The Society for Scientific Exploration, or SSE, is a professional organization of scientists and other scholars committed to studying unusual and unexplained phenomena that cross traditional scientific boundaries and may be ignored or inadequately studied within mainstream science. [1]
It holds annual meetings and publishes a quarterly peer reviewed journal called Journal of Scientific Exploration (JSE). [1]
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History
The Society was founded in 1982 by fourteen scientists and scholars, [1] and the first SSE meeting took place at the University of Maryland, College Park in 1982 [2]
As of 2008, the SSE has approximately 800 members in 45 countries. [1]
Of the SSE and JSE, journalist Michael D. Lemonick writes, "Pretty much anything that might have shown up on The X-Files or in the National Enquirer shows up first here. But what also shows up is a surprising attitude of skepticism." [3]
Activities
Journal
The society's peer reviewed scientific journal, the Journal of Scientific Exploration, was established to provide a scientific forum for ufology, parapsychology and cryptozoology, having published research articles, essays, book reviews and letters on those and many other topics that are largely ignored in mainstream journals.
Annual meeting
The SSE helds an annual scientific meeting in the USA every spring and periodic meetings in Europe. [1] In the USA meeting, around a hundred of researchers who came to hear talks on, as journalist Michael Lemonick writes, "among other things, consciousness physics, astrology and parapsychology ... [M]any of the scientists here are on the faculty at major universities, and were doing fine at conventional research. But sometimes that gets boring." [3]
The meetings last usually three days and consist of "invited lectures, contributed talks and poster sessions selected by a program committee." [2]
According to experimental psychologist Roger D. Nelson, head of the Global Consciousness Project, the SSE aims to "give everyone a respectful hearing. If we think a speaker is doing bad science, we consider it our duty to criticize it. We get our share of lunatics, but they don't hang around long." [3]
Young Investigators Program
The Young Investigators Program was created in response of enquiries of young scholars on the topics explored by the society. It's designed by its participants intends to "provide information and resources for the scholarly study of anomalous phenomena and other frontier areas of science". [4]
Membership
As of 2005:
- the president was Charles Tolbert, an astronomer at the University of Virginia. [3]
- the editor of SSE's journal was Henry Bauer, a dean emeritus at Virginia Tech. [3]
As of 2008, the Leaders Emeritus were Peter A. Sturrock, from the Department of Physics & Department of Applied Physics of Stanford University and Larry Frederick and Charles Tolbert from the Department of Astronomy of University of Virginia. [5]
References
- ^ a b c d e "Society for Scientific Exploration". Society for Scientific Exploration. http://www.scientificexploration.org/. Retrieved on 2008-06-02.
- ^ a b "Meetings". Society for Scientific Exploration. http://www.scientificexploration.org/meetings.php. Retrieved on 2008-06-02.
- ^ a b c d e Michael D. Lemonick/Gainesville (2005-05-24). "Science on the Fringe". Time magazine. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1064461,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-06-02.
- ^ "Young Investigators". Society for Scientific Exploration. http://www.scientificexploration.org/younginvest.php. Retrieved on 2008-06-02.
- ^ "Council". Society for Scientific Exploration. http://www.scientificexploration.org/council.php. Retrieved on 2008-06-02.
External links
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