A psychic (; from the Greek ψυχικός psychikos—"of the mind, mental" some times spelled phycics) is a person who professes an ability to perceive information hidden from the normal senses through extrasensory perception (ESP), or who is said by others to have such abilities. The word "psychic" is also used to describe theatrical performers, such as stage magicians, who use techniques such as prestidigitation, cold reading, and hot reading to produce the appearance of such abilities. It can also denote an ability of the mind to influence the world physically using psychokinetic powers such as those professed by Uri Geller.

Psychics appear regularly in fantasy fiction, such as in the novel ''The Dead Zone'' by Stephen King, or as the Marvel Comics telepath Jean Grey. A large industry exists whereby psychics provide advice and counsel to clients. Some famous contemporary psychics include Miss Cleo, John Edward, Danielle Egnew, Jose Ortiz El Buen Samaritano, and Sylvia Browne.

Critics attribute psychic powers to intentional trickery or to self-delusion. In 1988 the U.S. National Academy of Sciences gave a report on the subject and concluded there is "no scientific justification from research conducted over a period of 130 years for the existence of parapsychological phenomena." Even so, psychic powers continue to be asserted by psychic detectives and in practices such as psychic archaeology and even psychic surgery.

History

Etymology

The word psychic is derived from the Greek word ''psychikos'' ("of the mind" or "mental") and refers in part to the human mind or psyche (ex. "psychic turmoil"). The Greek word also means "soul". In Greek mythology, the maiden Psyche was the deification of the human soul. The word derivation of the Latin psȳchē is from the Greek psȳchḗ, literally, breath, derivative of psȳ́chein, to breathe, blow, hence, live.

French astronomer and spiritualist Camille Flammarion is credited as having first used the word psychic, while it was later introduced to the English language by Edward William Cox in the 1870s.

Early seers and prophets

Elaborate systems of divination and fortune-telling date back to ancient times. Perhaps the most widely-known system of early civilization fortune-telling was astrology, where practitioners believed the relative positions of celestial bodies could lend insight into people's lives and even predict their future circumstances. Some fortune-tellers were said to be able to make predictions without the use of these elaborate systems (or in conjunction with them), through some sort of direct apprehension or vision of the future. These people were known as seers or prophets, and in later times as clairvoyants (French word meaning "clear sight" or "clear seeing") and psychics.

Seers formed a functionary role in early civilization, often serving as advisors, priests, and judges. A number of examples are included in biblical accounts. The book of 1 Samuel (Chapter 9) illustrates one such functionary task when Samuel is asked to find the donkeys of the future king Saul. The role of prophet appeared perennially in ancient cultures. In Egypt, the priests of Ra at Memphis acted as seers. In ancient Assyria seers were referred to as ''nabu'', meaning "to call" or "announce".

The Delphic Oracle is one of the earliest stories in classical antiquity of prophetic abilities. The Pythia, the priestess presiding over the Oracle of Apollo at Delphi, was believed to be able to deliver prophecies inspired by Apollo during rituals beginning in the 8th century BC. It is often said that the Pythia delivered oracles in a frenzied state induced by vapors rising from the ground, and that she spoke gibberish, believed to be the voice of Apollo, which priests reshaped into the enigmatic prophecies preserved in Greek literature. Other scholars believe records from the time indicate that the Pythia spoke intelligibly, and gave prophecies in her own voice. The Pythia was a position served by a succession of women probably selected from amongst a guild of priestesses of the temple. The last recorded response was given in 393 AD, when the emperor Theodosius I ordered pagan temples to cease operation. Recent geological investigations raise the possibility that ethylene gas caused the Pythia's state of inspiration.

One of the most enduring historical references to what some consider to be psychic ability is the prophecies of Michel de Nostredame (1503 – 1566), often Latinized to Nostradamus, published during the French Renaissance period. Nostradamus was a French apothecary and seer who wrote collections of prophecies that have since become famous worldwide and have rarely been out of print since his death. He is best known for his book ''Les Propheties'', the first edition of which appeared in 1555. Taken together, his written works are known to have contained at least 6,338 quatrains or prophecies, as well as at least eleven annual calendars. Most of the quatrains deal with disasters, such as plagues, earthquakes, wars, floods, invasions, murders, droughts, and battles – all undated.

Nostradamus is a controversial figure. His many enthusiasts, as well as the popular press, credit him with predicting many major world events. Interest in his work is still considerable, especially in the media and in popular culture. By contrast, most academic scholars maintain that the associations made between world events and Nostradamus' quatrains are largely the result of misinterpretations or mistranslations (sometimes deliberate) or else are so tenuous as to render them useless as evidence of any genuine predictive power.

In addition to the belief that some historical figures were endowed with a predisposition to psychic experiences, some psychic abilities were thought to be available to everyone on occasion. For example, the belief in prophetic dreams was common and persistent in many ancient cultures.

Nineteenth century progression

In the mid-nineteenth century, Modern Spiritualism became prominent in the United States and the United Kingdom. The movement's distinguishing feature was the belief that the spirits of the dead could be contacted by mediums to lend insight to the living. The movement was fueled in part by anecdotes of psychic powers. One such person believed to have extraordinary abilities was Daniel Dunglas Home, who gained fame during the Victorian period for his reported ability to levitate to various heights and speak to the dead.

As the Spiritualist movement grew other comparable groups arose, including the Theosophical Society, which was co-founded in 1875 by Helena Blavatsky (1831–1891). Theosophy coupled spiritualist elements with Eastern mysticism and was influential in the early 20th century, later influencing the New Age movement during the 1970s. Blavatsky herself claimed numerous psychic powers.

Late twentieth century

By the late twentieth century psychics were commonly associated with New Age culture. Psychic readings and advertising for psychics was very common in the 1990's and readings were offered for a fee and given in settings such as over the phones, in a home, or at psychic fairs.

Popular culture

Belief in psychic abilities

In a survey, reported in 1990, of members of the National Academy of Sciences, only 2% of respondents thought that extrasensory perception had been scientifically demonstrated, with another 2% thinking that the phenomena happened sometimes. Asked about research in the field, 22% thought that it should be discouraged, 63% that it should be allowed but not encouraged, and 10% that it should be encouraged; neuroscientists were the most hostile to parapsychology of all the specialties.

A survey of the beliefs of the general United States population about paranormal topics was conducted by The Gallup Organization in 2005. The survey found that 41 percent of those polled believed in extrasensory perception and 26 percent believed in clairvoyance. 31 percent of those surveyed indicated that they believe in telepathy or psychic communication.

A poll of 439 college students conducted in 2006 by researchers Bryan Farha of Oklahoma City University and Gary Steward of University of Central Oklahoma, suggested that college seniors and graduate students were more likely to believe in psychic phenomena than college freshmen. 23 percent of college freshmen expressed a belief in paranormal ideas. The percentage was greater among college seniors (31%) and graduate students (34%). The poll showed lower belief in psychic phenomena among science students than social science and education students.

Some people also believe that psychic abilities can be activated or enhanced through the study and practice of various disciplines and techniques such as meditation, with a number of books and websites being dedicated to instruction in these methods. Another popular belief is that psychic ability is hereditary, with a psychic parent passing their abilities on to their children.

