1. No category

Rationality, Parapsychology, and Artificial Intelligence in Military and

City University of New York (CUNY)
CUNY Academic Works
School of Arts & Sciences Theses
Hunter College
Fall 12-21-2016
Rationality, Parapsychology, and Artificial
Intelligence in Military and Intelligence Research
by the United States Government in the Cold War
Guy M. LoMeo
CUNY Hunter College
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Recommended Citation
LoMeo, Guy M., "Rationality, Parapsychology, and Artificial Intelligence in Military and Intelligence Research by the United States
Government in the Cold War" (2016). CUNY Academic Works.
http://academicworks.cuny.edu/hc_sas_etds/115
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RATIONALITY,PARAPSYCHOLOGY,ANDARTIFICIALINTELLIGENCEIN
MILITARYANDINTELLIGENCERESEARCHBYTHEUNITEDSTATES
GOVERNMENTINTHECOLDWAR
By
GuyLoMeo
Submittedinpartialfulfillment
oftherequirementsforthedegreeof
MasterofArtsinHistoryofScience,HunterCollege
TheCityUniversityofNewYork
December21,2016
ThesisSponsor:
December21,2016
Date
DanielMargócsy
Signature
December21,2016
Date
JonathanRosenberg
SignatureofSecondReader
2
TABLEOFCONTENTS
TableofContents.................................................................................................................................................2
ListofFigures........................................................................................................................................................3
Chapters
1. IntroductionofThemesandtheHistoryofParapsychologyandArtificial
Intelligence...............................................................................................................................................4
Section1–ParapsychologyandArtificialIntelligenceinHistory................................15
2. TheOriginsofState-SponsoredResearchintoParapsychologyandArtificial
IntelligenceintheColdWar..........................................................................................................27
Section1–Parapsychology’sOriginsintheEarlyColdWar...........................................34
Section2–ComputingResearchInvolvingArtificialIntelligence................................46
3. Parapsychology,ArtificialIntelligence,andtheHypeCycleinColdWar
Research.................................................................................................................................................54
Section1–HypeCyclesandParapsychology........................................................................57
Section2–TheHypeCyclesofArtificialIntelligence........................................................65
Section3–TheFateofParapsychologyandArtificialIntelligenceattheEndof
theColdWar.............................................................................................................70
4. Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................80
5. Bibliography.........................................................................................................................................84
PrimarySources.................................................................................................................................84
SecondarySources.............................................................................................................................88
3
LISTOFFIGURES
1. PatPrice’ssketchofcraneatthesecretSovietR&DsiteatSemipalatinsk..............28
2. DrawingreproducedfromCIAsatellitephotograph..........................................................28
3. TheFiveMainPhasesoftheHypeCycle..................................................................................58
4
CHAPTER1-INTRODUCTIONOFTHEMESANDTHEHISTORYOF
PARAPSYCHOLOGYANDARTIFICIALINTELLIGENCE
Scientificdevelopmentsinthetwentiethcenturyprogressedatanexponentialrate.
Whileitmaybeeasytoseethatsomeofthosepursuitswerenefariousinnature,itismore
difficulttotrytoidentifywhichpursuitswererationalandwhichwerenot.More
problematicstillisthetaskofdefiningtheveryconceptofrationality.Rationalityislargely
subjective,meaningdifferentthingstodifferentpeopleorgroups.TheperiodoftheCold
Warwasexpressiveofthisconundrum,asmuchofthestate-sanctionedresearch
throughouttheperiodthatwasconsideredrationalatthetime,inthatcontext,wasnot
consideredsobeforeorafter.
Thefirsthalfofthetwentiethcenturyislitteredwithexamplesofscientificresearch
thatseriouslyquestionedrationalityasitwasthenunderstood;itreachedsuchadegree
thatbythetimeoftheColdWar,theverydefinitionoftheconceptwasalsocalledinto
question.1Theseedsforthiscanbeseenincertaintypesofresearchcarriedoutby
governmentsduringtheSecondWorldWar,whichareknownthroughouttheworldas
horrific,suchasthoseconductedbytheThirdReich.Yet,therationalityofthoseobjectives
isoftennotconsideredtosuchanextent.Theideaofapproachingwarsorconflictswith
theconceptofrationalityactingastheguidingforcebehindthedecision-makingprocess
1PaulEricksonetal.,HowReasonAlmostLostItsMind:TheStrangeCareerofCold
WarRationality(Chicago:TheUniversityofChicagoPress,2013),1-4.
5
onlybeganwiththeonsetoftheColdWar;thestrategiesutilizedbythemilitaryin
previous‘hot’warsprovedtobeinapplicable.Inaway,itcanbesaidthattheColdWar
manifestedasenseofrationalitythatwaswhollyitsown.
ThetermCold-Warrationalitydoesnotrefertoaspecific,acceptedconceptof
rationality,butrathertheattemptsmadebyscholarstoformulateauniversalsystemof
rationalbehaviorintheperiodoftheColdWar.Thisgrandioseundertakingwasnecessary
astherationalproceduresthatguidedtheartofwarthroughouttheprecedingworldwars
wereinapplicableintheunchartedwatersoftheColdWar.Initiatedbynationalsecurity
analystsandnuclearstrategists,thiscampaignwas“summonedintobeinginordertotame
theterrorsofdecisionstooconsequentialtobelefttohumanreasonalone,traditionally
understoodasmindfuldeliberation.Inthatimpliedgapbetweenreasonandrationalitylay
thenoveltyofCold-Warrationality.”2Itwasespeciallyconcernedwiththemostoptimalor
appropriatewaytomakedecisionsininternationalrelations,butwasalsosupposedto
filterdownandworkwithmuchmoremundanesituations,suchasafamily’sdomestic
relationsunderasingleroof.
Proponentsofthisnewconceptualizationsoughtto“articulateapurerationality,
validindependentlyoftheproblemstowhichitwasapplied,andthereforevalidfor
everyoneandalways.”3Thereweremanydifferenttheoriesadvancedthatclaimed
superiorityoveritscompetitors,noneofwhichwereeverawardedthattitle.Thetaskof
2Erickson,HowReasonAlmostLostItsMind,2.
3Erickson,HowReasonAlmostLostItsMind,2.
6
constructingthistypeofrationalityspannedtheperiodroughlyfrom1945tothemid1980sandinvolvedpartiesoriginatingfromdiverseareasofsociety,including“sharp
minds,powerfulpoliticians,wealthyfoundations,andmilitarybrass.”4Thealliance
betweentheUnitedStatesgovernment,privateindustry,andacademiawillbeathemeI
examinethroughoutthispaper.Oneofthemostprominentoftheseinstitutions,andone
whosereportswillbeaprimaryfocusinthisstudy,istheRandCorporation(Researchand
DevelopmentCorporation).TheideaofcounteringmaneuversmadebytheSovietUnion
throughtheuseofsystematicrationaldecision-makingwasamajorfactorinthe
authorizationofcontroversialscientificresearchprojectsthatwerenotrationalendeavors
atthetime.Twoexamplesofsuchprojects,andtheonesthatIwillanalyze,are
government-sponsoredresearchintoparapsychologyandartificialintelligence.
Theoverarchingpositionofthescientificcommunityatthetimewasthatbothareas
fellontheirrationalsideofthedebate.AstheColdWarprogressedandfinancialsupport
forthesefieldsgrew,theperspectiveonartificialintelligence’sstatusbegantoshift,while
parapsychologyremainedonthefringes,aplaceitoccupiestothisday.Whatbeganasa
projectthatwasquixotic,shadowy,andindistinct,evolvedintoonethatbecamemoreand
morerefinedtoreflecttheprinciplesthatwerebeingdevelopedregardingColdWar
rationality.ThelifeofthesetwodisciplinesprovidesalensthroughwhichColdWar
rationalitycanbeglimpsed.However,thephrase“ColdWarrationality”itselfisa
misnomer,asitimpliesthattherewasaconsensusonwhatexactlythatmeant.Infact,the
4Erickson,HowReasonAlmostLostItsMind,3.
7
termwasneverdefinedinasingularfashion.Rationalitywouldbebetterunderstoodby
analogizingittoanamoeba-typeorganism,i.e.,amorphousandconstantlyalteringits
appearancetomeetnewchallenges.5
Whatisseenasrationalvariesbetweensocietiesandtimeperiods.Logically,
rationalityinthepresentshouldbemoresoundandsensiblethantherationalityofpast
eras.Thismaybeatrendoverlongperiodsoftime;however,sometimesthereare
stretcheswhereirrationalityreignssupreme.Rationalityandirrationalityarehardto
defineconceptsandinterpretationschangeastimepasses.Inaway,thesetermsare
subjectivebecausenotallsocietiesusethepreceptsoflogicinthesameway.Forthis
reason,rationalityshouldbeexaminedinthecontextofwhatevertimeperiodisunder
investigationratherthanpurelyasalinearprogression.
AnexampleofanepochwherethissituationplayedoutistheColdWar,where
unprecedentedthreatscreatedavolatilesituationthatmadeitextraordinarilydifficultto
drawthelinebetweenwhatwasrationalandirrational.Thesecircumstancesresultedin
thedevelopmentofstate-fundedresearchintoparapsychologyandartificialintelligence.
Theformer,forinstance,representsaparadoxthatwasthedrivingforcebehindthisstudy.
Parapsychology,especiallyinthelastfewcenturies,hasbeenanareaofcontention
amongacademics.Ithasbeenviewedasapseudosciencebyestablishedscientists.
Surprisingly,fromtheresearchcampaignsintoitssupposedexistenceintheeighteenth
centurybypeoplelikeFranzAntonMesmer,tothisveryday,theoverarchingviewhas
5Erickson,HowReasonAlmostLostItsMind,1-4.
8
changedverylittle.6Yet,foraperiodofseveraldecadesinthetwentiethcentury,all
previousscholarshiponthesubjectwascastasideandmillionsofdollarswerefunneled
intoprojectsthatdidnotattempttoproveitsreality,butratherassumedit,andattempted
tomakesuchphenomenaapplicableinamilitaryandintelligencegatheringsetting.Asa
result,itcanbesaidthatparapsychologywasanintegralpartofthezeitgeistthatwasCold
Warrationality.
Toputtheparadoxintheformofaquestion,howcouldphenomenathatwere
considerednonexistentbythescientificeliteforquitealongtime,suddenlybecome
possible,andevenprobable,intheeyesofagovernmentthatwouldconsideritselfthe
mostcogentoneontheplanet?Aswillbemadeclearinthenextchapter,thegovernment’s
firstencounterwithpseudoscientificdoctrineswasaresultofparanoiacoupledwithapreemptivestrikestrategy.Putmorecolloquially,theinitiationofparapsychologicalresearch
canbedescribedasamassiveexampleoftheplatitude“bettersafethansorry.”Although
notnearlyonthesamelevelasparapsychology,thesamequestioncouldberaised
concerningresearchintoartificialintelligence.
ArtificialIntelligence,orAI,wasontheperipheryofmainstreamsciencewhenthe
conceptwasfirstintroduced,andwasmuchmoremundanethanmodernsciencefiction
wouldhavethepublicbelieve.Nevertheless,thefundamentalissueremains:withsomuch
conventionalscientificresearchthatcouldhavebeensponsoredbythegovernment,what
compelledthemtofinancethesecontroversialresearchprojectsthroughouttheColdWar?
6DavidRayGriffin,“ParapsychologyandPhilosophy:AWhiteheadianPostmodern
Perspective,”JournaloftheAmericanSocietyforPsychicalResearch87,no.3(July1993):
217-88.
9
Theanswerisneitherexplicitnorelementary,butpartofawiderphenomenarevolving
aroundtheaforementionedconceptofrationality,whatitwas,andwhatitwasnot.In
ordertoproperlyexplicatethequandarysurroundingthesetwodisciplines,abrief
historiographyfromtheeighteenthcenturytotheirdevelopmentsinthemid-tolate
twentiethcenturywillshedlightonhowtheseunorthodoxenterprisesenteredanarena
normallyreservedforprojectsthatrepresentthecuttingedgeofscientificand
technologicalexploration.Theconceptofrationalitywillinformthisstudyasitprovidesa
contextthroughwhichColdWarscientificpursuitscanbescrutinized.Theuseof
rationalitytoevaluateparapsychologyandartificialintelligencewillalsoaidininterpreting
thereasoningbehindthedecisionsmadebyofficialswhenitcametofundingor
terminatingtheseprograms.
Bothoftheseconceptshavebeenaroundsincetheearliestperiodofrecorded
historyandcanbelocatedinalmostanycivilization.Asdisparateasthesetwofieldsare,
therearesomesignificantsimilaritiesbetweenthem.Firstandforemost,bothhavebeen
metwithahigh,thoughunequal,degreeofoppositionfromcriticsinthepastaswellasthe
present.Antagonismtowardparapsychologyhastraditionallybeenmuchmorevirulent
thanthattowardartificialintelligence.Oneexplanationforwhythisissoisbecause
parapsychologicalphenomenahasbeenintricatelytiedtodeeplyingrainedbeliefsystems
inwaysartificialintelligencehasneverexperienced.Onecanfindextrasensoryperception
andrelatedphenomenadescribedintextsrangingfromtheSumeriancuneiformtablets,to
ancientSanskritliterature,totheJudaic,Christian,andIslamicholybooks.Thefarther
10
backinhistoryonegoes,themoreabstracttheseconceptsare,buttheyarepresentand
pervasivenonetheless.
Parapsychologicalprocessesareattheheartofmanyreligiousandspiritual
experiences,fromtelepathiccommunicationtodisplaysofpsychokinesis.Prophetshave
claimedtohavenonverbalcommunicationwiththeirdeities,whileothersituationsclearly
describepsychokinesisbeingperformedbyfiguresofsuchsignificanceasMoses,Elijah,
andJesusChrist.7Tobeclear,theseareonlyindicativethatsuchconceptualizationswere
presentthousandsofyearsbeforethepresenttime,notthatthoseeventsactuallytook
place.Sincereligionandsciencearealmostalwaysatodds,thefactthatparapsychology
hoverssomewhereinthemiddleaddsskepticismamongscientists.Thoughnotas
prevalentinspiritualliteratureasparapsychology,artificialintelligencehasalonghistory
rootedinsimulation,art,andmechanicalintelligence.Oneofthemorefamiliarexamples
wouldbetheGolemofJewishtradition,acreaturemadeanimatefromwhollyinanimate
parts.Asecularexampleofartificialintelligenceinhistorywouldbethehomunculusthat
startedtogainattractionintheearlymodernperiod.
Whilebothfieldshavelongbeenconsideredindependentofeachotherbytheir
respectiveresearchers,theyarelinkedtogetherinauniquefashion.Thepointof
convergenceisthefieldofpsychologyproper.Oneofthemaingoalsofpsychologyisto
mapthewaythemindfunctions.Parapsychologyattemptstodojustthat,focusingonthe
phenomenathatorthodoxpsychologydoesnotconsider.Parapsychologiststrytoidentify
7JStaffordWright,“ParapsychologyandtheChristian,”TheChurchman67,no.2
(March1953):89-98.
11
unknownprocessesthatpermitextrasensoryperceptiontooccur.Parapsychology
essentiallypicksupwherepsychologyleavesoff.Thefieldofartificialintelligencestrivesto
dothesamething,buthasitssightssetonanalternativeendgame.OneofAI’sprinciple
goalsisequippingmechanicalandelectronictechnologywiththeabilitytothink,act,and
respondinthesamewayasthehumanmind.Simplyput,thegoalofAIresearchisto
automatethehumanmind’shighermentalfacultiesinanonhuman.However,theobjective
downthelineistogobeyondthisandcreateanintelligentmachinethatissuperiortothe
humanmind.8Althoughpsychologyproperinformsbothofthesedisciplinesandprovides
acontextthroughwhichtheycanbeviewed,itisnotofteninvokedbyresearchersineither
fieldasevidencefortheirtheories.Thisisbecauseitdoesnotassistinexplainingoneofthe
mostproblematicaspectsofthistypeofcontroversialresearch:reproducibility.The
desideratumofbothdisciplinesisathoroughlyexplainable,replicableunderstandingof
whatagenciesareresponsiblefor,orplayapartin,certainprocessesofthemind.
Forinstance,parapsychologistsinthetwentiethcenturyhaveoftensoughtto
explainpsychicphenomenaintermsofquantumphysics,citingtheexoticnatureofnonlocalityonthesubatomiclevel.Quantumphysicsisnotusedasanexplanation,butasan
oversimplifiedprecedentsetterfor“actionatadistance.”9Despitetheircompatibility,or
lackthereof,theideawastoapplythecuttingedgeofhardscience,physics,toasoft
8PamelaMcCorduck,“BrassforBrain,”inMachinesWhoThink:APersonalInquiry
IntotheHistoryandProspectsofArtificialIntelligence,25thed.(Natick,MA:A.K.Peters,
2004),3-36.
9ChrisClarke,“ANewQuantumTheoreticalFrameworkfor
Parapsychology,”EuropeanJournalofParapsychology23,no.1(2008):3-30.
