherwise.

[Little Acorn]

Originally Posted by the culture of deference

So you dont know but you choose to believe anyway ???

Yes I believe that people have experienced seeing things that could be described as ghosts, or have had what could be called ghostly experiences.
Ghosts are just the only word I know to explain these things, I do believe there is probably scientific explanation for sightings, or in my case movement of heavy furniture, but so far science just hasn't found an explanation or answer for these things yet.
A lot of things can and have been given rational explanations, but some things still haven't, and explanations for them have yet to be discovered.
I tried to give a few examples of theories I have heard before, but I would not have much knowledge of these theories as I study biomedical science and only physics 101.
Someone with perhaps more knowledge of physics, or time or energy or parallel universe theories etc. might be able to offer better explanations for those theories.

[dlorde]

A problem with paranormal or supernatural claims regarding ghosts and the like - as popularly represented - (i.e. independent entities, or some kind of playback of recorded events) is that not only is there no good, objective evidence for them, such as measurable or consistently repeatable phenomena, but that there are no plausible mechanisms for them. The majority of non-scientific explanations/descriptions I've heard would involve totally new and unknown physics, and in particular, physics contrary to the laws of thermodynamics, etc. If physics didn't work the way we know it does, our modern world wouldn't be possible - this puts obvious constraints on the kind of explanation that is possible.

On the other hand, we have become increasingly aware in recent years that the reality we believe we see around us is mostly an internal mental construct generated from expectation and prediction - we are notoriously unreliable observers, and even worse recallers. Not only do we see what we expect to see, but we are primed to see patterns, particularly human bodies and faces, in the world around us, and we have a strong tendency to anthropomorphise unfamiliar or unpredictable events. We become anxious in new or unfamiliar situations, and when we become anxious, the tendencies to see patterns and anthropomorphise are exaggerated - they are survival strategies, and also become stronger when we're tired (and therefore more vulnerable). Darkness or half-light with its visual uncertainty, ancient or creaky structures, and 'spooky' storytelling, all increase these tendencies through the interaction of imagination and anxiety. Infrasound is also known be disturbing and to increase anxiety (hence the use of ultra-low bass to enhance the effect of films & video games).

Many 'haunted' houses, castles, caves, battlefields, etc., are known because notoriety, such as associations with extreme violence or grim events, attracts visitors, and a haunting adds to the cachet - and the expectations of the visitors.

Little wonder that people see 'ghosts'! It would be more surprising if they didn't...

[Sitric]

Carbon monoxide poisoning probably explains quite a few "sightings". Check your ventilation!

[Antikythera]

Originally Posted by partyndbs

i dont really believe in ghosts much but i want 2 no what the **** called me and my sister from our mum and dads room when we were younger...i wouldnt mind if it was just me who remembers it but so does my sister...like omg that fear i experienced when i heard that voice will stick with me for ever.....calling out our names omg

Spoiler: wWooOO0owooOO

[maccored]

Originally Posted by Dave!

If you are happy enough to have your outlandish beliefs that you and your pals can talk about, but everyone outside your circle is too cynical or has standards of evidence that are too high to appreciate, then knock yourself out.

If you are happy to believe you know it all, and dont mind overly generalising, stereotyping and looking on down on those who have a differing opinion than you, then knock yourself out.

[Dave!]

Bumps a 9 month old thread only to contribute nothing whatsoever...

I have no problem with differing opinions as long as they're backed up by evidence and logic

I'm not into the "live and let live" philosophy that you're promoting, where every opinion is equally valid and everyone has to be taken seriously even if they don't back up their claims in any way

[Capt'n Midnight]

Can we please get back on topic.

It's a science forum though so more with stuff that can be measured or demonstrated or interesting thought experiments or how would ghosts etc. interact with the corporeal world in a manner that hasn't been detectable by mainstream science

stuff like

Infrasound , microwaves causing auditary sensation in your head, how do huumans humans sense humidity changes or whatever relative to instruments ?

correlations between ghost sightings and rural electrification, stuff like deja vu , nocturnal animals , frequency of ghost sightings in places like Hiroshima or after famines

[maccored]

Dave,. Im not really too worried what you have problems with. I 'bumped' a 9 month old thread as I only just caught your statement. It needed correcting. Personally, I'd love to see you back up your own cynical claims. Where for example, is your information that backs up completely the idea that the paranormal is rubbish?

Surely you have researched that and can back up your claim with evidence and logic?

What, you can't? Well - I never.

Originally Posted by Dave!

Bumps a 9 month old thread only to contribute nothing whatsoever...

I have no problem with differing opinions as long as they're backed up by evidence and logic

I'm not into the "live and let live" philosophy that you're promoting, where every opinion is equally valid and everyone has to be taken seriously even if they don't back up their claims in any way

[maccored]

Infrasound has been proven to replicate some paranormal experiences, and some claim high levels of EMF can do the same. Afaik, ghost sightings aren't very common ... I would certainly be of the opinion that a very very high percentage of reported paranormal claims arent paranormal at all.

I think this comes down to who is doing the work? There are people out there researching these kinds of claims, who would tell you they have come across less explainable 'paranormal' cases. Then there are those who dont research at all, but see themselves as some sort of all knowing paranormal expert (Hi Dave!). Personally in my mind, if a person isnt out there looking, then I dont really take too much notice of their opinion.

Originally Posted by Capt'n Midnight

Can we please get back on topic.

It's a science forum though so more with stuff that can be measured or demonstrated or interesting thought experiments or how would ghosts etc. interact with the corporeal world in a manner that hasn't been detectable by mainstream science

stuff like

Infrasound , microwaves causing auditary sensation in your head, how do huumans humans sense humidity changes or whatever relative to instruments ?

correlations between ghost sightings and rural electrification, stuff like deja vu , nocturnal animals , frequency of ghost sightings in places like Hiroshima or after famines

[Dave!]

Originally Posted by maccored

Dave,. Im not really too worried what you have problems with. I 'bumped' a 9 month old thread as I only just caught your statement. It needed correcting. Personally, I'd love to see you back up your own cynical claims. Where for example, is your information that backs up completely the idea that the paranormal is rubbish?

Surely you have researched that and can back up your claim with evidence and logic?

What, you can't? Well - I never.

Prove a negative? How do I go about doing that?

Prove to me that there isn't a giant invisible pink unicorn flying in the sky above the Liffey.

[Capt'n Midnight]

Final reminder to all attack the post but not the poster


talk about the science / evidence and provide links

[happyman81]

Why is being a 'ghost' almost the exclusive domain of former living humans? Why no ghost trees? Ghost dinosaurs? Has this something to do with the notion of a 'soul'?