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Out of Body
Experiences - Medical Mysteries or Scientific Explanation?
By Brandon Johnsonn
Out of body experiences have long been one of many medical
mysteries -- until now, says a new study. One in 10 people
report having had an out-of-body experience, many
believing it to be a result of divine intervention.
In experiments published in the Science journal, experts
have successfully triggered out-of-body experiences in
several individuals. This begs the question: Are
out-of-body experiences supernatural, or simply logical
and explainable occurrences, resulting from neurological
activity in the brain.
To find out, the researchers had volunteers wear
visual-display goggles and stand in front of a camera.
While looking through the goggles, the volunteers saw a
virtual-reality version of themselves standing in front of
them.
When the scientists touched their real back, the
volunteers could see their virtual back being touched as
well. Surprisingly, the participants reported feeling that
the sensation of touch originated from their virtual self,
simply because they could see the action happening to
themselves. This made them feel as if the hologram was the
"real" them.
Dr Ehrsson said: "This experiment suggests that the
first-person visual perspective is critically important
for the in-body experience. In other words, we feel that
our self is located where the eyes are."
Even stranger, when the virtual volunteer hologram was
replaced with a tangible mannequin image and the touch
experiment was repeated, they still reported feeling as if
the mannequin was their real body.
Taking it one step further, the researchers threatened
their virtual body by swinging a hammer at it, and the
volunteers had a significant physiological response,
including increased sweating (a common sign of nervousness
or fear).
Dr Susan Blackmore, psychologist and visiting lecturer at
the University of the West of England, said: "Scientists
have long suspected that the clue to these extraordinary,
and sometimes life-changing, experiences lies in
disrupting our normal illusion of being a self behind our
eyes, and replacing it with a new viewpoint from above or
behind."
The researchers even acknowledged the amazing implications
these findings could have for video games -- oh yeah, and
something boring about surgeons being able to perform
life-saving operations from thousands of miles away
through a robotic version of themselves.
Although the experiments were able to recreate the
sensation of having an out-of-body experience, scientists
still can't pinpoint the exact reason or neurological
activity that's causing the phenomenon. Still, with the
excitement generated from one of the first studies of it's
kind, there's no doubt that there will be much more
research into the topic.
Have you or anyone you know ever had an out of body
experience?
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