Remote Viewing: Parapsychological Potential for Intelligence Collection?

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REMOTE VIEWING: PARAPSYCHOLOGICAL POTENTIAL
FOR INTELLIGENCE COLLECTION?

by
Michael E. Zarbo
Captain, United States Army
Graduate Class 9201

Thesis submitted to the Faculty
of the Defense Intelligence College
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Science of Strategic Intelligence

November 1992

The views expressed in this paper are those of the author and
do not reflect the official policy or position of the
Department of Defense or the US Government

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page
LIST OF FIGURES..... Ce eee ecco reensseen meee eres evnevseeee vii
Chapter
1. INTRODUCTION... ccc ccc r nnn vreccvvrvrcrvnsesesesesesa
Riddled With Controversy..... cee meee cere es eeee 5
Barly US interest... ccceveveccecceserecceeve rd
2. THE SOVIET ADVANTAGE. ..00ceees seem e rer ere eenee 15
Marked Differences..... cece cee ees sce e eee e ees 15
Historical Perspective... ceccccevccrrvesevves 19
Mind Over Matter... ceceecercererecrecerereseces 27
3. HUBRIS IN THE US GOVERNMENT PERSPECTIVE?........ 32
A Need to BelLieve?... cere ceeccvecvsveseceeveees do
Stanford Research Institute (SRI) Tests........ 36
4. AN INTELLIGENCE TOOL?... cere cvecvsreevsveseseee DI
Political and Military Applications............ 50
5. CONCLUSION... cc rvccevcccevcesvesevsseeveseserve lO
What We Don't Know Could Hurt Us!..............76
Insurmountable Obstacles?........ cece ewer eee ee IB
BIBLIOGRAPHY. .....-.-- Come er ere c eee r rcv ere rec rcsesee 88
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FIGURE

1

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LIST OF FIGURES

Photographs and remote viewer's drawings of
targets contained in 35mm film canisters,

Stanford Research Institute, Menlo Park, CA.

Zl JUNE 1OTI LL. eee cece creer ere r rece ce sere eseeene

Photograph and remote viewer's drawing of a
Research and Development site in the Soviet
Union, Spring 1977...... co eees Cece reece erence renee

Remote viewer's drawing of water fountain
at Washington Square in New York City, 6 6 July
1976. eeeeeeeeeteeeeeeeae se eee een ee eseevs34¢e¢e¢s oeee#eeetee

Remote viewer's drawing of an airport in San
Andres, Colombia, March 1976......cccccsvecccceecs

Remote viewer's drawing of a merry-go-round
March 1976 eoeoe eves Pee & 8 eeeeneteeseeese eoeeteevreeeeeve eoeeteete

Remote viewer's drawing of tennis courts
March LOTH. ccc crac v rcv nccversesvesvessecesvsvvcees

Remote viewer's drawing of typewriter target
March 1976. crccwrcccccce eeeee#e eeseeeee eeeoe8e e*eoneeee

Remote viewer's drawing of video monitor
March LOTG i. crc c eve wns vvnvreesvesverseccevsessevevecsors

Remote viewer's drawing of xerox machine
March 197TG. ccc cccvecscesscccsece eeesee##e eeeoeeeseeeveexrese

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ABSTRACT

(U) Remote viewing could be a potentially profitable
intelligence collection tool if accepted as valid by those who
have the power to promote its research. Blindly overlooking
the persuasive experimental data that this phenomenon has
yielded On mumerouS occasions could equate, from a
counterintelligence perspective, to disregarding a potentially
dangerous threat. This study is not designed to persuade the
reader that this phenomenon is absolute, but rather to bring
to light, that in time, through continued study and
application of this phenomenon, it could prove a worthwhile
collection tool.

(U) Research in this area is at a standstill in the
United States. The general premise, threaded throughout this
paper, is that a great majority of professionals from
government, military, and academic circles are reluctant to
accept this phenomenon, regardless of significant findings.
The fear of humiliation for accepting something which so
strongly cuts across the lines of conventional wisdom appears
to be the overriding reason. This paper illustrates, through

informed opinions of prominent government, military, and

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academic officials, the roller coaster of differing attitudes
this phenomenon has weathered over time.