Science fiction

The use of psychic abilities as a plot device or super power is common in fiction. Psychic abilities in science fiction are often depicted as inborn and heritable, as in Alfred Bester's ''The Demolished Man'', A. E. van Vogt's ''Slan'', Anne McCaffrey's Talents & Tower and the Hive series, and the television series ''Babylon 5''. Another recurring trope is the conveyance of psychic power through psychoactive drugs, as in the ''Dune'' novels and indirectly in the ''Scanners'' films, as well as the ghosts in the Starcraft franchise . Somewhat differently, in Madeleine L'Engle's ''A Wind in the Door'' and Robert A. Heinlein's ''Stranger in a Strange Land'', psychic abilities may be achieved by any human who learns the proper mental discipline, known as ''kything'' in the former work and ''grokking'' in the latter. Popular movies include The initiation of Sarah. Psychic characters are also common in superhero comic books, for instance Jean Grey and Professor X from the Marvel comic X-Men.

Criticism and research

thumb|right|180px|Participant of a [[Ganzfeld experiment|Ganzfeld Experiment whose results have been criticized as being misinterpreted as evidence for telepathy.]] Parapsychological research has attempted to use random number generators to test for psychokinesis, mild sensory deprivation in the Ganzfeld experiment to test for extrasensory perception, and research trials conducted under contract by the U.S. government to investigate remote viewing. Critics such as Ed J. Gracely say that this evidence is not sufficient for acceptance, partly because the intrinsic probability of psychic phenomena is very small.

Critics such as Ray Hyman and the National Science Foundation suggest that parapsychology has methodological flaws that can explain the experimental results that parapsychologists attribute to paranormal explanations, and various critics have classed the field as pseudoscience. This has largely been due to lack of replication of results by independent experimenters.

The evidence presented for psychic phenomena is not sufficiently verified for scientific acceptance, and there exist many non-paranormal alternative explanations for claimed instances of psychic events. Parapsychologists, who generally believe that there is some evidence for psychic ability, disagree with critics who believe that no psychic ability exists and that many of the instances of more popular psychic phenomena such as mediumism, can be attributed to non-paranormal techniques such as cold reading, hot reading, or even self-delusion. Magicians such as James Randi, Ian Rowland and Derren Brown have demonstrated techniques and results similar to those of popular psychics, but they present psychological explanations as opposed to paranormal ones.

In January 2008 the results of a study using neuroimaging were published. To provide what are purported to be the most favorable experimental conditions, the study included appropriate emotional stimuli and had participants who are biologically or emotionally related, such as twins. The experiment was designed to produce positive results if telepathy, clairvoyance or precognition occurred, but despite this no distinguishable neuronal responses were found between psychic stimuli and non-psychic stimuli, while variations in the same stimuli showed anticipated effects on patterns of brain activation. The researchers concluded that "These findings are the strongest evidence yet obtained against the existence of paranormal mental phenomena." James Alcock had cautioned the researchers against the wording of said statement.

A detailed study of Sylvia Browne predictions about missing persons and murder cases has found that despite her repeated claims to be more than 85% correct, "Browne has not even been mostly correct in a single case." Concerning the television psychics, James Underdown states that testing psychics in a studio setting is difficult as there are too many areas to control, the psychic could be getting help from anyone on the set. The editor controls everything, they can make a psychic look superior or ridiculous depending on direction from the producer. In an Independent Investigation Group IIG expose of John Edward and James Van Praagh they discovered that what was actually said on the tape day, and what was broadcast to the public were "substantially different in the accuracy. They're getting rid of the wrong guesses... Once you pull back the curtain and see how it's done, it's not impressive at all."

See also

References

Category:Parapsychology Category:Paranormal terminology Category:Pseudoscience

fr:Sujet psi he:מדיום kn:ಅತೀಂದ್ರಿಯ ಶಕ್ತಿ ja:霊能者 fi:Psyykikko tr:Psişik

name	James Randi
birth name	Randall James Hamilton Zwinge
birth date	August 07, 1928
birth place	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
occupation	Illusionist, writer, skeptic
website	www.randi.org
nationality	Canadian American
religion	None (atheist)
residence	}}

James Randi (born Randall James Hamilton Zwinge; August 7, 1928) is a Canadian-American stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. Randi is the founder of the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF). Randi began his career as a magician named The Amazing Randi, but after retiring at age 60, he began investigating paranormal, occult, and supernatural claims, which he collectively calls "woo-woo".

Although often referred to as a "debunker", Randi rejects that title owing to its perceived bias, instead describing himself as an "investigator". He has written about the paranormal, skepticism, and the history of magic. He was a frequent guest on ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' and was occasionally featured on the television program ''Penn & Teller: Bullshit!''. The JREF sponsors The One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge offering a prize of US$1,000,000 to eligible applicants who can demonstrate evidence of any paranormal, supernatural or occult power or event under test conditions agreed to by both parties.

Early life

Randi was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and has a younger brother and sister. He took up magic after seeing Harry Blackstone, Sr and reading magic books while spending 13 months in a body cast following a bicycle accident. He confounded doctors who expected he would never walk again. Although a brilliant student, Randi often skipped school, and he dropped out of high school at 17 to perform as a conjurer in a carnival roadshow. In his twenties, Randi posed as a psychic to establish that they were actually doing simple tricks and briefly wrote an astrological column in the Canadian tabloid ''Midnight'' under the name "Zo-ran," by simply shuffling up items from newspaper astrology columns and pasting them randomly into a column. In his thirties, Randi worked in Philippine night clubs and all across Japan. He witnessed many tricks that were presented as being supernatural. One of his earliest reported experiences is that of seeing an evangelist using a version of the "one-ahead" routine to convince churchgoers of his divine powers.

Career

Magician

Randi worked as a professional stage magician, or "conjurer" as he prefers to be called, and escapologist beginning in 1946, initially under his birth name, Randall Zwinge, and then as The Amazing Randi. Early in his career, Randi was part of numerous stunts involving his escape from jail cells and safes. On February 7, 1956, he appeared live on ''The Today Show'', remaining in a sealed metal coffin submerged in a hotel swimming pool for 104 minutes, breaking what was said to be Houdini's record of 93 minutes.

Randi was the host of ''The Amazing Randi Show'' on New York radio station WOR in the mid 1960s. This radio show, which filled Long John Nebel's old slot with similar content after Nebel went to WNBC in 1962, had frequent pro-paranormal guests, including Randi's then-friend James Moseley. Randi, in turn, spoke at Moseley's 1967 Fourth Congress of Scientific Ufologists in New York City, stating, "Let's not fool ourselves. There are some garden variety liars involved in all this. But in among all the trash and nonsense perpetrated in the name of Ufology, I think there is a small grain of truth."

Randi also hosted numerous television specials and went on several world tours. Then Randi appeared as "The Amazing Randi" on a television show titled ''Wonderama'' from 1967 to 1972, and as host of a failed revival of the 1950s children's show ''The Magic Clown'' in 1970. In the February 2, 1974, issue of ''Abracadabra'' (a British conjuring magazine), Randi defined the magic community, saying, "I know of no calling which depends so much upon mutual trust and faith as does ours." In the December 2003 issue of ''The Linking Ring'', the monthly publication of The International Brotherhood of Magicians, ''Points to Ponder: Another Matter of Ethics,'' p. 97, it is stated, "Perhaps Randi's ethics are what make him Amazing" and "The Amazing Randi not only talks the talk, he walks the walk."

During Alice Cooper's 1973–1974 tour, Randi performed as the dentist and executioner on stage, and designed and built several of the stage props, including the guillotine. Shortly after that, in February 1975, Randi escaped from a straitjacket while suspended upside-down over Niagara Falls in the winter on the Canadian TV program ''World of Wizards''.

