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摘要
摘要
Unlike most literature on the paranormal that highlights the sensational and the speculative, Alternative Realities approaches this subject in a thoughtful and unprejudiced way to reach an understanding of mysterious phenomena.
This objective volume carefully explains the characteristics of each type of experience and examines the scientific research conducted on the topic.
评论 (2)
《书目》(Booklist)书评
George describes his admirably balanced book as introducing the reader "to the range of the supranormal." While the more than 450 entries cover an impressively broad range of topics, the jacket's claim that Alternative Realities is the first one-volume reference book to deal with virtually every reported type of "unusual experience" seems an overstatement. The breadth of coverage has required selectivity in the choice of entries and, in many instances, lack of depth. The entire entry for Bigfoot, for instance, is the following: "The popular American name for a hairy humanoid occasionally sighted in wooded areas, mostly in the northwest coast region." Cross-references to Cryptic and Humanoids, Anomalous, at one and two pages, respectively, are more helpful. In an extensive directory of entries, George classifies them under three headings. Those under "General Topics" include Skepticism, Magical Thinking, Delusion, Epilepsy, and Vision of Paul. Entries under "Varieties of Unusual (Supranormal) Experience" include Astral Projection, Doppelganger, Channeling, False Memory, UFO Abduction Experience, and Ghost Light. Entries under "Deliberate Inducement of Unusual Experiences" include Flagellation, Vision Quest, Peyote, Koan, and Glossolalia. Among these latter entries are about 100 associated with Buddhist, Hindu, Islamic, Christian, Judaic, and esoteric traditions. Entries themselves are lucid and range from one sentence to several pages. Most contain see also references and a brief list of further reading. Concluding the book are tables and lists of studies correlating supranormal beliefs and anomalous phenomena, a 20-page bibliography, and an index. Covering much of the same ground is Rosemary Guiley's Harper's Encyclopedia of Mystical and Paranormal Experience (Harper, 1991). A sampling of 33 entries there revealed that only eight are found in Alternative Realities, while only about half appear in the index. Guiley contains biographies while George does not. George is especially good at presenting the views of both skeptics and believers. Alternative Realities is recommended for academic, public, and high-school libraries. (Reviewed ^May 01, 1995^)
Choice 评论
Despite a title that suggests a presumption of truth in many of the ideas discussed, this book offers primarily an informative and unbiased introduction to a great variety of possibilities in unusual human experiences. George attempts to present these possibilities in a way that facilitates considering them in relation to academic and clinical psychology, in which he is obviously competent. Where the status of knowledge permits, he cites sources of evidence to justify doubt about the reality of claims or to support their acceptance or further study. The main text takes the form of brief articles on concepts or topics, arranged alphabetically. It is preceded by a directory that lists the topics relevant to various forms and sources of experience, to various religious traditions, and to general issues. This permits combining the advantages of dictionary and encyclopedia. Of special value are the introductions to the kinds of unusual experiences said to be associated with each of nine major religious traditions. An extensive bibliography contains specific references cited in the text and general readings on many of the topics covered. General; undergraduate; faculty. I. L. Child; Yale University