Science Of Scams
Introducing Science of Scams – Derren Brown’s next amazing project aimed at teaching Derren’s younger audience about scam science.
Everyone is fascinated by the paranormal. Subjects like UFOs, Tarot cards and ghosts excite people worldwide. And behind it all there’s a massive industry. There are books, magazines, TV shows, live events, even psychic phone lines and websites all profiting from our fascination with the unexplained. The paranormal industry makes millions of pounds every year. And yet there’s actually no solid scientific evidence that anything paranormal exists. Are we all just falling for a big psychic scam?
We have all had the experience of absolutely believing something which turned out to be untrue. That so-and-so hated us, that we were about to die, that we had our wallet with us when we left the house. Sadly, how deeply we believe something has no necessary correlation with how true it is.
Derren and his team have released 7 hoax videos which appear to be paranormal phenomena. In fact they’re all based upon real scientific principles and there’s nothing paranormal about them at all. Over the past few months that hoax footage has been posted over the internet in the attempt to find out if people would accept the footage as genuine or question it in an attempt to discover the real truth.
Can you find the hoaxes before we reveal the secret science behind scams?
Episode 1 available now »
Episode 2 available now »
Episode 3 available now »
Episode 4 available now »
Episode 5 available now »
Episode 6 available now »
Episode 7 available now »
You can also find all these episodes on 4OD.
Visit www.scienceofscams.com for exclusive videos, interviews and more about this fascinating project.
wow the Psi wheel actually works i tried it after i watched it ans my spun quite fast after i sat on my hands for like 10 minuites, i encourage you guys to try it and show it to people its a right pub trick
You think you can disprove the pyschic/paranormal industry but how do you explain my cousins dead grandma (spirit) visiting her when she was very young. My cousin had never met her and was able to explain exactly what she was wearing on the day of her funeral. How do you explain my daughter and her ex-imaginary cat that she took everywhere and didn’t ever forget. She would tie her up at bus-stops and when the bus came she would remember to untie her and bring her on the bus. This was our cat that had died about a year before hand. I asked my daughter to explain exactly what the cat looked like and she described our late cat. My daughter was too young to remember what she looked like, she actually couldn’t remember us even having a cat before. So what is your logical or scientific answer??
Heat convection, clocked that. I think most schools have done this in science class, but it’s a good example
This will be fun ^_^
The mind works in mysterious ways. Science is beautiful.
Absolutely fascinating. Can’t wait for the reveal!
This will be interesting!!
This reminds me of that world wide imaginary friend alot of people beleive in… whats its name, oh yeh -God.
Just because today we have the technology or are clever enough to reproduce tales of paranormal or supernatural behaviour doesn’t mean the supernatural and the miraculous don’t exist! Our reason is only the tip of the iceberg and the most recent development in the evolution of the brain. You walk around thinking you know where you are but in fact you don’t! Just because have learnt the names and representations of things since you were a child doesn’t mean you know anything about the nature of these things really. Do you know why you are sitting on your chair reading this? Do you really know your motives?
It all starts with a tiny question: What is mind? Where is it? The best of scientists,educated people don’t know. The fools think they know. The world is an endless mystery. Investigate
Ms. Hunte, with all due respect, your anecdotal experiences, while very interesting, are not proof of anything paranormal. the human mind and imagination, particularly that of a child, are perfectly capable of producing the phenomena you describe without the influence of any supernatural agent. it is not to folks like Derren to disprove fantastic claims, which in fact he is doing anyway for our entertainment and elucidation, but the burden of proof rather rests with those who would make them. to say that one has had an experience which they cannot explain does not mean that it CAN’T be explained, and without any need for invoking the paranormal.
Sounds nice, I’ll check Monday, curious to find out with what you all came up with.
WOTZ PSI WHEEL IS WELL REAL, IT WORKS OVER 9000% OF THE TIME. UR ALL STUPID, SCIENCE IS WELL TEH FAILSYEST THING EVAR!
PSYCHOKINESIS FTW!
Am really glad Derren has covered this topic due to many personal experiences I have had. Will he be covering Out of Body / Premonition experiences?
@Admin as I have had one that I really – for the life of me – cannot explain to this day. Hence why I believe Psychic Phenomena cannot really be debunked – in my personal opinion. Ta
As a paranormal investigator i have to say i’m a bit peeved with this, Derren i think you need to change your words here, not all of us investigators are out there to make a profit or scam people. Many of us including myself are out there to try and find truth in the midst of all the myths and lies. Not all of us are out there saying that every single thing in the paranormal world is actually paranormal, that’s why we are investigators. In fact my own investigative and research group looks towards ALWAYS finding the rational before the irational and in doing so we can say we have found more rational explanations than irational ones, however we have found experiences that have yet to explained fully and until you actually go to a place and experience it for yourslf you can’t…..
…really comment or try and debunk it.. There are many places within this country that defy rational explanations and Derren i have to say..if yougo looking for it…it isn\’t going to happen. Alot of people we have talked to and all the things we have researched always seem to happen when people don\’t expect it, if you go into a place and the people there tell you it\’s haunted then your mind is already planted with that seed and at some point you are going to be mentally tricked into experiencing something paranormal, that\’s why we always tell people who want to come along with us on events (which are free to join by the way, we don\’t make profits) to not expect anything and to top itoff we don\’t even tell them where they are going or any history of it.
Derren, thank you for finally explaining it, I love you
Posting on here about paranormal activity being real, you are just morons really. Not as articulate as I’d like to put it, but you probably wouldn’t understand any really biting critique.
If people with mental disorders can see things happening before their eyes, and people tripping on LSD think that there is a pink elephant not far behind what stops other people considered normal having hallucinations.
If ghosts do exist and you believe shysters like Colin Fry, why on earth would ghosts be very vague and cryptic, why wouldn’t they just say “yeah there is an afterlife it’s cool” instead of remembering one off events in someones life.
Is the real reason people believe in all this paranormal stuff just fear. That when you die there is something better and your not just wasting your life.
who cares that he messed up he is still awsome
So what your saying Derren is that the items you have done and trained to do over the years are just scams? Theres me thinking you were a god? I Must say after missing out by one number last night and allowing Foster to walk on you on glass in Weston-Super-Mare with what he had on his shoe makes me think maybe your not a god just someone who knows about the brain, maybe to gain the uphand over people for a reason to suit you?
Regards,
Mart.
What are everyones thoughts on noetic sciences and would you say that this relates to ‘Kat’s poll’ on the ScienceOfScams website?
Robbie Rox there is something i do believe you need to fully understand before you go posting your comment of calling all people who believe in the paranormal ‘morons’ or not as articulate. If you have done history or payed attention in school/college or anything to that degree you would surely have noted that belief in the afterlife has been around for millenia, the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Incas, you name it they all believed in it..they all had a belief in some degree or another of an underworld, a place where you go when you die. Whether you choose to believe it or not is a choice every human makes in this world but it is very wrong of you to call people who do believe a ‘moron’ .