(U) While this study addresses the inherent short
comings of this phenomenon, it also uncovers a great deal of
credible information in the form of experimental test
procedures and results, interviews with reputable authorities,
and suggestions for employing this phenomenon, which if ever
accepted, could contribute to acceptance of remote viewing as

an intelligence force multiplier.

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CHAPTER 1

You're travelling through another
dimension. A dimension, not only of
sight and sound, but of mind. A journey
into a wonderous land whose boundaries
are that of the imagination.

i

Rod Serling
"The Twilight Zone"

(U) During the course of researching this topic, chosen
prior to the break up of the Soviet Union, much of the
information obtained applies to what today exists as the
Commonwealth of Independent States. For clarity's sake,
readers should know that in those cases where the events
addressed occurred prior to August 1991, the terms Soviet
Union and Soviet are used to indicate the nation which existed

at that time.

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INTRODUCTION

(U) The field of parapsychology is large, encompassing

numerous independent topics, therefore, this thesis will focus

on the study of telepathic clairvoyance, recently termed’

"remote viewing" by Stanford Research Institute (SRI)
scientists Harold Puthoff and Russell Targ. Benjamin B.
Wolman author of Handbook of Parapsychology defines remote

t

viewing as an experience, either spontaneous or induced, in

which one's center of consciousness seems to be in a spatial
location separate from that of one's physical body.’ Other
commonly used synonyms include astral projection, and out-of-
body-experience. In research conducted under the sponsorship
of the former Soviet Union, the Russians, who study this
concept seriously, believe that when it is finally developed,
remote viewing will allow an operator in one location to
gather intelligence information from another area, up to
several thousand kilometers away, without ever leaving the
security of his initial location. This collection is not
conducted with the aid of electronic equipment, but strictly
by mental processes.

(U) Research shows that the US does not consider remote

viewing a viable threat. More importantly, the US has

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consistently overlooked remarkable experimental data which
illustrates that remote viewing could also prove an invaluable
complimentary intelligence collection asset.

(U) Parapsychology is a controversial phenomenon both
among the general public and in respected academic circles.
The most striking hypothesis threaded throughout my research,
is that parapsychological data, no mater how convincing, is
frequently dismissed as superstitious hocus pocus and
nonsense. This paper will illustrate that the intelligence
community, schooled to "think red," should focus on the
potential value this phenomenon has demonstrated on numerous
occasions.

(U) The biggest obstacle in the path to further
research, which has plagued this branch of inquiry since the
1920s, is the intelligence community's reluctance to accept
remote viewing. It appears to threaten their conventional
beliefs, and many people associated with this controversial
issue are labelled charlatans or freaks. I personally
encountered this skepticism during my research for this paper.
Many of the people I approached with the hope of obtaining
leads or information met me with raised eyebrows and

disdainful smirks.

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(U) The current umbrella of intelligence disciplines;
Signals Intelligence; Imagery Intelligence; newly introduced
Measurement and Signature Intelligence; and Human Intelligence
are considered sufficient by the intelligence community to
adequately meet our intelligence collection needs. However,
what if a force multiplier could be added that could
substantially enhance this overall collection umbrella?
Available evidence is increasingly persuasive that such a
multiplier may indeed exist in the form of remote viewing. In
addition, if such a multiplier does exist, it stands to reason
that steps toward preparing defensive countermeasures would
merit the concern of the counterintelligence community.
However, interest in demonstrating its potential has seriously
subsided in the US since the mid 1970s.

(U) The importance and ramifications of remote viewing
to the field of intelligence if used by an opposing force
could be monumental. Consider the following scenario: On the
modern battlefield the opposition might have the ability to
retrieve intricate battle plans from a US tactical operations
center far enough in advance to plan a counterattack to squash
an upcoming operation. The US force would be placed at a
serious disadvantage at best, and utterly defeated in the

worst case. To take it a step further, let us suggest that

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the opposition could obtain this information in advance
undetected, regardless of stringent security. The final blow:
There is apparently no serious effort underway by the US

Government to counter this possibility.