Randi was once accused of actually using "psychic powers" to perform acts such as spoon bending. James Alcock relates this incident, which occurred at a meeting where Randi was duplicating the performances of Uri Geller: A professor from the University at Buffalo shouted out that Randi was a fraud. Randi said, "Yes, indeed, I'm a trickster, I'm a cheat, I'm a charlatan, that's what I do for a living. Everything I've done here was by trickery." The professor shouted back: "That's not what I mean. You're a fraud because you're pretending to do these things through trickery, but you're actually using psychic powers and misleading us by not admitting it." The famous author and believer in spiritualism Arthur Conan Doyle had years earlier made a similar accusation against the magician Harry Houdini. A similar event involved Senator Claiborne Pell. Pell believed in psychic phenomena. When Randi demonstrated viewing a hidden drawing by using trickery, Pell refused to believe that it was a trick, saying, "I think Randi may be a psychic and doesn't realize it." Randi has consistently denied having any paranormal powers or abilities.

Author

Randi is author of ''Conjuring'' (1992), a biographical history of noted magicians. The book is subtitled: ''Being a Definitive History of the Venerable Arts of Sorcery, Prestidigitation, Wizardry, Deception, & Chicanery and of the Mountebanks & Scoundrels Who have Perpetrated these Subterfuges on a Bewildered Public, in short, MAGIC!''. The book selects the most influential magicians and explains their history in the context of strange deaths and careers on the road. This work expanded on the 1976 book ''Houdini, His Life and Art'', co-authored with Bert Randolph Sugar, which focused on Houdini and his cohorts. Randi also wrote a children's book in 1989 titled ''The Magic World of the Amazing Randi'', which introduced children to magic tricks. In addition to his magic books, he has written several educational works about the paranormal and pseudoscientific. These include biographies of Uri Geller and Nostradamus as well as reference material on other major paranormal figures. He is currently working on ''A Magician in the Laboratory'', which recounts his application of skepticism to science, though in January 2011, he expressed doubts as to whether it would be finished. James Randi has since confirmed the that the book will be sent to publishers by May 20, 2012. He is a member of the all-male literary banqueting club the Trap Door Spiders, which served as the basis of Isaac Asimov's fictional group of mystery solvers the Black Widowers.

Skeptic

Randi entered the international spotlight in 1972 when he publicly challenged the claims of Uri Geller. Randi accused Geller of being nothing more than a charlatan and a fraud who used standard magic tricks to accomplish his allegedly paranormal feats, and he supported his claims in the book ''The Truth About Uri Geller''. Geller sued Randi for $15 million in 1991 and lost. Geller's suit against the Committee for Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) was thrown out in 1995, and he was ordered to pay $120,000 for filing a frivolous lawsuit.

Randi was a founding fellow and prominent member of CSICOP. During the period when Geller was filing numerous civil suits against him, CSICOP's leadership, wanting to avoid becoming a target of Geller's litigation, requested that Randi refrain from commenting on Geller. Randi refused and resigned. However, he still maintains a respectful relationship with the group and frequently writes articles for its magazine.

Randi has gone on to write several books criticizing beliefs and claims regarding the paranormal. He has also demonstrated flaws in studies suggesting the existence of paranormal phenomena; in his Project Alpha hoax, Randi revealed that he had been able to orchestrate a three-year-long compromise of a privately funded psychic research experiment. The hoax became a scandal and demonstrated the shortcomings of many paranormal research projects at the university level.

Randi has appeared on numerous TV shows, sometimes to directly debunk the claimed abilities of fellow guests. In a 1981 appearance on ''That's My Line'', Randi appeared opposite psychic James Hydrick, who claimed that he could move things with his mind and demonstrated this ability on live television by apparently turning a page in a telephone book without touching it. Randi, having determined that Hydrick was surreptitiously blowing on the book, arranged packaging peanuts (polystyrene foam shapes) on the table in front of the telephone book for the demonstration, preventing Hydrick from demonstrating his abilities, which would have been exposed when the blowing moved the packaging. Many years later, Hydrick admitted his fraud.

Randi was awarded a MacArthur Foundation Genius award in 1986. The money was used for Randi's comprehensive exposé of faith healers, including Peter Popoff, W.V. Grant and Ernest Angley. When Popoff was exposed, he was forced to declare bankruptcy within the year.

In 1988, Randi tested the gullibility of the media by perpetrating a hoax of his own. By teaming up with Australia's ''60 Minutes'' program and by releasing a fake press package, he built up publicity for a spirit channeler named Carlos who was actually artist Jose Alvarez, a friend of Randi's. Randi would tell him what to say through sophisticated radio equipment. The media and the public were taken in, as no reporter bothered to check Carlos's credentials and history, which were all fabricated. The hoax was exposed on ''60 Minutes''; Carlos and Randi explained how they pulled it off.

In the book ''The Faith Healers'', Randi explains his anger and relentlessness as arising out of compassion for the helpless victims of frauds. Randi has also been critical of João de Deus (John of God), a self-proclaimed psychic surgeon who has received international attention. Randi observed, referring to psychic surgery, "To any experienced conjurer, the methods by which these seeming miracles are produced are very obvious."

In 1982, Randi verified the abilities of Arthur Lintgen, a Philadelphia physician who is able to determine the classical music recorded on a vinyl LP solely by examining the groove on the record. However, Lintgen does not claim to have any paranormal ability, merely knowledge of the way that the groove forms patterns on particular recordings.

James Randi stated that Daniel Dunglas Home, who allegedly could play an accordion that was locked in a cage, without touching it, was caught cheating on a few occasions, but the episodes were never made public, and that the accordion in question was a one-octave mouth organ that Home concealed under his large moustache. James Randi writes that one-octave mouth organs were found in Home's belongings after his death. According to Randi 'around 1960' William Lindsay Gresham told Randi he had seen these mouth organs in the Home collection at the Society for Psychical Research. Eric Dingwall, who catalogued Home's collection on its arrival at the SPR does not record the presence of the mouth organs. According to Peter Lamont, the author of an extensive Home biography, "It is unlikely Dingwall would have missed these or did not make them public."

James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF)

In 1996, Randi established the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF). Randi and his colleagues update JREF's blog, Swift. Topics have included the mathematics of the one-seventh area triangle. Randi also contributes a regular column, titled "'Twas Brillig," to The Skeptics Society's Skeptic Magazine. In his weekly commentary, Randi often gives examples of what he considers the nonsense that he deals with every day.

He has regularly featured on many podcasts, including The Skeptics Society's official podcast Skepticality and the Center for Inquiry's official podcast Point of Inquiry. From September 2006 onwards, he has occasionally contributed to The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe podcast with a column titled "Randi Speaks." In addition, "The Amazing Show" is a podcast in which Randi shares various anecdotes in an interview format.

Views on religion

In his essay "Why I Deny Religion, How Silly and Fantastic It Is, and Why I'm a Dedicated and Vociferous Bright", Randi, who identifies himself as an atheist, has stated that many accounts in religious texts, including the virgin birth, the miracles of Jesus Christ, and the parting of the Red Sea by Moses, are not believable. For example, Randi refers to the Virgin Mary as being "impregnated by a ghost of some sort, and as a result produced a son who could walk on water, raise the dead, turn water into wine, and multiply loaves of bread and fishes" and questions how Adam and Eve "could have two sons, one of whom killed the other, and yet managed to populate the earth without committing incest." He writes that, compared to the Bible, "''The Wizard of Oz'' is more believable. And more fun." In ''An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural'', he looks at a variety of spiritual practices skeptically. Of the meditation techniques of Guru Maharaj Ji (Prem Rawat) he writes: "Only the very naive were convinced that they had been let in on some sort of celestial secret."

The One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge

The James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) currently offers a prize of one million U.S. dollars to eligible applicants who can demonstrate a supernatural ability under agreed-upon scientific testing criteria. Similar to the paranormal challenges of John Nevil Maskelyne and Houdini, in 1964, Randi put up $1,000 of his own money payable to anyone who could provide objective proof of the paranormal. Since then, the prize money has grown to the current $1,000,000, and has formal published rules. No one has progressed past the preliminary test, which is set up with parameters agreed to by both Randi and the applicant. He refuses to accept any challengers who might suffer serious injury or death as a result of the testing.