12
science,psychology,inanattempttoexplainitinscientificterms.Likewise,proponentsof
artificialintelligencetriedtomergethehardscienceswiththesoft,onlyintheopposite
direction.Artificialintelligenceasafieldisanoutgrowthofelectronicandcomputer
technology.Artificialintelligence,firstandforemost,isonlyapplicableinamachine;it
requiresapieceofhardware.Endowingthathardwarewitha“brain”ofhumanlevel
intelligenceisthegoalofAI.Thatpieceofthepuzzleiswhatweasmachineorcomputer
userswouldunderstandassoftware.
Artificialintelligenceresearcherssoughttoincorporatethepsychologicalprocesses
ofthehumanbraininthesoftwarethatisthebrainofacomputer.Whereas
parapsychologyusedhardscienceinitssearchforanswersinasoftscience,artificial
intelligencetriedtoutilizethesoftscienceofpsychologyinitsquesttoformalizeor
mathematizetheprocessesofthebrainformachineintelligence.Inadditiontothese
parallels,intheircurrentincarnations,theyshareacommonperceptionbythegeneral
public:theyareeitherwhollyendorsedordownrightcondemned.Whilethoseopinions
mayormaynotberootedinascientificframeofthought,scientistsseemtobejustas
polarizedonthesubjectaswell.10Theseperspectivesshedlightonthecontemporary
rationaleofsociety,althoughtheydonotdefinewhatrationalityis.
Parapsychologyisuniqueamongthenumerous“pseudoscientific”doctrines
becauseithasgarneredsomemeasurablelegitimacyincertaincirclesofscientists,albeit
outsidethemainstream.Eventhoughitisnotseenaslegitimatebyorthodoxscience,itis
10NoAuthorListed,“AnticipatingArtificialIntelligence,”NatureInternational
WeeklyJournalofScience532,no.760(28April2016):413.
13
notcondemnedwiththesameincendiarylanguageas,say,cryptozoologyorastrology.
Parapsychologyhas,infact,actuallycreatedalittlenicheforitselflocatedbetween
conventionalscienceand“pseudoscience,”somedescribingitasaproto-science.Itis
interestingthatthecontroversysurroundingparapsychologyhasnotbeensettledafter
morethanacenturyofseriousresearch,whenmostotherunorthodoxideasfadeaway
muchsooner.Moreinterestingisthatparapsychologyseemstogothroughcyclesof
interestanddisinterest.
Themid-tolatetwentiethcenturycanbeseenastheacmeofparapsychological
researchbecauseofthewaytheresearchwasconductedandbywhom.Thevalidityof
reportsandexperimentspriortothetwentiethcenturyaredifficulttoassesssincethere
areoftentoomanyquestionsleftunanswered.However,attheturnofthecentury,credible
andcompelling,thoughnotconclusive,researchwasbeingcarriedoutbyamultitudeof
countriesaroundtheglobe.Theimpetusforthisinquiry,aswellasforAI,wassimilarto
thatofmanyotherscientificandtechnologicalbreakthroughs:war.Inordertoanalyzewhy
bothdisciplinesgainedcurrencyinsomecirclesandnotothers,onemustlookatthe
historicalandsociologicalfactorsthatgeneratedthedominantviewpointofeachresearch
community.
Acomprehensiveexaminationoftheirrespectivehistorieswouldspanseveral
volumes.Forthatreason,thisstudywillfocusontheresearchcarriedoutatthebehestof
theUnitedStatesgovernment.Ratherthanstressingthetechnicalaspectsoftheresearch,
thespotlightwillbedirecteduponthepersonagesandinstitutionsinvolved.Interestingly,
14
thereareseveralcharactersandestablishments,suchastheRandCorporation,thatfigure
prominentlyinrationalityresearchandeitherESPorAI.Examplesofexperiments,
especiallythoseinparapsychology,willbediscussedinpassingsoastoprovidethereader
withwhatisneededtounderstandaparticularargument.
Theaimofthisanalysisisnottogivecredibilitytoonefieldovertheother;such
wouldbeafutiletasksincebothfields“survived”theColdWar,andarestilltheobjectof
governmentresearch.Rather,thegoalistouncoverthekeyplayersandseehowtheories
ofColdWarrationalityinfluencedtheirdecisionsinseeingparapsychologyasfactor
fiction.Allofthephenomenathatfigureinthedisciplineofparapsychologyareintricately
entangledwithoccultism.Orthodoxsciencemayhavethrownoccultpracticesintothe
wastebinofpseudosciencelongago,butthesamecannotbesaidforthegeneralpublic,or
evenforgovernmentandcorporateleaders.
Withregardtothetwentiethcentury,this‘greatdivide’wasoneofthemainreasons
governmentresearchintotheparanormalwasabletoreachunprecedentedlevels.This
goesforboththeUnitedStatesandothercountries.Almostwithoutexception,boththe
UnitedStatesandtheSovietUnionresearchedthepracticalapplicationsofparapsychology,
whilethecivilianresearchcommunitiesexaminedit“inthenameofscience.“Thiswill
becomeclearasIconductanexegesisofthereportsanddocumentation.Whilethemain
focusofthisthesisistheColdWar,governmentinvolvementbegandecadesearlier.These
previousforaysintotheparanormalpavedthewayfortheprojectsoftheColdWar.
15
Section1–ParapsychologyandArtificialIntelligenceinHistory
ParapsychologicalresearchintheWestcanbetracedbackquiteaway.Phenomena
associatedwithparapsychologycanbewitnessedinsomeremarkablyoldtexts.
ExtrasensoryperceptionisutilizedatapivotalmomentintheancientIndianSanskritepic,
theMahabharata,whenShakuni,theprinceofGandharaKingdom,cheatedinadicegame
byusingadiethathecouldcontrolwithhismind.11Scientists,ofcourse,disregardthisas
anexampleofevidenceforthephenomena’sreality.Toomuchtimehaspassedtoevaluate
thoseclaims;thus,animaginarylinemustbedrawntoseparatewhatcanandcannotbe
consideredrelevant.Whatcanbeconstruedasgermanetothisstudycanbelabeled
experimentalparapsychology,whichisunderstoodaspsychicresearchconductedina
modernsetting,asinalaboratory.
SomehistoriansidentifyFranzAntonMesmerasthefirsttodealwiththe
phenomenainthisway,whileotherscontendthatitbeganinthenineteenthcentury.Still
othersciteJ.B.Rhineastheinitiator.Acursoryexaminationoftheselinkswillbefruitful
becausetheyrepresenttheearliestinstancesofdebatethatservetoinformthegeneral
scientificcommunityonparapsychologyinamodernsetting.Towardtheendofthe
eighteenthcentury,FranzMesmerdevelopedhistheoryforwhathecalled“animal
magnetism”:unlikemineralmagnetism,whichhadcorporealeffects,animalmagnetism
determinedhealth,wellbeing,andothermysteriousmechanisms.Inthebeginning,Mesmer
11JohnD.Smith,trans.,“TheHall:TheGamblingMatch,”inTheMahābhārata,
PenguinClassics(NewDelhi:Penguin,2009),121-63.
16
wouldusemagnetsonapatient,wavingthembytheafflictedarea,forexample,to
manipulatethefluidinthepatients’bodyandthusrelievetheillness.Afterawhile,he
forewentthemagnetsandjustusedhandstostrokethepatientwhereitwasnecessary.
Hewasquitepopularforhis“medicine”andwasevenknowntosucceedwhenthe
conventionalremediesofthetimefailed.Thisimperceptiblephenomenonenthralled
Mesmer’scontemporaries.AsrelayedbyRobertDarnton,itwasunderstoodinasimilar
fashionaswas“Newton'sgravity,madeintelligiblebyVoltaire;Franklin'selectricity,
popularizedbyafadforlightningrods…andthemiraculousgasesoftheCharlieresand
MontgolfieresthatastonishedEuropebyliftingmanintotheairforthefirsttimein
1783.”12ThelinkbetweenMesmer’sworkandthefieldofparapsychologylayinthenature
ofbothoftheirmechanisms.Theconduitthroughwhichthedevice(magnet)usedto
deliveritscureisimperceptibletoregulartestingequipment.Mesmerthoughthehad
discoveredanotherforceinnature,equivalenttogravityorelectromagnetism.The
problemwasthatthisforce,asitwaspresented,seemedonthesurfacetoviolatethe
principleofcausality,butitdidnot.Oneofthereasonswhyitattainedaminordegreeof
reputabilitywasbecauseitwasbuiltuponthesamepremiseasNewton’slawofgravity,
whichalsotheorizedthatactionatadistancewasatplay.Whatmademattersworsefor
thishypotheticalforcewasthatscientistscouldnotreplicatehisexperimentstoa
12RobertDarnton,MesmerismandtheEndoftheEnlightenmentinFrance
(Cambridge,Mass.:HarvardUniversityPress,1968),10,accessedMay12,2016,
http://catalog.hathitrust.org/api/volumes/oclc/283547.html.
17
successfuldegree.Replicabilityisasignificantprincipleinscientificexploration,even
thoughitsusefulnessisstillbeingdebated.13
AcommissioninitiatedbyKingLouisXVItestedMesmer’sideasin1784.The
commission,whichfamouslyincludedsuchprominentfiguresasBenjaminFranklinand
thechemistAntoineLavoisier,wereassignedthetaskofinvestigatingthepurportedreality
ofamagneticfluid,thehypotheticalconduitthroughwhichMesmer’scureworked.
Unsurprisingly,theverdictwasthatthefluiddidnotexistandthatthephenomena
witnessedcouldbeattributedtomoremundanecauses.However,thiswasonlyhalfthe
story,asthecommissionhadsecretlydistributedareportthatdetailedtherealmotivation
behinditsfindings,whichwerethephenomena’sapparent“moraldangers.”14This
confidentialassessmentstressedthe“moraldangersofthemagnetictherapywheremost
ofthepractitionersweremen,mostofthepatientswerewomen,andwheresomuch
stimulationbytouchwasinvolvedandsomuchexcitementgenerated.”15Whilethereisno
doubtthattherewasjustificationforconcern,especiallyifthetreatmentoccurredbehind
closeddoors,itisalsoevidentthattheconclusionsofthecommissionweremotivatedby
morethanthescientifictheoriesunderinvestigation.Hadthatworrisomeperspectivebeen
presentfromtheoutset,thereisagoodpossibilitytheirpriorbiashadnegativelyaffected
13ArturoCasadevallandFerricFang,“ReproducibleScience,”Infectionand
Immunity78,no.12(September27,2010):4972-75,accessedOctober1,2015,
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2981311/
14Darnton,MesmerismandtheEndoftheEnlightenmentinFrance,64n.10,accessed
May28,2016,http://catalog.hathitrust.org/api/volumes/oclc/283547.html.
15JohnBeloff,Parapsychology:AConciseHistory(NewYork:St.Martin’s,1993),20.
18
theirobjectivity.Thistheme,whichrecursthroughouttheliteratureonmost
pseudosciences,isclearlypalpablewithregardtoparapsychology.Thisbias,ofcourse,is
twofold,andgoesforthosewhoareproponentsofparapsychology,aswell.Forthetime
being,itisimportanttoemphasizethateventhoughmesmerismdidnotfadeaway,the
officialconsensusontheissuehadbeensetforposterity.
OneofthedefiningturningpointsforparapsychologyintheWestinthenineteenth
centurywasthefoundingoftheSocietyforPsychicalResearch(SPR)onFebruary20,1882,
inLondon.TheSocietyforPsychicalResearchwasthefirstlearnedinstitutionofitskind,
withamissionstatementto“examinewithoutprejudiceorprepossessionandinthe
scientificfacultiesofman,realorsupposed,whichappeartobeinexplicableonany
generallyrecognizedhypothesis.”16Whilestillalittlewaysofffromcontemporary
experimentalparapsychology,itisthefirstinstancewhereresearcherstriedtodisentangle
purportedpsychicalphenomenainanorganizedway.
OneofthemajorimpetusesfortheinaugurationoftheSPRwasthegrowthand
spreadofSpiritualism,whichhadgainedanunprecedentedfootholdintheupperechelons
ofsociety.WhatmakestheSPRsignificantisnotsomuchthephenomenaitstudied,orthe
fruitsofthatresearch,butratherthewayitwentaboutobtainingthatinformation.
AccordingtoprofessorAlanGauld,apsychologistandparapsychologistknownfor
uncoveringfraudinparapsychologicalexperiments,theresearchconcerned“thatlarge
bodyofdebatablephenomenadesignatedbysuchtermsasmesmeric,psychical,and
16JohnBeloff,Parapsychology,65.
19
‘spiritualistic’”andwasconducted“inthesamespiritofexactandunimpassionedenquiry
whichhasenableSciencetosolvesomanyproblems.”17Whetherthiswasupheldin
practiceisupfordebate,butthenotionofresearchingthephenomenainthesamewayas
othermorereputablefieldscanbeconsideredoneofthefirstgreatattemptsat
transitioningpsychicalresearchfromthenon-scientifictothescientificsideofthe
demarcationproblem,evenifitwasnotunderstoodinthoseterms.
Eventually,theSPRbranchedoutandevenhadasisterorganizationintheUnited
StatescalledtheAmericanSocietyforPsychicalResearch(ASPR),foundedin1885,which
lookedintothesamepurportedphenomenaonthissideoftheAtlantic.TheASPRwasthe
sourceofthemostprogressiveinvestigationsofparapsychologyintheUnitedStatesuntil
thetimeofJosephBanksRhineintheearlydecadesofthetwentiethcentury.Inabroad
way,thisexemplifiestheonlychangesparapsychologyexperiencedfromthenineteenthto
thetwentiethcentury,ashifttowardinstitutionalorganizationandprofessionalismwhen
conductingexperiments.Inasimilarfashion,enquiriesintomachineintelligencebecame
morewidespreadandsystematicinthesametimeperiod.
Oneoftheaspectsofparapsychologyandartificialintelligencethatmadethemso
enthrallingtoeighteenth-andnineteenth-centuryaudienceswasthattheirproposed
methodofoperationwasimpalpabletothefive-sensesandindistinguishablefromthe
othersupernaturalandoccultforcesthatcaptivatedthemindsofpeopleatthetime.
Althoughitmaybeeasytoseehowparapsychologyfitsthatdescription,earlyworkin
17AlanGauld,TheFoundersofPsychicalResearch(London:Routledge&K.Paul,
1968),167.
20
machineintelligencehadthesameinexplicableunderpinnings.Artificialintelligencewas
becomingmanifestthroughtheworksofinventorssuchasJacquesVaucansonandPierre
Jaquet-Droz,whose“DefecatingDuck”and“Lady-Musician,”respectively,becamefocal
pointsintheeighteenthcenturybecausetheywereportrayalsofmechanicaldeviceswith
life-likecapabilities.Sospellbindingwerethesecontraptionsthatpeopleoftenspententire
weeks’worthofwagesinordertowitnessthemysteriousmachinesatwork.18Researchers
haveidentifiedcorrelationsbetweenthesekindsofdevicesandtheonesscientistsare
incorporatingartificialintelligenceintotoday.AccordingtoProfessorJessicaRiskin,
artificialintelligenceengineerstoday"’haveanextraordinaryamountincommonwiththe
people…fromthe[eighteenth]andearly[nineteenth]century’.LikeVaucanson,they
believethatnewtechnologiesmightletthembridgethegapbetweenmachinesandlife--a
beliefthathasledmodernresearcherstobuildartificialinsects,fish,gorillasandeven
people."19ThecommonalitiesalsoextendtoearlyAIandparapsychology.
Mesmerhasaninterestingdoppelgangerinthesphereofmachineintelligence,the
creatoroftheTurk,WolfgangVonKempelen.LikeMesmer,Kempelenwascapitalizingon
themysteriesofthetime,butratherthanwithaninvisiblefluidheawedhisaudienceswith
hissupposedautomaton.ThemajordifferencebetweenthetwowasthatKempelenwas
18EtienneBenson,“ScienceHistorianExaminesthe18th-CenturyQuestfor
'ArtificialLife',”StanfordUniversity,October24,2001,accessedJune9,2016,
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2001/october24/riskinprofile-1024.html.
19Benson,“ScienceHistorianExaminesthe18th-CenturyQuestfor'ArtificialLife',”
accessedJune9,2016,http://news.stanford.edu/news/2001/october24/riskinprofile1024.html.
21
uncoveredasafraudwhowillfullydeceivedthemasses.Variousformsofautomatawere
particularlypopularintheeighteenthcenturyandKempelensoughttoexploitthe
“automatoncraze”followingthesuccessofVaucanson’sworks.20Hecreatedadevicecalled
TheTurkthatpurportedlywasabletoplayagameofchessagainstahumanopponent,
makingmovesdependentuponthosemadebytheopponent,ratherthanonesthatwere
simplypredeterminedorpreprogrammed.Initiallythegadgetdefiedexplanationand
garneredinterestfromsuchhistoricalgiantsasNapoleon;however,soonitwasdiscovered
tohavebeentheresultoftrickery.AlthoughKempelenexhibitedTheTurkwith“allofthe
internal-mechanism-displayingpageantryoftheera’sotherfamousautomatonsandwould
attimesmakeashowofwindingupthedevice,theTurkwasactuallyamerepuppet.”21
Kempelen’sTurkmarkedthebeginningofthedeclineinpublicamusementwith
automaton-typedevices.BothKempelenandMesmerreflecttheneedinthescientific
communitytostayvigilantandnotgetsweptupinpublicfervor.