RIDDLED WITH CONTROVERSY

_ (0) The two major subcategories of parapsychology are
extrasensory perception (ESP) and psychokinesis (PK).? The
phenomenon of remote viewing falls within ESP and pertains to
the acquisition and description, by mental means, of
information blocked from ordinary perception by distance or
shielding, and generally considered to be secure.?

(U) According to Robert A. Monroe, author of the landmark

book Journeys Out of the Body, which he based on several years

of personal out-of-body experiences, remote viewing includes
events in which the experiencer (1) seems to perceive some
portion of some environment which could not possibly be
perceived from where his physical body is known to be at the
time; and (2) knows at the time that he is not dreaming or
fantasizing because the person experiencing this event

maintains normal consciousness.‘

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(U) Ray Hyman, professor of psychology at the University

of Oregon and author of Psychological Inquiry, defines remote

viewing as an incident when a subject is able to describe a
target site even though he has no sensory basis for doing so.
This can be achieved by giving the subject the longitude and
latitude of any place on the globe, or by sending a team of
observers, who act as a conduit for the remote viewer, to a

randomly selected site that is unknown to the subject.®

EARLY US INTEREST

(S/NF) US national security agencies have been
interested in remote viewing since at least World War II when
Hitler reportedly relied on astrologers and seers for
intelligence information. Approximately 50 years later the
government still cannot disprove that psychic phenomena is
something to be taken seriously. The FY 1992 Defense
Authorization Act tasked the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)
to initiate an aggressive study on anomalous phenomena. The
FY 1992 Act directs "a continued robust effort to evaluate the
activities of foreign governments, particularly the activities

of the Soviet Union."

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SG1A

(U) According to William J. Broad, a New York Times
reporter, US concern over Russian interest in paranormal
phenomena was nothing new. His article, "The Pentagon is Said
to Focus on ESP for Wartime," claimed that in 1977 President
Carter ordered the Central Intelligence Agency to "conduct a
high-level review of psychic research behind the Iron Curtain
in an attempt to assess a possible Soviet threat."’

(U) However, Admiral Stansfield Turner, CIA director
appointed by President Carter, was a self-confessed skeptic of
parapsychology and Carter's tasking was never taken seriously.
Turner once remarked, "twenty years from now, I may wonder how
I could be so dumb as to question the evidence for psychic
phenomena, but then again, I may feel the same way I do now."®

(S/NF) Ronald McRea, in his article "Psychic Warfare,"

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which appeared in the October 1981 issue of The Investigator,

claimed that the US Navy, as early as 1952, was the first

armed service to look into employing psychics, in an attempt

to enhance its efforts to locate Soviet submarines.® Also in

1952 the Department of Defense received information on the

possible usefulness of ESP in psychological warfare."

1961, because of mounting interest in paranormal phenomena,

the CIA's Office of Technical Service commissioned the

Director of the Parapsychological Laboratory at Oxford

University in London to review the validity of ESP. The

project, codenamed ULTRA, claimed that ESP was demonstrated

but not understood or controllable. The report was read with

interest at the CIA but produced no further action.'' This

inaction by the US military reflected their reluctance to

accept something of this magnitude which so strongly ran

counter to their innate conservatism.

(U) Nevertheless, in time, Congress and the military,

namely Military Intelligence, demonstrated increased concern

over the concept of remote viewing and psychic warfare during

the early 1970s. This concern focused on the fear that the US

was losing the "race of psychic supremacy" to the Soviets.

Moreover, it was also during this time that the US news media

and noteworthy scientific journals such as Nature, Science,

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and Proceedings of the IEE (Institute of Electrical and
Electronics Engineers) started to seriously address psychic
issues.’* In addition, conferences organized by reputable
scientific bodies, and attended by high-ranking military and
government officials, started to reexamine the laissez-faire
attitude of the US toward psychic phenomena.

(U) It was also during the 1970s that Stanford Research
Institute scientists Harold Puthoff and Russell Targ convinced
some within the intelligence community, through numerous
controlled experiments, that remote viewing should not be
overlooked as a collection tool:

(U) In these experiments, a psychologist would sit
with a "psychic" subject in a laboratory, while
another scientist would stand at an unknown site,
sometimes several kilometers away. The subject
would attempt to describe the site, of which he had
no prior knowledge. In many cases the scientists
said, these descriptions -- of objects as large as
clock towers and as small as pins -- were
remarkably accurate, the evident result of some
telepathic mental process not yet understood."