On ''Larry King Live'', March 6, 2001, Larry King asked Sylvia Browne if she would take the challenge and she agreed. Then Randi appeared with Browne on ''Larry King Live'' on September 3, 2001, and she again accepted the challenge. However, she has refused to be tested and Randi keeps a clock on his website recording the number of weeks that have passed since Browne accepted the challenge without following through. During ''Larry King Live'' on June 5, 2001, Randi challenged Rosemary Altea to undergo testing for the million dollars. However, Altea would not even address the question. Instead Altea, in part, replied "I agree with what he says, that there are many, many people who claim to be spiritual mediums, they claim to talk to the dead. There are many people, we all know this. There are cheats and charlatans everywhere." Then on January 26, 2007, Altea and Randi again appeared on ''Larry King Live''. Once again, she refused to answer whether or not she would take the One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge.

Starting on April 1, 2007, only those with an already existing media profile and the backing of a reputable academic were allowed to apply for the challenge. The resources freed up by not having to test obscure and possibly mentally ill claimants will then be used to more aggressively challenge notorious high-profile alleged psychics and mediums such as Sylvia Browne, Allison DuBois and John Edward with a campaign in the media.

JREF maintains a public log of past participants in the Million Dollar Challenge.

Legal disputes

Randi has been involved in a variety of legal disputes but claims that he has "never paid even one dollar or even one cent to anyone who ever sued me." However, he says, he has paid out large sums to personally defend himself in these suits.

Eldon Byrd

A Baltimore District Court found Randi liable for defaming Byrd for calling him a "convicted child molester" because, although Byrd had been found guilty of child pornography offences and admitted to molestation, the admission was part of a plea bargain so he was not actually convicted. No damages were awarded to Byrd.

Uri Geller

According to Randi, Geller tried to sue Randi a number of times, but never won, save for a ruling in a Japanese court that ordered Randi to pay Geller one third of one percent of what Geller had demanded, but this ruling was canceled, and the matter dropped when Geller decided to concentrate on another legal matter. In 1991, Randi commented that Uri Geller's public performances were of the same quality as those found on the backs of cereal boxes. Geller sued both Randi and CSICOP. CSICOP argued that the organization was not responsible for Randi's statements. The court agreed that including CSICOP was frivolous and dropped them from the action, leaving Randi to face the action alone. Geller was ordered to pay substantial damages to CSICOP. Randi and Geller subsequently settled their dispute out of court, the details of which have been kept confidential. The settlement also included an agreement that Geller would not pursue Randi for the award in the Japanese case or other outstanding cases.

Other

Allison DuBois, on whose life the television series ''Medium'' was based, threatened Randi with legal action for using a photo of her from her website in his December 17, 2004, commentary without her permission. Randi removed the photo and now uses a caricature of DuBois when mentioning her on his site, beginning with his December 23, 2005, commentary.

Late in 1996, Randi launched a libel suit against a Toronto-area psychic named Earl Gordon Curley. Curley had made multiple objectionable comments about Randi on Usenet. Despite prodding Randi via Usenet to sue (Curley's comments had implied that if Randi did not sue, then his allegations must be true), Curley seemed entirely surprised when Randi actually retained Toronto's largest law firm and initiated legal proceedings. The suit was eventually dropped in 1998 when Earl Curley died at the age of 51.

Sniffex, producer of a dowsing bomb detection device, sued Randi and the JREF in 2007 and lost. Sniffex sued Randi for his comments regarding a government test in which the Sniffex device failed. The company was later investigated and charged with fraud.

Personal life

In 1987, Randi became a naturalized citizen of the United States. Randi has said that one reason he became an American citizen was an incident while on tour with Alice Cooper where the Royal Canadian Mounted Police searched the band's lockers during a performance. Nothing was found, yet the RCMP destroyed the room.

In February 2006, Randi underwent coronary artery bypass surgery. In early February 2006, he was declared to be in stable condition and "receiving excellent care" with his recovery proceeding well. The weekly commentary updates to his website were made by guests while he was hospitalized. Randi recovered after his surgery and was able to help organize and attend the 2007 Amazing Meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada (an annual convention of scientists, magicians, skeptics, atheists and freethinkers).

Randi was diagnosed with intestinal cancer in June 2009. He had a ping pong ball-sized tumor removed from his intestines during laparoscopic surgery. He announced this a week later at the July 2009 The Amazing Meeting as well as the fact that he was scheduled to begin chemotherapy in the following weeks. He also said at the conference: "One day, I'm gonna die. That's all there is to it. Hey, it's too bad, but I've got to make room. I'm using a lot of oxygen and such—I think it's good use of oxygen myself, but of course, I'm a little prejudiced on the matter." Randi also said that after he is gone he does not want his fans to bother with a museum of magic named after him or burying him in a fancy tomb. Instead, he said, "I want to be cremated, and I want my ashes blown in Uri Geller's eyes." Randi underwent his final chemotherapy session on December 31, 2009, as he explained in a January 12, 2010 video in which he related that his chemotherapy experience was not as unpleasant as he had imagined. In a video posted April 12, 2010, Randi stated that he has been given a clean bill of health.

In a March 21, 2010 blog entry, Randi came out as gay, a move he explained was inspired by seeing the 2008 biographical drama film ''Milk'', in which Sean Penn portrayed Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California.

Awards and honors

In 1981, asteroid 3163 Randi was named after Randi, who has always been an active amateur observer. His friend Carl Sagan encouraged his interest. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship for his investigations of the claims of Uri Geller and TV "faith healers." 1986 American Physical Society Joseph A. Burton Forum Award 1989

Richard Dawkins Award 2003

Philip J. Klass Award 2007 Independent Investigations Group (IIG) awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award, August 2007, previous recipients Carl Sagan and Harry Houdini.

Committee for Skeptical Inquiry In Praise of Reason Award, 2009

Elected a Committee for Skeptical Inquiry Fellow, 2010 Academy of Magical Arts Lifetime Achievement Fellowship, April 2012

World records

The following are Guinness records:

Randi was in a sealed casket underwater for an hour and 44 minutes, which broke Harry Houdini's record of one hour and 33 minutes set on August 5, 1926. Randi was encased in a block of ice for 55 minutes.

Bibliography

''An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural'', 1995, St. Martin's Press ISBN 0-312-15119-5 (Online Version)

''Conjuring'', 1992 St. Martin's Press ISBN 0-312-09771-9

''Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions'', 1982, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-198-3

''Houdini, His Life and Art''. Co-authored. Putnam Pub Group (November 1976) ISBN 0-448-12552-8

''James Randi: Psychic Investigator'', 1991, companion book to the UK Granada TV series. ISBN 1-85283-144-8

''Test Your ESP Potential''. Dover Publications Inc. (December 31, 1982) ISBN 0-486-24269-2

''The Faith Healers'', 1987, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-369-2. (ISBN 0-87975-535-0 1989 edition) (Foreword by Carl Sagan)

''The Magic of Uri Geller'', 1982, ISBN 0-345-24796-5 (later renamed ''The Truth About Uri Geller'' ISBN 0-87975-199-1)

''The Magic World of the Amazing Randi''. Adams Media Corporation (September 1989) ISBN 1-55850-982-8

''The Mask of Nostradamus: The Prophecies of the World's Most Famous Seer'', 1990, Charles Scribner's Sons ISBN 0-684-19056-7 or ISBN 0-87975-830-9.

