My psychic abilities say this prize goes unclaimed

Wired recently ran a great story about a revamped $1 million prize for anyone who can legitimately demonstrate paranormal abilities. All the big-name quacks -- Sylvia Browne, John Edward -- have kept their distance, but plenty of small-time kooks have taken a shot. Most, however, don't make it past round one with the prize's foundation:

A Nevada man legally named "The Prophet Yahweh" planned to seize the prize for charity by summoning two spaceships to a Las Vegas park last year, but negotiations broke down when he announced he was bringing several armed guards to the demonstration in case any "negative personalities" showed up. An inventor who claimed to have built a device that could sense the psychic distress of an egg about to be dropped into a pot of boiling water recently abandoned his application when the foundation suggested the egg be threatened by a hammer instead, in case the invention was really just detecting steam.

A few years ago, as I wandered the University of Minnesota's campus with a friend, we poked our heads into a theater and found a woman doing John Edward's shtick. ("Someone in the room is facing a big life decision. Is that you? You? Yes, yes, your mother-- no, your grandmother-- no, do you have a dead relative whose name starts with J? S? P? P! Yes, Peter. No? Paul? Pierre?") With only a tiny, unimpressed crowd in front of her, and without the benefit of the editing that surely takes place on Edward's show, this lady was outright bombing. It was pretty painful to watch -- but at the same time, rather fulfilling.

(Image: A very real book, of which a publication called School Library Journal apparently wrote, "This is a solid offering for kids interested in honing their paranormal skills.")

Update: Your dream-job awaits! The "hidden animals" beat must be a hot one.

Posted by Jason Feifer at January 16, 2007 09:22 AM