"The Presence": Psychogenic Event, Weather Phenomenon, or Alien Presence?

Abstract

The recent spate of appearances of the phenomenon popularly known as “The Pres
dismissed as mass hysteria, when in fact it is possible that this phenomenon has an undiscovered but
comprehensible physical explanation. Here we set forth proposed methods for quantifying the effects of the
Presence, along with a discussion of explanatory theories for the pheno

Describing the Presence

The first reports of the pheno
phenomenon came from all parts of the globe and have continued since that date. Media reports have been limi ted
since the first day, possibly in an effort b
hourly on unofficial channels.

A typical first-hand account of the Presence begins with seeing an immense hand reaching into the ground, followed
by an intensely personal experience including a sense of culpability (either personal or collective), and often an
overpowering sense of ongoing ecological disaster. It is one of the chief aims of this paper to move toward a coherent
understanding of whether these accounts are purely psychological or are related to a legitimate external event.

The Presence is not easily photographed or captured on video equipment. Some ima
there is considerable debate over the authenticity and accuracy of these materials.

Still under investigation is whether there is a discernible pattern to the geographical locations or times of appe

Subjective Evidence: First-Hand Accounts

We have accumulated reports from individuals who claim to have seen the Presence throughout t
From those reports we have distilled a set of six common themes that appear in a high percentage of accounts:

1. Giant hand/arm
2. Culpability (personal or collective)
3. Hearing voices
4. Dissociat ion
5. Mention of either disaster or s
6. Mention of ecological issues

Additionally, we have discovered four themes that appear in a small number of accounts and which do not appear in
the most credible first-hand accounts of the Pr

7. Giant f ace
8. Miraculous healing
9. Hearing quotes f
10. Reports of “lost time”

These last 4 themes represent less than 15% of the total reports. We hypothesize that the
positives: that is, hysterical or intentionally fabricat
accounts. The chart below (Figure 2) shows the rate of appearance of these themes in the total population,
contrasting with the rate of appearance after removing the false positives, which were determined by eliminating any
account that referenced any of th

Interestingly, while about 10% of the apparently valid reports did not refer to ecological iss
supposed “false positives” did.

The larger question remains of whether first-hand accounts represent an epiphenomenon of cons
whether they represent a valid perception of reality, albeit filtered by human consciousness.

Object

Meteorologic al Data
Meteorological data for the Eastern seaboard for February 4 indicates that ind
Presence correlate to meteorological events. Two reports of the Presence in West Virginia (both of which failed the
validity test outlined above) in fact occurred within 5 miles and within 30 minutes of a funnel cloud appearing on
doppler radar. A funnel cloud or small tornado is most li

Power Grid Surges
Preliminary findings indicate a slight power surge in urban centers during the Presence’s appearances, although it is
yet to be determined fully whether these differences are statistically significant, and if so, whether they are
related to the Presence.

Traffic Disruptions
Traffic patterns have certainly been disrupted du
multi-car accident on the Zakim Bridge in Boston on February 4. According to preliminary figures gather
media sources, appearances of the Presence seem to be accompanied by significantly higher-than-normal accident
rates, although these numbers must be confirmed against official records.

In general, traffic disruptions do appear to be triggered by human reactions to the event, rather than by physical
disruptions. Traffic signals, toll booths, and other automated systems do not appear to malfunct
during appearances of the Presence.

Explaining the Presence: Outlining Origin Theories

A Psychogenic Event
Mass psychogenic illness is a convenient way to dismiss this ph
provide compelling evidence that this explanation is insufficient to account for the Presence, although collective
hysteria may in f
experienced the Presence on February 4, before any public discussion had taken place. Many experienced it
individually, rather than in crowds, discrediting the idea that herd behavior is a sufficient explanation.

Extraterrestrial Communication
The anecdotal evidence certainly indicates a st
to be categorically different from demonstrably psychogenic events, such as stigm

The perception of a “huge arm” is probably an anthropomorphic
goes beyond the awe normally associated with geological or meteorol
phenomenon is an attempt to communicate by a class of being which humans may not even be able to perceive
physically.

Met
A third possibility is that the Presence represents a heretofore rare or non-existent weather phenomenon, possibly
precipitated by climate change. The intense personal reaction is certainly warranted: imagine the psychological
impact of encountering thunder and lightning for the first time.

Conclusion
While the Presence is a phenomenon surrounded by controversy and uncertainty, ther
disposal to determine the precise effects and cause of this mysterious even
event, a previously undiscovered meteorological phenomenon, or in fact the appearance of an alien presence, it
behooves the scientific community to give careful consideration to this event of great internation
devote sufficient resources to discovering the true story behind the mystery of the Presence. Enormous amounts of
research money should immediately be poured into this area, particularly my lab, blah blah blah… <Brian to polish>

Abstract

The recent spate of appearances of the phenomenon popularly known as “The Presence” might too easily be
dismissed as mass hysteria, when in fact it is possible that this phenomenon has an undiscovered but
comprehensible physical explanation. Here we set forth proposed methods for quantifying the effects of the
Presence, along with a discussion of explanatory theories for the phenomenon’s cause.

