TRIP REPORT TO STANFORD RESEARCH INSTITUTE 17-18 JUNE 1974

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: STARGATE
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP96-00787R000700110013-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 9
• Document Creation Date: November 4, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 5, 2003
• Sequence Number: 13
• Publication Date: July 1, 1974
• Content Type: FORM

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1 July 1974
MEMORANDUM FOR THE RECORD
SUBJECT: Trip Report to Stanford Research Institute,
17-18 June 1974
1. Background and Summary. visited SRI
on 17 and 18 June 1974, principally tor e purposes of: examining the
criteria used in the selection of paranormal subjects and controls;
determining precisely what arrangements had been made for examining the
subjects in the "basic research" context; establishing procedures for the
reporting of all relevant data to us; and discussing such other "basic"
and "applied" research issues as seemed appropriate. We met for about
eight hours with Mssrs. Jones, Puthoff, and Targ.on 17 June and for one
hour with the latter two on 18 June. Despite what appeared to be conceptual
problems on the part of Puthoff and Targ, relating largely to the kinds of
rigorous research disciplines which we were espousing as essential for the
project, the discussions were business-like and well-focused and seemed
to be useful for all concerned.
2. Selection and Categorization of Subjects. After five months of
effort SRI has selected only five of the nine subjects: the three super-
stars, one of the three mid-stars, and one of the three controls. We
stressed that significant and useful research could commence only after
they'd made definitive selections on the basis of specific and consistent
criteria. One of the problems here seems to be the fact that Puthoff and
Targ have been more interested in the testing and enhancing of psychic
powers than in the establishment of rigorous research procedures--with the
consequence that, as they've perceived ostensible improvements in the psychic
powers of their "controls", they've tended to slide them up into the psychic
abilities, this could be a never-ending process. We stressed that we'd
like to see all nine subjects designated by the end of July and they under-
took to do so. We then spent several hours defining the three categories
and specifying the pre-selection tests and criteria used in screening the
subjects.
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a. Screening Tests and Criteria. All subjects will have been
tested on five "paranormal" tasks. Those tasks, together with the
related protocols and criteria, were defined as follows:
(1) The Random Numbers Machine (testing "clairvo ance"):
The basic screening test will consist of 1000 trials (25 trials per
run, 8 runs per day for 5 days) and, though many subjects have gone
well beyond 1000 trials already, SRI will'report to us data and "p"
values on our nine subjects just on the first 1000 trials. In the
context of their NASA project over 150 people have been tested on
this machine; the data (copies of which will be sent to us) are now
being analyzed and the criteria for selection as "psychic" performance
level will soon be established on the basis of this analysjs. The
present guess is that criteria will be on the order of 10- .
(2) OOB or Remote Viewing (testing for telepathy and/or
clairvoyance : The basic screening test will consist of six trials
Tlasting about one-half hour each), one per day; criteria for psychic
performance level will soon be established but, in any case, it was
agreed that results would have to be at least at the .01 level. It
was also agreed that a pool of 20 new sites would be used for each
subject; we also discussed the desirability of replacing used sites
in subsequent trials for each given subject and,. while no definite
agreement was reached, it may be that SRI will do so. We spent
considerable time discussing the judging procedures, the salient
points being: the same five judges (all chosen by Mr. Cox and
representing a "hostile" to "friendly" spread with respect to para-
normal research) will be used on a permanent basis; each judge works
independently, is given a list of the sites which were randomly
selected for the subject and copies of his transcripts; he visits
each site and selects the best matching transcript; at the present
time a plurality vote (i.e., 2 or more) of the judges, accurately
matching 4 (or 5) of the 6 sites, is considered significant--but,
as noted, precise criteria will be specified by SRI in the near
future.
(3) EEG-Remote Stimulus (Strobe Light) (testino for tele ate
via psychophysiologic indicators : The basic screening test will
consist of 8 runs, 20 trials per run. A "sending" subject is exposed
to randomly selected stimulus (a 16 herz light for 10 seconds) or
non-stimulus, with one minute inter-trial intervals; the "test"
subject is in a shielded room and, upon hearing a "blip" signal on
the intercom, has to call stimulus or non-stimulus; both subjects are
being EEG-monitored and (aside from his calls) they are watching for
alpha reduction in the test subject during the stimulus periods.
Heretofore SRI had been averaging only the "S" and "NS" alpha
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production for comparison purposes but they will now also average
the inter-trial alpha for use as the subject's base-line. Criteria
for psychic level performance is now set at. the .01 level and will
be confirmed by SRI.
(4) Cards in Envelo es testin for clairvo ance): One run
of 10 trials, with the stimulus cards simple line drawings of ordinary
objects) selected randomly and double-blind from a pool of 50; the
subject draws his responses and may, if he wishes, supplement the
drawing by written commentary; his responses are scored independently
by two judges. The criteria for psychic level performance will be set
by SRI but is now tentatively at the .01 level.
(5) Laser-Monitored Torsion Pendulum (testing for PK): The basic
screening test will consist of a one-hour run, with alternating five-
minute "work" and "rest" cycles; during the six "work" periods the
subject is instructed, on a randomly-selected basis, to increase or
decrease the amplitude (not the frequency) of the pendulum's state.