And to set a record straight…as an investigator of the paranormal for over 12 years i can honestly say i do believe something happens after we die, i don’t know what it is but i do believe we are not to know until the time comes. Now i’m not stating it’s a heaven or anything like that, i’m stating i believe there is more to this world than we truly know that’s all….and as an investigator i have always had trouble grasping ghosts or spirits for one simple reason….no-one has ever seen a dinosaurs ghost and that can put alot of things into perspective if you think deeply about it. Everything else has supposdly made a ‘comeback’ of some kind but NEVER prehistoric creatures and not one psychic has ever answered that for me in over 12 darn years.
I personally believe in the paranormal but I hate that it’s become so interlinked with feel-good New Agey mumbo-jumbo. I however don’t believe anybody who goes on TV and talks about how they were “touched” by the supernatural or have seen ghosts and so on are telling the truth. They’re liars to a man (or woman). I think if you experience something that huge, something that so completely alters your understanding of the world in which you live in such a tangible way, the last bloody thing on your mind is to cash in on it and go on telly or youtube. All the usual scams used to sell these occurences are rubbish.
So I might still be irrational, but I like to think I’m at least a little cynical about it, and I always love to see skeptics root out the quacks.
This is so good i´m very curious about it…i´m always pleased to see when the younger generations are going to get a proper choice of exploring the science behind phenomena…
This is a good idea, the “Psi Wheel” is pretty fun to try out.
I look forward to the rest of the videos.
Wow, really interesting! I’m looking forward to the next ones! And I’m definitely going to use that Psi wheel and freak out all my friends. Finally, my constantly warm hands will come into some use!
Amazing. I used to be so interested in all the paranormal happening. I’ve seen a few people use a Psi Wheel and always believed there was some kind of paranormal thing behind it.
Now after this, I’m becoming more sceptical of it all. I’d like to believe in the paranormal world but i guess there is ALWAYS a scientific way of creating the same outcome…
If we don’t know what X is or how X works, it means only one thing: we don’t know what X is or how X works. It does not automatically lead to the conclusion that X is or is caused by ghosts, aliens, God, or anything else paranormal / supernatural. There are lots of things we don’t know or can’t explain yet, but that’s OK. Really, it’s OK not to know something. It just means we have more things to explore and research. It’s very much possible that one day we know exactly how X works or what causes it, and there’s nothing strange about it. (Just look at the history of science.) Meanwhile, it’s no use trying to “explain” something by labeling it paranormal.
Loving Science of Scams so far, BTW!
Nice to see the comments section filled with believers saying “sure, THIS is fake, obviously a scam, but the [insert random bunk phenomenon here] that I’ve experienced just has to be real.”
Gah. I despair sometimes.
And to the guy who is throwing around the statement that he’s been a paranormal investigator for 12 years… Time does not make your irrational beliefs true any more than chasing fairies at the bottom of the garden makes them real or you an expert in anything other than deluding yourself.
Ghost, ghoulies, long-leggity beasties, fairies, God, visiting aliens and their flying saucers, Big Foot, the Loch Ness monster, Father Christmas, the Tooth Fairy, homeopathy, acupuncture, the healing power of crystals… all irrational nonsense.
Us Taureans aren’t easily taken in!
From my own personal experiences – and I am old enough to know better but young enough to remember!
Most paranormal / ghost hunting experiences are out to make a profit!!!!! Been to a few ghost hunting experiences – great to get to know people and that is about it! No ghosts, no eerie sighting etc., etc., 4 hours in the cold and dark!!!!!
So carry on Derren i think you are a truly exceptional man with amazing capabilities and you have just touched the edge of the iceberg!
GREAT WORK so far
Amazed you aint done anything with twins on your show yet – they are a huge mystery to most people….
love and light
There’s something…..odd, about that photo at the top. Why is there a big space next to Derren? Are we supposed to be seeing something?
@Jahkilah Hunte
Haha, great! Just have a think about what you just said.
You have chosen to believe something paranormal is going on rather than looking a the evidence and making a proper conclusion.
What I don’t understand is how, considering the billions and billions and billions of people who have live and died since time began, we have to go deep into the bowels of some scary house in the countryside and sit for hours to see a ‘ghost’. Is it only the select few who decide to stick around? What do the rest of them do? Where do they stay? Surely there’d be so many of them that they’d be cluttering up my hallway? x
Gosh, this is a subject people get really divided on, isn’t it? I find it fascinating but that doesn’t mean that I don’t believe in some forms of the paranormal.
I think everyone needs something to believe in. For some it’s paranormal, for some it’s God. Across the board this is called faith for a reason – there is no logical proof, only faith. If a believer in God can prove beyond doubt that God exists; it is no longer faith! If a scientist can prove He doesn’t exist; it would have been proved long ago!
Without a doubt there are scams out there; but don’t disbelieve everything – if nothing else it’s nice to have a bit of the unknown in the monotony of life!
Live & let live x
I had a go at the Psi Wheel… absolutely fascinating even though I know how it works. Have also found the Ghost one on you tube – understood how that one was done even before the reveal, but in the “haunted house” setting, it makes it look very effective. I am enjoying the Science of Scams videos; thanks Derren and Kat.
Really helpful and quiet professional.
I will add your banner to my web page’s home.
I believe that 95% of video taped paranormal is fake.
Thank you, Ibi (Magician/writer)
I enjoy Derren’s shows and accept most of what you say in respect of the lack of hard evidence of all things paranormal. I have a logical and rationale mind most of the time, and generally think that phycics and mediums are for entertainment value only. However now and again I also have a very strong intuition that kicks in and reveals things in advance that I shouldn’t know. I can’t explain it, or control it but I know when it’s there and when it is, I will demonstrate it to whoever’s around to verify it.. I’m not talking deja vu or coincidences but more an ability at times to know things for sure before they happen without knowing why..In fact on one particular occassion I demonstrated this ability to a professional magician and literally sent him into a state of shock.
i read tarot cards, i never charge anyone for it. i’m open-minded about it really.
it began as an experiment for myself – but i’m amazed at how accurate i’ve been. i get people i read for to write down what i say as i say it & keep hold of it so we can refer to at a later date (which we do). some of the things i’ve predicated are surprising. i’m still open-minded, bcos i can’t believe these are all good guesses.
i’m open to sensible explanations but i think something “paranormal” can be “normal”… i mean that these ‘other-worldly’ things are just part of our world. people have believed in this stuff for thousands of years and other people have been trying to disprove them for thousands of years. if it was that easy to prove it would have been all over, done & dusted right?
silly question ….why “all your minds are belong to us”
awkward sentence structure….Is there something dodgy afoot here? or a simple explanation…. Perhaps I am thick as two planks…Thousands would support that notion…
That Derren! ….