''Wrong!'' (Forthcoming) ''A Magician in the Laboratory''. (Forthcoming)

TV and film

Actor

''Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper'' (1974) as the Dentist/Executioner

''Ragtime'' (1981) (stunt coordinator: Houdini)

''Penn & Teller's'' Invisible Thread'' (1987) (TV)

''Penn & Teller Get Killed'' (1989) as the 3rd Rope Holder

''Beyond Desire'' (1994) as the Coroner

Himself

''Wonderama'' (1955) (TV) as The Amazing Randi

''I've Got a Secret'' (1965) (TV) as The Amazing Randi

''Happy Days'' – "The Magic Show" (1978) as the Amazing Randi

''Zembla'', 'De trucs van Char' (''The tricks Char uses''). (March 2008)

''ZDF German TV'' (2007)

''Wild Wild Web'' (1999)

''West 57th'' (1980s)

''Welt der Wunder – Kraft der Gedanken'' (January 2008)

''Today on NBC'' (1980s)

''The Don Lane Show'' (1980)

''That's My Line'' (1980) (Appeared with James Hydrick)

''The View'' ABC TV (1999)

''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (32 appearances between 1973 and 1993)

''The Secret Cabaret'' (produced by Open Media for Channel 4 in the UK)

''The Power of Belief'' (October 6, 1998) (ABC News Special) (TV)

''People are Talking'' (1980s)

''The Patterson Show'' (1970s)

''The Art of Magic'' (1998) (TV)

''The Ultimate Psychic Challenge'' (Discovery Channel/Channel 4) (2003)

''Spotlight on James Randi'' (2002) (TV)

''Secrets of the Super Psychics'' (Channel 4/The Learning Channel), produced by Open Media, 1997/8

''Scams, Schemes, and Scoundrels'' (A&E; Special) (March 30, 1997)

''Raitre TV'' Italy (1991)

''Politically Incorrect'' with Bill Maher

''Penn & Teller: Bullshit!''

* End of the World (2003) TV Episode

* ESP (2003) TV Episode

* Signs from Heaven (2005) TV Episode

''Oprah Winfrey''

''Lawrence Leung Unbelievable TV Episode''

''NOVA'': Secrets of the Psychics (1993)

''Mitä ihmettä?'' (Finland) (2003) TV Series

''Midday Show'' (Australia) (1990s)

''Magic or Miracle'' (1983)

''Magic'' (2004) (mini) TV Series

''Larry King Live'' of CNN (June 5, 2001, September 3, 2001, and January 26, 2007)

''James Randi: Psychic Investigator'' (1991) (Open Media series for the ITV network)

''James Randi Budapesten'' – Hungarian documentary (free download for schools)

''Inside Edition'' – (1991, 2006, and 2007) TV

''Horizon'' – Homeopathy: The Test (2002) TV Episode

''Houdini Dead Men Talking'' (Biography Channel)

''Fornemmelse for snyd'' (2003) TV Series (also archive footage)

''Extraordinary People – The Million Dollar Mind Reader (September 2008).

''Exploring Psychic Powers Live'' (June 7, 1989) (Hosted by Bill Bixby)

''CBS This Morning'' (1990s)

''Anderson Cooper 360'', CNN (January 19, 2007 and January 30, 2007)

''A Question of Miracles'' (HBO) (1999)

''20/20'' ABC TV (May 11, 2007)

''Dilbert (TV series)'' parodied in "The Infomercial" (1999) TV Episode

Other media

James Randi can be heard speaking an introduction on Tommy Finkes song "Poet der Affen/Poet of the Apes", released on the album of the same name in 2010. The message was recorded by James Randi and sent to Tommy Finke via email.

See also

Pigasus Award

Project Alpha

Robert Todd Carroll's ''Skeptic's Dictionary''

Notes

External links

Official

James Randi Educational Foundation – Official website

James Randi Educational Foundation official YouTube channel

Video of short talk by Randi in 2007 at TED

Supportive

James Randi in the Skeptic's Dictionary

Project Alpha in the Skeptic's Dictionary

How Randi and fake psychic Carlos fooled millions

Media

James Randi interview (May 2009) from the podcast of MagicNewswire.com in which Mr. Randi discusses his career in magic, his feud with Uri Geller and more

James Randi interview (November 2007) from the BSAlert.com radio show where Mr. Randi discusses the TV show "Phenomenon," the current status of Uri Geller and his thoughts about whether society is becoming more or less superstitious.

"20 Major Aspects of Liars, Cheats, and Frauds" by James Randi"

The Power of Belief (Video clip) from ABC News

Randi's Internet Audio Show from the James Randi Educational Foundation

Skepticality Internet Radio

Transcripts (Sylvia Browne and Randi) (Sylvia Browne's manager and Randi) (Altea and James Randi) (Rosemary Altea and Randi) (Sylvia Browne and Randi)

Criticism

A Skeptical Look At James Randi ''Michael Prescott''

James Randi's response to criticism ''James Randi Educational Foundation''

Benveniste, Jacques, and Peter Jurgens. On the Role of Stage Magicians in Biological Research ''The Anomalist'' 1998

Thalbourne, Michael A, “Science versus showmanship: A history of the Randi hoax,” ''American Society for Psychical Research'' 89 (4) October 1995

Category:1928 births Category:Living people Category:American atheists Category:American magicians Category:American people of Canadian descent Category:American people of German descent Category:American skeptics Category:Atheism activists Category:Canadian atheists Category:Canadian emigrants to the United States Category:Canadian magicians Category:Canadian people of German descent Category:Canadian skeptics Category:People with cancer Category:Gay writers Category:LGBT writers from Canada Category:LGBT writers from the United States Category:MacArthur Fellows Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States Category:Paranormal investigators Category:People from Toronto Category:Professional magicians Category:American humanists

ar:جيمس راندي bg:Джеймс Ранди ca:James Randi de:James Randi es:James Randi fr:James Randi gl:James Randi ko:제임스 랜디 id:James Randi is:James Randi it:James Randi he:ג'יימס רנדי lt:James Randi hu:James Randi nl:James Randi ja:ジェームズ・ランディ no:James Randi pl:James Randi pt:James Randi ru:Рэнди, Джеймс fi:James Randi sv:James Randi ta:யேம்சு ராண்டி tr:James Randi zh:詹姆斯·兰迪

name	James Hydrick
birth date	February 28, 1959
birth place	New Ellenton, South Carolina, USA
residence	Wasco State Prison, California, USA
occupation	Martial arts performer, self-proclaimed psychic }}

James Alan Hydrick (born February 28, 1959 in New Ellenton, South Carolina ) is a former American performer and self-described psychic. Hydrick claimed to be able to perform acts of telekinesis, such as his trademark trick involving the movement of a pencil resting at the edge of a table. Following a nationally televised demonstration of his abilities on ''That's Incredible!'', he was unable to prove his supernatural abilities on a subsequent show called ''That's My Line'', and Hydrick subsequently confessed the fraud to an investigative reporter.

Rise to fame

By the early 1980s in Salt Lake City, Utah, Hydrick developed a cult-like following. He claimed he was able to use psychokinesis to turn the pages of books and make pencils spin around while placed on the edge of a desk, among other feats. Hydrick had also set up martial arts classes and claimed he could pass on the gift of psychokinesis to youngsters through special training techniques.

Hydrick rose to international attention through his demonstration of these skills on the American television show, ''That's Incredible!''. The episode originally aired in December 1980 and was later repeated in 1981. He performed the pencil-spinning trick with the skeptical host's hand on his mouth to block possible air blowing (after the host suggested that he could hear Hydrick blowing). However, Hydrick deliberately readjusted the pencil beforehand so that it was as precarious as possible and so would move with the slight disturbance caused by his hands. He also caused a page from a telephone book to turn over, again, allegedly by telekinesis. James Randi awarded the program a 1980 Uri Award, later renamed the Pigasus Award, "for declaring a simple magic trick to be genuine."

