Ray Taylor is the editor of Psychic World.

PSYCHIC WORLD no. 98, February 2002

The Facts!

Dear Ray,

Once again I fear that Mr. Roll cannot get his facts right. He claims (Psychic World January 2002) that I am 'wrong when (I) state that Dr. Beloff was not giving his own views about linking survival with atomic physics'. In fact I stated nothing of the kind. I was objecting (Psychic World December 2001) to Mr. Roll's untrue claim in the October issue of the newspaper that 'Dr. Beloff starts from the base that we do not survive death' and to his selective quoting from Dr. Beloff's book 'Parapsychology: A Concise History'. I made no mention of atomic physics.

Mr. Roll now shifts his ground and gives us a quite different quote from Dr. Beloffs book, claiming this time that it does show that Dr. Beloff rejects the idea that survival can be linked to sub-atomic physics. As in his previous quote from Dr. Beloff this is selective quoting of the most misleading kind. Dr. Beloff makes it clear throughout his book that far from dismissing the relevance of atomic physics to the paranormal he is very much in favour of it. For example he refers to the great significance for parapsychology of 'the revolutions in 20th Century physics', and insists that if the Copenhagen Interpretation of quantum physics (which he supports) becomes an accepted feature of standard physics 'psi phenomena could, thereafter be classed as physical phenomena of a special kind'.

It is also untrue to say, as does Mr. Roll, that psychologists and parapsychologists 'feel that their authority is threatened' when attempts are made to link survival with subatomic physics. In more than 30 years in the profession I have never heard either psychologists or pararpsychologists make such an absurd claim. Survival of physical death is the most important of all fundamental questions about human nature, and the more academic disciplines that produce findings in its support, the better. No-one has "authority" or survival research, and no-one such have "authority" over it. History in any case shows that the direct evidence for survival over the last century owes more to the skills of mediums than to those of scientists of any discipline. Nor can survival be a "branch" of any one subject as Mr. Roll supposes, whether that subject be psychology, parapsychology, physics, philosophy, theology, anthropology or any other. It is far too extensive and complex a field to be subsumed by any one of them.

Mr. Roll's main reason for antagonism towards Dr. Beloff and the SPR appears to be that the SPR journal has not published the articles he thinks it should publish, and therefore has in his view 'censored' them. In this he shows his unfamiliarty with the practices of scientific journals. All such journals, if they have any standing, receive far more articles than they can possibly publish. In consequence, many of these articles have to be rejected (a leading journal like 'Nature' may reject over 90 per cent of those received). The Journal of the SPR is no exception to this overload, and cannot possibly publish all the material it receives. Peer reviewing means that all scientific journals send the articles they receive to independent referees, and the referees' reports and recommendations as to suitability for publication guide the editor's decision on what to accept. If articles are rejected, authors are sent copies of these reports so that they can see the reasons for rejection. This has nothing to do with 'censorship', and everything to do with the pressures upon space in journals.

Mr. Roll now asks that the SPR publish an article by Sir Oliver Lodge written nearly 80 years ago. Sir Oliver Lodge (who served as SPR President) is one of the most revered of all past SPR members, and the SPR 'Proceedings' published more of his papers on the paranormal than did any other journal. Certainly all his articles, together with those of many other pioneers of survival research, should be republished. But like other scientific journals, the SPR "Journal" and "Proceedings" exist to publish new material - or which, as I have said, there is already far more than we can possibly handle - rather than reprints. The place for reprints would be series of books reproducing as much as possible of Lodge's work and that of Crookes, Barrett, Flammarion, Richet, Geley, Myers and others. The task is well beyond the limited resources of the SPR, but would give all possible support to any publisher who is prepared to take it on.

In a previous letter to "Psychic World" Mr. Roll also attacks the SPR for not accepting a paper that he had submfitted to the SPR international conference in 1999. Again he sees this as censorship. But international conferences are in the same position as scientific journals. Far more papers are submitted than can possibly be accepted. If it is any comfort to Mr. Roll, even senior members of the SPR Council have had papers rejected by the conference.

I believe Mr. Roll to be a sincere man who is dedicated to informing the public of the case for survival. Unfortunately he does far more harm than good by attacking - and misrepresenting - the work of anyone who he feels does not see exactly eye to eye with him over details. In attacking Dr. Beloff (who has now retired) he attacks a man respected world-wide for having done more to bring psychical research to the attention of the scientific community than almost anyone else alive today. And in trying to maintain that the SPR is in any way against the case for survival he risks discouraging newcomers to the subject from following up their interest. The danger is that if he misleads them into believing that the SPR - the oldest scientific society of its kind in the world - rejects the evidence for survival, their likely conclusion is that this evidence cannot therefore be very convincing.

Incidentally, readers of 'Psychic World' will be interested to know that in the recently completed catalogue of all the SPR publications, which runs to over 700 pages, fully 150 pages are taken up by a list of articles on survival. The SPR has given more space in its 'Journal' and 'Proceedings' to this subject than to any other single area of psychical research. Moreover, the overwhelming number of these articles present evidence supporting the reality of survival.

Yours Sincerely, Professor David Fontana, Cardiff

Linking survival after death with subatomic physics - Letter from Michael Roll to Ray Taylor, Editor of Psychic World (December 1, 2001)

This letter was written in response to Prof. David Fontana's letter in the December 2001 issue of Psychic World.