See here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_your_base_are_belong_to_us
N.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_your_base_are_belong_to_us
@That Derren! it’s a reference, probably to a philosopher or text.
@ That Derren!
It’s a play on the old web meme:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_your_base_are_belong_to_us
It is a play on the internet meme “All your base are belong to us”. It’s from a bad Japanese to English translation on an old video game.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_your_base_are_belong_to_us
Brilliant second episode! I’ll be honest, I thought that the whole group were actors (some of them sounded really fake when they were trying to calm Emily down,) so when Emily started freaking out, I was just like, “Oh yeah, yeah, sure! You may be a better actor than the rest of your friends, but I don’t believe you!” Then it turned out she really did think she had seen a ghost! Poor girl!
P.s. That tour guide, Richard; he looks like David Wells!
I tried the psi wheel, it works but everyone i showed it to guessed strait away how it works
Even thought i knew it was a scam the ghost one still scared me a little bit, i would freak out if i saw that.
Never heard of that all your base thing until now but i could spend my life on engrish.com !!!
Yeah, that girl sounded kind of fake. When I’ve seen other things others in the group will start acting scared nd everything too.
Find the other hoaxes? I can’t even find this one among all the ‘ghosts’.
I’ve had many paranormal experiences in my life & live in a haunted pub. Things I’ve seen are not made up or lies. They happened! I’ve had a number of paranormal investigations by different groups in my pub who usually come up with similar conclusions. In my experience paranormal investigators are usually just that. They investigate. They almost always look for a rational explanation first and will not just blindly accept things as paranormal. (granted I had a hysterically fake medium turn up once). I find the paranormal facinating & welcome Derren looking at this but please Derren don’t generalise just cos 1 thing is fake doesn’t make everything fake. Derren go out with some paranormal investigation groups and see what happens. Most times paranormal is explained but sometimes its not!
“It doesn’t matter what I believe, it only matters what I can prove” TC – A Few Good Men
I wish I lived in a pub.
@ ScreamingGreenConure – Hic
spiderabc1 – Tom should have known it’s what the judge or jury believes that matters. In a court of law 2 good police liars will always prove 1 innocent man guilty.. The truth lies in what we know, not in what we believe or what can prove in a court or laboratory.
Now Derren is a master of manipulating people’s beliefs, I’d sure want him as a defence lawyer over any number of top lawyers. It amazes me how so many people actually believe he actually predicts things even after he has given evidence to the contrary as to how he tricked them.
Good point Ando. The evidence may well be altered by each person so it fits their view, with believers denying scientific facts given
And policemen saying they lifted fingerprints from the scene of a crime when in fact they lifted then from a cup of coffee down the nick. All evidence scientific our otherwise is based on testimony. I guess it all boils down to credability. Fortunately in general the police and scientists have a lot more credibility than the crooks and the physcic investigators but let’s not allow a miscarriage of justce. Believers and non believers are all capable of distorting the facts.
Non-believers and empirical evidence v believers and distortion.
A great man once said (I was never any good at remembering names): ” Man invented God out of fear of death “.
Okay, wanted to post my thoughts on this. Do I believe Derren is right about the paranormal industry being a fraud, and only people wanting to make money? Yes, most of the time. Do I believe paranormal activities DO take place? Yes.
I don’t really care what you believe, I just acknowledge this: people having their houses haunted (strange sounds, noises that cant be explained – doesnt have to mean its haunted though but…), then contacting a medium to go to their house and after they’re gone, no more noises/strange sounds or whatever. It’s paranormal to me. I believe this because im on a website, where people talk about this stuff. Normal people, that tell their stories about how there house was haunted and how a medium get rid of it. I’m asking myself, why would so many people lie?
I am sure someone also said why be scared of death when it is the one thing that is going to happen to everybody. Our depictions are always what we have on earth. May I also add there is nothing after : ) And in Ancient Egypt they worshiped Ra the sun god to ensure good harvests, “a fear of death” I almost agree Abeon.
Jahkilah Hunte it’s not paranormal, basically if someone describes something or someone that they have not seen but you have (e.g. a cat ) if it was someone close to you chances are that you think about them subconsciously and certain movements of your face can be picked up by someone else subconsciously thus they picture that object or person.Particularly in young people because they randomly see a person or object in their mind they might assume that they have met them. Sorry to burst your bubble .
p.s rock crushes scissors….
“May I also add there is nothing after : )” What, after death? Sorry if that’s not what you meant, but in case it was – how do you know?
That is what I meant and I am positive there is nothing. The euphoria etc is the brain. God(s) have been invented, its just made up and people cant except this is it.
spiderabc1 – Unfortunately then, if your right, after death we’ll never have the benefit of knowing that you were.
at the end of the day you cant make up other peoples beliefs, i am a believer myself through many different experiences , i see this dear old lady who tells me all about my deceased relativesand messages to whom nobody but me and the deceased wopuld have know , this lady asks for no money , and has evan offered to pay for my transport when she despratly needed to see me about urgent family matters,its her own time , she has let me as a stranger into her home , i think if at the end of the day , Any money is asked for…. its a scam , if its free and your the one benefiting not the giver, than its worth a shot at eh ?
One tip , dont go out to look for them , if something does need to be passed on , they will find you
I find it incredible that people such as Ms Hunte are “attacking” Derren Brown for the investigations he is performing. He has openly stated that he is not dismissing the possibilities, but more, that he is trying to save people an extra few pennies from being scammed by these so called “psychics”, who, are ripping cash from many desperate and grieving people. If you step back when you see these conmen at work, you can listen to the whole range of possibilitis that they cover. Also, directly for Ms Hunte, did you ever contemplate that your grievances were hightened when you began contemplating those “other possibilities”. The fact is, that science is present when these “paranormal activities” take place – be them man made, or natural occurances. Hence the title of, “Science of Scams”.
Is that rachael from the x factor? Any excuse to meet an x factor contestant hey
This reminds me to say what I wanted to say.
When you buy Derren Browns incredibly expensive magic book.. it’s best to read the book so you don’t get bored.
Just thought this might help all those people that buy books and then don’t read them.
Remember it’s the incredibly expensive magic book, not the Tricks of The Mind One.
Just the incredibly expensive book.
It’s found on Amazon.
Probably on Ebay too.
I’m not sure where else.
Remember you’re supposed to read it.
Good Luck.
http://twitpic.com/kth05 – Did anybody else notice this on the Science of Scams website last week?
Jay is right in a way we should all respect the beliefs of others. However, If I told you there was a huge pink teapot in space and if you prey to it all will be well, would Jay believe it? I have no evidence of the teapot but my faith is strong. Nobody has ever seen the teapot but that don’t mean it’s not there. Let the teapot change your life. Worshipthe pot it is beautiful.
