Photo reading???

The biggest problem with PhotoReading's claims

First off, I would like to state I have not read the PhotoReading book, or used the system, however common sense tells me this...

The biggest problem with PhotoReading's claims as with most "get smart fast", "get rich fast", and other miracle systems is this:

If the claims made for such amazing results were true, then why is guy selling a system on TV for some $250 a pop?....


If this system really worked, surely this guy would have read every book on the planet by now, and not have to resort to infomercials to make money.
If this system worked, how come this guy isn't loaded with Jeopardy prize money? Or raking in the cash on "Who wants to be a millionaire"?
Why doesn't he just real quickly read every book on investment banking or stock picking and parlay a small amount of money into millions? or take a job in an ultra-high-paying field, which he could educate himself about in days, according to his claims?

The major flaw with these type systems is that if they really worked as claimed, he'd be so rich by now, he'd be giving the system away. Not hawking it on infomercials for a ridicolous amount of cash. I challenge Peter Bissonette, Don LuPree, and all other "get something quick" system authors, to explain to the public exactly why they need to sell these systems on TV at outrageous prices if they really work as claimed.

 

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Just a reminder in case anyone has not visited some of the URLs I posted there...

The technique behind "photo-reading" is essentially a combination of old-school speed-reading/skimming/followingthefinger methods, combined with one component of a multii-component new method of learning... I can't remember what it is called now, but basically it focuses on some altered-mental-state techniques which personally I think are dangerous for spiritual reasons... So if you aren't interested in going full-force with this "new" stuff, then you might as well pick up an "old school" speed-reading book from your local library...

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The one thing that bothers me of the things I have read about photo-reading:

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You do NOT understand or remember any/most of the content until you are "quizzed" in a way. So you have phot-images in your brain of say 600 pages, but you did not "learn" page 1, page 2, then page 3 etc. like normal reading. Instead you have the images in your brain, available for "scanning for information" at a later point.

That sums up what I understood is so special about the technique.

Heck, you might as well OCR scan the text and then do some keyword queries or better yet use some university's AI technology to "summarize" the text!

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Oh yeah, this is the name of that full-fledged program...

Oh yeah, this is the name of that full-fledged program...
Subliminal Dynamics Brain Management

As I had scribbled in my surfing history (http://batman.getmyip.com/SurfingHistory/2001/09/15.asp)

Photo Reading is apparently STOLEN

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from another program "the Subliminal Dynamics Brain Management Course"
as they state on this URL:
http://www.subdyn.com/photored.html

 

I say let's find out: pitch in $10ea and buy the stupid thing then pass it arround. Is there a law that says don' t buy stuff together?
Let' s do that and see ...
Remember tht it is illegal to make copies!

 

I saw this chap on TV in the uk who was a hypnotist apparantly learning books quickly. I spoke to the boss of my teacher training college and she said photo reading was a fact and that she recently missed a lecture on it by a leading specialist on learning. I have just acquired an old book called read better,read faster by the pelican label, I will forward my findings. I suggest that if there is anyone who may have more specific details of the $250 knowlege, they give us more clues. I do believe in all level headedness that if there was such a magic technique, It would have been discovered a lot earlier and would probably be available for a lot less than 250 dollars. It would be nice to read boring books in record time however, If this were possible, I imagine one of these chaps would be quickly able to make vast contributions to society as a synergistic product of his immense reading. It reeks of bullshit. As a scientist, teacher and a reader of factual allsorts, I suggest it is possible to read say a line at a time with practice, I have been exploring this by reading paperbacks this way but it does cause eye strain, I haven't yet explored autosuggestion as I am still getting to grips with hypnotism. Anyway, I would be stoked to hear from anyone with input

cheers stuart

 

hmm..

just saw this on television. i realized that every so often when reading something i don't enjoy, i tend to drift and end up merely looking at the pages. however, i've never really been able to recall information with too much detail after such a "study" session. I usually only end up barely getting away with a B- on whatever test it happens to be.

is there some trick used in order to bring the information out of the subconcious mind? and if that's all it is, then i'm definitely interested in learning how to use it. if it's legitimate, that is.

 

does it work

The whole concept sounds a little strange I have even wondered if it is a fraud.

 

might save you $$ if you're interested...

