OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND DELEVOPMENT AND OFFICE OF TECHNICAL SERVICE PARANORMAL PERCEPTION RESEARCH PROJECT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: STARGATE
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79-00999A000200010060-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: November 4, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 9, 2014
• Sequence Number: 60
• Publication Date: November 6, 1973
• Content Type: MEMO

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2014/01/09 : CIA-RDP79-00999A000200010060-9
MEMORANDUM FOR: Deputy Director for Science and Technology
SUBJECT
Office of Research and Development and
Office of Technical Service Paranormal
Perception Research Project
1. It is recommended that a research and development
investigation of paranormal perception phenomena be initi-
ated with Stanford Research Institute (SRI). A proposal
for such an investigation is attached. Since this is a
tightly directed advanced research project, it is further
recommended that the effort be jointly funded and monitored
by the Office of Research and Development and the Office
of Technical Service. The estimated cost for the proposed
effort is $149,555.
2. The objectives of the proposed effort are twofold.
The initial emphasis of the investigation will be to char-
acterize and develop paranormal remote perception abilities
which appear to have been demonstrated under controlled
laboratory conditions by SRI. Since these phenomena are
unexplained and largely unexplored, the second objective
would be to collect sufficient data and information to
guide the development and assess the value of a more com-
prehensive program.
3. A previous OTS project, summarized in:the attached
proposal, indicated the existence of paranormal perception
phenomena. The phenomena include remote perception of docu-
ments, objects, activities and locations. The demonstrated
reproducibility of such remote perception under controlled
conditions strongly suggests these phenomena are and will
continue to be interesting to the intelligence community for
either offensive operational exploitation or defensive threat
assessment.
4. The proposed effort will be concentrated in the
areas described in the Statement of Work section of the
attached proposal. In summary these are: a) Characteriza-
tion of the remote perception abilities of gifted subjects,
sE-C(
25X1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2014/01/09: CIA-RDP79-00999A000200010060-9
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2014/01/09: CIA-RDP79-00999A000200010060-9
SUBJECT: Office of Research and Development and
Office of Technical Service Paranormal
Perception Research Project
with emphasis on those characteristics of most importance
to intelligence matters such as resolution, information
transfer rate and accuracy; b) Correlation of physiolog-
ical responses to reliability and accuracy of paranormal
perception; c) Enhancement of those abilities which seem
to be most useful to the intelligence community; and d)
Exploration of new avenues of research discovered during
the course of the program.
5. The proposed project is well suited to a joint
effort by the Office of Research and Development and the
Office of Technical Service. The proposed investigation
is a tightly directed advanced research project. It
involves the exploration of a demonstrated phenomena to
determine the significance and limitations of remote
perception abilities of "gifted" individuals for intel-
ligence collections. Necessarily a parallel effort
elucidating the fundamental nature of the paranormal
perception phenomena is proposed. This fundamental in-
formation is required in order to develop an orderly
comprehensive program which would lead to the basic
understanding essential for the full exploitation of
the phenomena for intelligence activities. It is ex-
pected that the combination of attitudes and experiences
represented by OTS and ORD will produce timely relevant
results and insure an objective assessment of the signif-
icance of those results.
6. The recommended project should be completed by
Stanford Research Institute. SRI has produced some of
the most significant investigations in paranormal phe-
nomena. This has occurred because of the philosophies
and abilities of the principal investigators. These
investigators have established competence in the physical
sciences and in paranormal phenomena research. They have
been responsive to past OTS directives and are willing to
investigate intelligence related applications. SRI has
given these investigators the institutional integrity and
facilities necessary to achieve creditable research in
both the public and a more restrictive private domain.
2
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2014/01/09: CIA-RDP79-00999A000200010060-9
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2014/01/09 : CIA-RDP79-00999A000200010060-9
SUBJECT: Office of Research and Development and
Office of Technical Service Paranormal
Perception Research Project
7. Although the controversy associated with para-
normal research may create some unique security problems,
they are not insurmountable. These problems include
embarrassment of being involved in an assumed fraud; the
potential adverse propaganda associated with the use of
psychic mind altering or control techniques, and the
fact that some subjects may be of questionable stability.
These potential problems can be controlled because of
the motivation and integrity of the principal investi-
gators. Both the investigators and the Institute have
solid reputations and derive much of their support from
government projects. Involvement with fraudulent experi-
ments, publication of poor experimentation and open
association with CIA would be deleterious to the careers
of the investigators and the creditability of the Institute.
For this effort, we recommend a secret level contract but
remain flexible to other security arrangements which could
be implemented as deemed necessary.
Enclosure:
Proposal
John N. McMahon
Director
Office of Technical Service
Sayre Stevens
Director
Office of Research and Development
APPROVED:
3
Date
Carl E. Duckett
Deputy Director
for
Science and Technology
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2014/01/09: CIA-RDP79-00999A000200010060-9
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2014/01/09: CIA-RDP79-00999A000200010060-9
SUBJECT: Office of Research and Development and
Office of Technical Service Paranormal
Perception Research Project
Distribution:
Orig. and 1 -
1 -
1 -
1 -
2 -
OTS/CB:KAKress
Addressee
D/ORD
D/OTS
OTS/CB
DDS&T Registry
(6 November 73)
25X1
4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2014/01/09: CIA-RDP79-00999A000200010060-9