Jahkilah Hunte, anything is more probable than a ghost haunting a child about a cat??????
Be realistic.
Children absorb information, how many types of cat are there?
hmmmm, found all three videos interesting, the heat one was easy to work out, so was the ghost one, but i have to say there are some paranormal activities that do happen, and even though i love derren browns work and theory, i think even derren would struggle to come up with an explanation. the mind is a very powerful tool…..has derren has shown us…xxxx
Jahkilah Hunte you are BARKING
Memory jog, thanks Mark R. I best get round to actually reading my art book as Ive simply admired the portraits since August. As for the magic book I am still learning the coin trick from TotM
I’m sorry Derren, I’m a big fan but I’d like to see you tell Chris Crudelli that breaking bricks is just a trick!
Google ‘John Chang’ if you’d like to see more proof of Qi in action.
Well how about inviting these chi masters to demonstrate their powers under controlled conditions? Every chi demonstration I have ever seen is more science & trickery than anything paranormal. Take for example when a chi master stands still and not even ten people in a line can summon enough strength to push him over. This trick is based on the law of inertia. Providing the first person in the line doesn’t actually exert sufficient force to push the master over (In collaroboration or otherwise), it is simple not physically possible for the master to be pushed over as inertia cannot be transferrred from the others in the line. It”ll collapse.
Just watched a couple of John Chang videos, (had never heard of him before) whilst setting fire to the paper is visually stunning, the effect is easily achieved using flash paper. You can buy some in any magic / trick shop. As for giving people electric shocks (chi shocks) James Randi wrote: This “chi” scam artist on YouTube is probably using the very same setup as the Malaysian crook did, a small battery-powered device worn on the body that develops very high voltage at very low amperage, that can be directed from the body of the performer to anything that’s at a lower potential than he is. It’s a form of Tesla coil, and it’s very effective.
when can one get tickets to your show!
Start with the Tour Page – Phillis
I’d be interested in your take on the above site (disclosure: not my website). If you look in the source of the home page they use:
Derren Brown – Mind Control
Are they scamming us (subliminally) that they are associated with Derren Brown?
78
A quick response to a few odd messages written above:
1. Derren has never claimed psychic powers, he is not scamming anyone and as he so often says, his shows are brought about by a mix of magic, suggestion, psychology, misdirection and showmanship. He has never claimed anything else.
2. The “science of scams” videos are not here to tell you that there is no afterlife/nothing real in the supernatural. While Derren may not believe this himself you are all open to your opinions, these videos are only to make you think a little more before beliving somehow “extraordinary” events. There are often simple explanations behind them (psi wheel)
ive seen ufos for real with other people who saw it was like a translucent crystal
Also, those who claim paranormal experiences are not all lying. They may believe something happened, but their perception of it is skewed by the fact that they believe they saw something “paranormal”, and anything that proves it otherwise will not be acknowledged. To a believer, only the things which fit what they think to be true are remembered, and anything else skimmed over.
Any stories that you read, please do so with a pinch of salt.
hello derren .. i have seen alot of videos about your work and i am ABSOLUTELY FASCINATED by what you do. I find it to be truly inspiring. I would be very happy if you could answer a question for me. Have you heard of something called parap psychology? and if so what are your views on it.. do you believe it to be real?
Thank you so much
Tom
Science of Scams so far has done a great job dealing with trivial matters. Not only that, but they have managed to descredit martial artists with their recent episode which tried to expose brick breaking. Whilst there are those who would like to play on people’s intelligence there are those who can perform this stuff for real. I know as I have witnessed it with real bricks and I am not talking about breeze blocks. Perhaps Kat and Derren brown would like to take a trip across to Beijing and visit the Shaolin Monks at their temple.
It would be nice to see science of scams dealing with something unexplainable. Right now it’s made for dummies. :
I love comments. Particularly of the “I have anecdotal evidence and no empirical evidence kind”.
The best though are always “I don’t understand it, so it must be paranormal.
Topping it off are the people that don’t get what is trying to be achieved here, and will leave a shitty comment and never come back.
It’s aimed at kids. The idea is to teach kids not to take anything at face value… that more often than not there’s a rational explanation. Sometimes people will trick you to exploit you, sometimes they have been tricked themselves or just don’t understand something… and sometimes people are cynically trying scam to make money
“And behind it all there is a massive industry…err I mean massive cover up of information by independant government research that uses billions of dollars to research all these phenomenons and use front groups to counter the possibility of such abilities thus raising the awareness of the massses as all this being one big hoax and so we then deem it crazy when anyone utters the word paranormal. Just like front groups used to counter the truth about global warming.
The scientific evidence may not have emerged because those in the know don’t want it to be possiblity but it’s unlikely since our governments are angels.
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i actually saw people washing their hands in hot boiled oil. they claimed that some kind of spirits had protected them from getting hurt……..How’s that possible???
I spent about 35 years pursuing ‘ufology’, attending meetings, reading books and magazine articles, talking to people who claim to have had ‘close encounters’, and visiting landing sites. My fascination was driven by hope of witnessing something myself, but I have never yet seen a UFO! In the end I became disillusioned with the obvious charalatans and attention seekers I met. I now cheerfully conclude there is no evidence amounting to ‘proof’, although there remains a hard core of ‘compelling’ UFO encounters not easy to dismiss. I took my time, but hope this site helps people develop healthy scepticism of ‘paranormal’ events faster than me!
There is very possibly truth in UFO’s, There may very well be Ghost and Spirits around us, But the industry is the monster here! Not Derren.
I have had experiences i can call paranormal, but at the same time, I do not “Trade” my experiences for money – I am a wicca follower, but I do not buy books on witchcraft or have an alter, a sword or robes which apparantly you must have (And can be bought on amazon.com for £££) – YES! EVEN RELIGON IS A MONEY MAKING MAGNET! AND DERREN HIT WHERE IT HURT! THE WALLET!
Good one Derren! Keep it up!
Great Gypsy Trick –
Tent with Chest Hidden inside containg the clans greatest treasure and one by one villagers were invited in to see it for a few gunieas. On going on they would open the chest and tell you not to tell anyone outside what you saw…
Inside is HORSE MANURE! Nothing more…
The Scam? Even as you leave, someone asks “What did you see?” The reply was always “Its Just Sh**!” but that just got more pepole curious and they still went in! FACT!
Scams on the Paranormal or Secrets are not new… We are just more greedy now so have to be more inventive….
I read in BBC Focus magazine that there are A-levels in all things paranormal. Not the teaching of tarot reading etc but the way people perceive the belief of the paranormal….
@Pete, now you demonstrate reason, I like that. Big claims require Big proof.
