A remarkable Reading on Paltalk.

[SRW]

I occasionally pop into the psychic reading rooms on Pal Talk, usually under the SN of SkepticalSteve. Recently I was in one of these rooms and was able to get a reading. I was surprised as I normally get booted as soon as I speak up.

The reading at first pass was a total failure, however events unfolded which made it surprisingly accurate.

I have a transcript of the reading on one of my systems a home so I can post it if anyone is interested.

The psychic ask me first if I had a question to ask.
So I asked Who I should hire (I was spending the day going over resumes.

His first shot was that there was a girl with short dark hair who is a co-worker and she will get the job.

No, none of my co-workers applied.

Then he started off on, it must be a romantic link between me and the co-worker.

Nope I'm married my wife has long hair.

Then he went after the obvious, saying I am a workaholic (who else would ask a work related question on a Friday night.)

He came pretty close on this one but not close enough so I was red dotted and kicked from the room.

Not comes the remarkable part. We sorted the Resumes down to three people then conducted interviews. The leading candidate is a woman with short hair, who is a different branch of the my college system so she could be a considered a co-worker.

When I get home tonight I'll look at the transcript. As I may be doing some selective remembering, none the less it is a remarkable coincidence, and I would like to see someone else get a reading from this same person and see how it comes out.

[Phrost]

Originally posted by SRW
Not comes the remarkable part. We sorted the Resumes down to three people then conducted interviews. The leading candidate is a woman with short hair, who is a different branch of the my college system so she could be a considered a co-worker.

When I get home tonight I'll look at the transcript. As I may be doing some selective remembering, none the less it is a remarkable coincidence, and I would like to see someone else get a reading from this same person and see how it comes out.

I don't know what's remarkable about that. Many professional women have short hair, not to mention that it's entirely likely you work with one.

[Martin]

Make sure she doesn't get the job. Problem solved :D

[SRW]

Originally posted by Martin
Make sure she doesn't get the job. Problem solved :D


Not very likely, as she is incredibly perfect for the position.

[Phrost]

If you want to believe in something, consciously or subconsciously, your mind will find a way to justify it.

[SRW]

Originally posted by Phrost


I don't know what's remarkable about that. Many professional women have short hair, not to mention that it's entirely likely you work with one.

True, however I never mentioned anything about any of the applicants, age sex or anything else. If I were doing the cold reading I would have guessed a male, of the 12 applicants we originally had 8 were male and 4 female. And that ratio is pretty close to what i usually see.

Don't get me wrong I do not believe the psychic is for real. Just when you get this large a coincidence it's worth following up don't ya think. Otherwise we deserve the closed minded label.

[rebecca]

Or hire her and split the million dollar prize with your psychic.

[Phrost]

Originally posted by SRW


True, however I never mentioned anything about any of the applicants, age sex or anything else. If I were doing the cold reading I would have guessed a male, of the 12 applicants we originally had 8 were male and 4 female. And that ratio is pretty close to what i usually see.

Don't get me wrong I do not believe the psychic is for real. Just when you get this large a coincidence it's worth following up don't ya think. Otherwise we deserve the closed minded label.

Point taken.

Now if she'd said your co-worker, Sarah, would be the best candidate, we might even get a cameo by Mr. Randi on this subject.

[SRW]

Originally posted by Phrost


Point taken.

Now if she'd said your co-worker, Sarah, would be the best candidate, we might even get a cameo by Mr. Randi on this subject.

How did you know her name was Sarah?


















:) ;) :)

[Marian]

No offense, but I don't see anything remarkable about it. Let's just look at what you said. All the specifics were misses, generalization there were 3 hits.

Then we have these options:

Male vs. Female: 50% chance there. You said more males applied, but they didn't have that information. If it was a job where 95% of the applicants were female (due to profession) it would still be a 50/50 IMO because they didn't have that information.

Short vs Long hair: Not 50% there, I'd say more women in the working sector have hair that would fall under 'short' rather than 'long' (I personally have long hair, but it's not as common.) It also depends on degree, some people with shoulder length hair consider that 'long', others 'short'. So it's slightly a matter of perception too. One could make this fit a little better, so there's a lot of weasel room.

Light vs. Dark: Don't know the odds there, but they're not 50/50. I have reddish auburn hair, some may call it 'light' others 'dark', if pressed I'd probably go with 'dark' (because I think of "light" as blonde).