(U) However, since the 1970s, when support for remote
viewing reached its apex, its more recent examination has been
marked by a roller coaster of attitudes, from overwhelming

ridicule to reluctant attempts at understanding it. Some have

even tried to exercise the sketchy knowledge uncovered.

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(U) Dr. Edgar M. Johnson, Technical Director and Chief
Psychologist for the US Army, claims that the overriding
reason why research for parapsychology is at a standstill is
that there is no theoretical basis put forward on why we would
expect to find the existence of paranormal phenomena. This,
he claims, is a more damning fault than not having the data.
According to Dr. Johnson:

(U) After 30 or 40 years of sustained support in
this area there still is not very convincing data.
You can only pursue a dream so long. In many cases

phenomena have explanations based on known physical
principles, so one tendency is, if we see something

unusual, we conclude that it must have an unusual

explanation. The problem with parapsychology is
that it has no explanation, unusual or otherwise."

(U) po Chief of Special Projects for the

Defense Intelligence Agency, holds a bachelor's degree in

aeronautical engineering, and a master's degree in physics.
He has spent fifteen years following the progression of world-
wide parapsychological research. He has also been actively
involved, in what he refers to as "hands-on experimentation"
in the US. In fact, he is the person most referred to, by

many of the people consulted for information on this topic, as

the intelligence community's premier source on paranormal

phenomena. He counters Dr. Johnson's opinion on this issue:

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(U) Because of my background, I look at things
from a scientific perspective, fully realizing that
not all science can be explained in advance by
theory. Some science has got to be evolved and
determined through the empirical, or the ‘getting-
the-hands-dirty approach.' Over my fifteen years
of study in this area I have noted strong
correlations, too striking, and well beyond chance,
even when you rule in coincidences and other types
of factors. This phenomenon is not totally
predictable, but then again, what is totally
predictable in the human side of things,
particularly when you are looking at psychological
factors? Therefore, why should we expect an area
like this to yield direct, easy answers when you
first encounter it? It does not work that way, but
it does not invalidate the basic phenomenon.”

(U) Nevertheless, an overwhelming number of government
and military officials still appear to fear humiliation for
accepting the existence of psychic phenomena. However, an
intelligent general public, with nothing to lose, appears to
overwhelmingly believe. According to a poll conducted by the
CBS News program 48 Hours, which aired on 8 February 1990, Dan
Rather conceded, "Nearly two-thirds of Americans believe in
ESP or mental telepathy and 25 percent said they had
personally experienced so called 'paranormal' phenomena.""®

(U) This paper addresses this phenomena which still
defies explanation. However, due to the secretive nature of
this topic and the promise to protect the sensitivity of
current programs and the anonymity of some sources consulted,
reporting the totality of current research is not possible.

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Therefore, the information in this paper includes only that

which several US government sources involved in this sensitive

research deemed releasable during the summer and fall of 1992.

Nevertheless, the data provided will contribute to better

informed judgements about whether this branch of inquiry

deserves a further look for possible application in an

intelligence gathering capacity.
(U) Chapter 2 addresses the alleged Soviet advances in
this field, Chapter 3 details the research conducted in the

US, Chapter 4 focuses on the potential that remote viewing has

as an intelligence collection tool, and counterintelligence

threat, and Chapter 5 posits conclusions based on the previous

4 chapters.

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NOTES
1. Benjamin B. Wolman, ed., Handbook of Parapsychology (New
York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, 1977), 929.
2. Richard  S. Broughton, Ph.D., Parapsychology: The
Controversial Science (New York: Ballantine Books, 1991), 6.
3. Russell Targ and Harold EE. Puthoff. Remote Viewing
Replication, Evaluated by Concept Analysis. (Menlo Park, CA:

Radio Physics Laboratory, Stanford Research Institute, 1982), 3.

4. Monroe, Robert A. Journeys Out of the Body. (Garden City,
New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1971), 7.

