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Paranormality: Why We See What Isn't There
 
 
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Paranormality: Why We See What Isn't There [Paperback]

Professor Richard Wiseman (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)

Price: $17.95 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
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Book Description

July 1, 2011
"People are emotionally drawn to the supernatural. They actively want weird, spooky things to be true ...Wiseman shows us a higher joy as he deftly skewers the paranormal charlatans, blows away the psychic fog and lets in the clear light of reason". (Richard Dawkins, Professor). Richard Wiseman is clear about one thing: paranormal phenomena don't exist. But in the same way that the science of space travel transforms our everyday lives, so research into telepathy, fortune-telling and out-of-body experiences produces remarkable insights into our brains, behaviour and beliefs. "Paranormality" embarks on a wild ghost chase into this new science of the supernatural and is packed with activities that allow you to experience the impossible. So throw away your crystals, ditch your lucky charms and cancel your subscription to "Reincarnation Weekly". It is time to discover the real secrets of the paranormal. Learn how to control your dreams - and leave your body behind. Convince complete strangers that you know all about them. Unleash the power of your unconscious mind.

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Richard Wiseman is Britain's only professor for the Public Understanding of Psychology and has an international reputation for his research into unusual areas, including deception, luck, humour and the paranormal. He is the author of the international bestseller 59 Seconds, is frequently quoted by the media and his research has been featured on over 150 television programmes across the world.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 342 pages
  • Publisher: Macmillan UK (July 1, 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0230752985
  • ISBN-13: 978-0230752986
  • Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #500,672 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Richard Wiseman is Britain's only professor for the Public Understanding of Psychology and has an international reputation for his research into unusual areas including deception, luck, humour and the paranormal. He is the psychologist most frequently quoted by the British media and his research has been featured on over 150 television programmes in the UK. He is regularly heard on Radio 4 and feature articles about his work have appeared prominently throughout the national press.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
66 of 72 people found the following review helpful
The truth is out there March 5, 2011
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
As Richard Wiseman explains in the introduction, this is an investigation into the psychology behind people's beliefs about the supernatural. For example, why do people believe that dreams can predict the future, that they can communicate with the dead or that tarot cards can predict their destiny? Written in his usual entertaining style, it's highly readable and not at all scholarly. In short, Wiseman believes that there is a scientific explanation for all supernatural phenomena. He exposes many of the tricks (conscious and unconscious) that allow us to suspend our disbelief, using research studies and anecdotes to illustrate his points.

Reading this book is a participatory experience with a number of experiments and party tricks you can conduct on yourself or your friends as you go along. Weblinks are also given to allow you to view video footage of experiments.

This is a less "quirky" read than his last couple of books, but it does offer many interesting tips such as:
- How to fool people that you have psychic abilities
- How to induce an out of body experience
- How to impress your friends by appearing to bend a spoon
- How to significantly increase your chances of dreaming about somebody
- What to do if you feel you're being attacked by a ghost in bed at night
- How cults indoctrinate people and how to avoid being brainwashed.

I read this book on my Kindle and it wasn't optimal in that format. While all photographs are included, their placement doesn't match the text and there is a table included at one point which lost all of its formatting.

The chapter list indicates the subjects covered in the book:
1. Fortune Telling
2. Out of Body Experiences
3. Mind over Matter
4. Talking with the Dead
5. Ghost Hunting
6. Mind Control
7. Prophecy
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34 of 36 people found the following review helpful
A must-have April 4, 2011
Format:Paperback
Richard Wiseman's Paranormality is probably one of the best books on critical thinking available. Connecting the dots between supernatural experiences and classic and contemporary research on perception, memory, and social psychology, Wiseman skillfully unravels the superstitious mind and explains how and why we tend to believe all kinds of weird claims. It is not a complete account of everything paranormal - Wiseman focuses on psychics, hauntings, extra sensory perception, and related. But the demarcation is very much in line with what is in the public eye currently, with psychics swarming the yellow pages as well as prime-time television, along with "documentaries" on hauntings, remote-viewers and such. Wiseman's style of writing is commendable and suits the curious first-timer as well as the devoted skeptic. And the latter won't find another rehash of old stuff, but a fresh and inspiring approach with lots of new input worth considering.
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27 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition
This is an immensely readable and enjoyable book. Richard Wiseman has wisely eschewed the idea of writing a book debunking the paranormal (of which there are plenty already) and instead opted to focus on letting us know HOW it's done, and even how to do it ourselves for the entertainment of family and friends. Wiseman tells his story by focusing on people in history - specific people who have either developed some kind of reputation for being able to achieve paranormal phenomena, or of debunking and exposing them. In this way he gives a book of real substance, which really gets to the nitty-gritty. It's also very entertaining, and included many elements with which I was not familiar (despite have quite a collection of books on this topic and of Wiseman's previous work). An excellent read and very educational.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A blind scientist sees the world - in summary: Very narrow-minded!
I started this epub book because of the interesting cover and deleted it after one third reading.
Amazing that such a person belongs to a scientific community but on the other... Read more
Published 19 days ago by afuam
This book is based on lies
You will not get better insights into the workings of nature by reading this book.

Either you believe - as Wiseman does - that there is only the material world. Read more
Published 26 days ago by et
Wish this was also available in print in the US
I really enjoyed this book - Richard Wiseman has an engaging writing style as he discusses the psychology behind why we believe in or see things that don't exist. Read more
Published 2 months ago by L. L. Kristick
Finally, A Book That Shows "The Man Behind The Curtain"
Did you want 2 pull out your hair when, looking for an educational show on Discover Channel, you found "ghost hunters" using Emf and Evp equipmemt? Read more
Published 4 months ago by JayGreg
Much more than "just" a work of debunking
One may make the mistake of assuming that this is just a book that sets out to debunk common misinformation and misconceptions (not that that is necessarily a bad thing), but this... Read more
Published 4 months ago by E.B.
Entertaining, engaging, and informative
I came across this book after listening to Wiseman on the "Monster Talk" podcast. He came across as engaging, witty, and very informative so I thought I would give the book he was... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Jim Davis
Great Book
The book is a very entertaining read. The author recounts his investigations into paranormal. The paranormal in question is mainly what is generally called: "psychic phenomena",... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Walter E. Kurtz
Pretty good read.
My first book I've read from Wiseman. He's a pretty interesting guy and I've been following him through the years through his podcast and blog, and I thought I'd give his books a... Read more
Published 8 months ago by SirEdward
Great read for anyone
Paranormality was a very easy and entertaining read. Explanations of so-called paranormal phenomenon are presented as amusing anecdotes and "tests' are included so you can try some... Read more
Published 8 months ago by alb6411
A deception
The book starts very nicely, and you might expect a lot.

Waow, the explanation of why we really want to keep on believing this. I was looking forward to it. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Cyril Malka
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