Distorted visions 2

Given his propensity for talking to the press about his unrefereed work, it is ironic that Richard Wiseman dismisses my web commentary on his research for being unrefereed.

It is because of his tendency to ask subjects to "jump high" and then to announce that they have failed, as well as his carelessness in experimental design (in this case, some of the medical conditions of the subjects were ones that Natasha Demkina had in the past had difficulties with), that parapsychologists are doubtful about Wiseman's approach.

Simply to have stated that the investigation had not definitively confirmed Natasha's claims would have been unproblematic, but the investigators also drew the further, scientifically unwarranted, conclusion that they had r efuted her claims.

Brian Josephson
Professor of physics
Cambridge University