So let's assume that normally there are 3 major hair colors (red, brown, blonde). I think more people would (if they had to) classify their hair as 'dark' rather than 'light' if they are red or brown. Someone who has 'light brown' hair, if color is excluded and has to say if their hair is light or dark, may go with dark...because they'd think of blonde as light.

So it's less of a hit than it seems, IMO. Also a matter of perception with lots of wiggle room.

So the person's only hits were: Female, short hair, dark hair. The more specific hits: co-worker, romantic involvement, were clear misses.

Now, because she works in a related branch, you can make that a hit (or argue that it could be)...but she's not your co-worker. Also, the 'romantic' involvement, if you found out that she ...oh had the same first name as a woman you were once in love with, would that then be a hit? Or if she looks similar to someone you really liked, would that be a hit?

(And I'm not counting the workaholic thing, which you also discounted).

If you feel it's worth pursuing further, then I know if I felt that way I would look further into it. Looking into it further will only help you gain a better opinion one way or another. If it were me, it wouldn't have been specific enough to peak my interest, but that's just me. :) A Even a broken clock is right twice a day. ;)

[Mercutio]

I must agree with Marian on this...of course, I was not there, but reading your description, I kept waiting for the part that one would call "remarkable". It never came. I absolutely can understand that there is a huge difference between a reading and the description of one...but to my eye, I see less "it fits!", and more "you making it fit".

[SRW]

Originally posted by Marian
No offense, but I don't see anything remarkable about it. Let's just look at what you said. All the specifics were misses, generalization there were 3 hits.



No offence taken, I called it remarkable because it is 100 times better than any other reading I have gotten.

Anyway here is the transcript,

trawolf1973: steve, please type ur question or concern...please be brief and to the point
Skepticalsteve: Which person should I hire?
trawolf1973: from what i am picking up here, that is not what is on your mind right now
Skepticalsteve: I was thinking of the canidates
Skepticalsteve: What were you picking up?
trawolf1973: that u were thinking of somebody very close to ur heart, but could not bring urself to admit it
Skepticalsteve: No I was thinking of which person to hire
Skepticalsteve: Anything else ?
trawolf1973: who is the woman with short dark hair i am seeing around you? i am seeing a tall, slender woman with short, dark hair....she keeps coming to my mind when i think of you
trawolf1973: she is someone who is on your mind quite often
Skepticalsteve: Cant think of anyone like that
trawolf1973: u work dong construction or something where you use your hands quite a bit building things?
Skepticalsteve: I am a programer so I use my hands for typing
trawolf1973: this woman i keep seeing has something to do with your work....she works very close to you....not a supervisor, although i feel like she is an above average worker
trawolf1973: i think you need to look within the company for your candidate, someone is feeling very left out
Skepticalsteve: No one from the company applied
trawolf1973: i feel like this woman is waiting to be offered the position as recognition....does not have the ability to be aggresive
Skepticalsteve: I do not know anyone at the job who is even close to the mimimum quals
trawolf1973: yes, but i get the impression that your own personal standards are set so high sometimes that to you, nobody is qualified enough...not everyone is the workaholic that you are lol
Skepticalsteve: Oh we have three well qualified canidates
trawolf1973: i feel that you are the type of man that raises the bar in the effort you put in to your job....but i also feel that in the process, you leave a lot of others who are well qualified feeling inadeaquate...does this make sense?
Skepticalsteve: Its is possible
trawolf1973: i feel like you strive for perfection in your job because it is the only thing you feel like you have control over, does this make sense?
Skepticalsteve: No not currently
trawolf1973: but it has been an issue
Skepticalsteve: It has been in the past
trawolf1973: right
trawolf1973: you have hidden in your job before
Skepticalsteve: Hidden?
trawolf1973: hidden as in sought shelter in
trawolf1973: or comfort
Skepticalsteve: Well I did get paid comfortablly
trawolf1973: not the pay....the secutity in knowing that nobody could "mess this up" for you
Skepticalsteve: Hell that was half the fun
trawolf1973: i feel like you had the need to prove a lot of people wrong about you
trawolf1973: you have been put down and stepped on quite a bit
Skepticalsteve: No I never cared much about what other think of me
trawolf1973: i dont know
Skepticalsteve: I do
trawolf1973: i think you used the i dont care what people think of me attitude as a reason to be as determined as you are
trawolf1973: like you havent lived your live the way you have because of what people have said, but in spite of it
Skepticalsteve: Its news to me that people were saying anyting
trawolf1973: but as i said, i am new to this and have never done any readings online, only in person....i could have what i am feeling about you completely mixed up with someone else
trawolf1973: i just know what i feel about you....only you know what is true
Skepticalsteve: Or the more likley explaination that your just making it up as you go along
trawolf1973: no, i would not do that
Skepticalsteve: Well You were way off base
trawolf1973: like i said way earlier, i am only admin as a favor to shelteringskies, i have never done an online reading before, was just practicing and seeing if i could pick up on anyting....only you know what is true, so even if i was dead on, you could say i was wrong, just because you can
Skepticalsteve: No If you were dead on I would have told you
Paltalk: (PS) Your text messsages are currently disabled in this room


