Quote:
Originally Posted by Chris Noble  The original claim from the dog's owner was that her parents could tell when she was returning from the behaviour of the dog. This is what Wiseman tested. |
Well, that's true. But scientists aren't in the business of testing someone elses claims. They are supposed to actively investigate the world around us. And that's the position we should be adopting when discussing protocols for Alex's experiments and his potential challenge application. What would be the best way to find out if dogs really have a telepathic link with their owner? Wiseman et al's procedure just lets a load of noise into the experiment. If you simply count a 'miss' as the first instance that the dog goes to the waiting area during the non-return period, then you increase your chances of recording noise rather than signal. For example, an anxious moment or a distraction from a bird near the window.
Surely there are better ways to measure this effect that are acceptable to both parties? The application of most statistical techniques in most experimental situations are going to have some drawbacks and problems. The point here is to devise the
best method, not a perfect method.
What about comparing the time spent in the waiting area as a proportion of the total waiting time? Lets say the owner returns home after 100 min and takes 10 min to get home. Lets also say that the dog goes to the waiting area after 10min and stays there untill the owner returns. The proportion of time spent waiting during return as a proportion of total waiting time is 10% whereas the time spent waiting during non-return time as a proportion of total waiting time is 90%. Doing more trials would only lead to a significant effect in the opposite direction, which is what we would expect because in this example it's clear that the dog isn't displaying much psi! On the other hand, if the dog
tends to wait only during the return period (ie, a real psi effect but not with the precision that certain sceptics seem to want!) then this proportional measure will detect the effect. Or could there still be an artifact here?