Have you ever seen a shadow person?
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ARPAST - The Arkansas Paranormal and Anomalous Studies Team is a science-based research group dedicated to furthering our measured understanding of anomalous and unexplained phenomena via the utilization of state-of-the-art equipment, methodologies, and techniques. With over 150 members worldwide, ARPAST is also one of the fastest-growing and most widely respected organizations of its kind as well.
ARPAST works with other serious, science-based organizations and entities, including major universities and educational foundations, to further the progress of knowledge in this elusive field of study. Our members are extensively trained in the use, operation and understanding of equipment and methodology, and our training curriculum is second to none. We also use an extensive custom-designed database to seek patterns and correlations of data collected from over 200 investigations.
Our mission is to document, collect, and analyze environmental and corroborated data surrounding reported paranormal events while ruling out or uncovering any possible explanatory causes for such phenomena.
We are NOT "ghost busters," nor do we do "interventions," "cleansings," or "exorcisms." Our goal is not to "prove" or "disprove" the existence of "spirits" or "ghosts." To carry such an agenda would be to presume an understanding of that which is not currently understood within the context of scientific fact.
It is the intention of ARPAST to continue to grow and expand, and to stay true to our mission of using solid research and evidence gathering, data corroboration and peer review leading to potential hypotheses that may one day truly explain the "unexplainable."
Why join ARPAST? Simply stated: WE ARE THE BEST! Membership in ARPAST is extremely rewarding and offers a unique opportunity to participate in ongoing research programs and activities which contribute to expanding scientific knowledge of paranormal and anomalous phenomena. Additionally, you will have access to research, training, and equipment which is simply unparalled in the field. Compare our professionalism, methodology, and reputation, and you will agree - WE ARE THE BEST!
Please contact us for information on how to join the ARPAST quest.
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Larry Flaxman, ARPAST President
“The general trend in the last 4,000 years is that carbon dioxide and temperature have been moving against each other." - Piers Corbyn
Who turned the heat up?
Wow, summer is already here! It is nearly impossible to walk outside for more than a few moments before you are totally drenched in sweat. As uncomfortable as we may all be in the sweltering heat, is there any benefit to the misery? Theoretically, besides weight loss, shouldn't the elevated thermal gradients allow one to "experience" cold spots more easily? What? You've never felt a cold spot?
According to The Association for the Scientific Study of Anomalous Phenomena (ASSAP):
"People often report 'cold spots' in haunted locations. These are small areas (usually a lot smaller than a room) that feel significantly colder than the surrounding area. They are considered by some to be a sign of a ghost in the area. Some cold spots are always felt in the same place while others seem to appear and disappear at different locations.
When thermometers are placed in rooms where cold spots are reported they generally fail to register any drop in temperature. What is more, only certain people seem to feel these cold spots. Others can stand in the same place and feel nothing. Some people see this as a sign of a paranormal origin with some people more 'sensitive' than others. Others see it as a sign that cold spots are purely subjective. However, there is another possibility! There are natural phenomena that have a real physiological effect on someone without a change in the air temperature. Draughts are the obvious example but there are others.
Air is almost always on the move in a room, even with the door and windows closed. This is because the surfaces of some objects are at different temperatures to others. Heat will be exchanged between the objects in an attempt to equalise the temperature. This is done mainly through convection. This is an air flow whereby warm air (which is less dense) rises towards the ceiling, cools and drops back towards the floor.
There is obviously even more scope for draughts where the room connects to other areas eg. through an open door, window, hatch, fireplace or gaps in draught-proofing.
When moving air is in contact with human skin it will generally feel cool (windchill). This is because the moving air removes heat from the skin. It also cools by causing evaporation from the skin. This cooling will NOT show up as a temperature drop with a conventional thermometer."
So, does the ambient heat help us to feel these cold spots? Perhaps not. Again, according to the ASSAP, "There is another way where you might feel cold without any measurable change in temperature. Curiously, you might feel cold and damp in warm air conditions with a low relative humidity. In this situation moisture evaporates from your skin making you feel cool and clammy."
So... is it all in our heads? I'll leave you with a final word from our friends at the ASSAP, "Never underestimate the power of suggestion. Tell someone that they are standing in the 'cold spot' and they may start feeling it!"