After reading this again, it's not all that impressive.

[voidx]

Tons of platitudes in that reading. Not picking up information from any spirit or anything else, rather, just psycho-analyzing you, and extremely poorly at that. As you say, quite unimpressive.

[Marian]

Again no offense intended, but what I found REALLY interesting is that you had a good opportunity to show something that I think occurs often with such readings. Most people...don't have transcripts.

You had it, (got booted) then slept on it, then really focused more on the hits (because hey that's what related, and you remember it because there's a connection). And so you think, wow...that was more accurate than most of these people. This person may have had some hits!

Then you post the transcript (and reread it yourself) and...it looks REALLY unimpressive. I mean, the discussion of the woman wasn't even a hit, he was focusing on it being a romantic connection...not on your issue (which c'mon you GAVE him the application hit and he doesn't even take it!)

So the woman guess (and everything with it) isn't even a hit, because why would he guess a man when he's guessing you're really there to talk about a romantic issue. And your romantic link is in reality a lovely wife with long hair. ;)

Anyway what I DO find impressive about it, is that I think it's an extremely good demonstration of what many people probably experience with cold readings. A few statements seem to apply, because the sitter applies them appropriately themselves. When they recall the incident, they don't recall that it was a completely wrong avenue, they recall the connections made, because they have meaning, so they're more easily remembered in that context.

It wasn't intended as such, but I am really glad you posted it, because to me it clearly demonstrates the sitter's role in applying what the 'psychic' says, and how memory can so quickly fool us because of the connections we make. Fortunately because you have a transcript (and because you're looking at it with an open, but skeptical mind) you're able to go back and say 'Hey, wait a minute....'

[glee]

Thanks for posting the transcript.
Sadly it has all the marks of cold reading (they ask you questions, so you give them information, then they repeat / deduce from it; they churn out platitudes and you decide that means something specific)

Let me highlight some of this, and intersperse my comments:

trawolf1973: steve, please type ur question or concern...please be brief and to the point
Skepticalsteve: Which person should I hire?
trawolf1973: from what i am picking up here, that is not what is on your mind right now

glee: So if this isn't the main issue, the medium has scored a hit! :hit: If it is the issue, this comment will be instantly pushed aside....

Skepticalsteve: I was thinking of the canidates
Skepticalsteve: What were you picking up?

glee: Coooeee! Do you mean this is the issue on your mind? So the first comment is completely wrong, but the 'reading' continues...

trawolf1973: that u were thinking of somebody very close to ur heart, but could not bring urself to admit it

glee: Ah yes, the incredible 'ability' to state things that only the medium could have known. You were thinking of 'somebody' (wife, child, parent, friend, hero, TV star, actress, singer, soldier, politician, businessman...) who you admire.
Well none of us do that very often :rolleyes: and of course you pick which person it applies to. Whichever person you are thinking of - that's the one the medium will 'claim' to have seen.

Skepticalsteve: No I was thinking of which person to hire

glee: still wrong, but the 'reading' continues...

Skepticalsteve: Anything else ?
trawolf1973: who is the woman with short dark hair i am seeing around you? i am seeing a tall, slender woman with short, dark hair....she keeps coming to my mind when i think of you
trawolf1973: she is someone who is on your mind quite often

glee: Why is the medium asking you? What sort of 'information gathering' process is this?

Skepticalsteve: Cant think of anyone like that
trawolf1973: u work dong construction or something where you use your hands quite a bit building things?

glee: I'm sorry, but I may have to lie down in a dark room soon. (Or earn lots of money doing cold reading...)
Why is a medium asking you this?
What does 'use your hands quite a bit 'mean exactly? Does a computer programmer use their hands? Does a Las Vegas card dealer use their hands? Does an artist use their hands? Does a soldier use their hands?
All we need now is for you to volunteer information so this farce can continue...

