Scientific bias against parapsychology

I have long wondered about one curious thing. Why is it that mainstream scientists and religious authorities have difficulty admitting the existence of strange phenomena or mental powers that are outside their narrow paradigms? They believe they have found the correct answer to any question within their own narrow point of view. Anything that contradicts this point of view is considered erroneous or heretical.

In the Middle Ages, during the infamous witch hunts of the Catholic Church's Inquisition, any person who possesses extraordinary mental powers were considered to be a witch or in league with the devil, and were either jailed, tortured, or burned at the stake.

The great 16th century scientist-astronomer, Galileo Galilei, was arrested, put into trial, and jailed for stating that the Earth revolved around the sun, rather than the accepted view that the sun revolved around the Earth. The religious establishment considered Galileo's view to be contrary to Scripture and teachings of the Catholic Church. He was forced to retract or take back what he believed in, or else, he faced more serious punishment such as being burned at the stake.

Galileo retracted or took back what he said and believed in, but, according to the story, he whispered, "But the Earth still moves."

However, 200 years earlier in France, Joan of Arc, was not so fortunate. She was accused by the Holy Inquisition, composed of fanatical and dogmatic church authorities, to be a witch and in league with the devil, and was subsequently burned at the stake. In 1909, however, she was declared a Saint by the very Church which had executed her.

Scientists are the new priests of the Modern Era. Their pronouncements are considered sacred and inviolable. Anybody who expresses a contrary opinion is at once ridiculed and ostracize by the mainstream scientists. Some have lost their license to teach and practice their profession. But there are undeniably many strange things and phenomena that cannot be explained scientifically. These are right away condemned and declared to be false, fraudulent, or a product of deception. But just because something cannot be explained scientifically, does not mean it does not exist or not true.

Remember that science, as we know it, is not meant to study non-physical things. Its assumptions and methodology are limited to what can be perceived by our five physical senses, namely, sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste, and by scientific instruments.

Most mainstream scientists believe that beyond these five senses, nothing exists. Modern science has concentrated on a small part of reality and have ignored the larger and unlimited areas of the unseen world. As somebody pointed out, a specialist is "one who has found a small spot in the universe to which he has glued his nose."

The fact remains that there is a whole body of reliable and authoritative evidence for the existence of extra-sensory perception, like telepathy, clairvoyance, and telekinesis. As Hans J. Eysenck, former chair of Psychology at the University of London, said: "The only conclusion the unbiased observer can come to must be that, there exists a small number of people who obtain knowledge, existing either in other people's minds, or in the outer world, by means as yet unknown to science."

Parapsychology is the study of strange and anomalous phenomena outside the confines of orthodox science. It deals with things that cannot be explained scientifically. In 1969, the American Association for the Advancement of Science voted Parapsychology as a member of that prestigious scientific body by a very small margin, mainly due to the advocacy of Anthropologist, Margaret Mead.

Despite this, mainstream scientists have often referred to parapsychology as a pseudo-science.

But as Nikola Tesla said: "The moment science studies non-physical things, it will make more progress in one decade, than all the centuries of its existence."

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