Considerable time was spent discussing the protocol in terms of how
one could most accurately measure states and effects--with the con-
sensus being that it would be best to compare the last 6 cycles of
the "work" period with the last 6 cycles of the preceding "rest"
period. The tentative criteria for psychic level performance, to be
confirmed by SRI, is two standard deviations on 4 out of the 6
"work" periods. SRI was quite impressed by the gradiometer's
sensitivity and found it a sufficiently useful adjunct to the pendulum
experiment to investigate the possibility of acquiring one of their
own; barring that, they might try to use SRI's magnetometer. They
had several anecdotes about two of their subjects' prowess with this
device (one of them allegedly having sent the scale soaring off the
paper by telephone) but, not wanting to be exposed to the subjects,
we declined invitations to observe experiments.
(Note: With respect to all of the above testing, SRI was informed
that--as far as our nine ultimate subjects were concerned--we wanted
to see all the raw test scores and not merely probability statements
on the results.)
b. Definition of Subject Categories. All nine subjects will be
submitted_to all five of the above tests. Their placement as super-
stars, mid-stars, or controls will be determined on the following basis:
(1) Super-Stars: Those who "consciously" perform at high "p"
values (e.g. , lO- on at least one of the five tasks.
(2) Mid-Stars: Those who are only at chance on the "conscious"
level but are at high "p" value on the "unconscious" physiological
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dimension--i.e., on the EEG (and/or GSR, plethysmograph) test
described in a(3), above.
(3) Controls: Those who did not exceed chance within the
prescribed number of trials on any of the tasks.
(Note: We stressed, and SRI agreed, that once a subject is placed
in a given category he is to remain in that category for the duration
of the project--no matter what apparent increase or decline of powers
they might observe.)
3. Status of Arrangements for Examining Subjects. We discussed the
critical need to finalize all the arrangements and begin processing at
least their "controls" through the entire battery of tests within the next
month. SRI appeared to concur fully and, as a matter of fact, most of the
arrangements do now seem to be well in hand; it is now a question of how
assiduously they follow-up by completing the identification of their sub-
jects and by setting up and observing sound procedures for their processing.
It would appear that the will is there (they are, perhaps, even too optimistic
about the significance of the evidence that might accrue from the physical
and psychological examinations) but the organization and discipline might
still be lacking. In any case, the status is as follows:
a. Ps cholo ical and Behavioral Examinations. Under the white
tab (attached is a chart SRI had prepared on the psychological testing
to be performed--showing for each subject the status with respect to all
tests. Color-coded to reflect the entity responsible for administering
each test, the lower circle in each box (when filled in) signifies that
the arrangements have been made--while the upper circle (when filled
in) signifies that the test has already been administered to that
subject. On 17 June Dr. Puthoff visited the Palo Alto Medical Clinic
and came back with the report that, in the psych-behavioral field, they
will also be able to administer the following: Luscher Color Test,
Rorschach, MMPI, Omnibus (we confirmed that we wanted both MMPI and the
Omnibus), Witkins Field Dependency, In-Depth Interviews---and that all
the psych testing done at PAMC will be administered by one individual
and scored blind by another. Further, SRI will administer: Suggesti-
bility Tests, Flicker-Fusion and, possibly, a Signal Detection Test.
We asked them to prepare a new Psych-Behavioral matrix sheet--
showing all of the tests definitively agreed upon--and to use that
format in reporting progress with each monthly report. We als confirmed
for them (which they seemed not to have realized) that would
not be doing the WAIS in the future--but that we would e content with
the WAIS administered by PAMC. All in all, although there are a few
items on our original list which have not been satisfied, this battery
of tests and interviews should be adequate for our purposes--
particularly since, after studying all of the evidence on all subject,
there's no reason why we couldn't call for a limited number of specific
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and more discriminating tests on all of them. Also (see the blue tab)
SRI has adopted Mood Adjective & Semantic Differential Checklists for
use on each testing day.
b. Medical-Physical-Sensory Examinations. The PAMC will handle
virtually all of these examinations, including: in-depth medical
history interviews; a thorough medical examination (of the periodic
check-up type); a complete EEG and CNS work-up; full blood and urine
analysis; chromosome count and analysis; protein break-down analysis;
eye and ear examinations, testing to each subject's extreme capability;
plotting of entire visual response field, with different colors; and
they will farm-out the CNV response testing to Stanford (SRI undertook
to determine for us the details on Stanford's procedures and conditions).
Further, PAMC is able to perform an E.M.I. brain-scan, a low X-ray
dosage examination of 6 planes of the brain, at'an additional cost of
$200 per subject; we urged and they agreed that the EMI be done only
if PAMC's EEG clearly indicated that it would be warranted. The
estimated cost for all of PAMC's work on each subject (medical,
sensory, psychological) is around $700 to $900. We stressed that,
in the context of our project, we were responsible only for the
examinations, themselves, and that any medical conditions which might
be uncovered could be pursued by the subject only at his own expense.
