| Related sites for http://www.bad-language.com/ |
| Astronomy_In_Your_Hands Contains a collection of hands-on astronomy activities for classroom and home. A feature is the downloadable star wheel with a version available for every latitude on Earth. | | Astronomy_Page_for_Science_Explained Offers free lessons in astronomy. The course runs from Covers identification of stars, constellations and planets, and physics. | | Astrophysics_Visualization_Archive A searchable, curated collection of scientific visualizations and animations relating to astronomy, astrophysics and space science. This educational component of the Virtual Observatory is intended f | | Australia_Telescope_Outreach_and_Education Provides the media and the general public with information about the Australia Telescope National Facility and also provides educational resources on many aspects of astronomy. | | BBC_Science_-_Space Bring outer space online with the BBC Online's guide to astronomy | | Chris_Matzner\'s_List_of_Resources Helpful links for graduate and undergraduate astronomy students. Includes software information, literature topics, statistical data analysis, and presentation tips. | | Earth_and_Sky Home of the popular international science radio program Earth and Sky. | | EarthSpace Learn about Solar System, space exploration and constellations. | | ESO_Outreach The European Southern Observatory's program for student and kids. Includes events, science shows and multimedia material. | | Evening_Diploma_in_Astronomy Part-time undergraduate Diploma in Astronomy by evening study at UCL, London. | | From_Stargazers_to_Starships Tutorial and historical exposition of the motion of Earth in space, Newtonian mechanics and spaceflight, on a high school level. | | Great_Planets_-_A_Virtual_Journey_to_the_Universe Presents an in-depth view of the entire universe including Interactive space games, animations, and movies for the entire solar system. | | Hands-On_Universe_(HOU) HOU participants around the world request observations from an automated telescope, download images from a large image archive, and analyze them with the aid of user-friendly image processing software | | The_History_of_Gamma-ray_Astronomy Describes a bit of theory and plenty of actual examples of gamma rays being produced and detected. | | Infrared_Imaging Learn about infrared imaging by viewing a variety of objects in the infrared. | | Inquirer\'s_Guide_to_the_Universe Provides factual information about space and encourages space education through imaginative writing. | | International_Research_School_of_Planetary_Sciences Non-profit organization devoted to research and post-graduate education. | | Journey_through_the_Galaxy Explore our solar system, stars, extra-solar planets, the theories about the past and future of the universe, and human exploration of space. | | Mysteries_of_Deep_Space PBS companion site explores the secrets of the universe with an interactive timeline, classroom activities, a trivia challenge, and questions and answers with experts. | | National_Astronomy_Education_Projects An evolving list of those projects and programs in astronomy education to which anyone from around the U.S. can apply or from which anyone can receive materials. | | The_National_Schools_Observatory Offers access to professional telescopes worldwide for observations made by school children and teachers. | | Observatorio_ARVAL ARVAL's site is dedicated to propagating astronomical information. All of it is bilingual (Spanish - English), except for the 'AstronomÃa Caraqueña' section, which contains local astronomical infor | | The_Official_Young_Astronaut_Program Hands-on activities for kids in K-3, 4-6 and 7-9. Aerospace theme piques interest while strengthening science, math and technology skills. | | Project_Astro A national program creating partnerships between teachers and students in grades 4-9 with amateur and professional astronomers. | | Properties_of_Our_Solar_System Introductory course taught at the University of Oregon. Includes course materials and many links to supplementary resources. | | Robert_Lanthier\'s_Astronomy_Page An astronomy page with a 15-question quiz, an image gallery and planetary statistics. | | SAAS-FEE Yearly courses for post-graduate students that are offered by the Swiss Society of Astrophysics & Astronomy. Page includes course topic, list of professors and venues. | | Size_of_Solar_System Shows Solar System true to scale. Helps realize the vastness of distances between planets compared to planet sizes. | | S_P_A_C_E Resource site for astronomy in Indian schools | | Space__An_Exploration Discusses facts, mysteries, theories, and activities, about the solar system. | | Space_News,_Events_and__com_Forums Message board, including sections for ask an