Skepticalsteve: I am a programer so I use my hands for typing

Ah, cold reading at its very best. So now the medium 'knows' you work in an office, are mathematically inclined, have a job more to do with machines than people etc.
How does the 'medium' know all this?
Oh, you told them. :rolleyes:

You said "After reading this again, it's not all that impressive."
It's less than impressive.

[Mercutio]

The bad news, Marian and glee, is that your analyses were posted about 4 weeks too late for my class presentation on cold reading. Those were both wonderful. The good news....my summer class starts in just over 2 weeks...

Is Ian Rowland still posting here? I'd like his analysis too...maybe I'll e-mail him...

[BillHoyt]

Originally posted by Mercutio
The bad news, Marian and glee, is that your analyses were posted about 4 weeks too late for my class presentation on cold reading. Those were both wonderful. The good news....my summer class starts in just over 2 weeks...

Is Ian Rowland still posting here? I'd like his analysis too...maybe I'll e-mail him...
Mercutio,

Ian's last post was mid-March, but I think he's still here.

[NoZed Avenger]

Of course, this reading is not TRULY accurate unless you are actually sleeping with the candidate, as well, it would seem. . . .


N/A

[SRW]

Originally posted by Marian
Again no offense intended, but what I found REALLY interesting is that you had a good opportunity to show something that I think occurs often with such readings. Most people...don't have transcripts.

You had it, (got booted) then slept on it, then really focused more on the hits (because hey that's what related, and you remember it because there's a connection). And so you think, wow...that was more accurate than most of these people. This person may have had some hits!

Then you post the transcript (and reread it yourself) and...it looks REALLY unimpressive. I mean, the discussion of the woman wasn't even a hit, he was focusing on it being a romantic connection...not on your issue (which c'mon you GAVE him the application hit and he doesn't even take it!)

So the woman guess (and everything with it) isn't even a hit, because why would he guess a man when he's guessing you're really there to talk about a romantic issue. And your romantic link is in reality a lovely wife with long hair. ;)

Anyway what I DO find impressive about it, is that I think it's an extremely good demonstration of what many people probably experience with cold readings. A few statements seem to apply, because the sitter applies them appropriately themselves. When they recall the incident, they don't recall that it was a completely wrong avenue, they recall the connections made, because they have meaning, so they're more easily remembered in that context.

It wasn't intended as such, but I am really glad you posted it, because to me it clearly demonstrates the sitter's role in applying what the 'psychic' says, and how memory can so quickly fool us because of the connections we make. Fortunately because you have a transcript (and because you're looking at it with an open, but skeptical mind) you're able to go back and say 'Hey, wait a minute....'



Yes you are exactly right, I recored this as a good example of a bad reading. That was about two weeks ago. Then we did our finial interviews two days ago. Yesterday, I recalled part of the reading specifically as it referred to a woman with short dark hair.

Some things to note. The woman in question is about 5'2" so she hardly qualifies as "tall". So I did engage in a bit of selective remembering, guilty as charged.

I am glad I kept the transcript, at the time I thinking of posting it here as an example or cold reading, but completely forgot about it until I met the candidate. The mind is a wonderful thing but memory can be very selective, which is why cold reading works.

[Ladewig]

The psychic ask me first if I had a question to ask.
So I asked Who I should hire (I was spending the day going over resumes.

His first shot was that there was a girl with short dark hair who is a co-worker and she will get the job.

No. the psychic's first shot was "who is the woman with short dark hair i am seeing around you?" You were assuming that the psychic was focusing on the question you asked. The psychic's response to your question, or more accurately, the question the psychic threw at you, does not mention hiring at all. That could count as a hit if it were your boss, someone in personnel department, the person who wrote the job requirements, the last person to do the job, someone who is qualified but did not apply, or any of a dozen other people.

[Ersby]

Thanks for posting the transcript. It always nice to see unedited readings.

The opening gambit, as has been said, is a fine example of the medium doubling his chances. Ask what the sitter wants to talk about, and then talk about somethig else, and hope something makes sense somewhere.