Perhaps the best news was what Dr. Puthoff reported of the PAMC
interest in this work. They appear to be eager to do a thorough job,
are rather excited about the prospects of working in this field, have
a feel for the kinds of evidence which might be important to us and
are determined to handle it all on a clean, scientific basis--i.e.,
insofar as practicable the interpretations will be done blind and
each department (under the chairmanship and coordination of Dr.
Armbruster) will not only provide the raw data but will also prepare
a definitive report on each subject--calling special attention to any
significant variations from the normal population, as well as watching
for any variations or correlations within our group of subjects. The
only thing of apparent consequence that PAMC can't handle is visual
testing in IR and UV and, frankly, I do not recall whether we made any
other provision for that. SRI was asked to prepare a medical matrix
similar to the attached psychological one and use it in reporting
future progress to us.
c. Mid-Paranormal-Experiment Testing, After obtaining baseline
data on each subject, SRI will perform mid-paranormal-experimenting
testing on each of them during the course of the post-selection
protocals (see para 4, below, for discussion of those tasks); this
testing will consist of: EEG readings (both right and left hemisphere,
focusing on Alpha, Beta, and Theta waves); GSR; and Plethysmograph.
As indicated above, there is also a possibility that SRI will obtain
its own gradiometer or magnetometer--in which case, presumably, it will
also be used to monitor the subjects during performance of their psychic
tasks. Again, we asked SRI to prepare a matrix for use in reporting the
status of such testing with each subject.
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4. Post-Selection Paranormal Testin . Without wanting to encroach
upon OTS' "applied " research domain, there was nevertheless some discussion
of the kinds of tasks which the nine subjects will be expected to do after
selection (and during which they would be examined as stated in para 3.c.,
above). Recognizing that OTS might redefine these tasks or specify entirely
different ones, it was generally agreed that they would likely fall into
four broad areas.
a. Remote Viewing of Scenes/Events. Similar to the 005 experiments
being run for screening purposes, to the extent that security consider-
ations permit the later tests would hopefully be more operationally
oriented--i.e., focus on specific hard-target sites. For subjects who
are not cleared, the tasks might take the form, for instance, of
"locating" subjects who are trying to evade detection--and we discussed
several possible scenarios which might inject the proper mood/motivation/
urgency for such purposes.
b. PK. Here the focus should be on perturbation of some dynamic
system having at least peripheral operational application--e.g:, location
of some hidden device with an "on-off" relay and changing the state.
SRI also mentioned that it was planning to construct tasks involving
biological (single-cell nitella) and bacteriological systems/cultures
whose state-changes as a consequence of PK perturbation could be
precisely measured.
c. Clairvoyance-ESP. Here the focus might be on safes/locks/
attache cases--with, for instance, the subject required to perceive
the contents or determine the unlocking combination.
d. Remote Assessments. In which the subject would be required
to ascertain the emotional and/or physical state, feeling or attitudes,
of a subject remotely--either with or without stimulus objects
(photographs, etc.).
5. Reporting. It was pointed out that, though we are approaching
the end of the fifth month of effort, we've seen only two monthly reports.
SRI stated that the third was in preparation. We told them that we'd
like to see in the next report (i.e., the fourth one, by the end of July)
at least the following data:
a. Status on the screening of (hopefully) all nine subjects
and the pre-selection test data on each;
b. definitive statements on the pre-selection protocols and
the psychic level criteria employed;
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c. definitive statements on the criteria employed for placing
subjects in the super-star, mid-star, and control categories;
d. matrices on the status of (1) psychological-behavioral,
(2) medical-sensory, and (3) mid-experiment testing; and
e. somewhat more precise statements on the nature of the psychic
tasks to be used in the post-selection testing phase.
6. Other Matters. Puthoff and Targ will be going to New York for a
conference about mid-August and it was agreed that they would stop for
meetings with us on the way. Their "internal" Blue Ribbon panel has not
really been used on our project; as they explained it, the panel is invoked
only in the event of major policy decisions or when there is some significant
problem or crisis. They are, however, in the process of identifying and
recruiting an "external" panel of cross-discipline experts and they would
be used to pass on research design and procedures used in our project. It
was agreed, once and for all, that URI would not be included in our
project--although, if they do test him on their own (e.g., with OTS'
S/W cards), they'll provide us with the data separately. We looked at S G11
PP's transcripts on his experiment with it looked pretty
useless has since confirmed this impression).
LSR/ORD/DD/S&T
Distribution:
Original - Circ., file
1 - LSR file
1 - LSR Chrono
1 - ORD Reg.
LSR/ORD/DD/S&T
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ADDENDUM TO MEMORANDUM FOR THE RECORD,
ORD-2776-74, Trip Report to SRI
1. It appears as if Targ and Puthoff may at long last understand
that we are interested in good documentation of the methodology backed
by data rather than anecdotes. Nonetheless it must also be noted that
the criteria we finally got from them emerged only after persistent
pressuring and even then were couched in anecdotes and were tentative.
2. Mr. Earl Jones was told privately that I felt the effort thus
far represented ad hoc experimentational "scientific piddling around"
rather than science and that unless there was a clear cut change for
the better I would have to seriously consider recommending to my
management that the project be terminated.
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