Jan 10 - Ghosts, Elves, and the Man from Mars: Two Decades (Skeptically) Investigating the Paranormal by Jerry Drake

You can’t turn on your television today without seeing a group of “Ghost Adventurers” or someone “Finding Bigfoot,” but investigating the so-called “paranormal” is not just a passion for the credulous and uncritical.  In this talk Jerry Drake cracks open his casebook of investigations to illustrate that some of our greatest unsolved “mysteries” have a perfectly rational explanation.  You will learn the “tricks of the trade” to conducting a skeptical investigation of claims of the paranormal.  From the Aurora, Texas Martian, the Elves of Iceland, and the Bell Witch of Tennessee to the Loch Ness Monster, the Ghosts of Gettysburg, and the Screaming Woman of Niagara Falls, Jerry will take you on a globe-trotting tour of his first-hand exploration of these fascinating phenomena.

When not chasing ghosts and monsters, Jerry Drake is a professional researcher, currently working as an archivist and analyst for the federal government.  Previously Jerry has served as a Professor of History at Concordia University and as Deputy Land Commissioner of Texas for Archives & Records.  Jerry’s area of professional interest is in designing innovative electronic solutions to facilitate research.

Jerry is currently adapting his “paranormal casebook” into a series of articles and a book.        

Jan 10, 2015 1:30 pm 
National Science Foundation, Room 110
4201 Wilson Blvd, Arlington, VA (Ballston-MU Metro stop)
Enter NSF from the corner of 9th St. N & N. Stuart Streets. 
www.nsf.gov/about/visit
[map] [directions]

FREE admission – Everyone welcome, members and non-members. Refreshments and socializing after the talk.

For more information: 
- Email ncas@ncas.org
- Call the 24-hour Skeptic Line at 240-670-NCAS (6227)