Annie Jacobsen’s “phenomena” reveal the fascination of the American government for psychic capacities
- From the 1950s in the mid -90s, the United States government invested millions in the search for extrasensory perception (ESP) and psychokinesis (PK) to obtain a strategic advantage over the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
- The United States has been influenced by the interest of Nazi Germany for the occult, in particular Ahnenerbe’s research on supernatural phenomena, which has raised fears that the Soviets also explore similar avenues.
- In the 1970s, the CIA collaborated with the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) to study ESP and PK, concluding that there were credible evidence for ESP. The Navy, the Army and the Air Force launched their own programs, including telepathy for underwater communication and Radiet to locate enemy tunnels in Vietnam.
- Key characters like Andrija Puharich have explored unconventional methods, including hallucinogenic drugs and psychotronic weapons, while the CIA has also experienced control of the mind using LSD and hypnosis.
- In the mid -1990s, with the end of cold war technology and technology progress, the US government has stopped its psychic research programs. However, modern defense research continues to explore improved human perception and cognition, reflecting the lasting influence of this cold war experiences.
In the dark corridors of the Cold War, the United States government continued a classified program that blurred the boundaries between science, espionage and the supernatural.
From the 1950s in the mid -90s, US intelligence agencies and the military invested millions of dollars in the search for extrasensory perception (ESP) and psychokinesis (PK), phenomena long rejected as pseudoscience. This initiative, told in Annie Jacobsen’s book “Phenomena: the secret history of US government surveys on extrasensory perception and psychokinesis“reveals an little known chapter in American history where the government has sought to exploit the power of the human mind for military and intelligence ends.
The history of the American government’s fascination for psychic capacities begins following the Second World War, a period marked by the fear of nuclear annihilation and the start of the Cold War. The American government, eager to obtain a strategic advantage over the Soviet Union, has turned into unconventional methods, including the exploration of ESP and PK.
These efforts were strongly influenced by the discovery of the deep interest of Nazi Germany for the occult during the war. Heinrich Himmler, the leader of the SS, had established the Ahnenerbe, a scientific organization which sought mystical and supernatural phenomena, and its conclusions were briefly in allied hands after the war. While a large part of Ahnerbe’s work was destroyed later, the idea that the Soviet Union could also explore similar avenues is looming in the American spirit.
In 1972, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) approached researchers from the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) with a daring question: can ESP and PK be proven to exist in the laboratory?
In 1975, the CIA concluded that there were “a large number of reliable experimental evidence” supporting the existence of ESP, a conclusion that shocked scientific and intelligence communities. The Navy, the Air Force, the Army and other agencies have quickly followed suit, launching their own programs to explore the potential of psychic phenomena for military and intelligence.
One of the most unconventional applications of ESP was the interest of the navy to use telepathy as a communication method in the event of a nuclear strike. The idea was that telepathic messages could penetrate the depths of the ocean, where traditional radio signals could not reach.
Meanwhile, the army has conducted experiences in Vietnam, where a team led by Louis J. Matacia, a former topographic surveyor of the army and a self -proclaimed expert dance, formed marines to use divine rods to locate enemy tunnels. Although the results were mixed, the program has demonstrated the army’s desire to explore unorthodox methods in the face of unconventional war.
The most intriguing figure of this story was Andrija Puharich, a neurobiologist and inventor who claimed to have discovered a mysterious energy force which fueled extrasensory perception. Puharich’s work drew the attention of the American government, and it was quickly recruited to carry out experiences for the CIA and the army. Puharich’s research led him to some of the strangest corners of the psychic world, including experiences with hallucinogenic fungi and collaborations with a Dutch sculptor who claimed to channel the old Egyptian entities.
While SRI’s psychic research program has grown, the CIA has expanded its even more controversial territory, experimenting with the control of the mind using drugs such as LSD and hypnosis. The agency also explored the potential of psychotronic weapons, which would have used electromagnetic waves to disturb the human mind and body. The Soviet Union has also been deeply invested in mental research, and rumors about the Soviet capacities of psychotronic weapons have fueled concerns.
The psychic arms race reached its peak in the 1970s and 1980s, but in the mid -1990s, the American government’s interest in psychic phenomena began to decline. With the end of the Cold War and the rise of new technologies such as satellite surveillance and cyber war, the idea of psychic spies seemed more and more outdated. In 1995, the CIA officially closed its psychic research program, ending the era of psychic spy sponsored by the government.
Today, the legacy of these programs continues. Although the US government is no longer funding an ESP and PK investigation, modern defense research has turned to the concept of “meaning” or the ability to understand and anticipate events, as a potential tool for military and intelligence operations. The idea of using technology to improve human perception and cognition continues to grasp the imagination of scientists and political decision -makers.
Watch this video Presenting the search for Annie Jacobsen in “Phenomena: the secret history of US government surveys on extrasensory perception and psychokinesis”.
This video is from Brilliant channel on Brighton.com.
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