astronomer, SETI, and space business. | | Spanish_Language_Astronomy_Materials_Education_Center Recommended materials sorted by type and by grade level (including college and instructor level). | | Stanback_Planetarium_NASA_Educator_Resource_Center At South Carolina State University. Providing educators with current aerospace and astronautical educational materials. | | Star_Gazer_Home_Page Home of Jack Horkheimer. The first and only weekly TV series on naked eye astronomy. | | StarQuest An interactive, student-produced website about astronomy. It covers many areas including general information, astrophysics, constellations, and uses of the color spectrum with astronomy. An image ar | | Swinburne_Astronomy Online degree granting program in astronomy offering courses for Master of Science and Graduate Diploma of Science. Based in Melbourne, Australia. | | Universe_in_the_Classroom A free quarterly educational newsletter published by the ASP for teachers, youth group leaders, librarians, and anybody else who wants to help children of all ages learn more about the wonders of the | | Australian_Society_of_Exploration_Geophysicists Organization of professional earth scientists specialising in the practical application of the principles of physics and mathematics to solve problems in a broad range of geological situations. | | British_Institutions_Reflection_Profiling_Syndicate_(BIRPS) Acquires, processes and interprets seismic data from the lithosphere. The data are collected using commercial contractors and are publicly released. Includes current projects and historical achievemen | | Canadian_Exploration_Geophysical_Society_(KEGS) A non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the profession of geophysical practice related to mining, environmental and groundwater activities in Canada. |
|
BAD LANGUAGE
HOME
| ARTICLES | CUNNING LINGUISTICS
| LINGUISTICS | SKEPTICISM
ABOUT ME | EMAIL
| PAREIDOLIA MUSEUM
B@D LANGUAGE
A site for busting
myths about language and a
resource for skepticism and critical thinking
Enter The Skeptic Zone...
The new Skeptical Podcast...
Who You Gonna Call?
Spirit Rescue and Ghostbusting
Using History to investigate a 'Haunted House'...
Ghost stories abound in the pretty New England town of Armidale, New South Wales, Australia. From the spectres of Saumarez Homestead, to a haunted orphanage, and the lingering souls of a former women’s prison, many residents earnestly and eagerly pass down local legends. However, when a tale of supernatural activity hit close to home, the opportunity for an investigation arose. “My house is supposedly haunted,” revealed my friend Matthew K. “This might be something you’d like to investigate”.
You’ve heard these stories before…the occupant awakes to the sound of footsteps on the cold, creaking wooden floored hall, but he’s alone in the house. Lights flash on and off inexplicably. Mysterious shadows. Doors fling open by themselves, or slam shut. Closed windows are found open. Objects disappear and resurface in unexpected places. There are cold spots throughout the house. The pet dog barks manically at an invisible disturbance. There is an insistent tapping on the windows, walls and doors. Residents experience the sensation of being touched by an unseen hand.
The charming Federation house sits in a quiet part of Beardy Street, Armidale, located about one kilometre from the town centre. The household consists of two males and a pet dog (currently missing). The tenants are students at the local university, and both named Matthew, causing constant confusion. At the time of writing, Matthew S, aged 26, has resided in the house for one year. Matthew K, aged 24, has lived there for six months. Matthew S is the occupant who has experienced the phenomena, along with his previous flatmate, Cassandra, the daughter of the landlord. The owners have never resided in the house and have never experienced anything unusual while on the property. Matthew K is a skeptic who has never experienced anything of a paranormal nature in the house.
To investigate the phenomena I contacted the Ama Nazra Spiritual Teaching Centre.
The centre offers a range of New Age services: reiki attunement, energy balancing, polarity therapy, iridology, reflexology, past life regression, psychometry, the Horstmann technique, DNA therapy, breath work and “Spirit Rescue (Ghost Busting)”.
Ama Nazra is a Renaissance woman, a Clairvoyant, a Clairaudient, a Reiki Master Teacher, a Seichim Master, a Pranic Healer, a trained Spiritual Counsellor, an Holistic Metaphysical Healer…and…a Ghostbuster. This ghost busting service is “spirit or soul rescue. I speak with fragmented spirits and guide them in their journey home”. Ama assured me, “There’s so much work to be done in this area. There are so many lost spirits.”
