As I look at the paranormal field I see a separation. We have Researchers, those that are seeking answers daily, studying equipment, learning the human faults,  discovering natural causes often mistaken for paranormal. They dissect pictures learning what causes mists and orbs, they look at camera settings and experiment so they understand strange light streaks aren’t paranormal. They see how a shadow is caused and how the human mind can become confused. They learn about plumbing and home inspection so they know what can cause moans, groans, creaks, screams and mistaken footsteps. They understand water hammer and how a faucet that turns on is not a demon. They learn about naturally and manmade air currents in a home. They study toxins both in the home and in the ground, water and air surrounding a home. They learn about molds and how they can affect the human mind. They study sleep disorders and how often they are misinterpreted as paranormal. They study infrasound and what they can do to your brain. They study emf’s and the effects thought to be caused. They are looking at new methods to try and find answers they do not know yet. They are looking for the truth and not willing to call the unknown paranormal without first looking deeper.

We also have Enthusiasts, those out for fun, who don’t bother to learn equipment, they watch paranormal tv shows and think they are real and base their investigations off them. They use wrong camera settings, poor investigative procedures.  If they don’t understand something it becomes paranormal without any further study. They take pictures of glass and mirrors and call it demons.  They think mists and orbs are paranormal and don’t want to learn they are not because they saw it on tv. They will tell a client they are haunted when in reality it’s a poor investigation. They find paranormal at most investigations because the television shows told them they should. They post garbage photos and do not want to know the truth and will even get mad when you try and explain it to them. They do this for a rush or thrill. They lack common sense and do not want it to spoil their fantasy world. They post the poor photography, they post radio voices, they catch hundreds of evp’s only they seem to understand. They walk around with cellphones on in their pockets and are shocked when the KII goes off. They have no idea what new house effect or corner eye phenomenon is. So once again which one are you? They are also the greatest number  making up the paranormal field. 

Every home and building we investigate will have air currents, there is no air tight location. Every time a door opens or closes air in the home moves. A person walking creates air currents in a building. Your home moves air every time a furnace or air conditioner kicks on. Homes have chimneys, these have air currents, a temperature difference outside a home will cause air currents inside a home.  These same temperature changes occur naturally in homes with the basement being cooler then the upper floors, THIS CREATES AN AIR CURRENT!   The direction of the flow depends on the temperatures. If inside temperature is higher than outside temperature, inside air density is less than outside air density, and inside air will flow up and out of the upper parts of the building. Cold outside air will flow into the lower parts of the building.

If outside temperature is higher than inside air temperature - the air flow will be in the opposite direction.

Did you know most places have small air leaks around electrical outlets, baseboards, dryer vents, pipe and cable penetrations, attic hatchways, and ceiling light fixtures. So once again first understand naturally occurring wind before you call it paranormal wind.

Now knowing this information why not instead of a firefly get a Thermal Leak Detector they can be picked up for around $40.00 then learn how to use it. Start by setting a reference temperature by pointing the device at an inside wall, and hitting the "set" button.  Then scan the sensor along a surface. When it hits a cold or hot spot, the LED light changes from green to red (hot) or blue (cold). The surface temperature is also displayed on the screen.

How about you teams that are on a tight budget? You can detect air currents with incense. (just be careful not to burn anything.) Hold a burning incense stick around electrical outlets and baseboards to test for air flow that hurts energy efficiency. Such an air current will cause the smoke from the incense stick to waver in response. You can get more accurate results from such a test by closing all fireplace flues, windows, and doors, shutting off furnaces, air conditioners and water heaters. Now if your like me I can’t stand the smell of most incense so you can buy an unscented, 100 sticks for under $5.00.

So before you call something paranormal wind make sure the wind your catching isn’t naturally occurring.

People want paranormal to exist so bad they actually do damage to the field by not using critical thinking when reviewing evidence.  Lets look at some of the evidence presented.

1.      Mirrors should be avoided when using an IR camera and while taking photos. A mirror will show IR distortion when a camera is pointed at it. A photo of a mirror can show reflections from the room that may confuse the photographer. A dirty mirror (even one we don’t notice the dirt) can show images that our brain wants to finish as a face.  We even see the flash reflections from a mirror presented as evidence.  Please understand what a mirror can do, experiment take pictures from all angles and see what can happen. Smear a layer of soap on a mirror and let it dry, take pictures to see what can show up.

2.      Trees and shrubbery, between the lighting and the leaves and branches we often see pareidolia presented as evidence.  Once again know that the shadows, shading can trick our minds to see faces. Much like seeing animals in clouds.

3.      Windows or glass can much like mirrors give reflections from both inside and outside the home, doubling possibilities of misperception.

4.      Wallpaper, Peeling missing paint causes patterns,  and once again our camera can capture these patterns that our brain misinterprets. If you think you see a face actually look at the patterns and colors, you can easily debunk your brain.

5.      Poor photography and wrong camera settings make up for a great deal of the evidence people THINK they are capturing. If you don’t know everything about your equipment are you qualified to tell a client they have ghosts?

6.      EVP’s  Are these becoming the new orb? This is the new area people are flooding the internet with as evidence. Unknown sounds we often THINK is from the other side? People and lack of understanding of equipment often give us this evidence. Most people do not understand how a footstep or clothing can give you misperceptions. Natural sounds from a home can be misinterpreted. Sounds from outside the home are often captured and presented as evidence. I have seen a few teams present a coyote as a child.

7.      EMF While high EMF can effect our thinking a K2 meter is not a tool to talk with the other side but thanks to television the paranormal community and the need to THINK they have captured a ghost, account for  the internet to be flooded with misperceptions.  Most teams don’t know how to properly use an emf meter.

8.      Battery drain, does the other side wait to drain your battery to get energy? Does this mean ghosts run on direct current? If you think they do then take a marine battery in the home to give them a nice supply of energy. Critical thinking may show you other reasons, battery’s purchased at a dollar store or a discount house may be very close to being out of energy already. Rechargeable batteries are often misused which shortens their life, one weak battery can effect your camera settings and performance, it will also drain your camera showing dead but will if you shut it off seem to have got juice again, this is because the good batteries recover some lost energy. If your at an investigation and experience battery drain use some critical thinking, are your watch batterys drained? Is the clients remote control batterys drained? Someone once reported ghosts use energy so now your lack of common sense jumped on this band wagon.

9.      Cold spots this is another area that is often lack of critical thinking, All homes have air currents, so is it possible to find a cold spot? Yes, is it paranormal? No! What could it be? How about a change in humidity? High humidity can make a person feel chilled. Ever been swimming in a lake and found warm or cold spots? This is very much like a home with fluctuating temperatures. Why would we think a cold spot is from the other side?  I hear arguments because they need energy so they draw it from the air. Well this is fine but if spirits do require and are made of energy and remove the heat from the air wouldn’t that make them a warm spot?

10.  The human mind and paranormal, this is an area so many paranormal teams ignore but they should be studying the brain and all the possible misperceptions it can give us. Remember our brains are programmed to look for familiar items and between our eyes and our brain and missing data they will often make us think we saw something we didn’t. Plus all people who investigate paranormal should study the brain and hallucinations. Sound like to much work? If it does maybe you should find a new hobby.

So do yourself and your clients a favor study, test equipment, learn everything you can about the brain and misperceptions. Its only when we stop presenting explainable evidence that we can move forward to hopefully get the answers we seek.