I was exposed to this subject when I did a general search at the local library for speed reading (working in IT is a drag when you have to plow through a dozen + manuals a day). :-(

I found a book called "Rapid Reading Made E-Z" by Paul Scheele himself. It basically outlines the photoreading process in what I would assume is a more perfunctory level than the full blown program (haven't seen the infomercial). The book retails for $30.

I don't know how I feel about the whole process as described in the book. While I agree that the mind is capable of gathering and utilizing information in non-traditional ways it seems like a contradiction to attempt to put some sort of yoke on this process for what would necessarily be "left-brain" goals (i.e. the conscious pursuit of knowledge, etc).

tom

 

sounds strange, but I am truly interested to see if it is real

I am looking and looking, I find tons on subliminal reading and the likes but no real data, mainly just hype from research institutes, I found a ton on subliminal and mental photography but nothing that has been validated so I am sure its pretty fringe stuff, and from what I have read about this Paul Scheele guy, he is more intrested in your pocket book then your well being.


but still, there is that really big IF
heh

bye

Soylent Green Is people

 

EBAY's the place to get Photo Reading

Hey! I'm not about to part with any more of my money to get something created by Paul Sheele or Pete Bissonette, but anyone who would like to get the course would do much better by checking Ebay. Right now there is a course up for auction at $122.00, and the auction ends in 2 days. I doubt the price will get over $150.00. I made the mistake of buying a set of Paraliminal tapes created by Paul Sheele that were purported to do all kinds of wonderful things to your learning process. The background sound on the tapes sounded cool, but that's about it. I'd say Paraliminal tapes are no different than subliminal tapes. I did a research report on subliminal tapes in college and found that there was no verifiable evidence that subliminal tapes actually worked. This is fringe stuff, and has no scientific validity. I think this photo reading crap is more of the same. I mean, come on! Did you guys see the part of the infomercial where Pete scrolled down with his mouse through that book on the computer, supposedly photo reading it as the words were flying by? The pages were going by so fast they were a blur. Only an idiot savant with exceptional talent could perhaps keep track of where the words were on the page. I'm sorry, but I just don't believe Pete can read that fast. He's selling the damn system, so of course he's going to make himself look good. He can do anything he wants- it's his infomercial! The whole thing was staged in my opinion, and I really doubt whether any of the testimonials were true. If there actually were many people who had succeeded in "photo reading" we would see many message boards like this one where satisfied users were raving about the results. Of course, none of us have been able to find any at all, at least none that occur outside of the company's own sponsored web pages. If it can be proven that the system works, I'd be glad to shell out 150 for it on Ebay, but my gut feeling tells me our minds just don't work that way. We have to process information cognitively. We can't just glance at an entire page in one second, go to sleep, and then wake up the next day and be able to answer questions about it. I would be happy to debate any one who disagrees with this. Ok, that's all from me. If anyone on this board decides to get the program, let the rest of us know if its worth the money, or if its best suited for crumpling up and throwing in the fire. - Chris

 

hey cmoyer, I totally agree, but again, I did some research on subliminal messages, not so much tapes but video, and what I had noticed is that if the message were too complex. if there was only text and no picture the failure rate was much much higher, the mind works on imagery I have to admit but it need something to define the image, thats why those old frames that would flash in a movie worked soo well, they took the well known picture of the classic coke bottle and beneth it is said, drink coke, so you have an image for the mind and a simple message for what the brain should do with the picture

as for something as advanced as saying, absorb writen text, I think that the message is way to confusing cause with that you have to tell you brain that and then show it the page, the only way I see it working if there were only a few words per page. 5 at max, and every other page would have to say, absorb writen text, then mabey it could be shot at you at realy high speeds but thats about all I know on the subject

 

The public library and the internet are the best resources for information on this. And they are FREE. Also, "The Photoreading Whole Mind System" by Scheele is available for about 15$. I'm sure this is easily self-taught. Even if you shell out the 250$, you are still the one who must do the work of learning it, so you might as well save your cash.
www.readfaster.com offers a good deal of information on speed reading in general, including a list of books on the subject.
I know it sounds really tempting... I just saw the infomercial myself a few moments ago. I've reasearched "photo reading" online, and can't come up with much besides ads for it and discussion forums wondering if it works. I read the book reviews on bn.com or amazon; the opinions varied widely.
I think on principle this information should be free. It probably is, too- if you look for it.