Ethically, she refuses to do séances. “I send them home. I don’t bring them back.” Only last week Ama relieved a Glen Innes home of four spirits. One of them was particularly mischievous and reluctant to leave. “I really worked hard to convince that spirit to cross over.” It took little to persuade Ama to become involved in the investigation. It was a foregone conclusion that the house was haunted and required deliverance. After I explained the alleged paranormal activity within the house Ama remarked excitedly, “Oh goody!” and announced sagely that the phenomena constituted a “classic haunting”. For a fee of $50 Ama agreed to drive out the spirits of the house. This exorcism would take a mere hour.
On a Wednesday afternoon at 4pm Ama arrived with partner and fellow psychic Bernard. Together they perform this “spirit rescue”, “I see the spirits and Bernard senses them”, explained Ama. They wanted to speak with anyone who had experienced the alleged phenomena, and so they led Matthew S away for a quick chat. He reiterated the stories attached to the house, most of which he claims to have experienced himself. He emphasised that he wasn’t frightened or annoyed by the phenomena and didn’t want to exorcise any ‘spirits’ that might share his house, he just wanted to explain the bizarre occurrences. In her quest to repatriate the lingering souls of Earth, Ama replied dogmatically, “No, they must go!”
Ama and Bernard embarked upon a brief tour of the house, peeking into each of the rooms, and all the while ‘tutting’ about the impressive display of student/bachelor squalor. I could barely keep up with the pair in their blitzkrieg on the resident “spirits”, which ended in the backyard. “Okay. I’ve rounded up the spirits, now we need to find out where they’re coming from,” Ama said. “Let’s take a look around the yard”.
Matthew K and I watched, bemused, as Ama and Bernard threw off their shoes and braved the overgrown, spiky, thistle-ridden garden. They wandered around aimlessly until they arrived at the far left corner of the yard. Ama suddenly leapt into the air, screamed out “Bitch!” and came scurrying back to the house with a yelping Bernard behind her. “Did you tread on a thistle? I asked. “No,” a pale Ama shrieked between heavy breaths. “We’ve found the spot! There are two spirits. They’re buried in the backyard. It’s terrible.”
Ama claimed that two bodies were buried hastily in shallow graves in the far left corner of the yard. One body was that of a 58 year old female, and the other of a young male. Ama was convinced that it was an 8 year old boy, and Bernard argued unsuccessfully that the spirit was that of a teenager. According to Ama, both died in 1848. “Did they die under normal circumstances?” I asked. “No. It was murder!” Ama whispered.
Ama invited Matthew K and I to take a look for ourselves. We both took off our shoes and headed out to the spot with Ama and Bernard in tow. They had quickly regained their composure and were now happy to trudge around the area that had so terrified them minutes before. “I can tell that you are sensing something dreadful,” Ama noted dramatically, “you’re both reluctant to cross the area”. Yes, Matthew K and I had crept gingerly towards the spot… the ground was overrun with grass and thorny weeds! Otherwise, it looked like a calm, grassy patch.
Ama explained that the spirits were probably affecting the surrounding houses too, “your neighbours would be experiencing the same phenomena”. Matthew K expressed an interest in excavating the alleged “burial site”. Ama snapped, “You can’t do that. Nothing’s there anymore anyway.” Matthew K pointed out quite rightly that some bones of the ‘deceased’ would probably remain close to the surface, if indeed any bodies were buried there at all.
Changing the topic, Ama announced, “The little boy is called Damien”. Bernard successfully argued that the name of the male spirit was Daniel. The spirit of the woman was a little shy in revealing her name, “because she’s German”, Ama explained. Ama presumably speaks German, as she took the lost spirit aside to a quite part of the house and had a chat with her. We soon learned that this female spirits name was Klara. A prim and proper lady, she was very displeased with the Matthews for their inattention to housekeeping, and their hedonistic lifestyle of wild women, drinking and cigarette smoking (among other things). Apparently, Klara was the culprit who opened the doors and windows, “to let fresh air into the house”. Klara was also a bit of a misandrist as a result. “Klara likes it when you visit, Karen. She likes women. She doesn’t like men. She won’t leave my side now. Stay away Bernard, you’re upsetting her!”