A few months ago I had a person calling me to hypnotize him and regress him to age 10 where he was “abducted” by aliens. 1st of all I do not like regression because as a hypnotist you are always “leading the witness”, plus he was so convinced of this event that he would have made this “true” in his mind.
Like many people claiming to have witnessed paranormal phenomena do.
@Hunte
Our brains have a unique way to “fill in the gaps” with the things we want to believe or see. We interpret little things which fit and we make them bigger than they were initially were.
Saw video of a tarot card reader,
and in the background, saw someone, who strongly resembles Derren <3
Maybe its a hoax? LOL!
That guy was walking around and yeh, i really watched that clip 10 times just to look at that guy.
The guy had darker hair but was like Derrens doppelganger, Its probably a coincidence.
OH MAN!!! I'M SEEING DERREN EVERYWHERE!
to the woman below about her child and paranormal activity. Children sense things differently to adults ive seen it time and time again where the young child will sense something. They are born with spiritual ‘powers’ of some sort its just how we use them. Everyone else is born with a ‘spirit’ it just matters as to how you use them in life. you need to believe.
Well done on this series, guys. I wish it had been around when I was younger. If you wanted to do another “season”, I wouldn’t complain.
Derren, I congratulate you and your team to finally try and lift the myth of all these scam artists. I do hope you are walking around with a bodyguard now, because you must have upset a lot of people who make money this way. But as you have proven in your shows before, just because something has been proven, people will say the paper is black when its obviously white.
No matter what evidence is out there, its very difficult to change some people.
Well done again.
Scott
Just wondering what DB thinks of Emanuel Swedenborg¿
I find amusing all this and very interesting the way you do with the audience/people. Is good to be able to see the world in a different perspective.
Is all in our minds and if we only could see it…
Thanks a lot for all your articles I love them.
i did all the scams to some friends…..
I now have 10,000 people following me.
Man! people are stupid as shit.
I also keep randomly seeing derren everywhere 0.o;; it’s kinda freaky, but it’s not like a person it’s like when you turn around and catch a sight of something and it goes, very random and freaky but if it is derren then HAHA, why not show yourself
you know you wonna =P
I am psychic, i don’t care what anybody says the truth is there’s more out there then just science. Its not fairytale and about who knows. The truth is everybody finds out …thats everybody but its just when?.
There are other forces amongst us but just in another dimension …im sure Mr. Brown can tell you that for real…seeing without trickery/ illusion/CAD is believing.
Imy! You are NOT psychic. Everything can be explained by science and the things that haven’t either need to be tested fairly or our understanding of them is too limited.
Science is and always will be nothing more than educated guess. To think that all there is, is what we know and what we can prove is naive beyond belief!
Next thing you know Mr Brown will have us all believing he does use persuasion techniques instead of card tricks, envelope swaps, thumb writers, and the other stock in trade of the modern day conjurer, out outlandish lies, electronics and camera tricks.
And of course superlative and currently unequalled showmanship.
However there is nothing but pain to be got and given breaking into harmless belief systems and leaving nothing in their place except an empty popcorn bag, shame.
- Science is nothing more than educated guess? Hmm. What about all the massive amounts of evidence like the fossil record, or achievements like putting men on the moon, gene therapy, microchips and mobile communications. Not really just guesswork I think. We call them facts. – Phillis
All these sad stupid people desperate to believe in something paranormal, with their polished anecdotes and spurious illogic.
Anyone would think their lives were better because they believe all that gibberish. They certainly seem to think so, in the face of the evidence.
Today when on the bus a middle aged man said my two year old daughter had the eyes of satan then went on saying her smile was like a piece of god. some people are so messed.
You say the paranormal industry makes millions of pounds every year. So does the lottery – except it makes even more now that the famous sceptic and pseudo-science debunker Derren Brown has told the nation there is a way to predict the result. I’m a huge DB fan – saw Something Wicked on stage (fantastic), Enigma on stage (even better), read the books, etc., – but I’m afraid he crossed over into spoon-bender territory with that one. Crusades against the pedlars of the paranormal have a hollow ring about them now, I’m afraid.
The last scam might be Cold Reading? or?
“ha ha, there are no such things as ghosts, dizzy” says bob the builder
Baggy Geoff: do you really, honestly. seriously think that there’s going to be an epidemic of hopeful lottery players getting all their mates together for team-building exercises so they can peruse masses of previous draw results and hopefully, through some wisdom of crowds technique they saw a guy do on the telly after a bunch of magic tricks, they can win the lottery?
A question for believers in the paranormal to consider:
Why should paranormal phenomena be so reluctant to be pinned down?
The world is full of amazing, wonderful things that are only too happy for us to examine them. With a cheap laser pointer, a paperclip and a few bits of Polaroid film you can demonstrate wave/particle duality, quantum uncertainty and erasure in the comfort of your own home. With a bit more effort and a light bench you can observe entanglement and retrocausality (future events changing the present and the past). The universe is not in the least shy about showing us its weirder side.
So why aren’t psychics winning poker tournaments? Why aren’t mediums providing us with Fermat’s marvelous proof of his conjecture? I know, I know: it doesn’t ‘work like that’. But why SHOULDN’T it? Everything else does!
belief in the paranormal is interesting in that people will practically convince themselves that they are being haunted. i saw the film ‘paranormal activity’ recently, which i recommend to you all, and noticed a definite shift in my perception all because the film was successful in scaring me. i am willing to bet that when this film goes on release reported ‘hauntings’ will rise all because people will misinterpret rational events.
I find this obsolutly fasanating.
All your work is so insperational.
That was amazing, your phenomenal work really does inspire me- thanks Derren!
I guess Derren should do something on dreams, as many people have dreamt of a loved one who has died, of past lives, of spirits coming to them for help etc.
I have seen things and no it was a trick of the light or my mind, that’s why I believe.
Many people have tried to prove or dis-prove the paranormal world but both fail as it cannot be proved to a skeptic and a believer will always believe.
Wow! Some really friendly opinions on display. There seems to be a lot of extremely rational people that are seemingly incapable of making their points without being rude and/or insulting- one or two to the point that I’d almost be tempted to suggest some kind of internet chaperone for them.
My granny used to believe that she was psychic, but I managed to be skeptical without insulting her- or her friends that believed her. It’s really not that difficult if you put your mind to it. Frankly, if you’re incapable of doing that, I’d look a lot closer to home for signs of mental illness.
Personally, I believe in science that we understand and science that we don’t understand. I also think that there are a number of people out there who will attempt to take advantage of other people who want something to believe in.
dude u may hav done some gud research ovr here i appriciate u for dat….
but i m a person who has done a course of reiki… nw d thing is how can u explain d movement of pendulum in clockwise nd anti clockwise direction ??
it was when ma teacher was explaining me about cosmic energies-both positive nd negative ones… i when i crossed my legs d pendulum began ti move in anticlockwise directionfrom its clocwise rotations!!! nd i moved at different speeds when kept on different parts of d body ? nd that speed of rotation was different for different ppl !
so if u say dat der is nothin paranormal den pls explain me THIS STUFF SCIENTIFICALLY!