 

ps- For what it's worth, the school where Paul Scheele took a course in "subliminal dynamics", which led to the opening of the PhotoReading company, offers a caveat about Scheele and his methods. http://www.subdyn.com/photored.html

Many people (who've taken the course or read the book) say that the methods taught are standard speed-reading techniques, and that true comprehension requires going back and reading 'for real'.

 

Does anybody want to strangle the two photo-reading guys as much as I do? The guy who looks like Gary Busey if he never used drugs needs the razorwolves let out on him. I'm going to write a 300 page book about how much I want to get them and see how short it takes Mr. Photo-reader to read it before he dies.

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The Subliminal Coke thing was a hoax, and so is PhotoReading

Soylentgreen, I wrote a research paper on Subliminal perception in college. I am well aware of the subliminal "evidence" you are a speaking of. The man who was largely responsible for the subliminal paranoia that began around the late 50's was named James Vicary. He developed an invention he called a tachistoscope, designed to flash images onto a screen at very short exposure lengths. During one particular movie showing, he used the tachistoscope to flash the words, "Eat Popcorn" and "Drink Coke" upon the movie screen. (they were flashed at exposure times of 1/3000th of a second.) Vicary publically claimed that as a result of the words being flashed Coke sales went up %18 and popcorn nearly 58% during the movie. Of course there was a tremendous public outcry, and people feared their minds could be controlled by subliminal manipulation. Several countries, including the United States, even banned the use of subliminals by advertisers.
In 1958, right after the popcorn/coke experiment, the Canadian Broadcast Corporation conducted a similar experiment. They flashed the words "Phone Now" subliminally 352 times during a popular Sunday night television show. When viewers were asked to guess the message, no one guessed correctly, but many, aware of the Vicary study, claimed to be hungry or thirsty. When Vicary was consulted later about this and other negative findings on subliminal persuasion, he reported told the trade newspaper "Advertising Age" that his original "Eat Popcorn/Drink Coke" study was a fabrication intended to increase customers for his failing marketing business.
It's really amazing how the subliminal products market has grown since that one ridiculous study. I personally have found no value whatsoever in subliminal products, and I do not believe them to be effective in the least iota except for those who are firm believers. They work as placebos for people that want so much to believe in their power that they will actively search for things that are going right in their lives to justify their purchase of the tapes or videos or whatever. I consider Photo Reading to be little more than some kind of gimmick. I imagine Paul Scheele probably instructs you to listen to subliminal tapes before you begin reading, so that the words, "You absorb information at incredible speeds. Your mind is like a sponge. You remember everything you read" will be "subconsiously" echoing throughout your brain as your eye skims over words at an incredible speed, recognizing nothing and remembering nothing. What a crock! If anyone in this forum has increased their reading speed by 3 to 4 times on account of Photo Reading, please let the rest of us know so that we can be enlightened as you are.

 

wow... thread still going strong!

I just want to say how surprised I am that this thread is still going strong 2+ months later... The evidence (or lack of it) seems to show that the Photo Reading program is no more and no less effective than the typical speed reading programs, or simply concentrating and reading with a fresh focused mind.

And to boot it also originates in someone else's program. (See my posting in this forum, in September - page 1 - for some URLs proving this.)

I again say, the whole idea of this mind-altering, or image-focusing technique is dangerous

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- it is along the same lines as the sorts of things that Nostradamas would do "when the spirit moved him" to go up into his attic... He would do various occultic things until the images would "appear" in his mind then he would record them. In the case of Photo Reading you MIGHT have a bit of success due to the placebo effect + the fact that you have a basic idea of the theme of what you are reading. But since no one has posted positive experiences yet, I remain HIGHLY skeptical.

I'd be more likely to buy one of the similarly-informercial-marketed weightloss products out there than Photo Reading.

Just my additional 2 cents.

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PS: I have found in my own experience that asking God to open my mind to the truth contianed within the words has been consistently effective. But then again, it is usually the Bible that I am preparing to read, and my intention is not speed but rather understanding. So I guess that's a bit off-topic.

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Rapid Reading Made E-Z

Buy at Amazon.com, only 14.95 or 12 used.