“What did you and Bernard see and sense in the house itself?” I asked. “I spotted Klara as soon as I approached the house,” Ama said. “She was there on the front porch, sitting in a rocking chair and staring suspiciously at me. She zapped me, which is her way of telling me to go away. The zap feels like an electric shock. But I walked right in anyway.” (Didn’t Ama just claim that Klara liked the company of women?) I went outside and checked the porch but all I could spy was a lone shoe, tossed in the corner. Bernard told me he had immediately sensed the spirit of Daniel lurking in the pantry, and then later he felt Daniel’s presence in the toilet. Bernard “sensed” that Daniel liked the company of the male occupants, and felt wistful, watching the young men live their lives in a way that ‘he’ never could, as an eternal spirit boy.
I asked Ama about the connection between Klara and Daniel and their ties to the house. “Daniel was probably Klara’s grandson” she said. She later contradicted herself by claiming that there was no familial connection. I called her on it, and she suggested that Klara may have been Daniel’s “spiritual mother or grandmother in their state of limbo between Earth and Heaven”.
Ama couldn’t provide me with the last names of the spirits, or any concrete details of their lives or deaths. When pressed she said Klara’s last name “may have begun with an ‘S’” (one of the most common initials in both German and English and a very safe bet). Muddying the waters further, she couldn’t even assure me that Klara and Daniel had actually lived here, which raised the question of why the bodies were buried in the backyard of this particular house. Ama couldn’t explain this, “The spirits are in so much pain. I deal with angry, frustrated, lonely and furious spirits, not light and fluffy ones. I can’t expect them to relive their awful pasts. My only job is to send them home”.
Ama claimed that Klara and Daniel were “real, just like human beings” and lived in the house as though they were still human. They would repeat patterns in the house as they once knew it, accounting for the paranormal phenomena experienced by Matthew S (Although she’d just said that the two spirits didn’t necessarily live in the house). These patterns involve activities like switching lights on and off (although these ‘people’ supposedly died one year after Edison’s birth). Bernard piped up that Klara was the source of the footsteps in the hall, whereas Daniel liked to cause mischief and draw attention to his presence. Ama added that spirits like skeptics, “having such people around means they have to fight harder to be noticed”.
I asked Ama why the spirits remained on Earth and didn’t embark upon their own journey ‘home’. “Spirits remain on this plane for many different reasons”, she explained. Some remain on Earth to attend to “unfinished business”. Some spirits are bound to Earth due to a tragic or violent incident. They are forced to relive this incident, like a “recording” that plays over and over again until the “tape” loses its intensity over hundreds of years, or until a psychic like Ama comes to their rescue.
After initially claiming that the pair had been the victims of foul play, Ama suddenly declared that Klara and Daniel had “died of tuberculosis in a sanatorium in Armidale”. “There were a lot of health places in Armidale for people with this illness in the 1840s” she assured me. She then claimed that Klara and Daniel could have lived in any house in the area, running contrary to her earlier statement that the phenomena was caused by the repetition of patterns completed in this house during their lifetimes.
Suddenly, Bernard announced that Daniel had “returned home”. I asked him to elaborate, “Well, I simply asked my guardian angel to escort him home”. Ama added, “Picture a beautiful angel sweeping up Daniel and lifting him up to Heaven. The gate to Heaven is so pretty. Heaven. Have you heard of there? They go to a place of healing, like a hospital, but without all of those machines.” There are lots of roses there”. Bernard shared that Daniel left happily and without a struggle. “He had been around a lot longer than Klara and he was on his way out anyway”. This conflicts with their earlier statements that the pair had both died in 1848.
However, Klara was unwilling to leave the house, despite loathing the dirty socks and ashtrays. “Klara just won’t co-operate”, Ama sighed. “Hang on a sec!” she cried. “A 6 year old spirit named Margarite had appeared to convince Klara to leave this world!” After an uncomfortable pause I asked if Klara and Margarite had left. “No, Margarite is still convincing Klara to leave. If she doesn’t go in five minutes I’ll have to get rid of her myself” she said ominously.