Inconjunctionwiththeinitiativetodevelopmachineswithhuman-levelcapabilities
wastheconceptofbuildingthemtoperformhumanfunctions.Ratherthanimitatingthe
bodilyfunctions,asthedefecatingduckdid,inventorsbegantobuildmachinesthatcould
performmorepracticalfunctions,suchastheworkperformedbyhumans.Thoseavenues
ofinnovationbecamemorewidespreadinthenineteenthcenturyandtheycloselyalign
20MinsooKang,SublimeDreamsofLivingMachines:TheAutomatonintheEuropean
Imagination(Cambridge,Mass.:HarvardUniversityPress,2011),7.
21“TheMechanicalTurk,”HarvardUniversityPress|Blog,August29,2011,
accessedJune18,2016,http://harvardpress.typepad.com/hup_publicity/2011/08/themechanical-turk.html.
22
withthetypeofartificialintelligenceresearchthatwillbethefocusofthisstudy.Bythe
middleofthenineteenthcentury,sophisticatedapparatus,suchasCharlesBabbage’s
DifferenceEngine,establishedthatmechanizedmachinescouldperformtasksotherwise
onlyachievablebyhumanlabor.Thesetasks,however,wereperceivedtobesimpleand
onlymadeuseofahuman’slowestmentalfaculties.22Themachinedidnotthinkinorderto
reacttoasituation,butfollowedpreprogrammedrules.Certaininformationinputtedinto
themachinecorrespondedwithaspecificoutput.Theassociationwasbuiltinanddidnot
requirethought.Astraightforwardexampleofthiswouldbetheuseofmoderncalculators,
whichperformmathematicalequationsbaseduponrulesratherthanreason.
Reasonisrecognizedasoneofmankind’shighermentalfacultiesandthusfarits
programmabilityhaseludedscientists.Asaresult,manyscientistshavecontendedthat
machinescannotbreakthatthreshold,whichessentiallyisseenasthedemarcationpoint
betweenhumanityandothercreatures.Likeparapsychology,thedriveforartificial
intelligencehasstimulatedeffortstomapthefunctionsofthemind,thepathittakesto
reachdesiredoutcomes,andhowtheuseofrationalityisintegraltothatprocess.These
undertakingshaveachievedlimitedsuccess.Unlikeparapsychology,however,this
conundrumhasnotledtoitsbeingconsideredapseudoscience,butascienceyettobe
understood.Withrelationtothemind,artificialintelligenceattemptstocreatearational
entitywhileparapsychologyattemptstouserationalitytocreateaworkingmodelfor
22SethBullock,“CharlesBabbageandtheEmergenceofAutomatedReason,”inThe
MechanicalMindinHistory,ed.PhilHusbands,OwenHolland,andMichaelWheeler
(Cambridge,MA:MIT,2008),27-37,accessedFebruary11,2016,
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/huntercollege/reader.action?docID=10214161&ppg=30.
23
perceivedirrationalmentalprocesses.Therelationshipbetweenthebrainandrationality
isunambiguousinbothinstances;itisjustexpressedindifferentways.
WhileBabbage’sandothercontemporaries’machineswerebynomeansintelligent,
theirperformancesweresuperiortothatoftheirhumancounterparts.Thiswasthecase
fortworeasons:theyworkedfasterthanhumanscouldandperformedcalculations
flawlessly,thuseliminatinghumanerror.23InconjunctionwiththeIndustrialRevolution,
theseprogrammablemachineswereintroducedintotheworkplaceandsoonlosttheir
appealtothepublic.Despitetheirincreasingregularity,modificationscontinuedapaceand
advancementsinawidearrayoffields,notablymathematicsandelectricalengineering,
fromthelatenineteenthcenturytothemiddleofthetwentieth,radicallyalteredtheway
humansandmachinesinteracted.24
Thisbriefhistoricalbackgroundillustratessomeofthecommonalitiesbetween
thesetwoseeminglydistinctfields.Bothparapsychologyandartificialintelligencewere
alluringtoscientistsandlaypeoplebecausethemechanismthroughwhichthey“worked
theirmagic”wasconcealedfrompublicviewandpublicawareness.Despiteendless
hypotheticalmodels,parapsychologyproponentsnevercameanyclosertohammeringout
thefinerdetailsofhowitfunctionswithintherationalmind.Artificialintelligencewas
23Bullock,“CharlesBabbageandtheEmergenceofAutomatedReason,”inThe
MechanicalMindinHistory,29,accessedFebruary11,2016,
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/huntercollege/reader.action?docID=10214161&ppg=30.
24PhilHusbands,OwenHolland,andMichaelWheeler,“Introduction:The
MechanicalMind,”inTheMechanicalMindinHistory,4,accessedFebruary11,2016,
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/huntercollege/reader.action?docID=10214161&ppg=30.
24
similarinthat,althoughpeoplewereawareoftheleversandgearswithinthemechanical
machinesthatcausedmovement,theydidnotknowhowthatmovementwascausedin
termsofananimatingforcewithrationalguidance.
TouseBabbage’smachinesasanexample,itwascommonknowledgeatthattime
thatmachinescouldsimulatehumanbehaviorandeffectivelyperformmeniallabor.What
wasgroundbreakingwasthetransitionfromsimulatingmeniallabortocognitive
functioning.25Havingamachinethatcouldessentially“think”onitsown,givenavarietyof
situations,wasunheardofandwasconsideredquitemiraculous.Peopledidnotknowhow
apurelymechanicaldevicecouldthinkorcarryoutmentalprocesses.Thequestionsthat
neededtobeanswered,suchastheconduitthroughwhichtheseprocessesweretotake
place,werealsothesamequestionsbeingruminateduponintherealmofparapsychology.
Neitherdisciplinehasbeenabletosatisfactorilycomeupwithatheoryoranswerthatcan
beexperimentallytested,butthatisnotduetoalackofeffort.Instead,contemporary
scientists,workingonbehalfoftheUnitedStatesgovernment,havebeenconducting
researchintobothfieldsforthebetterpartofacentury.However,itonlybegantofully
takeshapefromaroundthetimeoftheColdWar,whichisthefoundationfortheprimary
focusoftheargument:officialUnitedStatesgovernmentsupportforresearchinthefields
ofparapsychologyandartificialintelligencethroughouttheColdWar.
25Bullock,“CharlesBabbageandtheEmergenceofAutomatedReason,”inThe
MechanicalMindinHistory,29-30,accessedFebruary11,2016,
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/huntercollege/reader.action?docID=10214161&ppg=30.
25
Tooversimplify,theColdWarmadethedividebetweenconventionalwarfareand
unconventionalwarfaremuchmoreobscurethanithadpreviouslybeen.Indeed,themost
desirousoffensiveanddefensivestrategiessoughtafterwerethosethatgaveonesidethe
upperhandovertheotherwithoutnecessarilyhavingbootsontheground.These
sentimentsalonewerenotthesolemotivationbehindthegovernment’sinvolvementwith
parapsychologyandartificialintelligence,buttheallurethatthesedisciplinesprovidedfor
fightingawarfromadistancewastoogreattoneglectwhentheydidarise.
Succinctlyput,theexceptionalnatureoftheColdWarinconjunctionwiththe
ambiguousnessofrationalitycreatedasituationthatpermittedunorthodoxconcepts,like
parapsychologyandartificialintelligence,tobeevaluatedinwaysthatwereuntetheredto
priordogma.ThesenewresearchinitiativesnotonlyspannedthelengthoftheColdWar,
butalsooutlivedit.Bytracingtheevolutionoftheseprojects,thispaperwillargueseveral
points.Thenextchapterwillfirstexaminethepost-1945worldandthewayitwasthrust
intoasituationwheretherelationshipbetweenthegovernmentandthefringesofscientific
inquirybecamemoreentangledthaneverbefore.Secondly,Iwillarguethattheinitial
decisionsmadepertainingtofringeresearchwerelargelytheresultofthegeopolitical
atmosphereratherthanbecauseofthe‘science.’Oncethatisestablished,the
parapsychologyandartificialintelligenceprogramsinthefirstdecadesoftheColdWarwill
beanalyzedandshowntobebothrationalandirrationaldependingonthewaytheywere
understood.ThethirdchapterwillevaluatethesecondhalfoftheColdWarandhowthese
projectsprogressedinawaythatcouldnothavebeenanticipated.Itwillalsoconsiderthe
26
financialaspectsofeachprogramandhowthemoneyawardedtothemdoesnotaccurately
indicatethelevelofactualsupport.Lastly,Iwillexameachprojectinrelationtotheendof
theColdWarandwhethertheywerecontinuedorterminated,withparticularscrutinyon
howthatinformstheprocessofthe‘hypecycle,’aconceptualizationthatwillbeintroduced
anddiscussedatlengthtowardtheendofthepaper.
27
CHAPTER2–THEORIGINSOFSTATE-SPONSOREDRESEARCHINTO
PARAPSYCHOLOGYANDARTIFICIALINTELLIGENCEINTHECOLDWAR
WhiletheUnitedStateswasthepioneerincomputerandAItechnologyintheCold
War,theparapsychologyprogramwasaresponsetoperceivedadvancesmadeinthatfield
bytheSovietUnion.ThatresponsewaslargelytheresultoftheRandCorporationstudyled
byDr.JanusIrving,whichsuggestedthattheUnitedStatesshouldnotfallbehindin
researchregardingextrasensoryperception.Withoutthatprovocation,therewouldhave
beennoimpetustoevenarousethethoughtsofaparapsychologistlikeAndrijaPuharich.
Ineffect,itwasarationalmovetooverlookthesupposedirrationalityof
parapsychologybecausenotdoingsocouldpossiblyhavemadethecountryvulnerableif
theSovietsdidinfactmakeprogress.ExtremeexampleswouldbeaRussiantelepathically
readingstatesecretsorpsychokineticallydetonatingabombintheUSfromsafelywithin
Sovietborders.Whilesuchscenariosmightsoundlikesciencefiction,theywerethekinds
ofapplicationssomethoughtparapsychologycouldhavemilitarily.Althoughmaterials
fromtheSovietUnionhavenotbeenmadeavailable,apicturedrawnbyoneofthepsychics
usedbytheUnitedStatesGovernmentwillgivethereadersomeperspectiveonhow
precisethesemethodscouldbe,ifneededinamilitarysetting.Figure1isasketchmadeby
aCIApsychicofalocationtowhichhehadonlybeengivengeographiccoordinates.Figure
2isareproductionofanactualphotographofthoseexactcoordinates.Thedrawing,which
28
isagantrycrane,isremarkablyaccurateandillustratesoneofthehypothetical
applicationsofparapsychologyinwarfare,especiallyinlocationswhereobtaining
photographicintelligenceisdangerousorimpossible.
Figure1:PatPrice’ssketchofcrane
atthesecretSovietR&Dsiteat
Semipalatinsk.
Figure2:DrawingreproducedfromCIA
satellitephotograph.(Soastonotdivulge
actualqualityofsatellitetechnology.)
Ontheothersideofthespectrum,artificialintelligenceresearchwasconductedfor
muchthesamereason.Fromthebeginning,theideaofamachineexhibitingintelligence
rivalingthatofahumanbrainwasunderstoodasirrational.Criticscitednumerous
practicallimitationstothekindsoftasksthatamachinecouldintelligentlyundertake,such
astheastronomicalamountofpre-loadeddatathatneedstobeatthemachine’sdisposalto
carryouteventhesimplestassignments.HubertDreyfusjuxtaposedthiswiththe
intelligenceandcommonsenseofayoungchild.ThefactthattheleadingluminariesinAI
couldnotcreateamachinetomatchthecommonsenseofafouryear-oldchildwasseenas
29
evidencethatAIwasanirrationalendeavor.However,aswithparapsychology,itwaseasy
toimaginethemilitaryapplicationsforafullyrealizedartificialintelligence.
Despitethedrawbacksitenduredupuntilthatpoint,theprospectofcreatinga
successfulartificialintelligencewasnotyetdampenedbyitsimmediatefailures.
Parapsychologistshadnotpresentedtheworldwithanythingnewintermsof
developmentsoutsideofrefinedresearchproceduresandprotocols.Verylittlehad
changedregardingthereportingofthephenomena,whichmadeitmoredifficulttoget
establishmentscientiststobecomeinterested.But,artificialintelligencewasstilla
relativelyyoungdiscipline,sofailureswerenotperceivedinthesamewayasfailureswere
inparapyschologicalstudies.Electronictechnologyhadnotbeeninvestigatedfor
thousandsofyearsanddidnothavethedeeplyrootedoppositionthatparapsychologyhad.
Thisisoneofthekeydifferencesthathelptoexplainwhy,thoughbothwereirrational,
artificialintelligenceresearchwasestablishedoutofitsowninherentpotentialwhilethe
programsinparapsychologywerelaunchedinreactiontoresearchintoextrasensory
perceptionbytheSovietUnion.
TherationalityaspectofColdWarresearchwasdebatedmuchmore
comprehensivelyinthedevelopmentofartificialintelligencethanitwasinparapsychology
circles.Itseemsasthoughtherewasareal,livelydebateovertherationalityofartificial
intelligence,directlyaffectingitspossiblefuture.Incontradistinction,ColdWarresearch
intoparapsychologyneverreachedthesamelevelofdialoguethatAIdid.Intermsof
orthodoxscience,therewasneveranyreasontohaveadiscussionoveritsrationality
30
becausethathadbeendonenumeroustimesinthepast,andtheprecedenthadbeenset.
Governmentresearch,atleastwhathasbeendeclassified,didnotmakeanydiscoveries
thatscienceproperwouldconsidergroundbreakingorworthinvestigating.Whileitmust
beacknowledgedthatthemostexplosiveinformationaboutagivensituationisgenerally
whatiskeptclassified,speculationaloneisnotenoughtofueladiscussionamong
conventionalscientists.Despitetheseshortcomingsforbothartificialintelligenceand
parapsychology,federalfundingcontinuedunabatedthroughtheearlyColdWar.Itwasnot
untilthe1970sthatanothershiftingovernmentsupportfortheseprogramsisdiscernible.
ThischapterwillestablishthegeopoliticalatmospherefromWorldWarIItothe
mid-1960s,andhowthatcontextsetthestageforthedevelopmentofresearchin
pioneeringfieldsrangingfromperceivedpseudoscienceslikeparapsychologytothe
seeminglyunfathomablesuchasartificialintelligence.Examinationsofthesediverse
disciplineswerenotauthorized“inthenameofscience,”butweretheresultofcomplex
deliberationssurroundingtheconceptofrationality:howitinformeddecision-makingand
howtouseittorespondtothemaneuveringsoftheSovietUnion.Theindeterminatestatus
ofrationalityatthetimehadsignificantanddirecteffectsonthegovernment’sresponseto
certainperceivedthreats.26Thesethreats,whichwerebothrealandimagined,werethe
primarymotivationbehindstudiesintorationalityandthesubsequentdevelopmentofthe
programsinquestion.
26Erickson,HowReasonAlmostLostItsMind,5.
31
Thedawnofthetwentiethcenturywitnessedanexponentialgrowthofresearch
intoparapsychologyandartificialintelligenceacrosstheUnitedStatesandEurope.Yet,the
historiesofparapsychologyandartificialintelligencerarely,ifever,crossedpathsdirectly.
Ifaconnectionhastobemade,themosttangiblerelationshipwouldhavebeenthroughthe
variousinstitutionsandthinktanksthatstudiedbothdisciplinesintermsofpracticality
andusefulnessinconjunctionwiththeirproposedrationality,suchastheRand
Corporation.Mostoftenthesestudieswerecommissionedatthebehestofthemilitaryand
intelligencesectorsofthegovernment.PriortotheColdWar,parapsychologywaslargely
theprerogativeofcivilianscientists,whilethegovernmentalwayshadahandinthe
developmentofcomputertechnology.
State-sponsoredparapsychologyresearchintheearlyyearsoftheColdWarhadits
antecedentsinthepsychologicalwarfareprogramsfromthebeginningofthetwentieth
century.27Theintelligencecommunityandthemilitaryhadbeeninvestigatingthe
practicalusesofpsychologicalwarfareinthisperiodandmanyofthereportsarestill
classified.Althoughanexaminationofthesepreliminaryprogramsisoutsidethescopeof
thisstudy,itissignificanttonotethatthepsychologicalwarfareresearchbegantotakeon
newcharacteristicsfromthelate1940son.Coincidentally,andcontrarytopopularbelief,
researchershaveidentifiedthisexacttimeframeasthestartingpointforthemodern
conceptionofartificialintelligence.BothparapsychologyandAIresearcherswere
27ChristopherSimpson,“DefiningPsychologicalWar,”inScienceofCoercion:
CommunicationResearchandPsychologicalWarfare,1945-1960(NewYork:Oxford
UniversityPress,1996),3-74.
32
attemptingtobridgethegapbetweenscience,warfare,andtheburgeoningstudyof
rationalityinthecontextoftheColdWar.