Fraud exposed

Magician and paranormal skeptic James Randi demonstrated the pencil trick on the television program ''That's My Line'', hosted by Bob Barker. In a follow-up episode, Randi and Hydrick both appeared. When Randi performed the simple control of placing small pieces of expanded polystyrene on the table around the phone book (to show if Hydrick was actually turning the pages by blowing on them), Hydrick's "powers" suddenly failed him. Hydrick attempted to explain that when the foam was heated by the stage lights they developed a static electric charge which, when added to the weight of the page, required more force than he was able to generate to turn the page. Randi and the judges, though, declared that this hypothesis had no scientific basis.

After an hour and a half of Hydrick staring at the pages (the show was edited for time) without any results, and claiming that his powers were real, he finally admitted being unable to complete the challenge. The judging panel (which included a parapsychologist) stated that, in their opinion, no supernatural phenomenon had taken place. The failed stunt resulted in the television show ''That's Incredible'' receiving a Pigasus Award, and effectively ended Hydrick's television career (following Hydrick's concession, Randi himself performed the same trick using the techniques that Hydrick perfected).

In 1981, Hydrick's psychic powers were definitively exposed as being fraudulent by investigative journalist Dan Korem. Hydrick confessed his fraud to Korem and admitted that he had developed his unique talent while he was in prison, and did not learn it from a Chinese master as he had originally claimed.

Present day

In 1989, James Hydrick received a 17-year sentence for molesting 5 boys. He is currently incarcerated at a California prison (California Men's Colony CDCR# G03069, as of 12-14-2011).

References

External links

Hydrick and Randi's appearance on ''That's My Line?''

The Confession of James Hydrick

Category:Impostors Category:Living people Category:1959 births Category:American psychics

es:James Hydrick

Name	Linda and Terry Jamison
Birth place	West Chester, Pennsylvania, United States
nationality	American
Occupation	Psychics and authors }}

Linda and Terry Jamison are American identical twins, professionally known as The Psychic Twins. They are best known for the prediction they made in 1999 on the Art Bell radio show. The Twins said "that there would be terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and federal buildings by 2002."

World Trade Center and Federal Buildings terrorist attack prediction in 1999

While being interviewed on the Art Bell radio show (Coast to Coast A.M.) on November 2, 1999, The Psychic Twins predicted that there would be a terrorist attack on the federal government and the World Trade Center in 2002. The actual quote is, "We are seeing terrorist attacks on federal government – excuse me, federal buildings. Particularly South Carolina or Georgia, by July 2002. And also the New York Trade Center – the World Trade Center in 2002, with something, with a terrorist attack." However, the predicted date was incorrect as the terrorist attacks actually occurred on September 11, 2001. According to an article in ''Woman's Own'' magazine, and a documentary on A&E;, they also correctly predicted that John F. Kennedy Jr. would die by plane. It was also predicted from the Psychic Twins that Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony would not stay together as a couple on La Fusion TV in 2009.

Al-Qaeda terror threat predictions in Europe

January 2010, The Psychic Twins predicted "Al-Qaeda terror threats in France, Germany and London, England in fall of 2010." This prediction was made in the ''After Dark'' magazine, the official magazine for Coast to Coast AM. The article is entitled The Psychic Twins' Predictions for 2010. In the news on September 29, 2010 it was announced "Al-Qaeda plot to attack European cities uncovered". Yahoo News, September 29, 2010 It went on to say "Intelligence agencies have uncovered an Al-Qaeda plot to launch attacks in Britain, France and Germany by Pakistan-based extremists."

Terry and Linda Jamison on David Baker's "Beyond the Gate" radio show

Terry and Linda Jamison were guests on David Baker’s “Beyond the Gate” radio show on January 23, 2011. They had made predictions for 2011, that consist of severe tornadoes in the Midwest of the United States. The Psychic Twins said "Severe storms, flooding and tornadoes in Southern and Midwestern states – including Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee and Kentucky in 2011.” They had also predicted different terror plots around the world, with specific countries being named. Miami, Florida: Terror plot exposed. Reported by CNN Frankfurt, Germany: “Terror attack at German airport”. Reported by CNN David Baker’s “Beyond the Gate" radio talk show recorded the Psychic Twins predictions for 2011, in which all predictions of 2011 can be heard. David Baker was also interviewed by the American Chronicle, with Wendy Garrett on July 20, 2011, giving the history behind the Psychic Twins.

Biography

Linda and Terry Jamison grew up in the small town of West Chester, Pennsylvania, attending East Bradford Elementary School, and later Henderson High School. Their parents, Jane Bethel Gray and Philip Jamison, were writers and painters. According to a 2006 documentary on A&E;, Philip is a watercolor artist of worldwide renown. The Jamison Twins also have an older brother Philip Duane Jamison III, nickname "Flip", who has not displayed any psychic abilities.

Education and career

The Jamison Twins both attended the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) for one year in Philadelphia, Pa. after graduating high school. They both went on to different universities after their first year of attending PAFA. Terry Jamison attended Penn State University for one year, and Linda Jamison attended the University of Delaware, both then transferred to Temple University's Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia Pa. The Jamison Twins went on to obtain fine arts degrees from Temple University (Tyler School of Art), and worked as performance artists.

Terry Jamison is a painter and had collaborated in the 1980s with artists Frank Shifreen and Mark Oberg to sponsor and exhibited paintings and sculptures of New York's emerging talents.The exhibition was called The Gowanus Canal Monumental Show. Linda Jamison was said to be the performer of the twins. They had their own performing arts company, Pop Theatrics, which would perform music, comedy, dance, and acrobatics in New York and Washington, D.C., as well as the White House for the Reagans. The twins later starred in a short comedy film titled ''Louise's Tidy Tips'' playing the part of "Louise" the two-headed housewife on ''Saturday Night Live''. This short comedy film was produced by Maxi Cohen for ''Saturday Night Live'' and specifically for the appearance of the Jamison Twins.

The twins endured different illnesses for many years. They had stated "they went through many treatments and doctors to find relief". After many attempts to find treatment for their illnesses the Jamison Twins had begun to practice Nichiren Daishonin Buddhism in the late 1980s. This gave them a new sense of purpose to teach, inspire, and motivate others. The Jamison Twins had a motto "Never give up—no matter what!"

In the year of 1990 they moved to Los Angeles, California with no money and had taken odd jobs as Doctor Assistants and worked in Retail Sales to make ends meet. The Jamison Twins have said that this particular time in their lives they started to perform psychic readings and have since counseled people in every walk of life, teaching them how to achieve physical, emotional and spiritual growth. This was the start of what the Jamison Twins called ''"Twin-tuition".''

Film and television appearances

Linda and Terry Jamison have appeared in many films and television shows, as "The Psychic Twins", performers, and also as identical twins. They have performed on SNL, which gave them the opportunity to create their own mini-series spin-off of SNL's ''Louise's Tidy Tips''. This film was titled ''Louise'' on VHl "Ha! Channel" that aired for a year in 1991.

The Jamison Twins appeared in several documentaries such as ''Psychic Children: Their Sixth Sense''. It was produced by CBS for A&E; and has aired on A&E;, Biography Channel, and the History Channel since 2006. The twins have also appeared on Extreme Twins: Hidden Lives – documentary that aired in the United Kingdom,Channel 5 in 2006. In 2010 the Jamison Twins appeared with Mark Dolan, on the subject of ''The World's Most Identical Twins and Me''. It was produced by Dragonfly for the United Kingdom and New Zealand, Channel 4. Terry and Linda Jamison were interviewed on AOL twice this year by Lisa Johnson Mandell, on job and career choices. They have counseled many people on which direction would be best for their future careers.

