Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Haunted History: Spirit Photography

The most famous 'spirit' photograph of them all: Abraham Lincoln with wife Mary Todd.

What happens to us after we die? Do we go on to exist in some non-physical form or is death truly the end? Well, the answer to that question will probably never be found but the uncertainty created by death and longing for lost loved ones created a booming industry for photographers in the later part of the 19th century.

Enter spirit photography.


Almost as soon as the camera had been invented, some people started thinking that the almost magical photographic medium could be just the thing to prove the existence of spirits, and thus life after death. So far as we know, the first photograph of a supposed spirit was taken in 1860. However, while ghost photos started to appear sporadically in the years after, one event alone produced an onslaught of ghost photos: the Civil War.


The Civil War, which raged from 1861 to 1865 was the bloodiest war in American history, leaving over 625,000 Americans dead, more than were killed in every other American war combined. Needless to say, with so much sudden death, America in the late 1860s was not a happy country as it would probably have been impossible for any one family not to have been touched by the war. In this nationwide grief, some enterprising photographers saw the potential for big money.


While no one knows who made the discovery, by the 1860s, the double exposure was common knowledge among photographers. In doing a double exposure, the photographer would take a picture of someone against a black background and then reuse the plate for another shot. Result: an eerie, transparent figure of a person would be superimposed on the final picture. At the time, portraits would often need to be exposed for a few seconds so, by cutting the exposure short, the photographer could further muddle the 'ghost' and make it much harder for a clear image that could be identified by grieving relatives as their lost loved one.


In the wake of the Civil War, some photographers of questionable morals seized on this opportunity and public ignorance to make big, big money.

Of all the supposed spirit photographers, William Mumler of Boston, then New York was the most famous. At the time, getting one's picture taken was a big, and expensive, event. Mumler and other photographers, being careful to guard the double exposure secret, would then advertise that they had the ability to photograph spirits. Needless to say, with all the sudden death wrought by the war, people lined up for photos in the hope that their dead relatives would join them, paying far in excess of the normal portrait price and making the spirit photographers rich in the process.

With the general public ignorance about photography, it seemed as though this fraud could go on indefinitely. Unfortunately for the fraudulent photographers, the good times did not last.

In 1869, William Mumler was put on trial for fraud, with his accusers, among them, P.T. Barnum, stating that he was using double exposures to fake spirit photographs. While Mumler himself was acquitted of the charges as there was no hard evidence against him, his trial let the big secret of spirit photographers, double exposure, out into the open. Result: once everyone knew about trick photography, people were less inclined to line up for photos when they knew that they were, more than likely, being swindled.


By the turn of the 20th century, spirit photography as well as the whole spiritualism movement was consigned to the pages of history. However, while the spirit photographs of the 1800s have been essentially proven as fakes, the interest in catching ghosts on camera has not waned in the least. Just Google something to the effect of 'ghost pictures' for proof of this fact.


Some'ghost' photos from the 1800s











And now. . . the best for last. . .
                           Ghost snot! Eeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwww!!!!!

 

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Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Scientific Literacy (or Illiteracy) in the United States


Are Americans good or bad at science? Are we scientifically literate (or illiterate)? Just yesterday, a new study conducted by the University of Michigan revealed that only 43% of respondents knew that we live in the Milky Way galaxy, which is a rather frightening finding considering that I remember being taught this information in early grade school.

Needless to say, this is not the first study about scientific literacy in the United States and will surely not be the last. Digging around for more examples of easy science questions that adults get wrong, I came across a study from the National Science Foundation, which has, as far as I can find, the most examples of questions and beliefs regarding science in the United States. Go here for the full report, continue here for the nuts and bolts.

Needless to say, the results of this survey were quite interesting. Below is the summary of the findings with question, answer, and approximate percentage (my estimate by looking at the chart) of people who got it right.