ThestartoftheColdWarusheredinaneraofunprecedentedanxietyandparanoia
onaglobalscale.Nopotentialweaponorresearchendeavorwasseenastoofar-fetchedor
tooirrationalfortheUSSRtoconsider.Indeed,theverynatureoftheColdWarcalledinto
questiontheartofwarmorethaneverbefore.Withoutatraditionalfrontline,theColdWar
catalyzedtheemergenceofunconventionalapproachesgearedtowardbreechingenemy
defenses,apracticethathadrootsinWorldWarII.Suchtacticsplayed“asignificantrolein
U.S.foreignpolicyduringtheearlyColdWaryears,oftenintheformofcovertparamilitary
operationsledbytheCentralIntelligenceAgency.”28Asaresult,thegovernment,not
wantingtobecaughtoffguardbyanotherSputnik-typeevent,couldnotbrushoff
informationthatitotherwisewouldnotentertain,suchasreportsdescribingtheutilization
ofmindcontrolandextrasensoryperception.29Althoughmultiplereasonshavebeengiven
forwhythegovernmentstartedlookingintoparapsychology,thedetailthatremains
constantisthatitwasaresponsetoworkbeingconductedbytheSovietUnion.As
previouslynoted,theUnitedStateswasthepioneeringforceinthedevelopmentof
artificialintelligence.WiththeSovietUnionspearheadingresearchintoparapsychology,it
28JosephL.Voteletal.,“UnconventionalWarfareintheGrayZone,”JointForce
Quarterly80(January1,2016):101-9.
29MichaelJ.NojeimandDavidP.Kilroy,“TheSputnikCrisisandtheNuclearAge,”
inDaysofDecision:TurningPointsinU.S.ForeignPolicy(Washington,DC:PotomacBooks,
2011),77-94.
33
isclearthatbothsuperpowerswereinacompetitiontomastermindunorthodoxoffensive
anddefensiveweaponsintheColdWar.
IntheUnitedStates,researchrevolvedaroundwhatmethodologieswerefeasible,
nomatterhowbizarretheymighthaveseemed.Manyoftheintellectualelitesinthe
countryatthetimecontemplatedthisveryquestion,wonderingwhererationalitybegan
andended.Thisquestionofrationalitywasquitebroad;itsstudywasnottheresultof
wantingtoframeparapsychologyandartificialintelligenceasreasonable.Instead,those
fieldsmaterializedasaresultofthevacuumleftbyhavingtoomanydifferenthypotheses
ofrationality,noneofwhichwasdefinitive.Putanotherway,thestudyofrationalityinthe
ColdWarmadeclearthattheveryideaofrationalitywasanartificialconstruct.The
inabilitytodevelopaformulaoralgorithmforuniversalrationalbehaviormeantthatthere
wasnorubricwithwhichtoevaluatehowtoproceedinagivensituation.
Thereweremanyattemptstocreateasystemofthisnature,notallofwhich
includedalgorithmsormathematicsingeneral.Theyincludedsuchconceptsasgame
theory,prisoners’dilemma,nuclearstrategy,operationsresearch,groupthink,Bayesian
decisiontheory,systemsanalysis,rationalchoicetheory,andexperimentalsocial
psychology.Thislistisbynomeansexhaustive,butitrepresentsamajorpartofthe“loose
andsomewhatmotleyconglomerate…[that]definedthefieldofcontestationaboutwhat
rationalityshouldbeundertheradicallyalteredconditionsoftheColdWar.”30The
relevanceliesinnothoweachtheoryofrationalityfailed,butthattheydidfail.Notasingle
30Erickson,HowReasonAlmostLostItsMind,4.
34
theoryadvancedcouldbeuniversallyappliedtoalldecision-makingsituations.This
influencedUnitedStatespolicyregardingparapsychology.Sinceparapsychologyhad
alwaysbeenconstruedasirrationalbyorthodoxscience,itshouldhavebeenbrushedoffas
outlandishandawasteofvaluableresources.However,withtheconceptofrationalityin
anuncertainstate,theUnitedStatesdecidedthatparapsychologicalresearchwasactually
rational,giventhestateofglobalaffairs.
Section1–Parapsychology’sOriginsintheEarlyColdWar
InitialinvestigationsintoparapsychologybythegovernmentduringtheColdWar
grewoutofstandardpsychologicalwarfareoperationsfromtheprecedingworldwars.
Psychologicalwarfarewasnotanewweaponinthemilitary’sarsenalinthetwentieth
century,buthadexistedsincetheearliestrecordedconflicts.TheUnitedStatesmade
extensiveuseofpsychologicalwarfareinthetwentiethcentury,mostnotablyinLatin
AmericaandSoutheastAsia,whichhasbeenextremelywelldocumented.31
Psychologicalwarfarebecameintertwinedwiththefieldofcommunications,
makingthisacademicdisciplinefertilegroundforliteratureregardingpsychological
manipulation.Althoughgovernmentfundingofuniversityresearchisastandardpractice,
whatmakesthisparticularareaunique,thoughsimilartocomputertechnologyintermsof
control,isthat“[m]ilitary,intelligence,andpropagandaagenciessuchasthe[DoD]andthe
31Simpson,“AcademicAdvocates,”inScienceofCoercion,42-51.
35
[CIA]helpedbankrollsubstantiallyallofthepost-WorldWarIIgeneration’sresearchinto
techniquesofpersuasion,opinionmeasurement,interrogation,politicalandmilitary
mobilization,propagandaofideologyandrelatedquestions.”32Ineffect,thegovernment
heldamonopolyovercommunicationsresearchthroughitsfinancialsponsorship.The
governmentdidnottellthescientistswhattheycouldandcouldnotsay,butitcould
influencewhichscientists’statementswereseenasauthoritativeandwhichwerenot.
Thestudyofpsychologicalwarfarewascompoundedbytherumorsof
parapsychologicalstudiesintheSovietUnion.TheSovietsopenedthedoortotheworldof
extrasensoryperceptionfirst.Awarenessofthisraisedcuriositywithintheintelligence
community’spsychologicalwarfareresearch,whichwascomplementedbyitsown
exposuretoawidevarietyofpseudoscientific,occult,andparanormalthemes,especiallyin
SoutheastAsia.
TheSovietUnion’sresearchintoparapsychologyreachedWesternintelligence
agenciesthroughvariouschannels,somemorereputablethanothers.Twoofthemore
prominentconduitsweretheslowleakofinformationonparanormalresearch33andSoviet
displaysofpsychicalcoercionintheformofshowtrials,whichweredesignedtoinfluence
publicopinion.34TheyhadbeenusedunderdifferentcircumstancesintheSovietUnionin
32Simpson,ScienceofCoercion,1-2.
33FloraLewis,SpecialtoTheNewYorkTimes."EmigreTellsofResearchinSovietin
ParapsychologyforMilitaryuse."NewYorkTimes(1923-CurrentFile),Jun19,1977.
http://search.proquest.com/docview/123111711?accountid=27495.
34U.S.NationalCouncilforSovietandEastEuropeanResearch,Proceedingsof
CongressandGeneralCongressionalPublications,TheOccultinModernRussianandSoviet
36
the1930sintheMoscowTrialsandevenearlierthanthat,buttheseearlierdemonstrations
wereneversuspectedtohaveusedparapsychologicalmanipulation.35Bythe1960s,the
streamofinformationfromtheSovietbloconESP-relatedresearch,inadditiontotheir
publicdisplaysofmanipulatedindividuals,werelargelyresponsiblefortheUnitedStates’
studyoftelepathy,clairvoyance,andotherrelatedphenomena.
Thefirstsignificantdocumenttoappearwithrespecttopossibleapplicationsof
unconventionalpsychologicalphenomenaoccurredinthelate1940s,whentheColdWar
wasinitsearlystages.TheSovietshadbeenexceptionallyproductiveintheir
interrogationsofpoliticaldissidents,extractingconfessionsinwaysthatdefiedthelogicof
Westernintelligence.Theyreceivedadmissionsofguiltfrompeoplewhoseeminglyshould
nothavebeeneasily“broken”,whichpromptedenquiriesintothepossibleinfluenceof
someunknownpsychologyprocessonprisoners.ThemostfamouscaseisthatofJosef
Mindszenty,aHungarianarchbishop,cardinal,andleaderoftheCatholicChurchin
Hungary.
CardinalMindszentywasknowntobeastaunchanti-communist.Priortohisarrest
inDecember1948onchargesoftreasonandconspiracytooverthrowtheHungarian
government,hewrotealetterstatinganyconfessionorrelatedstatementswouldbe
Culture,byBerniceGlatzerRosenthal,99thCong.,2dsess.,open-filereport,U.S.Geological
Survey,pt.806-03(Washington,DC:GovernmentPrintingOffice,1993),13-18.
35WilliamChase,“StalinasProducer:TheMoscowShowTrialsandtheConstruction
ofMortalThreats,”inStalin:ANewHistory,ed.SarahDaviesandJamesR.Harris
(Cambridge,UK:CambridgeUniversityPress,2005),226-48.
37
completelyfalse.Indeed,evenPresidentTrumancalledthetriala“sickeningsham.”36
However,knowingthatitwasfraudulentdidnottranslateintoknowinghowtheSoviet
accomplishedthefeat.Thatvoidinintelligenceproveddifficulttofill.Asaresult,“the
cardinal’strialkick-startedfearsintheUSAthatthe‘Reds’hadmasteredtheartofmind
control–paranoidsuspicionsthatonlygrewintheyearsthatfollowed.”37
Thesecircumstancesareoftencitedbyresearchersasthegenesisofwhatwould
eventuallybecometheCIA’sinfamousMK-ULTRAproject,overshadowingkeyelements
involvingtheuseofparapsychology.TheobviousanswertohowtheSovietsreceivedthe
cardinal’sconfessionisthroughtorture.Withthatestablished,thequestionbecame,by
whatmeans?WeretheyimplantingideasintoMindszenty’sheadtelepathically?Werethey
creatingphysicaltraumathroughsomepsychokineticprocess?Asludicrousasthismay
seem,itcameoutyearslaterthattheSovietswereworkingonthisverytacticwitha
parapsychologicallygiftedwomannamedNinaKulagina.38
DocumentaryfootageofhercaneasilybefoundonYouTubewhichshowsher
performingmanyseeminglyimpossiblefeats.Thevideos,releasedbytheSovietUnionat
theFirstMoscowInternationalConferenceofParapsychologyin1968,mighthavebeen
fictitiousandmadeforpropagandapurposes,butthatinformationhasnevercometolight.
36MichaelOtterman,AmericanTorture:FromtheColdWartoAbuGhraiband
Beyond(Carlton,Vic.:MelbourneUniversityPress,2007),15.
37Otterman,AmericanTorture,15.
38Dr.MontagueUllman,“PKintheSovietUnion,”inResearchinParapsychology,ed.
WilliamG.Roll,RobertL.Morris,andJ.D.Morris(Metuchen,N.J:ScarecrowPress,1974),
120-25.
38
Theveracityofthevisualevidencewouldhavenobearingontheargumentbeingmade
becausewhethertheywererealorfakedoesnotdetractfromthefactthat,intheabsence
ofabsoluteknowledge,thegovernmentcouldnotdismissthepossibilitythattheywere
legitimateandthattheSovietswereinvestigatingthephenomena.
A1949RandCorporationmemorandumexaminedtheuseofhypnoticsuggestion
andotherpsychologicalmanipulationtechniquesintheSovietUniontoelicitfalse
confessions.39Thisreport,authoredbyeminentYalepsychologistIrvingL.Janis,concluded
withaseriesofrecommendationsthatinfluencedthementalityoftheintelligenceand
militarycommunitiesfordecadestocome.Janisassertedthatthe“successfuluse…would
representaseriousthreattodemocraticvaluesintimeofpeaceandwar.Inaddition,it
mightcontributetothedevelopmentofunconventionalmethodsofwarfare,whichwillbe
widelyregardedasimmoral.”Hewentontosaythatthe“resultsofscientificresearchin
thefieldunderdiscussionwouldobviouslylendthemselvestooffensiveaswellas
defensiveapplications.”40Thedocumentleavesonewiththeimpressionthat,althoughthe
existenceofsuchphenomenaisnotwholeheartedlyaccepted,enoughevidencewasthere
towarrantfurtherinvestigation.Thiswasqualifiedbythedeclarationthatsuch
unorthodoxapproachescouldyieldoffensiveaswellasdefensiveapplications,andthatit
wouldbewisetokeepupwithSovietresearchincaseofabreakthrough.
39JanisLesterIrving,“AretheCominformCountriesUsingHypnoticTechniquesto
ElicitConfessionsinPublicTrials?”SantaMonica,CA:RANDCorporation,1949.
http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_memoranda/RM161.
40Irving,“AretheCominformCountriesUsingHypnoticTechniquestoElicit
ConfessionsinPublicTrials?”19-20.
39
ThefactthatthedocumentoriginatedwiththeRandCorporationissignificant
becauseRandwasalsothesourceformuchofthetheorizingonrationality,andthe
influenceofthelatterontheformercanbeseeninthesuggestedcourseofaction.The
realityofthephenomenaitselfwasnotthecoreissue.Thereportwasnotmeanttovalidate
theexistenceofparanormalprocesses,butrathertosubstantiatetheexistenceofaSoviet
paranormalprogram.HadspeculationabouttheSovietUnion’suseofparapsychologynot
arisen,theUnitedStateswouldnothavehadanydesiretoconductitsownresearch.
Scienceproperhadlongconsideredparapsychologytobeirreconcilablewithestablished
beliefs.Itwasseenasirrational.Thatviewremainedlargelyunchangedatthetimeofthe
ColdWar.ThegoaloftheRANDCorporationwastotrytosynthesizeparapsychologywith
thesebeliefsinawaythatwouldallowESPtobeanalyzedasobjectivelyaspossible.
RAND’scadreofelitescientistsandintellectualshadthetaskoftryingtomakesenseofa
theoreticallyimpossibleweaponbeingdeployedfromanenemythatwasdelvinginto
subjectsthathadnopriorcounterpartorcomparableprogramintheUnitedStates.
Fromalogisticalstandpoint,thematerialandfinancialsupportrequiredtostarta
researchprogramdesignedtoexaminethepossibleusesofextrasensoryperceptionfar
outweighedanypotentialbenefitsthatcouldhaveresulted.Atleast,thatis,untilwordofa
Sovietprogrambegantospread.Parapsychologywasseenasirrationaltoinvestigatein
andofitself,butcrossedthethresholdintorationalterritorywhenitwasbelievedthe
USSRhaddevelopedaweaponpreviouslyunknownintheWest.Unfortunately,butnot
consequentially,thesmokinggunevidenceforSovietpsychicalcoerciontechniquesnever
40
turnedup.Forinstance,afteranumberofyears,JosefMindszentybrokehissilenceonthe
issueandquelledthecolorfulrumorsthathadbeencirculatingsincehisconfession.He
statedthattheSovietshadkepthimawakefortwenty-ninedaysstraightandthatnothing
paranormaltookplace.41
DiscussionsaboutColdWarparapsychologyusuallycitethemostpopularcases;as
aresult,someofthemoreintriguingcharactersareomitted,suchasDr.AndrijaPuharich,
bornHenryKarelPuharić.PuharichwasbornonFebruary18,1918,inChicago,toCroatian
immigrantsfromtheAustro-HungarianEmpire.Puharichissignificantforseveralreasons,
notleastofwhichisthathisfootprintcanbeseenfromthebeginningofthegovernments’
parapsychologicalresearchprogramsallthewaytotheirrenewedinitiativesinthetwentyfirstcentury.Hisbiographyreadslikeasciencefictionnovel,completewithtalesofcontact
withextraterrestrialbeingsandcommunicationwithancientEgyptiandeities,yethewas
takenquiteseriouslybytheUnitedStatesgovernment,before,during,andafterthese
supposedeventstookplace.42
Puharichembodiedtheconvergenceofalltheelementsthataidedininitiatingthe
parapsychologicalresearchprograms:hehadadeepinterestintheoccult,hewasintheUS
ArmyMedicalCorpsinvolvedinspecializedpsychologicalresearch,andhewasawellestablishedacademician.Hewaseducatedinthefieldofmedicineanddidpost-graduate
41Otterman,AmericanTorture,197.
42JosephHanlon,“UriGellerandScience:ANewScientistSpecial
Investigation,”NewScientist,October17th,1974,170-89.
41
workinphilosophy.Puharich’sexpertknowledgeinascientificfieldandinphilosophywas
vitaltohisparanormalresearch.Hewasalsoaninventorofmedicaldevicesandobtained
severalpatentsforhiscreations,theesotericnatureofwhichcanbegleanedfromtheir
titles:“MethodandApparatusforImprovingNeuralPerformanceinHumanSubjectsby
Electrotherapy”and“MethodandApparatusforSplittingWaterMolecules.”Otherswere
lessexotic,suchasmethodsforimprovinghumanhearing.Theseexamplesshowhis
aspirationtoenhancehumanperceptionbeyondthefivesenses;itiseasytoseewhy
certainsectorsofthegovernmentwouldbeinterestedinsuchcapabilities.