To pass the time, Ama informed Matthew K that he has his own ubiquitous guardian angel, Jacob, “but you can call him Jake. Karen has an angel called Sarah who is telling me all about her. You’re a strong, determined woman”. Sarah had forgotten to tell Ama that I’m a skeptic! Like a parrot perched upon a sailors shoulder, our guardian angels are always sitting upon our right shoulders, “everyone has one”. “Is a guardian angel simply a person’s conscience?” I asked. “No,” Ama corrected me firmly, “A guardian angel is just as real as a human being and takes care of our spiritual matters”. Without ceremony, Ama told us that Klara had finally left with Margarite for the journey “home”.
“Are you any good at imagining things?” Ama asked. Although nowhere as talented as she, we assured her we were. Ama asked Matthew K and I to join her and Bernard in a “cleansing ritual to return the positive energy to the house”. We were instructed to imagine a siphon or vortex, spinning beneath the house and drawing out the “negative energy”. The four of us then returned to the “burial site” where we performed another cleansing ritual upon the tormented plot of land. “Close your eyes and imagine great columns of white light extending from the sky to the graves. This will return the positive energy to the site.” Ama collapsed into Bernard’s arms and sighed, the pair both exclaiming at their weariness over the afternoon’s activities. “This work is exhausting, very draining” Ama said.
With that, Ama and Bernard left. On her way out, Ama warned us that some “residual activity” may occur, and in that event we were to call her immediately. Ama could even perform her work from home, if any late night activity occurred. By 5pm exactly, both ghosts and psychics had left the building. Matthew K marvelled that the whole process fit so neatly into the hour appointment.
My next tasks were to attempt to find explanations for the phenomena, and to verify the scant information provided by Ama. Many of the incidents could be dismissed as readily explicable. Cold spots in the house may be attributable to natural sources. Armidale is notoriously cold and windy in Autumn and Winter, with sudden spates of cold weather year round. The house is heated with wood fires and therefore isolated sections of the house are prone to coldness. The sensation of being touched may have the innocent source of a wind or breeze. This would also explain the doors that open and close, seemingly without a source. Incidents involving the lights might be explained as electrical faults.
As for the missing dog’s behaviour, the pup might have been reacting to anything, barking at sounds, insects, other dogs or people outside the house itself. The dog could also account for other phenomena such as the footsteps in the hall, the shadows, and the tapping sounds throughout the house. The occurrences of objects disappearing and reappearing elsewhere can simply be put down to the lifestyle of students and the immense traffic of visitors. Nor can the effects of alcohol consumption be ignored as a potential source of hallucination! Lastly, it must be noted that Matthew K had never experienced anything unusual in his six month stay as a tenant, despite being aware of the phenomena reported and his vigilance to be on the lookout for anything strange.
Finally, I turned to Archivist and Historian Bruce Ibsen at the University of New England’s Heritage Centre to assist in researching the claims. Ama and Bernard didn’t provide me with much solid information to examine, and most of this was vague or conflicting. Without providing complete names, (aside from the non-specific and common “S”), especially for a woman and a child, it is highly difficult to search any available records. Ama rationalised her inability to extract precise details from the spirits, absolving herself of having to provide concrete, verifiable information. Conversely, the ‘spirits’ offered unprovable information; Klara dislikes a messy house, while Daniel was jealous of the young tenants. If Ama can extract such irrelevant personality-based information, why can’t she find out simple details, such as complete names and birth and death dates?
Ibsen was able to prove conclusively that no house stood on the Beardy Street, Armidale property in 1848. The current address exists somewhere between former lots 3-8. This vacant section of land was owned by a Mr Franklin Jacks. It wasn’t until 1878, 30 years later, that any building stood on this section of land. This was a house was built by Charles Howe who owned lots 3, 4, 5 and 6. This house no longer exists. A Mr Charles Wilson owned the unoccupied lots 7 and 8. So, there wasn’t a last name beginning with an “S”. This information disproves Ama’s claim that ‘Klara’ and ‘Daniel’ had lived and died in this section of the street, as no house existed in 1848.