2011

Terry and Linda Jamison appeared on Good Morning America on June 21, 2011 to discuss their newly released book entitled "Psychic Intelligence".

On July 2, 2011 The Jamison Twins made an appearance on the radio show Coast to Coast with Ian Punnett. They predicted a hurricane would hit the east coast causing great destruction. Ian Punnett asked the Twins: "You have an opportunity tonight to make your next big prediction here on Coast to Coast. What's coming up?" The Psychic Twins replied: "We're seeing a major hurricane that's slamming the east coast by September...it will slam Florida, Georgia, North Carolina..it will even go up the coast toward New York. It will be a VERY extreme hurricane..."

They also appeared on Nightline ABC Primetime Special "twin-tuition" June 29, 2011. Juju Chang of ABC Nightline, interviews the Psychic Twins and profiles their fascinating world as Psychics. Juju Chang also looks into the special connection between identical twins that allows some siblings to share a language. They know what the other twin is thinking or share physical sensations across long distances.

Terri and Linda Jamison were guests on View July 8, 2011. They discussed their newly released book ''Psychic Intelligence'', which is a number one best seller (July 2011) on Amazon in the Spirituality category, Spirituality Occult, Religion and Spirituality and also number one best seller on the Kindle Store same categories. They are listed on ABC as "The Psychic Twins give predictions for Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg on ABC’s The View, July 8, 2011.” During their appearance they also predicted a destructive Hurricane would hit the east coast, in which they named exact states that would feel the effects of the destruction it would cause. Also on the View July 8, 2011, the Psychic Twins predicted “Terror plots on New York City and Washington D.C. will be thwarted in September 2011”. On September 8, 2011 it was revealed that a terror plot was discovered as credible. Feds: Zawahiri Launched Al Qaeda Terror Plot for 9/11 Anniversary.

They had discussed their 9/11 prediction, showing actual writings from 1999, before the attacks on September 11, 2001.

After the Psychic Twins appearance on The View, the Daily India writes that "Whoopi Goldberg was German nun in previous life say psychic twins", the Daily India also gives Whoopi's reaction, in which she agreed at one point in her life she considered to be a nun. Terri and Linda Jamison appeared on the Australian morning show Sunrise (TV program), July 19, 2011, for an interview of their predictions.

2012

In 2012, the Psychic Twins have appeared on Wings of Love (January 4, 2012), Hay House Radio with John Holland (December 12, 2011) and Beyond the Gate with David M. Baker(February 19, 2012). Their predictions have been on breakthrough drugs for the cure of cancer, fight in weight loss, and heart disease. It has been reported on Health Day News, Reuters and Drugs.com that new clinical studies are promising in these cures mentioned above. . They had also predicted two assassination plots on President Obama with will be thwarted and also record breaking tornadoes in the Midwest. On February 28, 2012 and March 3, 2012 it was reported through the news media that two men were arrested in separate instances from threats they made on the President’s life. They have touched on earthquakes in Mexico and Japan, also cyber attacks for the year 2012.

March 25, 2012 the Psychic Twins appeared in a documentary on A&E;, entitled “The UneXplained”. It was produced by Doug Liman and Russ Stration.

Book appearances

''The 100 Top Psychics in America'', by Paulette Cooper (Simon & Schuster), 1996. ISBN 0671534017.

''The Book of Twins'' (Doubleday), by and Lisa Gants 1998. ISBN 0385333145.

''Identical'', by

Bill Sorem (NeverStop), 2003 – Twins presented on the cover.

''Career Comeback'', by Lisa Johnson Mandell (Hachette), 2010. ISBN 0446549657.

''Separated at Earth''

The Psychic Twins' first book ''Separated at Earth'' (2007), the story of their personal and professional lives. Terry and Linda Jamison go into detail about growing up and the events that took place that lead them into the direction of becoming Psychic Twins.

The dedication of the book reads:

"This book is dedicated to all the heroes who died on 9/11"

''Psychic Intelligence''

The Psychic Twins release "''Psychic Intelligence''" Tune In and Discover the Power of Your Intuition. (Hachette Book Group, Inc. 2011)

Alternative views

Critic Leon Jaroff has pointed out that the Jamison twins are frequently incorrect but very close in some of their predictions. For example, in December 2003, they incorrectly predicted that Saddam Hussein would be killed by U.S troops in early 2004 (he was actually executed after a trial in 2006), and that Pope John Paul II would die in June 2004 (he actually died in April 2005).

Bibliography

Filmography

!Year ! ''Hollywood Ghost Stories'' ''The Other Half'' ''Urban Legends Revealed'' ''Psychic Children – Their Sixth Sense'' ''The World's Most Identical Twins and Me''

Movie-Documentary !! Role !! Notes
	1986	|	''Louise's Tidy Tips''	The Jamison Twins	Made for TV on SNL, played a character name Louise, the two-headed housewife.
	1998		|	The Jamison Twins	Made for TV on AMC with William Shatner as the host.
	2003		|	The Jamison Twins	Made for TV on NBC with Dick Clark, Mario Lopez, Produced by Judy Helms
	2004		|	Identical Twins	Made for TV series on The Learning Channel
rowspan="3"	2006		|	Psychic Children	Made for TV on A&E;, Biography Channel, History Channel
|	''Extreme Twins: Hidden Lives''	Extreme Twins	Made for TV
|	''Twin Stories''	The Jamison Twins Story	Made for TV, produced by Turner Original Productions
	2010		|	Identical Twins	Made for TV by Dragonfly in the UK

''The Other Side'' ''Leeza'' ''State of Mind'' ''The Insider (TV series) ''Trading Spaces'' ''Dr. Keith Ablow Show'' ''The Tyra Banks Show'' ''The Today Show Australia'' ''Good Morning America, ABC'' "The View" [ABC] ''Primetime (TV series)

		Year !! Television Appearance !! Role !! Notes
1991	''Louise''	Two-headed Housewife
1995–1996	|	As The Psychic Twins	Talk Show with Will Miller (NBC)
1996	|	As The Psychic Twins	Talk Show with Leeza Gibbons (NBC)
2001	|	As The Psychic Twins	Pilot for Fox, Producer Ramey Warren Black
2005	The Insider'' ||	As The Psychic Twins	Talk Show
2006	|	Psychic Solutions	Talk Show (TLC)
2007	|	As The Psychic Twins	Talk Show
2009	|	As The Psychic Twins	Talk Show with Tyra Banks, The Psychic Twins strike Oscar Gold, predicting all the correct winners for the 2009 Oscars.
2010	|	As The Psychic Twins	Talk Show-Predictions on Golden Globes Awards
2011	|	Interview with the Psychic Twins on their new book	Book entitled "Psychic Intelligence" June 2011
2011	|	Terry and Linda Jamison "Psychic Twins"	Interview on their recent book entitled "Psychic Intelligence". Also, Interviewed about their past and future predictions.
2011	"Nightline” (TV series), ABC'' ||	''"Beyond Belief"'' Supernatural Series	Juju Chang profiles The Psychic Twins in this series.