Puharich’ssignificancealsoliesinthefactthathewasoneofthefirstscientiststo
introducethemilitarytothepracticalapplicationsofextrasensoryperception.According
toPuharich,hehadbeencarryingoutresearchonpsychicabilitiesfortheUnitedStates
Navyfor‘ProjectPenguin’asearlyas1948.43Inanotheraccount,hestatedthatheleftthe
militaryin1948,whichaddstohismystique.Regardlessofthatepisode,whatisknownis
thathepresentedapapertoaPentagonbriefingonNovember24,1952,entitled,"Onthe
PossibleUsefulnessofExtrasensoryPerceptioninPsychologicalWarfare."44Thelecture,
presentedtoofficialswithintheResearchBranchoftheOfficeoftheChiefofPsychological
43Geraldo.Episodeno.3,firstbroadcastOctober2,1987insyndication.
44JohnWilhelm,“PsychicSpying?TheCIA,thePentagonAndtheRussiansProbe
TheMilitaryPotentialofParapsychology,”WashingtonPost,August7,1977.
42
Warfare,apparentlygeneratedmuchinterestandcuriosityinthesubject,forarrangements
weremadeforPuharichtobereinstatedintotheArmysoonthereafter.45
WhatcamenextforPuharichwassocaptivatingthatitwouldguideandshapehis
workfortheremainderofhislife.OnNewYear’sEve,1952,Puharichwaswithhis
laboratoryassistantHankJackson,whenathirdman,aDr.Vinod,enteredatrancestate
andbegantocommunicatewithotherworldlybeings.Thereareseveralpointsthatare
significantinthecontextofthisexamination.Parapsychology,aswasstatedabove,wasfor
themostpartunderstoodasapseudosciencebythemajorityofthescientificcommunity.
Intryingtoexplicatethefactorsthatcontributedtothecreationofintelligenceandmilitary
parapsychologystudies,amajorcharacteristicfoundamongthemostvocaladvocatesof
theresearchwasabeliefintheparanormal.PeoplelikePuharich,andlaterthescientistsat
StanfordResearchInstitute,weretheclosesttheUnitedStatesgovernmentcametohaving
agroupcomparabletothosedoingparapsychologyresearchintheSovietUnion.
Puharich’scloserelationshipwiththemilitarythroughouttheColdWarwaspartlya
resultofhisinterdisciplinaryexpertiseinparapsychology,engineering,andmedicine.
Ratherthanseparatinghispersonalconvictionsfromhisresearchintotheseareas,he
integratedthem.Puharichbelievedhewasincommunicationwithanintelligentforce,and
heallowed“it”toguideandshapehisresearch.Forexample,afterbeingtoldbythe
intelligentsupernaturalforcethat“weshallnegateandrevisepartofyourwork,bywhichI
45AndrijaPuharich,TheSacredMushroom:KeytotheDoorofEternity(GardenCity,
N.Y.:Doubleday,1974),10-12.
43
meantheworkaspresentedbyyou,”Puharichreplied,“Itishelpfultohaveyourguidance.”
Then,aftertalkingabouttheLorenz-EinsteinTransformationequation,thevoiceaffirmed
that“[t]hewholegroupofconceptshastoberevised.Theproblemofpsychokinesis,
clairvoyance,etc.,atthepresentstageisallright,butprofoundlymisleading–permitusto
saythetruth.”46Unfortunately,afullreferenceortranscriptofwhattranspiredwasnever
madepublic.Whetheronebelieveshisaccountsaregenuineornotisofnoconsequence
herebecausePuharichwascompletelyovertakenbythesepurportedexperiences.
Sincethecontentdirectlyfocusesonparapsychologicalprocesses,whichwasoneof
hisspecialties,itfollowsthathewouldhaveworkedtoincorporatethisnewinformation
intohisownresearch.Indeed,afterafewweeksof“conversations”throughthemedium,
Dr.Vinod,Puharichperceivedtheseexchangestobeprofoundandtheinformationhewas
receivingtobenothingshortofsupremewisdom.Hecommentedthat“itwasadeeply
movingexperience,andwereallybelievedeverywordthatweheardbasedpurelyonthe
internalevidence.ThiswasinterruptedinFebruary1953whenIhadtoserveasacaptain
intheU.S.ArmyduringtheKoreanWar.”47Despitebeingwell-acquaintedwiththe
paranormal,thiseventforeverchangedhisperceptionofthenatureofreality.
Fromthenon,Puharich’scareerwouldcommingleconventionalresearchontheone
hand,suchashiselectronicinventions,andgovernmentextrasensoryperceptionresearch
46AndrijaPuharich,“Introduction,”inUri:AJournaloftheMysteryofUriGeller
(GardenCity,NY:AnchorPress,1974),1-10.
47Puharich,“Introduction,”inUri,1-10.
44
ontheother.PuharichwasarguablythemostsignificantpersoningettingtheUnited
Statesgovernmenttoinvestigateparapsychology.Onequestionthatpeoplemayaskis
why,withhisbizarrebackground,thegovernmenttookPuharichseriouslyinthefirst
place.Althoughthisquestionhasmanyanswers,themostpertinentonegiventhecontext
ofthisessay,maybetoseeitasamicrocosmofthemajorargumentofthisthesis:the
questionofrationality.Justasparapsychologyandartificialintelligencethemselveswere
initiallygivenextrascrutinyinthefaceofmountingobjections,thegovernmentalsocasta
widernetamongtherealmofscientists.Inadditiontobelieversinaliens,thegovernment
alsoemployedscientologistsandrun-of-the-millpsychics.Insomecases,thegovernment
evenexposedcritiquesagainstthemasnothingmorethanpreconceivedprejudicesagainst
thephenomenawrappedinaveilofobjectivity.48Onedocument,abriefingreportissued
bytheDefenseIntelligenceAgencytitled“RecentAdversePublicityonParapsychological
Research,”isshortbutindicativeofthegovernment’sperspectiveonthesecharacters.
Theauthorofthedocument,whosenamehasbeenredacted,suspectsthatthesole
intentoftheskepticswastodebunkthephenomena,evenifthatmeantmanipulation.The
reportrelayshowthereareclaimsthat“parapsychologicalresearchers…weretakeninby
trickery,andthatmostifnotallparapsychologicalresearchissuspect”butthat“these
48Authorredacted,RecentAdversePublicityonParapsychologicalResearch(U)(CIARDP96-00788R001100360001-1)(Washington,DC:DefenseIntelligenceAgency),March
11,1983.
45
claimsareinfactgrossdistortions.”49ThedocumentwasauthorizedbyDr.JackVerona,a
renownednuclearphysicistandtheheadoftheScientificandTechnicalIntelligence
DirectorateoftheDIA,andwasintendedforinternaldistributionsoastocreateadivide
betweenpublicperceptionandtheviewsheldbyofficialsingovernment.Althoughthe
documentdoesnotmentionPuharichbyname,itisacleardefenseoftheresearchheand
otherswereconductingonbehalfofthemilitaryandintelligencecommunities.
Asidefromhisfringepursuits,thesheernumberofpatentsPuharichobtained
showedthathewasnomadman,andgavecredencetohisabilitytoconductresearchin
controversialareas.Toplacetheexampleinthewidercontextofthisanalysis,Puharich’s
worldviewwassuchthatthedistinctionbetweenwhatwasscienceandwhatwas
pseudosciencewasconsiderablylessstarkthanthatofascientistwithorthodoxviews.In
effect,hewasabletoincorporatetheseideassuccessfullybecausehisviewofwhatwas
rationalwasmoreinclusive.Puharich’suniquepositionasascientistwhobelievedthat
parapsychologywasarationalendeavormadetheideaofutilizingthephenomenamore
palatabletothoseinchargeofdirectingpolicy.Hisspecificcontributionstothe
government’sinvestigationsintoparapsychologyduringtheColdWarcannotbe
overstated.Aswillbeshowninthefollowingchapter,hispresencecouldbefeltin
governmentresearchlaboratorieslongaftertheColdWar.
49Authorredacted,RecentAdversePublicityonParapsychologicalResearch(U)(CIARDP96-00788R001100360001-1)(Washington,DC:DefenseIntelligenceAgency),March
11,1983.
46
Section2–ComputingResearchinvolvingArtificialIntelligence
Itisimpossibletoexaminetheroleofartificialintelligencewithoutfirstexplicating
thecloserelationshipbetweenthefieldofcomputingandthefederalgovernment.
ResearchintoelectroniccomputingduringtheColdWarinvolvedscientistsfromthree
domains:academia,privateindustry,andthegovernment.Thesedivisions,however,easily
becameblurredasscholarsoftenmovedbetweeneachrealm,pendingsecurityclearance.
Inthisway,researchersforartificialintelligencemirroredscientistslikePuharichinthat
theywereabletomoveinandoutofthepublicandprivatesectorswithrelativeease.
Asidefromagroupofscientistshailingfromdiversebackgrounds,thedevelopmentof
electroniccomputingtechnologyinthetwentiethcenturywouldnothavereachedthe
degreeitdidhaditnotalsobeenforthecontinuousfinancialsupportoftheUnitedStates
government.Forthisreason,manyoftheinnovationsincomputertechnologysinceWorld
WarIIcanbetracedbacktofederalsponsorship.
Severalexplanationshavebeengivenforwhygovernmentsupportwas
indispensableinthisarea,especiallyforlong-termgoals.First,thegovernmentwaspoised
tofundresearchthattendedtocomplementratherthanpreempttheworkinuniversities
andprivateindustry.Aswithallareasofscientificresearch,certaininitiativesareavoided
forreasonsthathavenothingtodowithscience.Forexample,aprivatecorporationmay
resistconductingresearchinanareathatcouldpotentiallyreducetheprofitabilityof
currenttechnologiesbymakingthemobsolete.Thisincludestedious,long-term,
47
fundamentalresearchwheretheimmediatebenefitscannotbeprojectedorknown.50
Althoughtheywereneverwithouttheircritics,artificialintelligenceandparapsychology
gainedlegitimacyasaresultofthepatronageoftheDepartmentofDefense.Thishelped
reducesomeoftheresistancefrompartiesoutsidethepublicsectortogetinvolvedin
researchthatmightormightnotyieldresults.
Similartoparapsychology,theallureofutilizingcomputertechnologyinwar,both
hotandcold,wasenoughofanincentivetostimulategreateffortinmakingthetechnology
operational.Itisatthispointthatthehistoryofartificialintelligenceandstandard
computingresearchdiverge,sincecomputersreachedadegreeoffunctionalitythat
permittedthemtoperformsimplecalculations.Federalfundinginthefieldofcomputing
fromtheendofWorldWarIItothe1970sfacilitatednothingshortofarevolutionin
electronictechnology.Howeverambitiousthisendeavor,thecreationofanartificially
intelligentmachinewashardlymorethanathought,letaloneapracticalgoal;theconcept
itselfwasonlyspeculateduponafewyearsearlier.Althoughtheperiodgenerallythought
toinauguratethefieldofartificialintelligenceisthemid-1950s,theconceptioncanactually
betracedbackmorethanadecadeearlier.Accordingtoartificialintelligencepioneer
DonaldMichie,AlanTuringhadbeenruminatingonthepotentialityofmachines
50“ExecutiveSummary,”inFundingaRevolution:GovernmentSupportforComputing
Research(Washington,DC:NationalAcademyPress,1999),1-15,accessedJanuary7,2016,
http://www.nap.edu/read/6323/chapter/1.
48
functioningonthelevelofthehumanbrainasfarbackas1941,albeitusingdifferent
phraseology,callingitmachineintelligence.51
Despitethecoalescenceofthemostarticulateintellectualsandextraordinary
resources,artificialintelligencewasjustnotarationalaimatthetime.Oneofthemost
elementaryproblemsencounteredbyresearcherswaswhatcouldandcouldnotbe
programmedintoamachine.SimilartothetasksperformedbytheDifferenceEngineinthe
timeofCharlesBabbageacenturyearlier,electroniccomputerscouldperformindividual,
specificfunctions,suchasmathematicalequations,butcouldonlyperformonetaskata
time.Bothquestionsandanswerswererecordedintothemachinefromtheoutset,and
whenquestionswereasked,thecomputeressentiallymadetheassociation.Ifthe
computerwasneededtocarryoutadifferenttask,itwouldhavetobeprogrammedfor
thatbeforehand.Thisbecameburdensome,especiallyinrelationtowaroperationswhen
datawasneededinrealtime.Detractorssawtheinabilitytomultitaskasasignificant
impedimenttocreatingartificialintelligence.
HubertDreyfuswasoneofthemostvocalcriticsofartificialintelligenceintheearly
yearsoftheColdWar.InhismonographWhatComputer’sStillCan’tDo:ACritiqueof
ArtificialReason,Dreyfusidentifiesthesheermagnitudeofrawinformationneededto
makethesimplestdecisionsasoneofthemostimpenetrableroadblocksinthecreationof
artificiallyintelligentmachines.Alsoamonghisobjectionswasthefactthatthehuman
51JackCopeland,“TheTuringTest,”inStudiesinCognitiveSystems,ed.JamesMoor,
vol.30,TheTuringTest:theElusiveStandardofArtificialIntelligence(Dordrecht:Kluwer
AcademicPublishers,2003),1-22.
49
brain,withmoredataaboutaparticularsituationatitsdisposal,reachesasolutionfaster
thanonewithlessinformation.Butamachinetakeseverlongertoreachasolutionthe
moreinformationithas.Therationaleforthiscritiquewasthatamachinewouldtakea
protractedamountoftimetoprocessinformationwhensearchingforthemostoptimal
outcome,whileahumanbrainunconsciouslyorinstinctivelygoesthroughthesearching
processimperceptiblyfast.Itwasthismechanism,arguedDreyfus,whichcouldnotbe
formalizedintoanalgorithm.Nomatterhowmuchinformationwasregisteredintoa
computer’smemory,endowingitwiththeproficiencyorcommonsenseofevenayoung
childwaswhateludedscientists.52Dreyfus’significancealsoliesinthefactthathewasa
consultantfortheRandCorporationwhenhiscritiquewaspublished,atimewhenRand
wasspearheadingartificialintelligenceresearch.Nevertheless,proponentsofartificial
intelligence,especiallywithintheorganizationlikeSimonNewellandJohnCliffordShaw,
werenottobedissuaded.
Withmillionsofdollarsinfinancialincentivecomingfromgovernmentcontracts,
researcherswerenotatalossforresources.Theprimaryfunderoftheseresearchprojects
inthefirstthreedecadesoftheColdWarwasARPA,laterrenamedDARPA(Defense
AdvancedResearchProjectsAgency).Muchofthefundingwasawardedtouniversities,
suchasStanfordUniversityandtheMassachusettsInstituteofTechnology(MIT),with
additionalcontractsgoingtoprivatecorporations,suchasInternationalBusinessMachines
52HubertL.Dreyfus,“IntroductiontotheMITPressEdition,”inWhatComputersStill
Can'tDo:ACritiqueofArtificialReason(Cambridge,MA:MITPress,1992),ix-lii.
50
Corporation(IBM)andRadioCorporationofAmerica(RCA).DARPAwasinvolvedwith
artificialintelligenceresearchfromtheverybeginningandwasthecatalystforinnovations
incomputertechnology,rangingfromthecyberneticstothepredecessorofthemodern
Internet,theARPANET.DARPAisoneofthemainreasonsartificialintelligencewas
researchedtotheextentitwas.DueinparttothecreationoftheInformationProcessing
TechniquesOffice(IPTO),it“radicallychangedthescaleofresearchinAI,propellingit
fromacollectionofsmallprojectsintoalarge-scale,high-profiledomain.”53Indeed,the
UnitedStateswas,asitisnow,thegloballeaderinAIresearch.
Incontrasttoparapsychology,theUnitedStateswasapioneeringforceinartificial
intelligence.Advancesinelectronicsandcomputingtechnologywereoccurringatan
exponentialrate,anditwasbelievedthatartificialintelligencewouldbecomeareality
downtheline.Thegovernmenttookontheburdenoflayingthefoundationanddoing
preliminary(costly)researchinareasthatwereunappealingtoindustryandacademiaby
themselves.Forinstance,oneoftheinitialimpetusesforartificialintelligenceresearchwas
theestablishmentofauniversal,digital,symboliclanguagethatcouldbeunderstoodby
anymachine.TheseenquiriesweredirectlyrelatedtorationalitystudiesattheRand
Corporation.Decision-makingtoolsderivedfromtheseeffortsweretheresultofartificial
intelligenceresearchandfromthedebateoverrationality.Theveryideaofartificial
53“DevelopmentsinArtificialIntelligence,”inFundingaRevolution,198-225,
accessedJanuary7,2016,http://www.nap.edu/read/6323/chapter/9.
51
intelligencerestedonthenotionthatthemachinemakingthedecisionwoulddosobased
onsomeformofrationaldeliberation.
Sinceartificialintelligenceincorporatesmanydifferentdisciplines,researchwas
pursuedinavarietyoffields.Forthisreason,theSURprogramwouldbeusedtorepresent
DARPA’sprogressinartificialintelligence.Inadditiontotranslatingwords,theaimwasto
havetheprocesscarriedoutautomatically,asclosetoreal-timeaspossible.Oneofthe
fundamentalaspectsofSURwastheconstructionofauniversalformulaforrationality,asit
wasconsideredessentialtoasuccessfulspeechrecognitionprogram.
