That’s right—I’m trying to move an object with psychokinesis before March 6, 2010 to win ONE MILLION DOLLARS!

I’ve been a freak my whole life for the paranormal—so much that for years I seriously considered a poverty-inducing career as a fearless parapsychology researcher.

I wouldn’t have made it very far, though, because I find it hard to remain skeptical in the face of uncanny personal experiences that can’t be easily explained away, especially when some, like my encounters with E.S.P. and ghosts, have been witnessed by other people right beside me.

Example: During a 2-week period my freshman year in college, my roommate David and I both witnessed a ghost many times throughout our dorm hall. The first time it appeared in our dorm room, I was sitting on my bed reading a book and David was sitting on his bed. Suddenly the air grew cold. I felt what seemed like static electricity all over my body. The hair on my arms stood up. I looked up at the door to our room and saw a large shadow-figure man about 8 feet tall with no features except for two glowing yellow eyes. I turned my head and looked at David and saw him FREAKING OUT and looking in the same direction. I said, “Oh my god, did you just see that?” And he responded: “THE EYES!” Then I looked down at my book. Against the white of the page I was reading I could see two white-yellow spots that had been burned onto my retina like a photo flash—except these were the same space apart as the figure’s glowing eyes. I looked at the floor, the ceiling, and the spots were still there; in other words, I’d had a physiological response to whatever David and I had just seen.

The above story isn’t bullshit; I didn’t make the apparition up. If I knew where David lives now I’d ask him to officially corroborate right here. Regardless, such experiences make me a sucky researcher; how could I possibly be objective?

James Randi

With my full disclosure out of the way, of all there is to study, research, and learn about the paranormal, psychokinesis—the power to move objects, also known as telekinesis—excites me the most, and I’m not alone; googling ‘telekinesis experiment’ pulls up 77,900 results, probably to the chagrin of the world’s premier skeptic and debunker on these matters, magician James Randi.

Here’s where it gets interesting. In case you didn’t know, for many years Randi has had a standing offer of $1,000,000, now held in escrow by Goldman Sachs, to any person “who can demonstrate any psychic, supernatural or paranormal ability under satisfactory observing conditions.” Unfortunately, nobody has satisifed the offer’s demands, though many have tried. Some have even used questionable methods.

I just learned that Randi’s offer sadly expires March 6, 2010. With time running short, I’ve decided to take up his challenge. That’s right: each day, for a few minutes at a time, I will attempt to move (or bend, which is called deforming, a subset of psychokinetic power) a small object. Since nobody apparently knows how to move junk with the mind (or else they would’ve already won Randi’s cash), I’m obviously going to have to try different mental tricks—a different key each day until I find the one that fits the lock. Should I push? Should I pull? Should I stare at the ceiling? Should I relax? I have no idea. But I’m going to try everything I can think of, and log my experiments here on this blog for your amusement. And my MILLION!

And so it began. My first experiment was to move a plastic spoon. I was sitting at my desk at work with my spoon (don’t tell my boss), feet flat on the floor, wearing jeans, black hi-tops, and a blue t-shirt. I was slightly constipated and had to pee. My hair was normal. Eyes: normal.

OK, I didn’t move it. But I still have time. I’m trying new things each day. My results are posted below. Wish me luck! And if you have suggestions or ideas, email me!

Key:           D = Deforming: changing an object’s shape with the mind M = Movement: moving object psychokinetically PS = plastic spoon or fork MS = metal spoon or fork SI = sitting ST = standing
Date	Test Type	Object	Location	Body Position	Eyes	Hands	Action	Thought	Result
2008-09-25	D	PS	spoon on office desk	SI	at object	holding spoon neck horiz.	rubbing spoon neck	imagining ball of infinite warm energy floating above my head; direct energy down both arms to spoon; thinking ‘Bend’ repeatedly, maintaining focus whole time	0
2008-09-26	D	MS	kitchen	ST	at object	holding end of spoon handle horiz.	rubbing spoon neck	imagining ball of infinite warm energy floating above my head; direct energy down both arms to spoon; relaxed body, but maintaining focus whole time;	0
2008-09-26	D	MS	bathroom	ST	at object	holding spoon neck horiz.	pinching spoon neck	imagining ball of infinite warm energy floating above my head; direct energy down right arm to spoon; said ‘Bend’ aloud repeatedly, maintaining focus whole time; also tried thinking Bend, then distracting myself by looking away	0
2008-09-27	D	MS	library	ST	at object	holding spoon neck horiz.	pinching spoon neck	imagining funnel-shaped infinite warm energy converging into my head from above; direct energy down left arm to spoon; thought ‘Bend’ repeatedly, maintaining focus whole time; also tried thinking Bend, then distracting myself by looking away	0
2008-09-28	D	MS	home office	SI	at object	holding fork end horiz.	rubbing fork neck	imagined energy coming up from floor, down arms to fork while rubbing; thought “Bend” in increasing intensity, then said it in increasing intensity	0
2008-09-28	D	MS	home office	SI	at object; also shut	holding fork vert.	rubbing fork neck w/thumb	relaxed, eyes shut, meditated first; imagined ball energy above head, coming down arm; thought/said “Bend” in increasing intensity while looking at fork, then tried from scratch with eyes shut	0
2008-10-10	D	MS	home office	SI	at object; also shut	holding fork vert.	rubbing fork neck w/thumb	focused hard on object with eyes open each day since last posting; each day i imagined everything i was looking at to be awash with a different color overlay, as if looking through a colored filter, to see if imagining color could somehow affect the outcome; on separate days colors were: red, green, blue, orange, white, black, gold, silver, pink	0
2009-1-1	n/a	n/a	home office	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	i thought i felt something move today, but no. just gas.	0