The Chair of Death

Discussion in 'Parapsychology' started by Kittamaru, Oct 30, 2014.

  1. Kittamaru Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Adieu, Sciforums. Valued Senior Member

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    http://unsolvedmysteries.wikia.com/wiki/Chair_of_Death
    http://www.bustle.com/articles/4070...&utm_medium=fijifrost&utm_campaign=CMfacebook
    #5 THOMAS BUSBY’S STOOP CHAIR

    First I'd heard of this... but pretty interesting.

    I'd chalk it up to interesting coincidences myself but still kinda interesting
     
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  3. spidergoat pubic diorama Valued Senior Member

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    Bad things happens to some people. Bad things don't happen to other people. Certainly both kinds of people would sit in the chair. But only the people who sat in the chair which bad things happened to would be noticed. It's called observer bias.
     
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  5. cosmictraveler Be kind to yourself always. Valued Senior Member

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    How about the thousands of people who sat in it and never had any problems? Also how did they keep up with all those people that sat in the chair to find out what happened to them.
     
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  7. Kittamaru Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Adieu, Sciforums. Valued Senior Member

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    Indeed cosmic - did they keep record of people that didn't die after sitting in it I wonder

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    This is where the paranormal falls apart - the mundane is never really documented, and only the "extraordinary" is mentioned, a clear observational bias

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  8. Captain Kremmen All aboard, me Hearties! Valued Senior Member

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    Busby: The route to the gallows passes the pub. Any chance of making a detour so I can curse my old chair?
    Gaoler: What purpose is there in that?
    Busby: Well, it would mean that anyone who sat in it would soon die a ghastly death.
    Gaoler: That sounds reasonable.
     
  9. Captain Kremmen All aboard, me Hearties! Valued Senior Member

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    The pub near my house had such a chair.
    It ended up that no-one would sit there, so they replaced it with a slot machine.
     
  10. Landau Roof Registered Senior Member

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    A slot machine of Death!?

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  11. Captain Kremmen All aboard, me Hearties! Valued Senior Member

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    A slot machine with an Obama skeleton?
     
  12. Landau Roof Registered Senior Member

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    The family man on the front resembles him, but while you can see that's possibly Michelle, the children are all wrong. If you want it to be Obama, that's fine although I don't think it's meant to be.
     
  13. Gremmie "Happiness is a warm gun" Valued Senior Member

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    Michelle's hair looks nice though...
     
  14. Captain Kremmen All aboard, me Hearties! Valued Senior Member

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    The boy on the left has an eyepatch.
     
  15. youreyes amorphous ocean Valued Senior Member

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    umm to OP, if a person did not know about the so called chair of death and was not hinted by others of it even subtly, than no one would die in it.
     
  16. Captain Kremmen All aboard, me Hearties! Valued Senior Member

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    Surely the chair of death would make no difference at all.
    It is a superstition.
     
  17. youreyes amorphous ocean Valued Senior Member

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    thing is if people believe this superstition than their actions indirectly will make that very superstition come true, even though the reasons might have nothing to do with the superstition in itself.
     
  18. Captain Kremmen All aboard, me Hearties! Valued Senior Member

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    That point of view is also superstitious.
    The chair will make no difference at all.
    It is just a chair.
    Find me such a chair and I will sit in it for 50 pence.
     
  19. youreyes amorphous ocean Valued Senior Member

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    Thats the whole point, it is not about the chair.

    It is about the action of sitting on a chair and "sudden death" linked in minds of those who believe in it.

    A belief by itself influences the probability of something happening.

    http://www-physics.lbl.gov/~stapp/Luc07PP.ppt

    In essence the "sit on chair, get sudden death" is a modified Quantum Zeno Effect:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_Zeno_effect
     
  20. Landau Roof Registered Senior Member

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    You could get a lot more than that, captain.
     
  21. Captain Kremmen All aboard, me Hearties! Valued Senior Member

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  22. AlexG Like nailing Jello to a tree Valued Senior Member

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    Minus the cost of the ale.
     
  23. Captain Kremmen All aboard, me Hearties! Valued Senior Member

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    I would like to read it, but
    The link doesn't work for me.
    What program uses ppt?

    added later.
    Powerpoint. No I haven't got that.
    Any other links?
     

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