Sincedefiningrationalitywasahighlycontestedsubjectatthetime,artificial
intelligenceresearchersattemptedtomakethetypeofrationalitytheywereconcerned
withdistinctfromtherationalitydebateingeneral.OneoftheproponentsofthiswasAllen
Newell,whousedthephrase“knowledgelevel”todescribethetypeofrationalitythey
wereafter.Hehypothesizedthattherewasalevelofknowledgeabovesimplesymbol
recognition,whichfunctionedasthecomponentthatchosethebestoptiontocompletea
givengoal.54ThiscanbeseenasaresponsetotheskepticismofcriticslikeDreyfus.
Thereneededtobeamechanismthatcouldreducetheperiodbetweenquestionand-answerinthesymbol-basedsystemasnewinformationwasadded,ratherthan
increaseit.Knowledgewasconceptualizedtobea“competence-likenotion,beinga
54AllenNewell,“TheKnowledgeLevel,”ArtificialIntelligence18,no.1(1982):87127.
52
potentialforgeneratingaction”andwas“intimatelylinkedwithrationality.”55Theideawas
thattherewasahigherorderfunctionthatcouldwadethroughallpossibleanswersto
reachthebestanswerpossible.
ResearchersatDARPAworkedonthisproblemfortheSURprogram,butwerenot
successful.Althoughseeminglysimpleinscope,thisprojectwouldprovetobe
tremendouslydifficulttocomplete.Infact,itprovedtobesuchacomplexundertakingthat
itwasnearlyabandonedinthe1960s,anddidnotbecomefullyrealizedforoverthree
decades.56Theinabilityofresearcherstocreateanalgorithmtotranslatelanguages,inthis
caseCyrillictoEnglish,providedcriticslikeDreyfuswithammunitionfortheirarguments
againstAI’srationalfoundations.
Nevertheless,DARPAandtheRandCorporationcontinuedtoworktogetheron
problemsrelatedtoartificialintelligence.Failuredidnotnecessarilyleadtoditchingthe
project.Itissignificanttonotethatthesameattitudewasmaintainedthroughoutthe
courseoftheColdWarwithparapsychologyaswell;botheffortsofferedjustenoughto
keeptheinterestofthegovernmentpiqued.SinceoneofthecoretenetsofDefense
DepartmentsponsorshipincomputertechnologyduringtheColdWarwaspreliminary
research,itwasgenerallyunderstoodthattheresearch’sutilizationwouldnotbereadily
knownuntilitwasneeded,or“required.”Asaresult,theleadingAIresearchers,including
55Newell,“TheKnowledgeLevel,”87-127.
56PhilipKlahrandD.A.Waterman.ArtificialIntelligence:ARANDPerspective.
SantaMonica,CA:RANDCorporation,1986.
http://www.rand.org/pubs/papers/P7172.html.
53
JohnMcCarthy,MarvinMinsky,andSimonNewell,“view[ed]theirinstitutions’research,
duringthefirst10to15yearsofDARPA’sAIfunding,asessentiallyunfetteredby
immediateapplications.”Inotherwords,formuchoftheearlyColdWar,substantial
progressdidnothavetobedemonstratedforthefundingtocontinue.
Parapsychologywasaffordedthesameluxury.Justlikeanyotherscience,itwas
requiredtopassrigoroustesting.Sincethemilitarybegantohavenewobjectivesinmind
forartificialintelligence,“thenatureofDARPA’ssupportchangedradically—froman
emphasisonfundamentalresearchatalimitednumberofcentersofexcellencetomore
broad-basedsupportforappliedresearchtiedtomilitaryapplications—bothreflectingand
motivatingchangesinthefieldofAIitself.”57Undoubtedly,thegovernmenthaditssights
setonmilitaryapplicabilityfromtheverybeginning,buttheoverttransitionwouldhave
far-reachingeffects.
57“DevelopmentsinArtificialIntelligence,”inFundingaRevolution,205,accessed
January7,2016,http://www.nap.edu/read/6323/chapter/9.
54
CHAPTER3–PARAPSYCHOLOGY,ARTIFICIALINTELLIGENCE,
ANDTHEHYPECYCLEINCOLDWARRESEARCH
AstheEastandWestenteredthethirddecadeoftheColdWar,the
UnitedStatesgovernment’sperspectiveontheviabilityoftheresearchprojects
underinvestigationbegantoshift.Thiswas,inpart,aresultofthechangingstateof
theColdWarinthelate1960sthroughthe1970s.AlthoughtheUnitedStatesand
theSovietUnionneverdeployedtroopsoneachother’slandorofficiallydeclared
war,thereweredeadlybattlesthatwerefoughtwiththesupportofboth
superpowers.TheVietnamWarisoneoftheconflictsthatwasbornoutofthis
tedioussituation.TheUnitedStatessupportedSouthVietnamandtheSoviets
backedtheNorth.ThisproxywarleftmillionsofVietnamesemaimedordeadandit
createdamassiveplatformforanti-warsentimentswithintheUnitedStates.Inturn,
theUnitedStatesandtheSovietUnionenteredastateofdétente.Détentewas
consideredaneasingofrelationsbetweentheEastandtheWest,atleastintermsof
armedconflict.
ThenucleararmsracethatdominatedtheearlypartoftheColdWar
exacerbatedratherthanquelledfearsovernuclearwar.MutuallyAssured
Destruction(MAD)wasaconceptthatwaspromotedinanattempttogettheidea
outthatnuclearwarwasinnoone’sbestinterest.Anothereffortthatillustratedthe
gravityofthesituationwastheDoomsdayClock,createdbyscientistsinorderto
55
showhowclosetheworldwasperceivedtobefromglobalcatastrophe.Midnight
representednuclearwarwiththeSovietUnion.Thesymbolicclock,initiallysetto7
minutestomidnight,wasmovedascloseas2minutesawayfromworldwide
annihilation.TreatiessuchastheNuclearNonproliferationTreatyandthe
AntiballisticMissilesTreatyweresignedinanefforttosteerawayfromthearms
race.Withtheprospectofhurlingnuclearbombsateachotherbecamemore
remote,lessdevastatingmilitarymeasureswereaffordedmoreconsideration
amonggovernmentofficials.Amongthesewereparapsychologyandartificial
intelligence.
Thehypecycle,whichwillbediscussedinthefollowingsection,isaconcept
thatisusedtodescribetheriseandfallofcertaintechnologiesorfieldsofresearch.
Itisinstructiveinthisstudybecausebothartificialintelligenceandparapsychology
experiencethesecyclesinsimilarways.Bothresearchinitiativesexperienceddark
andgoldenageswithinacoupleofdecades.Theirebbandflowsarerepresentative
ofwhatinformationtechnologyandgovernmentadvisoryfirmGartnerInc.calls
‘hypecycles’58.Inshort,thecyclebeginswithanewconceptenteringpublic
consciousness.Sometimes,theconceptinquestionwillexperienceaperiodoftime
whereanticipatoryoutcomesaregreatlyinflated.Thenextstageoftheprocessis
whentheforecastedresultsarenotmetintherequisitetime.Thisisfollowedbya
58“AboutGartner,”GartnerInc.,2016,accessedApril4,2016,
http://www.gartner.com/technology/about.jsp.
56
severedownturnintheviabilityoftheconcept.Lastly,thetheorysuggeststhatthe
conceptualizationisrealizedsomewherebetweencompletesuccessandtotal
failure.
Thefactormakesparapsychologyandartificialintelligencesignificantisthat
theybothgothroughthesecyclescontinuously.Eventhoughtheyhadintervals
wheretherewasalullinsupport,parapsychologyandartificialintelligenceboth
reemergedfromthoseperiodsandre-intriguedgovernmentofficialsenoughto
startnewinvestigations.
Thischapterwillanalyzehowparapsychologyandartificialintelligencewent
throughthesecyclesandthefactorsthatwentintothem.Inthe1980s,the
parapsychologyprogramwasmovedbetweendifferentintelligenceagencieswhich
sparkedamorecriticaldebateinternallyaboutitsprogressandapplicability.
Reportswerepreparedbyindependentinstitutionsthataidedinprovidingamore
objectiveperspectiveontheprograms.Thesedebateselucidatehow
parapsychologyreemergedonaregularbasis,whythegovernmentwasrationalin
itsdecisiontoinvestigateit,andwhytheseresurgencesininterestarelikelyto
continueinthefuture.Theassessmentdescribedparapsychologygoingthrough
multiplehypecycles.
Theprogressofartificialintelligencewasalsodebated,albeitinamoreopen
forum.ThesedialoguesshowhowAIwasscrutinizedbycriticsandwhyresearch
continueddespiteminimalaccomplishments.Similartoparapsychology,artificial
57
intelligenceresearchcontinuallychangedhands,whichwidenedthedebated
considerably.ThischapterwillclosebyshowingthatbytheendoftheColdWar,
bothdisciplineswereonthestagerepresentativeofdisillusionment,butneither
programwasscrappedentirely,permittingthecycletorepeatitselfinthefuture.
Section1–HypeCyclesandParapsychology
TheuseoftheconceptofthehypecyclecomesfromtheAmerican
informationtechnologyfirmGartnerInc.,anorganizationthatregularlyconsults
withgovernmentandprivateindustry.59Althoughtheyneverweighedinonthese
subjectsspecifically,thehypecycleisapplicabletobothparapsychologyand
artificialintelligence.Beforeexaminingeachprogram,itisimperativetooffera
quickoverviewofwhathypecyclesareandhowtheyplayout.Thecyclebegins
whenthereisa“technologicaltrigger,”thatis,anideaorconceptualizationfora
newtechnology.Thisisfollowedbyanunprecedentedexplosioninanticipationand
expectationforthecapabilitiesofthetechnology,usuallyexaggeratedbymedia
beyondinitialprojections.Thenextstageistheperiodofdisillusionmentwhenthe
technology,andthehypebehindit,arenotrealized.Thefinalphase,whichvaries
dependingonthetechnologyinquestion,iswhenthetechnologyexperiencesa
59“AboutGartner,”TechnologyResearch|GartnerInc.,accessedApril25,
2016,http://www.gartner.com/technology/about.jsp.
58
slightresurgence,endingwithittaperingoffsomewhereinthemiddlebetween
bothextremes.Thelifeofthehypecycleisillustratedinthisinfographic60:
Figure2:TheFiveMainPhasesofthe
HypeCycle
Theconceptofhypecyclesisnotuniversallyacceptedbyscholars,butthe
maincriticism,leveledbyBritishcomputerscientistRichardVeryard,workstothe
advantageoftheprogramsbeingexamined.61Thetheoryofthehypecycleattempts
toarticulatetheevolutionofcertainideasortechnologiesastheygofromthe
proverbialdrawingboardtotheproductionline.Criticsassertthatthisdoesnot
portrayacycle,butratheralinearphenomenonthatgoesfrompointAtopointB.
60GartnerResearchMethodologies(Stamford,CT:Marketing
Communications,2015),7,accessedMarch12,2016,
http://www.gartner.com/imagesrv/research/methodologies/methodologies_broch
ure_14.pdf.
61RichardVeryard,“TechnologyHypeCurve,”DemandingChange,
September16,2005,accessedMay25,2016,
http://demandingchange.blogspot.com/2005/09/technology-hype-curve.html.
59
Interestingly,however,parapsychologyandartificialintelligencedoinfacthavea
cyclicalnature.Historicallyspeaking,parapsychologyrearsitsuglyhead
periodically,withneitherproponentsabletofullysatisfycriticsandcriticsnever
abletofullystrikeitdownandputanailinitscoffin.Likewise,artificialintelligence
experiencedmanyupsanddownsinitsshorthistory,withperiodsknownasAI
Winterswhereitsfatewasseriouslycalledintoquestion.Yetneitherdiscipline
underwentthefinalstageoftaperingoffintoanacceptablemiddleground;they
loopbacktotheinitialstagewhereenthusiasm,orhype,issomehowre-inculcated
backintothem.62Thefieldsofparapsychologyandartificialintelligencehaveyetto
breakfreefromthissystem.
Thehypecyclesofartificialintelligencearemorepronouncedthanthoseof
parapsychology.ThemostglaringreasonisbecausetheAIexperiencedseveral
cycleswithinthesecondhalfoftheColdWar.Thehypecyclesofparapsychology
takemuchlongertobecomepalpablebycomparison.Thismaybearesultofthefact
thatparapsychologyhashadamuchlongerhistoryandhasaccruedmoreliterature
overthecenturiesthatinformthedebate.Despitehavingrootsthatreachbackto
ancienthistory,artificialintelligence,initscurrentconception,isanewfield.When
researchersweremetwithseeminglyimpassableroadblocks,criticswerequickto
jumponthemasproofoftheinfeasibilityofartificialintelligence.Oneexampleof
62Dr.MichaelD.Mumford,Dr.AndrewH.Rose,andDr.DavidA.Goshin,An
EvaluationofRemoteViewing:ResearchandApplications(WashingtonD.C.:
AmericanInstitutesForResearch,1995),3-47.
60
thesekindsofroadblocksistheaforementionedbarrierresearchersmetwhenthey
wereunabletomatchthetacitknowledgeofayoungchildinmachineintelligence.If
andwhensolutionswerefoundforwhicheverissueswasathand,theperspective
revertedbacktoviability.Theprocesshappenedrapidlyandsetprecedentsfor
futureresearch.
Thisback-and-forthhadbeentakingplaceinthefieldofparapsychologyfora
verylongtimeandsodebatesarenotsoeasilysettled.Thislongandcomplex
historyofalternatingperspectivesisoneofthereasons,researcherscontend,why
interestinparapsychologyflairsupafterperiodsofdormancy.Whenthecase
appearstobesettledthatitisapseudoscience,therearealwaysscientiststogo
backtotheliteratureandseesomethingofworththatwasdisregardedbythose
thatdeemedthephenomenanonexistent,causingthecycletostartoveragain.63
Thiswasoneoftheconclusionsofapanelofresearcherscommissionedto
investigatetheprogressandpossiblefutureofparapsychologicalresearchbytheUS
government.
Thestudy,“AnEvaluationofRemoteViewing:ResearchandApplications,”
wascarriedoutbytheAmericanInstituteofResearch(AIR),andwasconductedat
thebehestoftheDefenseIntelligenceAgencyafterthatagencyinheritedthe
programfromtheCIA.Todayitiscolloquiallyknownasthe“AIRReport,”andwhile
itwaswidelythoughttohavedeliveredthedeathknelltostate-funded
63Mumford,Rose,andGoshin,AnEvaluationofRemoteViewing,3-47.
61
parapsychologyresearch,inrealityitshowshowgovernment-sponsoredresearch
intoESPwilllikelyreturninthefuture,apredictionthatcametofruitioninthe
earlytwenty-firstcentury.
TheAIRReportincorporatedanextensivesectiononthehistoryof
parapsychologyandunwittinglyillustratesthehypecyclesthatparapsychology
goesthroughbyassertingthatparapsychology“hasashiftingdatabase.
Experimentaldatathatonegenerationputsforthasrock-solidevidencefor[ESP}is
discardedbylatergenerationsinfavorofnewdata.”64Thereporttraces
parapsychologybacktotheSocietyforPsychicalResearch(SPR)ofthenineteenth
centuryandhowitperiodicallyreemergedfromitsownashes.Theauthorsinclude
thisnarrativeintheirstudyinordertoshowthattheveryphenomenathatthey
werebeingaskedtoresearchhadalreadybeendoneonacyclicalbasisfor
centuries.
TheSPR’sfirstpresident,HenrySidgwick,obtainedallegedevidencefroma
setoffivesiblings,calledtheCreerysisters.Theyweretestedfortelepathyby
havingonesisterleavetheroomwhiletheresearchershowedawordorimageto
theremainingsistersintheroom.Whenthefifthsistercamebackintotheroom,
therewasagoodprobabilitythatshewouldbeabletoguessthewordorimage.
64Mumford,Rose,andGoshin,AnEvaluationofRemoteViewing,3-47.
62
Thiswasseenaslegitimateevidenceformanyyears,untilitwasdiscoveredthatthe
sistershadcheatedandusedvarioussignalstotipofftheirsibling.65
Anothersetofexperimentscarriedoutattheendofthenineteenthcentury,
byDouglasBlackburnandGeorgeA.Smith,amesmerist,wasadvancedas
unassailableevidenceofpsychicalphenomena.Theseexperimentswerealongthe
samelinesatthoseconductedontheCreerySisters,withSmithblindfoldedand
askedtonametheobjectshowntoBlackburn.TheideawasthatBlackburnwas
telepathicallycommunicatingtheinformationtoSmith.Thisdata,however,also
provedtobefraudulentasoneparticipantpublishedaconfessionin1911,detailing
howthedeceptiontookplace.66Thosewhosawpsychicalphenomenaasrealwere
notdismayedforlong,asitwouldhavebeenirrationaltotakeafewinstancesof
fraudandusethatasevidencetodiscountallotherresearch.
