Help me do some research on telepathy
Over the past week, i've been thinking a lot about telepathy - the kind of telepathy as explored in various types of science fiction. And i've been developing a few ideas about how telepathy might work if it was a real, common, species wide evolved ability. In the next little while I want to write up a special feature blog post on the topic. But first, i want to gather some more examples of telepathy as depicted in film, television, literature, etc.
In your opinion, dear reader, what are some of the best examples of telepathy in scifi? Please let me know.
My basic framework is that telepathy is usually depicted as either just another form of communication - as hearing people's voices in your head. Or as a direct transfer of thoughts - the my mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts thing.
SUPPLEMENTAL: I should clarify, that i'm not talking about ESP or anything like that. The question isn't about the paranormal, but about whether evolution could produce an organism capable of telepathy and how that would work?
Comments
Tempted to say "sent you a telepathic answer, why haven't you replied?". "I have" you would then reply. Hmmm..
OK. My stance is the same for all paranormal: show me. Until I can get my mind around (!) a mechanism for thought transfer, I am skeptical. Some sort of radio transmitter? Possible. But are brain waves translatable? I could hook up to an ECG and transmit something but are my neural networks going to give the same memory/image/thoughts as yours? Now there is a field of false memory research! Plus what happens with all the background chatter that goes on in the wings of my mind?
Posted by: Lee | April 13, 2006 02:26 PM
Whether it is possible and whether it actually happens with humans are two separate questions. I'm wondering, do the laws of the universe preclude it?
I want to look at what the idea of telepathy would really mean in concrete biological terms. What, about the nature of cognition, would make telepathy impossible, and would it have any adaptive advantage over verbal and visual communication?
You've given me some food for thought, and I'm itching to ditch this cog psych assignment and spend the rest of the week writing about telepathy.
Posted by: Mark | April 13, 2006 02:52 PM
When a flock of birds or a school of fish move 'as one'...is there communication? And how?
There is also the issue of wavelength. I have recently heard some stuff that recorded animals (mice, I think) and insects communicating at wavelengths beyond human hearing. This could give the impression of 'telepathy'.
Posted by: lee | April 13, 2006 04:45 PM
Exactly! If a race of visually impaired aliens came to earth, they would soon marvel at how we can communicate with each other through some seemingly magical medium. We call it winking, nodding, smiling, and pointing...but with no experience of the sense of sight, they might think it telepathy.
Posted by: Mark | April 13, 2006 04:51 PM
There is increasing evidence (for those harsh agnostics out there) that proves group prayer can effect the well being of the person they are praying on. Does telepathy have to essentially employ the brain? Why if so? For example there is a technique that involves putting your attention on another persons chacra, lets just say the Vishuti for arguments sake. They say mantras for that chacra and they move their hand in a counter clockwise direction near that area but not touching the person. This is to direct that energy centre back into its correct natural frequency and i have time and time again seen improvements for that person. Now to me you could classify that as a kind of telepathy. The transference of ones energy to another and causing a tangible physical response. The brain is after all just another organ. Lets not give it too much praise, it does hold the ego after all!!!!
Posted by: IdleSparks | April 14, 2006 06:49 PM