Describing the Presence

The first reports of the phenomenon widely known as “The Presence” were recorded on February 4. Reports of the
phenomenon came from all parts of the globe and have continued since that date. Media reports have been limited
since the first day, possibly in an effort by the government to prevent widespread panic, but reports continue to appear
hourly on unofficial channels.

A typical first-hand account of the Presence begins with seeing an immense hand reaching into the ground, followed
by an intensely personal experience including a sense of culpability (either personal or collective), and often an
overpowering sense of ongoing ecological disaster. It is one of the chief aims of this paper to move toward a coherent
understanding of whether these accounts are purely psychological or are related to a legitimate external event.

The Presence is not easily photographed or captured on video equipment. Some images do exist (Figure 1), although
there is considerable debate over the authenticity and accuracy of these materials.

Still under investigation is whether there is a discernible pattern to the geographical locations or times of appearance.

Subjective Evidence: First-Hand Accounts

We have accumulated reports from individuals who claim to have seen the Presence throughout the United States.
From those reports we have distilled a set of six common themes that appear in a high percentage of accounts:

1. Giant hand/arm
2. Culpability (personal or collective)
3. Hearing voices
4. Dissociation
5. Mention of either disaster or salvation
6. Mention of ecological issues

Additionally, we have discovered four themes that appear in a small number of accounts and which do not appear in
the most credible first-hand accounts of the Presence:

7. Giant face
8. Miraculous healing
9. Hearing quotes from specific existing texts
10. Reports of “lost time”

These last 4 themes represent less than 15% of the total reports. We hypothesize that these reports are false
positives: that is, hysterical or intentionally fabricated accounts, rather than authentic, subjectively honest first-person
accounts. The chart below (Figure 2) shows the rate of appearance of these themes in the total population,
contrasting with the rate of appearance after removing the false positives, which were determined by eliminating any
account that referenced any of themes 7-10 or which did not reference at least two of themes 1-6 above.

Interestingly, while about 10% of the apparently valid reports did not refer to ecological issues, absolutely none of the
supposed “false positives” did.

The larger question remains of whether first-hand accounts represent an epiphenomenon of consciousness or
whether they represent a valid perception of reality, albeit filtered by human consciousness.

Objective Evidence: Physical Effects

Meteorological Data
Meteorological data for the Eastern seaboard for February 4 indicates that indeed, at least some reports of the
Presence correlate to meteorological events. Two reports of the Presence in West Virginia (both of which failed the
validity test outlined above) in fact occurred within 5 miles and within 30 minutes of a funnel cloud appearing on
doppler radar. A funnel cloud or small tornado is most likely the event that triggered both reports.

Power Grid Surges
Preliminary findings indicate a slight power surge in urban centers during the Presence’s appearances, although it is
yet to be determined fully whether these differences are statistically significant, and if so, whether they are causally
related to the Presence.

Traffic Disruptions
Traffic patterns have certainly been disrupted during appearances of the Presence. A prominent example is the
multi-car accident on the Zakim Bridge in Boston on February 4. According to preliminary figures gathered from news
media sources, appearances of the Presence seem to be accompanied by significantly higher-than-normal accident
rates, although these numbers must be confirmed against official records.

In general, traffic disruptions do appear to be triggered by human reactions to the event, rather than by physical
disruptions. Traffic signals, toll booths, and other automated systems do not appear to malfunction more than usual
during appearances of the Presence.

Explaining the Presence: Outlining Origin Theories

A Psychogenic Event
Mass psychogenic illness is a convenient way to dismiss this phenomenon, but one of the aims of this paper is to
provide compelling evidence that this explanation is insufficient to account for the Presence, although collective
hysteria may in fact be one of the effects. A large number of people (current estimates range from 5,000 to 75,000)
experienced the Presence on February 4, before any public discussion had taken place. Many experienced it
individually, rather than in crowds, discrediting the idea that herd behavior is a sufficient explanation.

Extraterrestrial Communication
The anecdotal evidence certainly indicates a strong psychological reaction that is intensely personal but also appears
to be categorically different from demonstrably psychogenic events, such as stigmata.

The perception of a “huge arm” is probably an anthropomorphic/neurological bias, but the attendant personification
goes beyond the awe normally associated with geological or meteorological events. The question arises whether this
phenomenon is an attempt to communicate by a class of being which humans may not even be able to perceive
physically.

Meteorological Phenomenon
A third possibility is that the Presence represents a heretofore rare or non-existent weather phenomenon, possibly
precipitated by climate change. The intense personal reaction is certainly warranted: imagine the psychological
impact of encountering thunder and lightning for the first time.

Conclusion
While the Presence is a phenomenon surrounded by controversy and uncertainty, there are myriad resources at our
disposal to determine the precise effects and cause of this mysterious event. Whether this is a mass psychogenic
event, a previously undiscovered meteorological phenomenon, or in fact the appearance of an alien presence, it
behooves the scientific community to give careful consideration to this event of great international significance, and
devote sufficient resources to discovering the true story behind the mystery of the Presence. Enormous amounts of
research money should immediately be poured into this area, particularly my lab, blah blah blah… <Brian to polish>