Parapsychology’shypecyclecontinued,asadecadeorsolaterthefamed
researcherJ.B.Rhinebeganhisexperimentsthatreallypropelledparapsychological
researchintothemodernera.Rhine’sworkillustrateshowparapsychologygoes
throughhypecycles.Italsoshowsthat,historically,criticsweremoresubjective
thanobjectiveintheirattemptstodiscreditthephenomena.Punditswereinitially
quicktoattackRhinefromadirectionthatseeminglyleftlittleroomforinterpretive
65RobertM.SchochandLoganYonavjak,TheParapsychologyRevolution:A
ConciseAnthologyofParanormalandPsychicalResearch(NewYork:JeremyP.
Tarcher/Penguin,2008),26-28.
66SchochandYonavjak,TheParapsychologyRevolution,26-28.
63
leeway:mathematics.Thisshouldhaveservedasadeathknellbecause,touseasold
phrase,numbersdonotlie.However,thisattemptbackfired.AstheAIRreport
recounts:
BurtonCamp,thepresidentoftheInstituteofMathematicalStatistics,
issuedastatementthatifthecriticsweregoingtofault
parapsychologicalresearchtheycouldnotdosoonstatistical
grounds.Thecriticsthenturnedtheirattentiontomethodological
weaknesses.67
Hereinliesasignificantfactorinwhyparapsychologyisstillresearched.The
picturethatthehistoryportraysisonewherecriticswillgotoextraordinarylengths
todiscreditparapsychology.Ratherthanaccountfortheirinitialrejection,which
clearlyhadnobasisinreality(accordingtoCamp),theyjumpedtoanothertactic.
Whatnevercomesupinthedebateiswhycriticstriedtousefaultymathematicsto
discreditRhine.Ratherthanbeingheldaccountable,theyjumpedtotheirnextline
ofattack,whichwashismethodology.68Moderndayresearchersseethesetactics
usedbyskepticsasjustthat,tacticstodebunkthehypotheticalphenomenano
matterwhat.Currentparapsychologicalresearcherswithinthemilitary
establishmentseethatanddonottaketheconclusionsofthosecriticsseriously.
ItdoesnotmatterherewhetherRhine’sworkprovedthevalidityof
parapsychology,butratherhowtheresearchwasattacked.Shiftingfromcritiqueto
67Mumford,Rose,andGoshin,AnEvaluationofRemoteViewing,3-47.
68Mumford,Rose,andGoshin,AnEvaluationofRemoteViewing,3-47.
64
critique,hopingthatonesticks,unwittinglyshowsthatthecritics’soledesirewasto
discreditthephenomena.Peoplewhoareinterestedinparapsychologyperceived
thisasareasontocontinueinvestigations.Criticshavelongridiculed
parapsychologistsforcherry-pickingevidencethatmakesthephenomenalookthe
best,69butparapsychologistschargeskepticswiththesamecrime.70Fromthisone
caninferthatthedebateismoredeeplyideologicalratherthanrootedinscientific
progress.
Proponentsofparapsychologyalwaysseemtoviewtheretortsofcriticswith
severeskepticism,andviceversa,creatingasituationofperpetualdisagreement.
Thisideologicaldivideisoneofthemajorreasonswhyinterestinparapsychology
revivifiesovertime,asnewergenerationsofgovernmentresearcherslookintothe
debateandconcludethattheargumentsfromestablishedsciencearenotstrong,
andmoreimportantly,insufficienttopreventfurtherresearch,especiallywithinthe
UnitedStatesDepartmentoftheAirForce.71
69RichardWiseman,"'HeadsIWin,TailsYouLose':HowParapsychologists
NullifyNullResults:ParapsychologistsHaveTendedtoViewPositiveResultsas
SupportiveofthePsiHypothesisWhileEnsuringThatNullResultsDon'tCountas
EvidenceagainstIt.Here'sHowThisSelf-deceptiveProcessWorksandFour
SuggestionstoOvercomeIt.(Report)."SkepticalInquirer34,no.1(2010):36-50.
70ChrisCarter,"“HeadsILose,TailsYouWin”,Or,HowRichardWiseman
NullifiesPositiveResults,andWhatToDoAboutIt:AResponsetoWiseman’s
(2010)CritiqueofParapsychology,"JournaloftheSocietyforPsychicalResearch74
(2010):156-167.
71UnitedStatesDepartmentoftheAirForce,AirForceResearchLaboratory
(AFMC)AFRL/PRSP,TeleportationPhysicsStudy,byDr.EricW.Davis,AFRL-PR-ED-
TR-2003-0034(Lancaster,California:EdwardsAirForceBaseCA,2004),1-55.
65
Section2–TheHypeCyclesofArtificialIntelligence
Artificialintelligenceexperiencedmanyupsanddownsthroughoutthelatter
halfoftheColdWar,reflectingthenatureofhypecycles.Severalperiodshavebeen
identifiedasAIWinters,conjuringtheimageofabarrenwastelandwheretherewas
onceathrivingindustry.72Thatwouldbeagrossmisrepresentationofwhatactually
transpired.Fundingwasnotnecessarilypulledfromprojectsrelatedtoartificial
intelligence,butwascontinuouslyreoriented,sometimesloopingbacktopreviously
discardedapproaches.Thesameheldtrueforgeneralenthusiasm.When
breakthroughswerenotforthcoming,goalswerealteredinanefforttokeepthe
researchgoing.Agoodexampleofthisisthehistoryoftheartificialneuralnetwork
(ANN).
ANN’shavefalleninandoutoffavornumeroustimesthroughoutthehistory
ofartificialintelligence,arguablyexperiencingmicrocosmicexamplesofhypecycles
itself.TheconceptofANNswasfirstintroducedbyWarrenMcCulloch,a
neurophysiologist,andWalterPitts,amathematician,intheearly1940s.Although
theoreticallypromising,initialattemptstosimulateorganicneuralnetworksfailed,
leadingtoadeclineinenthusiasm.Then,someprogresswasmadeinthelate1950s
withthedevelopmentofthe“MultipleADAptiveLINearElements”model,or
72JoelMoses,“Macsyma:APersonalHistory”(paperpresentedatthe
MilestonesinComputerAlgebraconference,StonehavenBay,RepublicofTrinidad
andTobago,May1-3,2008),1-9.
66
“MADALINE”forshort,whichgavethehypotheticalneuralnetworkavery
rudimentarycapacityto‘think’.ThenANN’stookanunexpectedturn,since“despite
thelatersuccessoftheneuralnetwork,traditionalvonNeumannarchitecturetook
overthecomputingscene,andneuralresearchwasleftbehind.”73Theseexamples
showartificialintelligence’smovementsthroughvarioushypecycles.
DisillusionmentreachedapeakwithpublicationofabookbyMarvinMinsky
andSeymourPaperttitledPerceptrons:AnIntroductiontoComputationalGeometry,
whichwashighlycriticaloftheseverelimitationsthatANNshad.74Thiscoincided
withaperiodofdrasticallyreducedfundingandresearchforalmosttwodecades
untilinterestinANNswasrevitalizedinthe1980swhenJohnHopfieldfromthe
CaliforniaInstituteofTechnologypresentedaninfluentialpapertotheNational
AcademyofSciences.75Newmodelshadmadeimprovementsbutthecelebration
wasshort-livedasitwasslowandineffectual.Bytheturnofthecentury,neural
73“NeuralNetworks-History:The1940'stothe1970's,”StanfordUniversity,
accessedJuly2,2016,
https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/courses/soco/projects/neuralnetworks/History/history1.html.
74GaryMarcus,“Is'DeepLearning'aRevolutioninArtificialIntelligence?,”
TheNewYorker,November25,2012,1,accessedMarch12,2016,
http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/is-deep-learning-a-revolution-inartificial-intelligence.
75“NeuralNetworks-History:The1980'stothepresent,”Stanford
University,accessedJuly2,2016,
https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/courses/soco/projects/neuralnetworks/History/history2.html.
67
networkshadagainbeensidelinedinfavorofalternativeapproaches.76These
episodesrepresentthefieldofartificialintelligencegoingthroughnumeroushype
cyclesasscientistsconsistentlybecamediscouragedeachtimetheyencountereda
newimpediment.
Thisrecurredonaperpetualbasisthroughoutthe1970sandthe1980s,
causingperiodiclapsesintheconvictionthatafullyrealizedartificiallyintelligent
machinewasfeasible.Forthisreason,thetermAIWintershouldbeunderstoodin
thecontextsofenthusiasmandprogress.Whetherornotthetotalamountoffunding
forartificialintelligenceincreasedordecreasedoverallislessrelevantthantheflow
ofmoneyinandoutofisolatedprojects.Forexample,whenresearchersfaced
algorithmprogrammingproblems,theonesthatDreyfuswascriticalof,theyshifted
theirattentiontoartificialneuralnetworksandtheMADALINEmodel.Whenthat
researchareaprovedfallacious,scientistsshiftedagaintoanewfieldofinterest
calledexpertsystems.Whenperceivedfailuresoccurredinparapsychology,
scientistswerequicktojumponthemasconclusiveevidence;whenthesame
occurredinartificialintelligenceresearch,theywerenotasquicktodenouncethe
entirefieldaspseudoscience.
Whenonelooksattheindividualpartsratherthanthewhole,itisevident
thatsolitaryprojectsworkingonminuteaspectsofartificialintelligencewere
76Marcus,“Is'DeepLearning'aRevolutioninArtificialIntelligence?,”
http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/is-deep-learning-a-revolution-inartificial-intelligence.
68
constantlyredirectedorsublimatedtoworkondifferentproblems,thuscreatinga
situationwhereprogresswasattimesnon-existent.ThisleftDr.KevinB.Korbto
remark,“ManythousandshaveworkedononeaspectoranotheroftheAIresearch
programandithasachievedagreatmanythings,butwhereistheAI?”77Withall
theresourcespouredintoartificialintelligence,theresultswereessentiallythe
sameasparapsychology:neitherwasdemonstrable.WhilethedegreeofAI’s
progressmaynotbethatsimple,thesecircumstancesarereflectiveofartificial
intelligence’scorrelationwiththeconceptofhypecycles.
Thefieldofartificialintelligencesufferedfromtheunboundedspeculationon
whatcouldbeaccomplished.Evenwhentherewereaccomplishmentsworth
celebrating,theywerenotseenassignificantmilestonestothegeneralpublic.For
example,considerDARPA’sspeechrecognitionprograms,oftenconsideredthe
“HolyGrail”ofDARPA’stechnologicalquest.78Forasubstantialamountoftime,the
creationofautomatedlanguagetranslationinrealtimewasanabysmalfailure.It
onlybegantobecomearealityintheearlytwenty-firstcentury,longaftertheendof
theColdWar,whichisillustrativeofjusthowlittlewasactuallyachieved
throughoutthatperiod.Thepublicisnowacquaintedwiththiskindoftechnologyin
theformoftoolssuchasGoogleTranslate,buteventhesemechanismsfallshortof
77“TheTrueStateofArtificialIntelligence,”MonashUniversity,November9,
2012,accessedDecember3,2015,http://www.monash.edu/news/articles/4531.
78ClayDillow,“DARPA'sNewestLanguageTranslatorWouldBeLess
HandheldDevice,MoreRobotAssistant,”PopularScience,April6,2011,accessed
May15,2016,http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-04/darpasnewest-language-translator-would-be-less-handheld-device-more-robot-assistant.
69
beingdefinedasartificialintelligence.
Thedividebetweenwhatisconsideredamassivedevelopmentbyscientists,
andthatbynon-scientists,illustrateshowlittlethesignificanceofsupposed
breakthroughsfilterdownfromthelaboratorytothebureaucratsofficeorthe
public.IndicativeofthiswasalackofappreciationbyDARPAitself.DARPA,the
patriarchalinstitutioninthelifeofartificialintelligence,wasunsurebythelate
1980swhatexactlywasachievedinthefieldofAIintheColdWar.Inthe
PresidentialAddressoftheAssociationfortheAdvancementofArtificial
Intelligence,titled“FoundationsandGrandChallengesofArtificialIntelligence,”Raj
Reddytoucheduponthissentimentwhenherememberedbeingaskedbysenior
DARPApersonnel,“Whatarethemajoraccomplishmentsofthefield?Howcanwe
measureprogress?Howcanwetellwhetheryouaresucceedingorfailing?”79These
arenotquestionsthatareaskedofsomeonewhoseworkshouldspeakforitself.
DARPAwasnotapassivesponsor,itwasintegralintheresearcheverystep
ofthewaybecauseofthetechnologiescapabilitiesintermsofnationaldefense.Had
artificialintelligencereallyexperiencedmassivedevelopments,asproponents
wouldargue,DARPAwouldhaveknownofthemfromthestart.Onecaninferfrom
thisthateventhoughartificialintelligenceresearchhaseversoslightlychipped
awayattheproblemsithasencountered,thosesuccessesarenotperceivedas
79RajReddy,“FoundationsandGrandChallengesofArtificialIntelligence,”in
“PresidentialAddress,”AIMagazine(Winter1988):9-21,accessedDecember2,
2015,http://www.aaai.org/Library/President/Reddy.pdf.
70
profoundorlife-changinginanyway.EventhoughDARPAsupportedprojectsit
knewwouldnothaveimmediateapplications,thepromisesmadetoitranghollow
aftersomanyyears.
Section3–TheFateofParapsychologyandArtificialIntelligenceattheEndofthe
ColdWar
ParapsychologicalresearchinthesecondhalfoftheColdWar,specificallythe
1980sthroughthe1990s,isintriguingbecausemanyoftheparticipantsinthose
programshavegoneontodetailtheirexperiencestothepublic.Thelatterphaseof
parapsychologyresearchencapsulatedthe1980s,whentheresearchwas
transferredfromtheCentralIntelligenceAgencytotheDefenseIntelligenceAgency,
totheendoftheColdWarinthe1990s.Theprogram’sdesignatedcodenamewas
changedonseveraloccasionsthroughoutthistime.80Publicitysurroundingthe
government’sinvolvementwithparanormalactivitiesreachedacrescendoduring
thistimeduetothesensationalizationofthesubjectbyvariousmediaoutlets.81
Withtheprogramnolongersecret,thegovernmentwasinatoughposition.Having
80StevenAftergood,“StarGate[controlledRemoteViewing],”Federationof
AmericanScientists,lastmodifiedDecember29,2005,accessedMay12,2016,
http://fas.org/irp/program/collect/stargate.htm.
81DanielDruckmanandJohnA.Swets,“ParanormalPhenomena,”in
EnhancingHumanPerformance:Issues,Theories,andTechniques(Washington,DC:
NationalAcademyPress,1988),169-208,accessedJune29,2016,
http://www.nap.edu/read/1025/chapter/13.
71
knowledgethattheUnitedStatesofficiallyresearchedparapsychologyforseveral
decadesbythemid-1980s,peoplehavebeencuriousaboutwhatwasfoundthat
kepttheprogramaliveforsolong.Sinceparapsychologyisadeeplypolarizingissue,
severalcommitteesofscientistswerecommissionedtoanalyzewhatexactlythe
researchshowed.Oneofthesecommittees,theAmericanInstituteofResearch,was
responsiblefortheaforementionedAIRreportthatgaveapessimisticviewofthe
research.
AnotherbodythatwastaskedwiththesameobjectivewastheCommitteeon
TechniquesfortheEnhancementofHumanPerformancefromtheCommissionon
BehavioralandSocialSciencesandEducation(CBASSE)oftheNationalSecurity
Council.Thisreportiscuriousduetoasingleparagraphattheveryendofthetext.
Whileconcludingthattheactualdatajustdidnotsupporttheincredible
declarationsbeingmaderegardingESP,itnotesthatthecommitteewasurgedby
themilitarytoreconsiderbecauseseveralmilitarypersonnelhadconcluded
otherwise.Thereferenceisshortandvague,mentioningonlythat“twoofthe
militaryofficerswhobriefedus…urgedthecommitteetogiveseriousconsideration
toparanormalphenomena...Theydescribedavarietyofsuchphenomenathatthey
felthadmilitarypotential,eitherasthreatstosecurityorasaidstodefense.”82No
otherinformationordetailsaregivenastowhatparanormalphenomenathe
militarywastalkingabout,orhowitmightaidinnationaldefense.Onecanonly
82DruckmanandSwets,“”SourcesofInformation“withinParanormal
Phenomena,”inEnhancingHumanPerformance:Issues,Theories,andTechniques,
169-208,accessedJune29,2016,http://www.nap.edu/read/1025/chapter/13.
72
speculatewhetherthemostpotentevidencewaskeptconcealedfromthe
committeeorthepublicforpurposesofnationalsecurity.
Nevertheless,thecommitteedidnotalteritsassessment,meaningthese
divergentviewsweretoremainirreconcilable.Thecivilianwingofthe
parapsychologyprograms,suchastheCIAandDIA,tooktheseassessmentsasacue
tobackawayfromparanormalresearch,atleastpublicly;ontheotherhand,the
militarystoodbyitsownscientificassessmentsandinitiatednewprojectsdelving
deeperintoparapsychologyandincorporatingitwithinquantumphysics.Before
brieflyevaluatingthemilitary’stwenty-firstcenturypsychicwarfareprogram,a
summaryofparapsychologyattheendoftheColdWarwillshedsomelightonhow
thattransitionoccurred.
