What do you think of dowsing rods as a paranormal tool?
Dave: Dowsing rods have been utilized for centuries, most often in the attempt to find water, metals, or ore deposits. Older dowsers used bent wood, usually willow, or witch hazel and would respond to a downward movement of the rod to indicate the location of their intended target. Today, most dowsing rods are made from “L” shaped metal rods, usually brass and are used by some researchers to attempt to locate paranormal activity. The theory is that the rods in association with the dowser are sensitive to 60 Hz, (the cycle of a/c current).
The effectiveness of dowsing rods and those that wield them have been questioned. The results of experiments testing their abilities have been inconclusive as to the validity of the dowser’s claims. Most test results have shown that verifiable hits are only slightly better than chance.
We at PPS stray from using questionable methods of evidence collection. We are already dealing with the unknown and to rely on questionable evidence collection seems foolhardy.
Jake: Personally, I think anyone who uses dowsing rods is definitely a paranormal tool! There is a point when ouija boards and dowsing rods and any type of equipment that might be manipulated by the operator should be considered a joke. I would much rather put my faith in pieces of equipment like video, voice recorders and K2 meters, at least there is tangible evidence or debunking that comes from there. The next time I witness an investigator using dowsing rods, I hope it points them directly toward the exit.
Rex: Dowsing rods, like ouija boards have way too much human interaction to be considered a reliable tool for measuring paranormal occurrences. Specific to dowsing rods is that only one person controls the device leaving a lot of room for false or fake evidence. False evidence may be due to the user not being aware that he/she could be moving the rods by very small muscle contractions too small to notice. The thing I find odd about the people who swear by these things is that they were once used to find water, well isn't approximately 75% of the Earth covered by water and our bodies 70%. Couldn't that have an effect on the rods? With a 70% - 75% chance of error why would anybody use these?
Dave: Dowsing rods have been utilized for centuries, most often in the attempt to find water, metals, or ore deposits. Older dowsers used bent wood, usually willow, or witch hazel and would respond to a downward movement of the rod to indicate the location of their intended target. Today, most dowsing rods are made from “L” shaped metal rods, usually brass and are used by some researchers to attempt to locate paranormal activity. The theory is that the rods in association with the dowser are sensitive to 60 Hz, (the cycle of a/c current).
The effectiveness of dowsing rods and those that wield them have been questioned. The results of experiments testing their abilities have been inconclusive as to the validity of the dowser’s claims. Most test results have shown that verifiable hits are only slightly better than chance.
We at PPS stray from using questionable methods of evidence collection. We are already dealing with the unknown and to rely on questionable evidence collection seems foolhardy.
Jake: Personally, I think anyone who uses dowsing rods is definitely a paranormal tool! There is a point when ouija boards and dowsing rods and any type of equipment that might be manipulated by the operator should be considered a joke. I would much rather put my faith in pieces of equipment like video, voice recorders and K2 meters, at least there is tangible evidence or debunking that comes from there. The next time I witness an investigator using dowsing rods, I hope it points them directly toward the exit.
Rex: Dowsing rods, like ouija boards have way too much human interaction to be considered a reliable tool for measuring paranormal occurrences. Specific to dowsing rods is that only one person controls the device leaving a lot of room for false or fake evidence. False evidence may be due to the user not being aware that he/she could be moving the rods by very small muscle contractions too small to notice. The thing I find odd about the people who swear by these things is that they were once used to find water, well isn't approximately 75% of the Earth covered by water and our bodies 70%. Couldn't that have an effect on the rods? With a 70% - 75% chance of error why would anybody use these?
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