The Stone Tape theory is a paranormal hypothesis that was proposed in the 1970s as a possible explanation for ghosts. It speculates that inanimate materials can absorb some form of energy from living beings; the hypothesis speculates that this "recording" happens especially during moments of high tension, such as murder, or during intense moments of someone's life. This stored energy can be released, resulting in a display of the recorded activity. According to this hypothesis, ghosts are not spirits but simply non-interactive recordings similar to a movie.[1] Paranormal investigators commonly consider such phenomena as residual hauntings.
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Belgian researchers claimed to have discovered sound waves from the grooves of an ancient 6,500 year old pottery. The sound waves included talking and laughter. The voices in ancient Latin language provoked the Linguists’ attention. Unfortunately, the case turns out to be a hoax. When the report was claimed, an independent scholar, Richard G. Woodbridge, analyzed the sound play back and concluded it to be the humming of the pottery wheel. Television shows referred to the case and incorporated it to the story lines. An episode of X-Files was about a bowl that contains the voice of Jesus, when Lazarus was raised from the dead. The Crime Scene Investigation episode showed that voices were recovered from pot made by a mental patient.[2].
No scientist has proposed a mechanical explanation for this theory. What kind of energy might be involved and how such "playbacks" are triggered are unknown, rendering the theory completely untestable. Some proponents argue that a specific state of brainwaves is necessary to experience a playback, while others claim that the "viewing" person needs some psychic ability.[1]
Cultural biases and experience determines how individual’s perception. For Biangai culture, the photos of the deceased are believed to have the ability to attract malevolent forces. Photo “takes your mind back” to the past. In a specific case, a guest worker took a photo in a garden. A man’s head appeared in the image. All the workers interpreted that the man was the garden’s owner’s ancestor. None was convinced when Halvaksz suggested that this was a photographic error.[3]
High level of dopamine is suggested to improve the Signal-to-noise ratio, or the ability to transmit the signals to the brain and reduce the meaningless noise. An experiment was conducted to test how different levels of dopamine affects the perceptions of paranormal believers and skeptics. The subjects were divided into two groups, skeptics and believers. Within each of the two groups, half of the participants received levodopa, which increases the dopamine level, and the other half were the control group and received placebos. Each subject was required to respond to sound stimuli and respond whether there was any meaning or signals in the sound. The experiment yields that the baseline dopamine level may have an affect on whether a person is a believer or a skeptic. Medium to high doses of dopamine is correlated with a decline of cognitive performance. Low to medium doses is correlated with improvement of cognitive performances.[4]