5. Ray Hyman, "Psychics and Scientists: Mind-Reach and Remote
Viewing." The Humanist, 36, no.3, May/June 1977, 16.

7. William J. Broad. "Pentagon is Said to Focus on ESP for
Wartime Use." New York Times, 10 January 1984, sec.C,1l.

8. Ronald M. McRea. Mind Wars: The True Story of Government
Research into the Military Potential of Psychic Weapons. (New York:
St. Martin's Press, 1984), 35.

9. Ronald McRea and Susan Merrow, "Psychic Warfare," The
Investigator, October 1981, 60.

10. (SECRET/NOFORN) Central Intelligence Agency. "Parapsychology
in Intelligence: A Personal Review and Conclusions." Studies in
Intelligence. TR-SINT 77-001, 21, no.1, Spring 1977, 7.

11. (SECRET/NOFORN) Central Intelligence Agency. "Parapsychology
in Intelligence: A Personal Review and Conclusions." Studies in
Intelligence. TR-SINT 77-001, 21, no. 1, Spring 1977, 8.

12. Charles Wallach, "The Science of Psychic Warfare," Journal of
Defense Diplomacy, 3, no.9 (September 1985), 39.

13. Christopher Hansen "Superpowers Said to be Studying Psychic
Phenomena for Military Use." Reuters North European Service, 12
November 1985.

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14. Edgar M. Johnson, PH.D. Technical Director and Chief
Psychologist, US Army. Interview conducted by author at the US
Army Research Institute (ARI) for the Behavioral and Social
Sciences, 21 October 1992.

15. Po Chief of Special Projects Office (DTI-S), Defense
Intelligence Agency. Interview conducted by the author at the
Defense Intelligence Agency, 26 October, 1992.

16. "Psychics and Skeptics," 48 Hours, narr. Dan Rather, CBS
News, 8 February 1990.

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CHAPTER 2

THE SOVIET ADVANTAGE

(U) The Soviets are working on dramatically exotic
new weapons, twenty-five years ahead of anything
ever conceived in the US--so awesome as to lead the
Soviets to believe that in the coming decade they
would be capable of total neutralization of our
ballistic and submarine missiles."

Major General George J. Keegan

Former Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence
United States Airforce 1977

MARKED DIFFERENCES

(U) Historically, scientists from the former Soviet
Union researched paranormal phenomena from a more empirical
standpoint than the US. They generally accepted that this
phenomena was explainable through controlled experiments along
the same lines as biology and physiology. In contrast, the US
tried to prove that paranormal phenomena does not deserve the
same serious inquiry as do the hard sciences.

(U) The results of these two conflicting philosophies
has lead to a well-organized, well-disciplined parapsychology
program in the former Soviet Union as opposed to a splintered,

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unorganized program in the US. Additionally, the Soviets'
regard for parapsychology as a science added legitimacy for
their policymakers to sanction and fund paranormal research.

(S/NF) In addition to these differences in philosophical
approaches there exist stark differences in the experimental
techniques used by former Soviet and US researchers. In the
US the subject, or remote viewer, is in a completely normal,
conscious state. The Russians reportedly rely heavily on
hypnotism, biofeedback, yoga, and drugs to induce trances and
trance-like states.'®

(U) Seriousness in the former Soviet Union about
paranormal phenomena is evidenced by a 25 to 50-year advantage
in research. Addressing this contrast in approaches regarding

paranormal research, US Army Medical Service Corps Captain

Richard Groller stated in 1984:

(U) The general premise in this country regarding
parapsychological phenomena has been, "First prove
to me that it exists, then I'll believe it."
Counter to this has been the basic Soviet premise
regarding parapsychology phenomena which is, "We
believe that something exists that has no normal,
rational, explanation--let us investigate it."’®

(U) Captain Groller's outlook still applies today in the

US. Dr. Edgar M. Johnson, Technical Director and Chief

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Psychologist at the US Army Institute for Behavioral and
Social Sciences (ARI), questioned about this perspective in

October of 1992, answered:

(U) Why would we expect it to exist? Where are
the principles on which it should operate? Whether
or not you can find it, what is the theoretical
basis that leads us to believe it is there? An
example of what I mean, in military context, is the
creation of the first atom bomb. We spent several
billion dollars building it, but at the end of its
construction, it worked. There was a theoretical
basis for believing that, if we did things a
certain way, the results were predictable. There
is no theoretical basis for believing that remote
viewing, ESP, and other parapsychological skills
should exist. We do not know the theory that says
it should be there. Moreover, we do not know of
any body of data that supports its existence.”?