“It faintly irritated [Ford] that Zaphod had to impose some ludicrous fantasy on to the scene to make it work for him… wasn’t it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?”
Hello all,
I was curious if Derren would do an episode on genuine intuition and
synchronicity. With a scientific and psychological explanation for what
these bizarre phenomenon are, or if they are just merely coincidence.
Derren seems to be quite intuitive, how did he grow this apt skill?
Just curious to know?
Paul
Everyone can be divided into 4 camps:
1: Those who have never experienced anything paranormal, spiritual, mystical, supernatural (“mysterious”) etc. and class themselves as skeptics
2: Those who have never experienced anything mysterious, and choose to remain open to various ideas and opinions
3: Those who have never experienced anything mysterious, yet choose to believe for whatever reason in one or more things of a mysterious nature
4: Those who have experienced things of a mysterious nature, and so believe
The crusade of the skeptics, who lump all apparently mysterious phenomena in together and write them all off as one, is to convince camps 2 & 3 to join camp 1, while camp 4 looks on bemused and slightly fed up with it all. You will never convince a man with a pet dog that dogs don’t exist.
@Jon Chase,
Dear Johnathan I regard you as a great colleague. However you are very wrong by stating that “science is an educated guess”.
Because when you actually bothered to go to a post secondary education you would’ve learned that science starts out with an educated guess. You then start testing the guess and when this test produces a certain result it is retested (elsewhere) and when that gets the same result you can start to talk about a scientific fact that is “measurable and repeatable”.
The fact that hypnosis is not scientifically proven is a fact, because we can not “measure” “trance” the problem is that we can never measure a negative (something that isn’t there). This goes for trance and psychics but maybe our technology changes and it will be proven. We do not deny it hence we research but nothing has been proven yet!
Derren, always been a fan. I think this series is a great idea, however it seems you have already stired up a few “deep believers”. After reading through some of the comments here I’ve noticed a few with the “Oh yeah, well how do you explain this” attitude. You know, the types that despite all the evidence (mountains in some cases) they are still skeptic of the truth. Coming across these comments I couldn’t help but remember the three phases of truth: Denial, Anger, Acceptance. (Actually, I think there are seven, but these three are the core phases). Watch out for the anger phase!
It is easy to battle against the mass ignorance of all the gullible believer types when you have never experienced anything “paranormal” yourself; it is not so easy if you have.
Derren mentions the UFO phenomenon, yet anyone who studies the subject in any sort of depth WILL reach the conclusion that something very strange IS going on. You may propose your own theories regarding exactly WHAT that is, but to flat-out deny that anything odd is occuring and everyone is falling for a “psychic scam” is to admit that you are ignorant of the subject against which you are trying to argue, which makes your opinion on the matter nigh on worthless. Only someone who has studied the subject in depth is in any position of authority from which to talk to the rest of us about it, and that ain’t Derren.
HI there. I know that my post is at the bottom of a massive long list and as such will probably never be read but I’ve put off posting on threads like this long enough. There is only one thing that infuriates me about such conversations and it is this:-
Generally speaking, both the believers and the non-believers alike think that they can take the moral high-ground in an arguement that can never and will never be resolved. I have seen the best thinkers in the scientific world look down their noses at the people who believe in the paranormal and the most logical believers do the same to the scientists, each thinking that the other is close minded and, quite honestly, idiots. I tell you all now, both of the people I have described are idiots. My reasoning is this:- Take the afterlife arguement. Those who don’t believe in an afterlife…
…(continued) cite their main reason for the lack of an afterlife being that there is little or no proof of one. They consider the arguements of believers to be circular at best and made up at worst. They forget that there is no proof to the contrary and that, should they be right, it won’t matter anyway. Those who defend the afterlife with logic and science though are just as bad. They forget that belief in a God or an afterlife requires faith. Proof revokes faith and so no proof will ever be found. The perpetual arguement continues and the participants continue to make fools of themselves as all humans do until they finally reach the end and the answer is revealed one way or another. Please understand that I myself do not believe in a God, nor in an afterlife because my brain requires proof. And to any of you non-believers reading…
…. (cont) this and feeling smug that another person believes the same as them, let it be known that I consider my relative small mindedness and inability to have faith in something bigger than myself a great weakness in my character. I would love to believe in the paranormal and to have religious views other than “not really sure to be honest”. And I still do look for any and all proof of such things. After all, would it not at least be a comfort to know that the end is not the end? I do not agree with belief for the sake of belief, but neither do I agree with science being the be all and end all of everything.
Apologies to those of you who have taken the time to read this beast of an essay. And in case you were wondering:-
My name is Greg. I am a student of Physics with Astrophysics. And I am proud to question my beliefs daily.
Greg, with much respect, science is everything. I saw this so called white light and it messed me up for a bit. Then I realized its just brain stuff. Idiot or not I felt the urge to spread the word of nothingness and be happy with my one and only life. Good luck with the astrophysics.
Fair enough. I simply meant that there are things in this universe we may never be able to explain. Not because they are necessarily paranormal (after all, is that not simply a word for things we do not understand properly) but because the human mind is simply not capable of understanding it.
As for the afterlife thing, it would be nice, but it’s probably best not to pin all of my hopes on it. Live for the now that we know exists, rather tan the later that we do not.
“Posting on here about paranormal activity being real, you are just morons really. Not as articulate as I’d like to put it, but you probably wouldn’t understand any really biting critique.”
And you probably couldn’t deliver any.
I would really love everyone to just understand that there are people out there that have experienced things that you have never: very strange, very challenging things that current scientific understanding does not address. You may not be one of them, but try not to be so narrow-minded as to write them all off as “morons”, when many are very capable, genuine, intelligent people who have no interest in selling any scams to anybody, and indeed have no real interest in the paranormal either.
Could I put that in any more succinct a way?
Hello,
Just thought i’d put my two penny’s worth in
First of all i may only be a student but i’m sure i could put across my views in a more mature and eloquent manner, without the petty ire and sarcasm that is portrayed in previous posts.
Surely what everyone on here in this debate is trying to do is get everyone else to believe what they believe and prject their views on others. I believe that everyone is entitled to their own view and shouldn’t need to defend themselves unless they are specifically trying to force their views on everyone else.
Isn’t everyone saying science is based only on theories, and when a more promising theory is proved to be better than previous theories, that one then takes its place- so surely science is a belief in itself. I personally can’t see why everyone is trying to create some sort of argument here
Moi, I couldn’t agree with you more.
