October 10, 2003 & December 12, 2009
St. Petersburg, Florida
As published in Bayside News.
Despite how the media portrays it, ghost investigation does not always involve moaning figures, bleeding walls, or houses sucked into vortexes.
Instead, paranormal investigation groups look for cold breezes, mild sensations of a presence in the room, unusual electromagnetic fields, and temperature fluctuations. It is in these earthier, though no less dramatic, ways that ghosts make themselves commonly known to the living.
One such event occurred during a mid-October investigation. The team assembled at a home on 5th Avenue in St. Petersburg. The reported phenomena focused almost entirely upon the electrical aspects of the home.
One factor was a continuous cycle of excessive energy usage resulting in abnormally high electric bills. Homeowners worked with the local electric company to augment the home for energy conservation including tinting the windows and adding insulation. The house was repeatedly inspected for areas of weakness, wiring replaced and upgraded, and the power box monitored, but to no avail. The mysterious energy leakages continued.
New machinery and electronics also suffered at an alarming rate: heaters, cars, power switches, timers, and alarm systems were among the appliances replaced repeatedly since the homeowners moved in nearly 2 years ago. The older electronics, however, continued to function perfectly and showed no signs of malfunctions.
Though it is commonly believed that apparitions utilize energy to manifest themselves, it was not much for the team to go on.
However, the investigators were greatly surprised upon arrival as activity started immediately upon opening the investigation. Psi-sensitives, or those able to sense the presences of ghosts, immediately felt a male presence in the home. He gravitated to the areas of the piano room and the bedrooms; he was playful and adventurous. He also had a sense of charm and a flirty nature with women.
As the investigation continued, more phenomena ensued. A secondary entity was detected; an older woman who stayed in a secondary bedroom. She was kindly, well dressed and presented a proper appearance to those who sensed her.
Those taking readings of the home noted unusual fluctuations in the electromagnetic (EMF) field. Three of the most sensitive EMF meters picked up small spikes in the field that did not appear to be caused by any known natural sources, as many electronics were shut off to prevent false readings.
Images taken during the investigation and while equipment registered mild anomalies shows the presence of orbs. Orbs are theorized to be condensed spiritual energy which the camera is able to record. Orbs often co-inside with equipment and psi-sensitive readings that occur during times of activity.
To avoid the creation of false orbs, homeowners are asked to dust the home prior to the investigation and to turn off as many air-disturbing devices as possible, allowing air-born particles to settle.
The back of the home also continued this unusual trend of phenomena. The third bedroom, located on the opposite side of the house, affected all who went into it. Many felt a sense of dread and anticipation going into the area. One person felt something crawling up the wall, another felt trapped. Still others reported sensations of sharp pains in the back and head.
Photographs taken in the room show milky yellow-white orbs floating along the wall. Immediately outside of the room, two teammates witnessed a bright flash similar to a light bulb exploding near the ceiling and EMF was detected.
Yet, the most telling event was in the kitchen. As the group wrapped up its first walk through of the home, one teammate stood in a cool draft of air. Enjoying the coolness, she realized that the homeowners were instructed to turn off the air conditioning. The homeowner present confirmed that the air was off, and had been off since before the team arrived.
At this point, the column of cold air began to move through the kitchen, past several SPIRITS teammates. As it moved, EMF fluctuated again picking up the movement of the spirit. One image taken during this time shows a potential second manifestation: as the cold air went past, her camera picked up two very strong orb images and a grainy mist pushing past another teammate.
After the investigation, the investigators sat down with the owners to compare notes. For all members of the team, except for the initial contact person, this was the first time they had heard the history of the house or any record of phenomena.
Remarkably, many of the images psi-sensitives picked up were confirmed by the homeowners. The property had once belonged to an elderly couple. The husband was walking outside the home, tripped on the sidewalk and fell. Though he survived, the fall sent him to the hospital and caused enough internal damage to lead to his death. A short time later, his wife was diagnosed with cancer a, herself, died in the home under Hospice care. The current homeowners bought the house from the managers of their estate.
Is it that this couple remains close the house they love and wish to keep it as they had known it in life? That might explain why the older appliances remain intact and functioning. Could this relate to the excessive energy use? And what about the sensations in the back bedroom? The phenomena in the kitchen was moving through the area towards that strange and sullen room.
The mystery of the back room may continue, but both homeowners and the team agree: there is certainly something paranormal happening in the house on 5th Avenue.
5th Ave. North
Recheck
12-12-09
One person present used a new app that allegedly measures quantum fluctuations. These are a sample of the results:
Radar start: Saturday, Dec 12, 2009, 8:34 PM
Radar end: Saturday, Dec 12, 2009, 8:40 PM
Radar end:
Scan Frequency: 3.0
Duplicate Detection Threshold: 1.0
Display Impedance: 1.0
Signal Timeout: 1.0
Signal Capacitance: 1.0
Words Spoken:
8:34:51 PM : alive
8:38:06 PM : doctor
8:38:32 PM : plus
8:39:11 PM : remove
8:39:37 PM : America
8:39:50 PM : hidden
Article: Several years ago cell phones collided with paranormal investigation. Downloadable cell phone programs claimed to allow ghosts to speak to us by scanning an area and matching ghostly energy (EMF) with a word bank. The program came in a cheap or free downloadable application. Since that time, several have asked about the use and reliability of these programs. The answer to both inquiries remains a resound “no”.
The team had one member who had the application and volunteered to use it. The results are listed below. Overall, the device was not helpful to the investigation and offered no new insights. At least once a reporter that we worked with also downloaded this program. She had worked with on rather spectacular paranormal tour and then did an investigation with us. In the days following, she reported that she used the application and it came up with words that upset her enough that she deleted the application. Aspects of suggestion, particularly after attending the ghost party, remained with her though the words that she reported seemed to be random. Her fear came from reading into the words and connecting them to aspects that she remembered in order to give them context.
Other factors exist. The odds of transforming a cell phone into a paranormal detector, something that it was not designed to do, via a single application seems unlikely. The EMF detectors used by paranormalists tend to be more sensitive and more versitile than what a cell phone might provide. In today’s times, many of these devices have been modified from their original purposes to be used by paranormalists. How can a cell phone, used for information and communication, possibly match the specifications of these devices?
Though the application is designed for entertainment purposes this is not always made clear. At least one paranormal show has used the device during a program. This does create interest, but not for appropriate reasons. Paranormal shows are listed as entertainment shows. This classification originates from the 1990s when academics and scientists feared that the shows misrepresented information and scientific facts to audiences. Many of these shows continue to abuse how they represent the paranormal field in order to make for a more exciting episode.
The last issue that remains is that paranormal investigation is a pseudoscience, based on a mixture of belief and science. The equipment that is used in regular investigation, including EMF detectors, has not been validated. Since the field, itself, is unstable and remains unproven despite all of the technical equipment that has universal use in the field, then how would a cell phone app hold up? Overall conclusion: No, don’t use the apps. They are not valid and should not be utilized.