[SRW]

Originally posted by Ladewig


No. the psychic's first shot was "who is the woman with short dark hair i am seeing around you?" You were assuming that the psychic was focusing on the question you asked. The psychic's response to your question, or more accurately, the question the psychic threw at you, does not mention hiring at all. That could count as a hit if it were your boss, someone in personnel department, the person who wrote the job requirements, the last person to do the job, someone who is qualified but did not apply, or any of a dozen other people.

Don't forget that I was operating from memory, also even though I am a skeptic, I still have a part of me that really would like for some of this stuff to be true.

I fell into the same trap (although not hook line and sinker) that John Edward sets for the people he reads. When he does not get any hits he usually resorts to "keep this reading in mind and something will pop up." The coincidence that seemed remarkable
(without the transcript), is actually pretty lame. Most people read by psychics don't have that document for refrence.

[glee]

Originally posted by SRW

Don't forget that I was operating from memory, also even though I am a skeptic, I still have a part of me that really would like for some of this stuff to be true.


You seem like a pleasant poster, so I won't offer you millions from a Nigerian bank account; relief from pain thru magnets; next weeks lottery numbers etc.

I do have a bridge I can sell you cheap though...

[CFLarsen]

Originally posted by glee
You seem like a pleasant poster, so I won't offer you millions from a Nigerian bank account; relief from pain thru magnets; next weeks lottery numbers etc.

I do have a bridge I can sell you cheap though...

No, disagree.

I am a skeptic, and perhaps one of the more....fervent ones. But I would simply love to see any person prove that any kind of paranormal phenomenon was real. I would! It's my only claim to fame. I know that I will never make any kind of impact on the human race. I know that when I am dead, I will be forgotten faster than Kelly Clarkson.

So, if I can be a part of proving any kind of paranormal phenomenon, be it ever a small part, I'll take it, and be happy about it, too.

I don't accept your offer of a cheap bridge, but I would love to see your evidence of a paranormal phenomenon!

All I need is that evidence. Gee, why is that so hard to see?

[glee]

Originally posted by CFLarsen
No, disagree.

I am a skeptic, and perhaps one of the more....fervent ones. But I would simply love to see any person prove that any kind of paranormal phenomenon was real. I would! It's my only claim to fame. I know that I will never make any kind of impact on the human race. I know that when I am dead, I will be forgotten faster than Kelly Clarkson.

So, if I can be a part of proving any kind of paranormal phenomenon, be it ever a small part, I'll take it, and be happy about it, too.

I don't accept your offer of a cheap bridge, but I would love to see your evidence of a paranormal phenomenon!

All I need is that evidence. Gee, why is that so hard to see?

Perhaps I should expand on my position a little.
I believe completely in an invisible force that can affect planets (gravity); that pressing buttons can instantly send a message to millions of people all over the World (Internet); and that the odds of 2 or more people, in a random collection of 30, having the same birthday are better than 50%.
So I'm a scientist who accepts evidence.

I see enough true wonders in the world (aeroplanes / lasers / microwave ovens / computers / the Pyramids) not to need exciting claims with no evidence to back them up.

It would be great if e.g. dowsing existed.
I corresponded with a leading member of the British Society of Dowsers for some time. He stated:
- anyone can learn to dowse
- you can dowse for water, oil, gold, pipes, tunnels, missing animals and many more things
- his powers always worked, except when he was tested (apparently this was because he was then 'showing off')
- he (and every other member of the Society) would not collect the Randi million dollars, because 'money meant nothing to them'

He finished by offering to teach me to dowse and gave a list of his charges (just to 'cover expenses').

Claims of dowsing have been around for hundreds of years, yet no dowser has ever succeeded in a scientific test.
I draw a scientific conclusion from this about the likelihood of such a power truly existing.

[SRW]

Originally posted by glee


You seem like a pleasant poster, so I won't offer you millions from a Nigerian bank account; relief from pain thru magnets; next weeks lottery numbers etc.

I do have a bridge I can sell you cheap though...

So you dismiss with prejudice any claims about the paranormal? I prefer to keep an open mind. I have no proof currently that any thing like with works, however if I find something I would rather investigate and look the fool than pass up the opportunity to discover something new.

I would love the take the JREF million, however I have a retirement account that fund as I doubt anyone will ever get
that money.

[Ladewig]

- he (and every other member of the Society) would not collect the Randi million dollars, because 'money meant nothing to them'

He finished by offering to teach me to dowse and gave a list of his charges (just to 'cover expenses').


What expenses are involved?

How much do bent coathangers and forked sticks cost in England?