(U) When questioned on the issue of parapsychology
SG1J lacking a theoretical basis for existence, MM provided

a counterpoint:

(U) This has not been too much of a concern from
my point of view, although it's bothering. I have
been caught up in a lot of the quantum physics
issues and concepts in the parapsychological area,
but there are topics from conventional physics that
have no real good clear explanation even today, yet
we accept them readily. One example is gravity.
While it is certainly proven and highly repeatable
time after time, everybody accepts the fact that
there is something called gravity, but what is
unknown about gravity is exactly how does it work?

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What is the mechanism? Is there an action at a
distance, and if so, how? No one, so far, has
actually measured and detected a graviton, although
this is the speculative particle for how such
action at a distance should work. So, once you
think about gravity in this light, given the fact
that there are some elegant theories that have been
developed to explain how it behaves, it still does
not explain how gravity reaches out into the
universe and causes these interactions. The
graviton is as elusive today as it was when it was
speculated decades ago, so, given the fact that we
do not fully understand such readily accepted
things as gravity, I do not have any particular
difficulty, psychologically, in not being able to
explain ESP. The fact that there is no theoretical
model for this phenomenon should not be a deterrent
to striving to find what that theoretical base is,
or even more practically, trying to apply the
phenomenon.?!

(U) Thus, while the former Soviet Union has apparently
been able to steadily continue its parapsychological research
unburdened by philosophy, research in the US has been hindered
by a lack of philosophical consensus. Almost a decade has

gone by since Captain Groller estimated the strategic threat

posed by Soviet remote viewing research:

(U) In time, the Soviets may be able to learn the
contents of top secret documents, trace the
movements of our troops and ships, and know the
location and nature of our military installations.
Additionally, the Soviets may be able to mold the
thoughts of key US military and civilian leaders
from a distance, cause the instant death of any US
Army official at a distance, and disable US

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military equipment of all types = including
spacecraft.”

(U) The former Soviets' seriousness was also indicated
in a report prepared by the Congressional Research Service, an
arm of the Library of Congress. This report states that
Soviet spending on parapsychological related phenomena
throughout the 1980s resulted in tens of millions of dollars
spent annually. By contrast, ‘total funding for
parapsychological research in the US did not exceed $500,000
annually, with most of the money coming from foundations and

other private sources.”

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

(S) Russian and, later, Soviet parapsychological
research is traceable back to World War I, when the Institute
of Brain Research in Petrograd was formed. The founder, V.M.
Bechterev, promoted investigation into this phenomenon by
forming a Commission for the Study of Mental Suggestion. In
1924, as a result of positive findings at the Brain Research
Institute, the Second All-Russian Congress of Psychoneurology

recommended additional research into the study of the

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paranormal and formed the Society for Neurology, Reflexology,
Hypnotism and Biophysics.*4

(S) In the 1930s, L.L. Vasilyev, a protegee of
Bechterev, was commissioned with the task of uncovering the
mysticism associated with telepathy. The results of his
findings, not published until early 1960, apparently revealed
some eye-opening findings, because during the same year,
Vasilyev formed a new group to study telepathy within the
Physiology and Biology Department of Leningrad University.*

(U) Nevertheless, while the subject was afforded more
respect in the USSR than the US, it was not always the case
throughout the 20th century. Up until the late 1950s,
parapsychology was looked upon in the former USSR with
skepticism and indifference because of no "hard" scientific
data. Actually, what only amounted to little more than the
stern ostracism by the orthodox US scientific community toward
Americans pursuing parapsychology, was severe by comparison in
the Soviet Union. Because Marxist philosophy claimed that
history was determined by material reality, Stalin, a staunch
opponent of anomalous study, considered scientists who dabbled
in it as heretics. Their penalty was either death by firing
squad, or a one-way ticket to Siberia. Therefore, research
prior to the death of Stalin in 1953 was conducted underground

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