References

External links

Linda and Terry Jamison Psychic Twins personal website

"Inside with Psychic Twins", August 9, 2006, Insider Online

"Double Vision", ''San Diego Citybeat''

The World's Greatest Psychics are Suburban Philadelphians Thorn Nickels July 11, 2007 ''Weekly Press'', Philadelphia, Pa

"Double Vision", Monica Cafferky, November 4, 2005, ''The Daily Mirror'' (UK)

"Double Vision", ''Spirit and Destiny'' (UK)

"Double the Power", Monica Cafferky, ''Woman's Own'' (UK)

Alumnae double the psychic power Nicole Finkbiner, March 2008 ''The Temple News'', Temple University, Philadelphia PA,

"We're Psychic Twins", Bronwyn Maquardt, July 24, 2006 ''Woman's Day'' (Australia)

"They Predicted 9/11", Lisa Johnson, ''Woman's Own'' (USA)

"Seeing it all Very Clearly", Michael Crist, August 17, 2006 ''The Daily Local News'' (West Chester, Pennsylvania)

Bin Laden Predictions

Category:1965 births Category:American artists Category:American comedians Category:American motivational speakers Category:American non-fiction writers Category:American spiritual writers Category:American television personalities Category:Living people Category:New Age spiritual leaders Category:People from Chester County, Pennsylvania Category:American psychics Category:Twin people from the United States

Honorific-prefix	The Right Honourable
Name	John Healey
Honorific-suffix	MP
Office	Shadow Secretary of State for Health
Leader	Ed Miliband
Term start	8 October 2010
Term end	6 October 2011
Predecessor	Andy Burnham
Successor	Andy Burnham
Office3	Shadow Minister of State for Housing and Local Government
Leader3	Harriet HarmanEd Miliband
Term start3	11 May 2010
Term end3	8 October 2010
Predecessor3	Grant Shapps
Successor3	Alison Seabeck
Office4	Minister of State for Housing and Planning
Primeminister4	Gordon Brown
Term start4	5 June 2009
Term end4	11 May 2010
Predecessor4	Margaret Beckett
Successor4	Grant Shapps (Housing and Local Government)
Office5	Minister of State for Local Government
Primeminister5	Gordon Brown
Term start5	28 June 2007
Term end5	5 June 2009
Predecessor5	Phil Woolas
Successor5	Rosie Winterton
Office6	Financial Secretary to the Treasury
Primeminister6	Tony Blair
Term start6	6 May 2005
Term end6	28 June 2007
Predecessor6	Stephen Timms
Successor6	Jane Kennedy
Office7	Economic Secretary to the Treasury
Primeminister7	Tony Blair
Term start7	15 December 2002
Term end7	6 May 2005
Predecessor7	Ruth Kelly
Successor7	Ed Balls
Office8	Member of Parliament for Wentworth and DearneWentworth (1997–2010)
Term start8	1 May 1997
Predecessor8	Peter Hardy
Majority8	13,920 (33.1%)
Birth date	February 13, 1960
Birth place	Wakefield, Yorkshire, England
Party	Labour
Spouse	Jackie Bate
Alma mater	Christ's College, Cambridge
Website	Official website }}

John Healey (born 13 February 1960) is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wentworth and Dearne since 1997, and former Minister of State for Housing and Planning. In 2010 he was elected to the shadow cabinet and appointed shadow health secretary. He was replaced in this role by Andy Burnham in October 2011.

Early life

John Healey was born in Wakefield and was educated at the Lady Lumley's School in Pickering and at the independent St Peter's School, York. Healey studied Social and Political Science at Christ's College, Cambridge where he received a BA in 1982. He worked as a journalist and the deputy editor of the internal magazine of the Palace of Westminster, ''The House Magazine'' for a year in 1983. In 1984 he became a full-time disability rights campaigner for several national charities.

Healey joined Issues Communications in 1990 as a campaign manager before becoming the head of communications at the Manufacturing, Science and Finance trade union in 1992. He was appointed as the campaign director with the Trades Union Congress in 1994 in which capacity he remained until his election to the House of Commons. He was also a tutor at the Open University Business School.

Healey's first venture into Parliamentary politics was an unsuccessful attempt to gain the Ryedale seat at the 1992 general election. As the Labour candidate, Healey finished in third place, some 30,076 votes behind the sitting Conservative John Greenway.

Member of Parliament

Selection

Although John Healey had not been the first choice as the Labour candidate in Wentworth for the 1997 general election he won by a convincing margin after a long campaign. It was rumoured that the Labour leadership had tried to insert the former Conservative MP for Stratford-on-Avon, Alan Howarth, who had ''crossed the floor'' and joined the Labour Party in 1995.

The other prospective candidates were journalist Yvette Cooper who went on to be selected for Pontefract and Castleford and Rotherham Cllrs. Ken Wyatt and Cllr. Roger Stone. Finally Healey was chosen for this very safe Labour seat.

Cllr. Stone went on to become leader of Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council where he has a close and positive working relationship with all three of the borough's MPs. At the 1997 general election, Healey successfully contested the seat of Wentworth, which had become available following the retirement of the Labour MP Peter Hardy. Healey held the seat with a majority of 23,959 and has remained the MP to date.

In government

Healey served as a member of the education and employment select committee from 1997 until he became the Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown in 1999. He was given an executive position following the 2001 general election in an appointment as the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Department for Education and Skills.

Healey was promoted in 2002 to the position of Economic Secretary to the Treasury and nominally again following the 2005 general election when he took the role of Financial Secretary to the Treasury.

Healey's responsibilities included government statistics, (including the Office of National Statistics which is to become an independent body after passage of the current bill he has been steering through parliament), along with implementation of the government's 10 year strategy for science and innovation, which directs spending of around £5 billion a year. Inter alia, this has led to the controversial abolition of the Research Assessment Exercise. However, he has never made a speech on this area of responsibility and did not answer questions about it.

On 29 June 2007, he was moved to the Department for Communities and Local Government as a result of a government reshuffle. His position as Financial Secretary was filled by Jane Kennedy. Shortly after his appointment he was announced as the Floods Recovery Minister, with responsibility for assisting the recovery from recent widespread flooding across the United Kingdom. It was announced he would be appointed to the Privy Council in October 2008.

In a Cabinet reshuffle on 5 June 2009, he was appointed Minister of State (Housing), replacing Margaret Beckett who had resigned.

John Healey has held the following positions:

November 1999-June 2001 - Parliamentary Private Secretary to Gordon Brown as Chancellor of the Exchequer

June 2001-May 2002 - Parliamentary under Secretary of State for Skills

May 2002-May 2005 - Economic Secretary to the Treasury

May 2005-June 2007 - Financial Secretary to the Treasury

June 2007-June 2009 - Minister of State for Local Government

July 2007-June 2009 - Minister for Flood Recovery

June 2009–May 2010 - Minister of State for Housing

May 2010-October 2010 - Shadow Minister of State for Housing

October 2010 – Present - Shadow Secretary of State for Health

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph in July 2009, the outgoing Chairman of the Sustainable Development Commission, Jonathon Porritt described Healey as 'just the most deeply disappointing person to work with' saying Healy took 'a spoiler role' with him from post to post that was 'deeply unhelpful'.

In opposition

Healey came second in the election for the shadow cabinet in 2010, and was appointed shadow health secretary.

Personal life

Healey married Jackie Bate on 25 October 1993 in Lambeth and they have one son. He opposes the minimum wage being set at a different level for young people and he campaigns for medals to be awarded to Suez Canal Zone veterans. He is a member of Amnesty International.

References

External links

John Healey MP ''official constituency website''

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Category:1960 births Category:Academics of the Open University Category:Labour Party (UK) MPs Category:Living people Category:Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Category:Members of the United Kingdom Parliament for English constituencies Category:People educated at St Peter's School, York Category:People from Wakefield Category:UK MPs 1997–2001 Category:UK MPs 2001–2005 Category:UK MPs 2005–2010 Category:UK MPs 2010–

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