Ando wrote: “However now and again I also have a very strong intuition that kicks in and reveals things in advance that I shouldn’t know. I can’t explain it, or control it but I know when it’s there and when it is, I will demonstrate it to whoever’s around to verify it.”
I have the same thing! It comes at random, has a very distinctive feeling to it, and (so far anyway) it’s been right 100% of the time. It’s also been wholly useless information 100% of the time
I don’t know what it is, either. Every time I’ve known something this way, it could conceivably be explained as my subconsciously reading people’s body language or something. Still a neat experience when it happens.
Why thankyou Greg, I did try to put across a valid point because i really don’t like how everyone is getting themselves so involved on a piece of brilliantly crafted entertainment.
I’m sure Derren meant to stir up some controversy and opinion, but there’s controversy and then there’s just arguing for the sake of arguing and to be perfectly honest i’m sure people have a lot better things to do with their time than trying to prove they’re right in an argument where no one has honest proof that they’re right!
I think if everyone took the time that Derren does to explore the ways of science and paranormal (which btw are both based on theoretical beliefs or the unknown, or incomprehensible) and try and gain more of an insight into the argument before blindly assuming they themselves are as they put it ‘right’
we will never know ….
Nice to see the Pepper’s Ghost!
Hmm, we do as a species seem to have a need to explain everything, even if that means filling in the gaps with our imagination/misplaced belief/transplanting of a memory.
Rather than try to explain the unknown with wild theorising, why not wait for something scientifically based (by which I mean the disproving of an idea) to test the waters. Oh no, wait, that’s being done already and people STILL don’t want to accept it as it doesn’t fit in with their beliefs
Actually as a secondary thought to the above, isn\’t it a healthy thing that some of these paranormal (et al) theories are being put through the scientific mill? Surely a paranormal (et al) believer can see merit to that?
Derren i love all your work. i espicially loved were you guessed the winning lottery numbers and i might try it someday. i think your awsome you rock
Derren/Phillis, I’m not sure if you guys are reading these, but I saw this video Penn Jillette posted recently, I thought it was kind of interesting and it made me think of you and your act. Just in case the link fails the video I’m talking about is titled “Less Lying” and it’s from this Penn Says series thing Penn has been doing. Love your work! Peace.
http://crackle.com/c/Penn_Says
There it is, I know you guys probably have a lifetime of better things to be doing, but I thought maybe you’d be interest since it relates to what you do.
It’s just a roughly 8 minute video where Penn talks about how he plans to alter his magic act because of how he feels like he is lying to people by letting them leave his show thinking he actually might possess incredible memorization powers or the ability to read people’s minds.. much like he doesn’t want them to leave thinking he is a murderer when he saws someone in half… at least that’s my interpretation. Again it’s titled “Less Lying” in the Penn Says series.
I was the security manager at Virgin megastore in Piccadilly back in 2007, the staff used to shit themselves when you came in as they ALWAYS thought you had scammed them? I told them you probably did (Just to shit them up and watch them panic checking the till’s etc…) i think your very good at what you do.Keep up the good work. Best wishes for 2010 and a merry christmas.
i think you are amazing , i would love to meet you in person
Kai: Whereabouts are you? If you’re in the UK or willing to travel over, just go to one of the theatre shows — Derren tends to sign autographs and chat with fans after the show. That’s how I’ve met him (twice now). He’s a really nice guy in person, too.
Derren, love your mind. When are you going to plan to come back to Australia?
You should do a scam fest on the personal development industry. Plenty of Bull@*#t there.
Happy New Year,
JJ
It really annoys me that many people instantly believe in the paranormal as well as instantly dismiss it as a load of rubbish. I’m an open-minded sceptic and as such look at any event that happens at all angles. I’m not saying ghosts exist, but there are a whole load of things that happen out there that cannot be explained with the science we already understand. People laughed at Cryptozoologists when they claimed the Kraken was real…years down the line – lo and behold, we have a giant squid… Science is working with us on these investigations to get to the bottom of these strange events and hopefully will provide us a better understanding.
What’s the difference between us and those who search for a cure for cancer? Aren’t both groups “morons” for chasing something that science hasn’t yet provided an answer for?
i absolutely LOVE derren and his psychological theories. im studying psychology myself at the moment as i am fascinated but the human mind and behaviour. … i would just like to say, i am not a religious person by any means but i DO believe in the paranormal. … there is no explanation for the events that took place in my old home of which we eventually had to move out of. from rosary beads popping open, to cupboard doors opening and closing by themselves, toilet flushing on its own at night. we had venitean blinds tampered with when nobody had touched them, the sound of a baby crying at night along with many other unexplained sounds. doors shutting. this was a constant occurrence. at 1 point a belt flew my parents bedroom and caught my dad right around his face. it always had a ‘creepy’ feel and u felt astho u were being watched 24/7
Derren Brown is incredible at what he does, and I am a fan of his unique talent. However, I can’t help feeling, like James Randi before him, he picks on easy targets. Why doesn’t he challenge somebody like Michael Roll and his philosophical campaign for freedom, who has actual proof of life after death, and then he can uncover the real deception of authority who suppress this knowledge to keep control of the people through religion and song sheet science. Rather that than this constant trivia, debunking obvious charlatans which discredits genuine telepathy, which is not at all a phenomena, when one begins to think with the right side of their brain.
Martin there is no proof of life after death, aliens or god (of any religion) what ever M.Roll has to say. Just a little fact. You could do with watching more of Derren!
I fink dat I am sychic cuz wen iwas 12 i know what my mum were cooking for tea i said it was fishfinger and i was in the otha room so how da hell could i kno? and it was fishfingers and wotsits for tea so what? also i can do memory trix like daz brown n’all cos like i can pretty much member my phone number almost half the time so i dunt even need to carry it wif me when i am dishing out my digits to all dem fine shawties. dez brown if u wana hook up den let me know bruv i will teach u mad memory skills n that. latez!
Peace.
Brixton is MY territory, yeah?
N-Dub QPac Rizzle
I really don’t understand why people are so ready to believe in the paranormal. The universe is a truly magnificent place full of wonderment and beauty, things you can see with you’re very eyes; Why be in such a rush to believe in something you have little or no proof for?
Plus, a lot of you guys should look up the term ‘confirmation bias’ before posting about how your cousin saw his dead grandmother as a child, and how this must be irrefutable evidence for the paranormal.
“Human beings make life so interesting. Do you know, that in a universe so full of wonders, they have managed to invent boredom? Remarkable”. – Death
Rock & Roll
well darren i admire all your work and i am currently reading your books, i am intigued by the koci system and the way you can utilize it, so good. i would love to meet you one day in person, my ambition would be to become your aoorentice but we all hav dreams, and for all of you lot out there who are against darrens work, first of all no one is making you watch or read, and at least he is honest with his lies, its all about misdirection and power of suggestion, there are many readings out there, and darren ur very true about the scams i am a sceptic, i do reckon tho there are a lot of people out thewree at the moment making profit off these scams, anyway get in touch cheers karl
WOWEEE, can’t wait for the Blackpool magic convention, will you be attending Derren?