Ibsen also discounted the claim that tuberculosis sanatoriums existed during this time. Armidale does have its own district hospital, but this wasn’t established until 1883. As for Klara’s German descendency, Armidale did have a prolific German settlement, particularly around the Gold Rush era, given the town’s close proximity to the gold mining areas of Hillgrove and Rocky River. (Surrounding towns such as Inverell and Bingara, along the scenic drive known as The Fossicker’s Way, are also rich in gold, sapphires and other natural metal and mineral reserves.) However, 1848, the supposed year of the supposed deaths of the supposed Klara and Daniel, falls short of the Australian Gold Rush by a few years.
Furthermore, Ibsen couldn’t find evidence of any murders or inexplicable deaths for this time period. Why would two unrelated ‘bodies’ be buried together in the middle of a vacant plot? If Klara and Daniel had existed, and eventually died of natural causes they would likely have been buried in the local cemetery. Home burials were never common in Armidale (although Ian Johnston of the Armidale History Group relayed to me the peculiar story of one man who was buried in a well at his home around this same time). Again, Ibsen clarified matters by revealing that a cemetery existed in Armidale in 1848, on the site where the Armidale Public School now stands, roughly in the area of the current playground. This cemetery was established in the early 1840s and closed in 1859 when the bodies were exhumed and relocated to a new site on the south side of the city. The second cemetery was opened in 1861 and still exists today.
Rather than trying to debunk the claims of Ama and Bernard, Ibsen and I couldn’t find any evidence to corroborate their claims. Were there any ghosts for the ghost busters to bust?
For those who wonder if the phenomena continued after the ghost busting, or if any “residual activity” occurred, I’m happy to report that nothing out of the ordinary has happened since. Perhaps nothing ever really did?
P.S. Matthew K provided me with a 2008 update on Ama Nazra.
“I just saw [Ama] driving a taxi. Either she is now a psychic taxi driver (there could be another story in that one for you), or the spirit cleansing business has fallen on hard times. Scratch one up for the Skepbitch.”
Stollznow, Karen. 2004. Who You Gonna Call? In Collins, Anne.
English Express 2. Victoria: Pearson Education. pp.33-38.
ISBN: 012360243 2. (reprint)
Stollznow, Karen. 2002. Who You Gonna Call? The Skeptic, Vol. 22, No. 4.
NSW: Australian Skeptics. pp.37-41.
Get into The TANK Vodcast archives.
The ONLY Skeptical Vodcast!
 Can Graphology diagnose heart disease?
The Cunning Linguist...(not) Speaking in Tongues.
Check out my interview...I am...Paranormal Investigator of the Week!
Is San Francisco Haunted?
Missouri's Most Haunted House? The Lemp Mansion.
Remote Viewing: Remote Chance?
EVPs: Can we hear voices of the dead?
#$%@!
and Welcome to Bad Language
I'm Karen Stollznow (Cunning) Linguist,
Author, Skeptic and Investigator of the
paranormal and
pseudo-scientific.
Yes! I am the Skepbitch
“I
admit it, I am not one of the great
linguists."
- Not one of the
great Presidents, January 2001
Know an Unscrupulous Psychic?
Thank God I'm an Atheist!
The Winchester Mystery House
Ghost Mining: Investigating a Haunted Hotel
Chain Letters: Break The Chain!
Electronic Voice Phenomena: Ghosts or Gobbledegook?
An arse by any other name...
Can backwards speech reveal
hidden messages?
I don't have an accent!
Are Skeptics closed-minded,
nay-saying curmudgeons?
Pope Benedict XVI or
Pope
Tart?
You're a Linguist... How
many languages do you speak?
Copyright © 2006-2008
geovisit();
 geovisit();
 geovisit();
 geovisit();
 geovisit();
 geovisit();
 geovisit();
 geovisit();
 geovisit();
 geovisit();
This site is a member of WebRing. To browse visit Here.
geovisit(); |
|
