Great mirth and making game for parties. But Helen Peters wanted nothing more to do with it after the board caused serious damage to her family. The event created a conflict that was never resolved, and tore the family apart.
After the fight, Peters sold all of her stock in the company. William Fuld had his own Ouija-related family troubles. In , he cut his brother out of the business and the two never spoke again. That year was a particularly good one for sales following a world war and a flu epidemic. In early , he went up to the roof of the building to supervise the replacement of a flag pole.
But over time, the relative innocence of the Ouija board—or at least its nonpartisan relationship between good and evil—gave way to a more sinister reputation as Hollywood began utilizing it for darker purposes. Since then, it has shown up in more than 20 films, and made countless appearances in the ever-growing number of paranormal-themed TV shows.
Forums around Ouija-associated phenomena populate the Internet, of course. Most recently, the movie Ouija did so well at the box office that Ouija 2 is already in the works. When it was released last fall, the movie so dramatically boosted board sales that petitions by evangelical Christian groups to ban the Ouija started popping up again. Still, the most interesting thing about the Ouija board might be the latest research around it from University of British Columbia that shows it actually does work—just not in the way we might assume.
A few years ago, Sidney Fels, professor of electrical and computer engineering at UBC, brought out a Ouija board at a Halloween party attended by graduate students, including many who were foreign-born and unfamiliar with how it works. They assumed it required batteries. But lo and behold, when Fels returned later, the grad students were enthralled because the planchette was moving on its own.
Or so it appeared. The mechanism at work was actually something known as the ideomotor effect, which refers to the influence of the unconscious mind on muscle movements.
Shortly thereafter, other researchers began linking that discovery to—you guessed it—spiritual phenomena. When study participants were asked to answer or guess at a set of challenging questions, they were correct about 50 percent of the time. Results in a follow-up study replicated the findings, which they reported in the academic journal, Consciousness and Cognition. Rensink believes the results open greater possibilities for further study.
Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. By choosing I Accept , you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. How Ouija boards work. Hint: It's not ghosts. Reddit Pocket Flipboard Email. Next Up In Culture. Delivered Fridays. Thanks for signing up! Check your inbox for a welcome email.
Email required. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Notice and European users agree to the data transfer policy. For more newsletters, check out our newsletters page. The Latest. Why Biden has disappointed on immigration By German Lopez.
0コメント