Bythelastdecadeofthetwentiethcenturyprogramsrelatedtoartificial
intelligenceandparapsychologyhadbeeninoperationforoverthirtyyears.The
fruitsofthislaborarehighlycontested.Neitherprogramestablishedthesortof
successthathadbeenprojectedovertheyears,nordidtheyaidinwinningtheCold
WarovertheSovietUnion.Thisisnottosay,however,thatalltheresearchand
resourcesexpendedontheseprogramswasinvain.Throughoutthecourseofthe
ColdWar,theprogramsonextrasensoryperceptionproducedovertwelvethousand
documentstotalingnearlyonehundredthousandpagesofinformation,andthatis
justwhathasbeendeclassified.Muchofthismaterialhasnotbeeninvestigated,but
73
includesinternalmemos,committeebriefings,experimentsandresults,financial
records,andforeignintelligence.83
Infact,asfarasIhavebeenabletouncover,therehasbeennoacademic
historianthathasundertakenasystematicreviewofthesedocuments,leading
amateurandbuddinghistorianstowadethroughthematerialthemselves.Despite
steadyderisionandunsubstantiatedclaimsthattheintelligencecommunity
purposefullyliedinthedocuments,theyarethemostprestigioussourceof
informationforfutureparapsychologicalresearchersandenthusiasts.Sincethe
topiciscontroversial,anylaboratorylookingintoitwillbemetwithskepticism,
evenifdoneatarespecteduniversity.Attheveryleast,thegovernment-supported
studiesprovideanextralayerofprotectionagainstdeceitbecausetheywerecarried
outunderthebannerofnationalsecurity.
Whenthegovernmentofficiallyrecognizedtheparapsychologyprojectsin
themid-1990s,itdidsowiththeunderstandingthatthoseprogramswerepromptly
terminated.Mostoftheprogramswerecloseddown,butnotall.Thoughsmallerin
sizeandscope,theDefenseIntelligenceAgencymaintainedacadreofpsychicsand
continuedtocarryoutresearch.84Notmuchisknownaboutthesenewerprojects
83TamraL.Temple,“ProjectStargateInteractiveArchives,”ProjectStargate
InteractiveArchives,2016,accessedNovember3,2015,http://www.stargateinteractive.com/index.html.
84KennethKress,“ParapsychologyinIntelligence:APersonalReviewand
Conclusions,”JournalofScientificExploration13,no.1(1999):69–85,accessed
74
buttheirexistenceissignificantforseveralreasons.First,someoneinthe
establishmentmusthaveseenpotentialinpsychicwarfarefornewstudiestobe
authorized.Heretheconceptofrationalityshinesthrough,closelymirroringthe
situationthatinitiallysparkedthissagahalfacenturyearlier.Maybethemost
successfulresearchwaskeptclassifiedfromthepublicandinternallyservedasa
reasonforrenewedefforts.Thisissheerspeculation,butthepointisthatevenafter
theColdWar,aftertheprogram’sdisclosure,andafterassurancesthat
parapsychologywasnotuseful,theintelligencecommunitystillconsideredfurther
parapsychologicalresearchastherationalapproach.
AnotherreasontheDIA’sdecisiontocontinueresearchissignificantis
becauseitcouldrepresentthebeginningofanewhypecycle.Theendofoneera
usheredinanewone.Althoughitremainstobeseenifgovernment
parapsychologicalresearchwillcausehypeinthefuture,itcertainlyisasubjectthat
isdiscussedandnotastabooasonemightexpect.Indeed,althoughtheCIA
transferredtheprogramtotheDIA,formerDirectorofCentralIntelligenceRobert
M.GatesmadeitclearthattheCIAwouldcontinuetomonitorparapsychological
researchconductedbyotherinstitutions,especiallyintheacademicworld,withthe
intentionoffocusingonabilitiesthatwouldhavepracticalandoperational
December3,2014,
http://www.scientificexploration.org/journal/jse_13_1_kress.pdf.
75
applications.85Inadditiontotheintelligencecommunity,themilitaryhasalso
shownrecentinterestinparapsychology.
In2004,theUnitedStatesAirForcereleasedaspecialreporttitled
“TeleportationPhysicsStudy,”alargesectionofwhichwasfocusedon“psychic
teleportation.”Psychicteleportationcanbethoughtofasasynonymfor
psychokinesis.Theauthorofthereport,Dr.EricW.Davis,declared:
Theteleportationphenomenondiscussedinthechapterisbasedon
psychokinesis(PK),whichisacategoryofpsychotronics.TheU.S.
military-intelligenceliteratureisreviewed,whichrelatesthe
historicalscientificresearchperformedonPK-teleportationinthe
U.S.,ChinaandtheformerSovietUnion.Thematerialdiscussedinthe
chapterlargelychallengesthecurrentphysicsparadigm;however,
extensivecontrolledandrepeatablelaboratorydataexiststosuggest
thatPK-teleportationisquiterealandthatitiscontrollable.86
ThereportspeaksratherhighlyoftheresearchconductedbyPuthoffandTargat
StanfordUniversityandgoesontostatethatthecentralfigureininitiatingthe
UnitedStatesGovernmentresearchprogramsintoparapsychology,Andrija
Puharich,isconsideredanexpertinthefieldbythemilitary.87Thefactthatthis
reportwaswrittennearlyadecadeaftertheprogram’sdisclosuretothepublic(and
85RobertM.Gatesetal.,videoconferencewithTedKoppel,November28,
1995,ABCNewsNightline,ABC,WashingtonD.C.
86UnitedStatesDepartmentoftheAirForce,AirForceResearchLaboratory,
TeleportationPhysicsStudy,viii.
87UnitedStatesDepartmentoftheAirForce,AirForceResearchLaboratory,
TeleportationPhysicsStudy,55.
76
itstacitdisavowal)ismoreevidencethatanewhypecyclemightindeedbe
underway.
ForscientistsintheAirForcetoseepotentialinthesamephenomenathat
civilianscientistsvehementlyconsiderapseudosciencemeansthatthepublicisnot
awareofthefullsituation.DoestheAirForcehaveaccesstoinformationthatthe
generalpublicdidnotthatswaysthemtowardseeingparapsychologyasareality?
Whatdotheyseethatcivilianscientistsdonot?Thesequestionscannotbe
answereduntilmoreinformationismadeavailableinthefuture.Fornow,allthat
canbeinferredfromthecurrentcircumstancesisthatahighlyelite,prestigious,
wealthyandpowerfulsectorofAmericansocietyhasandcontinuestobea
proponentoftherealityofextrasensoryperceptionandrelatedanomalous
phenomena.Theconcomitantinferenceisthatthecivilianscientificestablishment
hasbeenunsuccessfulinitsrepeatedattemptstodiscreditparapsychologyinthe
eyesofitsmilitaryandintelligencecounterparts.
Ontheothersideofthespectrum,artificialintelligenceexperiencedsimilar
fluctuations,butisnotasinherentlycontroversialasparapsychologyistothe
scientificestablishment.Bycomparison,researchintoartificialintelligencewas
moreopenintermsofwhatthepublicwasmadeawareof.Evenwhenreading
publicationsbyscientistswhoareskeptics,thecondescensionpresentinliterature
criticalofparapsychologyisnotpalpabletothereader.Thisisbecausetheideaof
artificialintelligencedoesnotinvadeuponthepre-acceptedprinciplesthat
scientistsadhereto.ArtificialintelligencewasnotasuccessfulenterpriseintheCold
77
War,but,unlikeparapsychology,thequestionwasnever,“Shouldwecontinueto
researchit?”Rather,thequestionthatmorecloselyresemblestherealissueathand
was,“whataspectofartificialintelligenceshouldbestudiednext?”Theformer
questionreflectedthemajorityofscientist’sperspectiveonparapsychology,the
latteronartificialintelligence.Indeed,thecorrespondencebetweenDARPAandthe
AAAIpreviouslymentionedexemplifiesawillingnessofthegovernmenttocontinue
itssupportofartificialintelligenceresearch.
Despitetheroleplayedbytheprivateandacademicsectorsinthegrowthof
artificialintelligence,thegovernmenthasandwillcontinuetobethebackboneof
supportinthefield.Theentanglementofthesethreeentitiessolidifiedthefieldof
computertechnologyandthisrelationshipiswhatfuelsartificialintelligence
researchtoday.Theseassociationswerepivotalforprogressincomputer
technology.Interrelationshipssuchasthesewillcontinueandbecomestrongerin
thefutureascomputertechnologybecomesevenmoreubiquitousthatitalreadyis. Eventhoughresearchregardingartificialintelligenceisnotlikelytobe
terminatedanytimesoon,itisimpossibletoascertainwhetheritsprevious
fluctuationsrepresentedbythehypecyclewillcontinueinthefuture.DARPA,the
governmententitythatisprimarilyconcernedwithartificialintelligence,is
currentlyundertakingthreepublicprogramsgearedtowardartificialintelligence:
“ProbabilisticProgrammingforAdvancingMachineLearning”(PPAML),
“CommunicatingwithComputers”(CwC),andthe“BigMechanism”.ThePPAML
servesasaperfectexampleofthehypecycleastheproject’sintendedpurposeisto
78
“createmoreeconomical,robustandpowerfulapplicationsthatneedlessdatato
producemoreaccurateresults–featuresinconceivablewithtoday’stechnology.”88
Thisisthesametechnologythatwassoughtintheoriginalresearchthatwas
ultimatelyunsuccessful.Onceabandoned,theconceptformachineswitha
sophisticatedenoughartificialintelligencetomakesdecisionsfasterandmore
accuratewithlesstimeandresourcesisbeingrevisited.
Onthewhole,theartificialintelligenceandparapsychologyprograms
followedsimilartrajectoriesthroughouttheColdWarandbeyond.Theideaofthe
hypecycleisastrongconceptualaidthatillustratestheperiodicepisodesofintense
optimismfollowedbywidespreaddisillusionment.Thesetrendswereconsistent
withthestateoftheresearchatthetimeandtheexpectationsthatwereassociated
withthem.AlthoughitisimportanttoacknowledgethattheadvancesmadeinAI
havebeenmoreimpressivethaninESP,tothepublic’sknowledgeneitherventure
tothisdayhasprovedsuccessfultothepointwheregovernmentscientistscan
confidentlydemonstratetheminanopenforum.Yet,bothparapsychologyand
artificialintelligencearestillbeinginvestigatedfortheirpotentialbenefits.
Oneofthefactorsthatmakeparapsychologyandartificialintelligence
uniquelyconnectedisthefactthatbothinitiativesinthepost-ColdWareraare
directlydescendedfromtheprogramsthattookplaceinthesecondhalfofthe
88Dr.SureshJagannathan,“ProbabilisticProgrammingforAdvancing
MachineLearning(Ppaml),”DefenseAdvancedResearchProjectsAgency,accessed
January29,2016,http://www.darpa.mil/program/probabilistic-programming-foradvancing-machine-Learning.
79
twentiethcentury.TheUnitedStatesAirForceproposedfurtherresearchinthe
workofDr.AndrijaPuharichandtheexperimentsconductedatStanfordUniversity,
citingspecificinterestintheareaof‘psychicteleportation,’whichismoregenerally
knownaspsychokinesis.Withregardtoartificialintelligence,DARPAdecidedthatit
wasimperativetogobackandreexaminethesameproblemitencounteredinthe
1960s;theartofendowingamachinewithasignificantlyreducedperiodbetween
questionandanswer,orinputandoutput.Inbothcasesthegovernmentisholding
itsownpreviousresearchasthebenchmarkorbasisforwhatendeavorstoexplore
inthefuture.
80
CONCLUSION
Artificialintelligenceandparapsychologyaretwoconceptsthathavebeen
investigatedinpasterasandwillsurelycontinuetobethesubjectsofinquiryinthe
future.ThesefieldsundoubtedlytranscendtheColdWar,yettheirhistorieswithin
thatperiodareillustrativeofthekindsofdecisionsthatbesettheleadersofthe
UnitedStates’intelligenceandmilitarycommunities.Therawfirepowerof
conventionalweaponsthatwereutilizedinformerwarswereofnoconsequencein
theColdWar,leavingofficialswiththetaskofcreatingoffensiveanddefensive
weaponryofadifferentcaliber.Artificialintelligence,atthetime,waslargelybeing
consideredforitsdefensivecapabilities,asU.S.authoritiessoughttohavespeech
recognitiontechnologythatunderstoodandtranslatedlanguagesinrealtime.
Parapsychology,theoreticallyatleast,wasacknowledgedashavingpotentialinboth
offensiveanddefensiveobjectivesbytheintelligencecommunity,particularlyafter
scientistslearnedofreportsfromtheSovietUnion.Theseaberrantresearch
initiativesseriouslyquestionedtheconceptofrationality,asitwasthenunderstood.
Thoughtheorists’ideasofrationalitywerebynomeansmonolithic,priortotheCold
Wartherewasafairlyunifiedperspectivethatparapsychology,andtoacertain
extentartificialintelligence,wereirrationalresearchendeavors.
TheColdWarthatenvelopedtheworldinthesecondhalfthetwentieth
centurycreatedasituationwherebothsuperpowersfeltitwasnecessary,and
81
rational,toinvestigateconceptsthatotherwisewouldnothavebeenentertained.
Theseforaysintothefringeresultedinabreakfromtheformofrationalitythathad
beenpreviouslyacceptedandusheredinanerawhererationalitywasunderstood
withintheconfinesofaveryspecificcontext:theneedforalternativemeasures
againsttheSovietUnion.Indeed,thedecisionstoauthorizeresearchinto
parapsychologyandartificialintelligencewerenotwithouttheircritics,butinthe
faceofextraordinarycircumstances,suchastheintelligencethattheSovietswere
workingonparapsychologicalwarfaremeasures,theUnitedStatesGovernmenthad
nootheroptionbuttoresearchit,lestitriskfallingbehindtheUSSR.Inconjunction
withthis,themilitarywasimpressedwiththeworkofascientistnamedAndrija
Puharich,whoarguedforgovernmentsupportforresearchintoextrasensory
perceptionformilitaryandintelligenceapplications.
Artificialintelligence,thoughseeminglylesscontroversialthan
parapsychology,wasnotasacceptabletothescientistofthemid-twentiethcentury
asitistooneofthetwenty-first.Sincetheconceptofartificialintelligenceinits
modernincarnationdevelopedalongsidecomputertechnology,researcherswere
hesitanttoendorsethenotionthatapieceofhardwarecouldseamlesslysimulate
thefunctioningofthehumanbrain.Oneofthemostprominentargumentscritiquing
AIwasthatdespiterecordingvastswathsofinformationintoadevice,thatdevice
wouldnothavethecomprehensionequivalentofasmallchild;wordssuchas‘wood’
and‘would’wereconfusedbythemachine.TheDefenseDepartmentwasneverfully
82
deterredbythesecriticisms,eventhoughartificialintelligencewouldencounter
numerousroadblocksthroughouttheColdWar.
Bothparapsychologyandartificialintelligenceparalleledeachotherinthe
sensethatthoseworkingontheprojectswereardentproponentsoftheirpotential
capabilitiesandtheresultstheywerereceiving.Ontheotherhand,membersofthe
governmentthatwerefarremovedfromtheprogramsdidnotalwayssharethat
senseofaccomplishment.Thisdivisioninsupportersanddetractorsextends
beyondtherealmofthegovernmentandpervadesthepublicsphereaswell.Since
neitherside,forbothparapsychologyandartificialintelligence,wasabletowholly
convincetheother,ascenarioofperpetualconflictarose.Thisclashpointedtowhat
researchershavetermed“hypecycles.”Theconceptofthehypecyclesymbolizes
howideasfallinandoutoffavorbasedonavarietyofdatapoints.Bothprograms
experiencedcyclesanalogoustothesethroughoutthecourseoftheColdWar.
Parapsychologicalphenomenahaveperplexedmanforcenturiesandwill
continuetointhefuture,especiallyifthoseattheapexofscientificprogress,suchas
theAirForceResearchLaboratory,continuetofinditworthinvestigating.Artificial
intelligenceisslowlybeingintroducedtodaythroughnumerouselectronic
platforms,butitisnotthekindofartificialintelligencethatonewouldexpect.The
speechrecognitionprogramsundertakenbyDARPAwereneverabletotranslate
theRussianlanguageinrealtime.Infact,thatsortoftechnologyisonlycomingto
fruitioninthepresent.Inmanycases,speech-to-textsoftwarefailstorecognize
83
voices,accents,andwordsingeneral.Nevertheless,artificialintelligenceasa
concepthasbecomeubiquitousinsocietyandispromotedbyprivateindustryin
waysthatwhollycontradicttheactionsofcorporationswhenAIwasinitsinfancy.
WhereascorporationsintheearlyColdWarwerereluctanttofinanceresearchinto
asubjectwithoutalargeprospectofreturn,privateindustryinthetwenty-first
centuryispouringbillionsofdollarsintoresearchingwaystoendowmachineswith
human-levelintelligence.Thisdrivebytheprivateindustryisbuoyedbythe
interestoftheDepartmentofDefenseindevelopingartificiallyintelligentmachines,
neitherpartyofwhichislikelytoenditspursuitsanytimesoon.
84
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