Very clever marketing strategy Derren… creating an argument between believers and non believers, true genius!
Life is energy – the one thing both sides of the fence agree on. There are many ways of interpreting the world and all are necessary contributors to growth in knowledge and understanding, because by perceiving the world we create it. Every one of us. No one’s perception is any less valid than that of another. There are no mistakes; such a concept is a conditioning of society and its expectations. We have a world of potential and while science is a necessity that defines its view in facts and figures, it does so within a protective box. It is a security blanket, cushioning as we forge ahead and should we fall. But many of the biggest advances in science have been taken on the back of vision and intuition to look outside of the box. Quantum physics, psychoneuroimmunology, they are all…
…points where both (previously resolute) sides of the fence are beginning to meet, realising that in every concept/belief (both left-/right-brained) there is a golden nugget of truth at the bottom that is a sense, a knowing, a ‘what if’. And it’s buried by a pile of inflated and restrictive human-defined boundaries and labels. They are realising that both sides are intrinsically right and you cannot have one without the other. Problem is, our view and defining of the world is limited by our own range of vision.You cannot tell somebody how to see.You can only offer lessons in the form of experiences for them to integrate and with that grow their vision, and this is what Derren does. I can’t attend the tour as I couldn’t get tickets
but I am sure lives will be changed by it! 
I’m sorry if this offends anybody but…. Psychics are full of it. Praying on people’s grief and in turn want/need to believe is sick. Some “psychics” might be subconciously skilled at reading body language and not realise that what they are picking up on is just an extension of the persons body language or signals so I am prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt and would like to believe that they are not doing this maliciously. However at the end of the day, it’s all nonsense and having people spend money on this crap is fraud. I have total respect for Derren and his team for exposing these people. Like it or not he is correct in what he says.
I’ve been having out-of-body ghost experiences for 20 years-the final conclusion is that (1) its only with empirical repeatable experience can you begin to understand something.If you’ve had no experience then you will speak only with blinkered arrogant, ignorant prejudice.(2) Science is a mirror image of religion.Only a few courageous scientists on the fringe actually push science forwards, they are normally those who have been exiled from the bigoted scientific community. Nikola Tesla is our greatest example.(3) Not all humans have switched on the parts of the brain that enables them to have such experiences.(4) I’ve never drank,smoked,taken drugs, I’m not delusional, mentally ill, gullible or easily swayed, yet continue to experience disembodied intelligences dependent on locale.
1) because someone doesn’t share your experience doesn’t make them blinkered or arrogant – science requires evidence, if you have it present it, James Randi will pay you $1million to prove the after life exists. 2)The 115 scientists at CERN, the 400+ scientists at LHC and the 165 scientists at NASA are just a few of the people who might disagree with point 2. Also the thousands of breakthroughs were making in medical science, optics, nanotechnology, brain imaging, computer technology, quantum physics and space research are all done by scientists pushing the boundaries. 3) Humans do not “switch on” parts of their brain – every part of the brain has a known function, we can use MRI scanners to show them at work 4) Glad to hear it.
Python said to jawapo what are you, jawapo replied am I.
Hello Darren ,
Yes there are a lot of con people and charletons in this field and many other careers .If there is con then yes it aught to be revealed. However I do think you need to take have a more balanced view in your spoken and written word. There many people who do have abilities to sense/see and feel what others can not. It is stressful enough trying to deal with these ‘blessings’ and to live a normal life. It is equally stressful to find genuine support and guidance in this field, without wondering if the person/group who says they can help you come to terms with these experiences are not con artists, or worse still ego maniacs who need to control others emotions and fears of the vunerable people. A bit of balanced respect for those who can sense etc. is called for please.
@Moniclare – I am sure Darren would give you and other like minded folk much respect, as for Derren …
@ moniclare – I am sure Darren would give all like minded spiritual folk deserved sympathy though as for Derren. ..
I know people who devote their whole lives to these crazy scams, they’re almost religious in the complexity of the stories behind them! Enjoyed ep 1 & 2, will watch the rest soon hopefully
You say, “Sadly, how deeply we believe something has no necessary correlation with how true it is.”
In the field of medicine, that’s a demonstrably false statement.
I have had many ‘supernatural experiences’ myself which I don’t believe for one second will be classed as supernatural once science has found the answers. They are merely unexplainable at the present time and I think Derren’s doing a fantastic job by debunking these. I would much rather be classed as someone who can read people well than the very annoying ‘psychic’ I’m labelled with.
The world is all about perception. The information we recieve to the brain is subject to small print which is as follows…
1. You CAN see things that are not there, the brain is powerful and easily swayed by people that know how i.e. Derren Brown
2. Why is there no documented proff of paranormal activity such as ghosts and more, its like god, in this day and age of constant communication surly SOMEONE would have recorded god or a ghost.
3. The brain is UBER powerful, and we pick up signals that we cannot see conciously, but some people can train to see these signals i.e. Derren Brown
4. We all trip out of our faces when sleeping. DMT causes dreams and our brain CANNOT TELL THE DIFFERENCE between the dream world and the supposed real world… in essence, to the brain its the same thing.
Well done on the BAFTA nomination! x
I think what we all forget, myself included, is that the most “paranormal/supernatural” thing going on now is ourselves and everything around us.
Despite the fact that I admire Derren and I consider him a genius I got really dissapointed when I saw him and
that girl trying to prove that Chi energy does not exist,I mean…..c’mon on Derren the video you got in the site
“science of scams” called Chi energy revealed does not prove that chi energy does not exist or that all these people
(like the acupancture practitioner shown in that video) are charlatans….on the other hand the video on youtube that
shows derren and that girl “revealing” the trick that one nerd trying to do pretending that he ignites newspapaers
with his Chi energy is cheap for Derren’s shows and doesn’t proves that all these people through the ages who practised
the inner energy we all have inside us were actually fooling themselves. Derren I still consider you 1 of the greatest
genius of our times and thank you for opening my eyes…..now please don’t try to make me close them again!!!
George: If you can actually use this ‘inner energy’ to achieve paranormal feats, I do believe the JREF has a million with your name on it.
By the way ‘Chi energy’ is a pleonasm, meaning ‘energy energy’. Just saying.
I decided to find out if the psi wheel worked as a result of heat convection or pyschic ability by making one for my pet lizard. Turns out he can’t make it spin, but then I remembered that in addition to not producing any body heat, he’s also dead thick and very, very lazy.