How long does it take Earth to go around the Sun? (a year) 55%
Does the Earth go around the Sun? (yes) 75%
Radioactive milk can be made safe by boiling. (no) 65%
Early humans and dinosaurs lived at the same time. (no) 50%
Humans evolved from earlier species. (yes) 50%
Continental drift is is happening and will continue. (yes) 80%
Antibiotics kill viruses as well as bacteria. (no, bacteria only) 50%
Electrons are smaller than atoms. (yes) 50%
Lasers focus sound waves. (no) 45%
A father's gene determines a baby's gender. (yes) 65%
Oxygen comes from plants. (yes) 90%
Radioactivity is purely man-made. (no) 75%
Earth's center is hot. (yes) 80%


Another interesting survey conducted by the NSF dealt wit the belief in pseudoscience. The troubling finding here: except for demonic possession, belief in every area grew in every area from 1990 to 2001. So, here we go here, the various pseudosciences and approximate percentages of the population who believe in them.

Psychic healing: 55%
ESP: 50%
Hauntings: 45%
Demonic possession: 40%
Ghosts: 40%
Telepathy: 35%
Alien visitation: 35
Clairvoyance: 30%
Communicating with the dead: 30%
Astrology: 30%
Witches: 25%
Reincarnation: 25%
Channeling: 15%


By looking at the statistics, for me, anyway, one thing is clear: in America, science and pseudoscience are not really exclusive to each other with the general public. For the most part, at least 2/3 of the population (not good, but not great) got most of the science questions right (those dealing with human history and evolution being not so surprising exceptions), yet a strong belief in things that have no scientific basis whatsoever remains (at least half the population believes in psychic healing and ESP) and appears to be growing. Weird.

Anyway, these types of studies, at least for the scientifically-minded, bring up some interesting points to ponder. For some fun, why not quiz your family and friends with the science questions above and see how they do?


 

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Saturday, October 20, 2012

Watch the Orionid Meteor Shower Live Online Tonight

 
Tonight, October 20/21, 2012, marks the peak of the Orionid meteor shower for 2012. While we would all have a Moonless night and clear skies in a perfect world, the world isn't perfect, which means that some of us will be clouded out for the night (though the Moon will be out of the way, though). Fortunately, thanks to modern technology, anyone with an Internet connection will be able to watch the Orionid meteor Shower thanks to live video feeds, one from NASA and the other from the Slooh Space Cam.

For anyone who's looking to have clear skies tonight, here are some viewing tips:

1. P
lan to stay out a while, as it takes the human eye about 15 minutes to get optimal night vision capability. The bad news is that, even one bright flash of white light will wipe out night vision, requiring you to start the process all over again.

2. Grab a lawn chair or, even better, a lounge-type chair. Trying to lean back with a straight-back lawn chair can be a pain in the neck, literally! Eyes ready for dark and with something to sit/lay on, settle in for a night of hopeful meteor watching (or at the very least, stargazing), just try not to fall asleep and don't forget to dress warmly and bring the bug spray!

3. Don't forget to bring a coat as this is winter and, chances are, things will be pretty cool in most locations tonight.

Besides meteors, tonight can be a great time for binocular viewing, owing to your use of a chair. Under suburban (maybe) or rural skies (definitely), a pair of medium power (10x50) binoculars can yield some stunning wide-angle sights. For someone truly dedicated, why not try and keep a tally of how many meteors you see for every complete hour? For the record, the Orionids typically spawn around 20 meteors per hour on peak night.


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Tuesday, October 9, 2012

New Comet ISON Could be as Bright as Full Moon, No Kidding!


Comet ISON could be far brighter than Comet McNaught ever was.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) has just done some calculations in regards to newly-discovered Comet ISON. Result: the Sun-grazing comet, due in November 2013, could reach magnitude -11.6, which would make it about as bright as the Full Moon! The best news: this will be a Northern Hemisphere event. Still, with it being over a year away, don't go getting too excited just yet as comets are notoriously unpredictable but, on the other hand, this is one story to keep your eye on.

For more info:The full story



 
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