Jim Devine wrote:
There's an interesting (and tooth-gnashing) article in the current. "The Kids are Far Right: Hippie hunting, bunny BOO! Unavailable to web browsers... must buy hardcopy. However, *this* was online: [Experiment] See Spot Explode[Look! Said Sally. Look where *I'm* pierced! <http://images.oldglory.com/product/004797PATSd.jpg>] After a training period of more than three months, two of Simpson’s six dogs, Tessie and Binnie, were considered ready for the tests. It was necessary to fit the test to the working habits of the dog and the trainer, and this was done in preliminary tests with Simpson. It was necessary, too, to eliminate sensory cues that might obviously indicate the location of the mines to the trainer or the dog. The tests were carried out on the beach of the Marshall Ranch on the coast of California. The mines were laid with the trainer and the dog well beyond the range of vision of what was going on at the beach level, although they were visible to the experimenter. Because the mines were buried under two to three inches of moist, packed sand, it was reasonably unlikely that the dogs could locate the mines by contact through their feet. The result of the first day’s total of fourteen trials—that is, seven for each dog—was 86 percent success. Each dog missed one mine out of the same series, not the same one. Our next problem, once it was determined that the dogs could locate mines without surface cues, was to determine whether or not extrasensory modes of perception were involved. It was important to move ahead in the test as far as possible on the elimination of olfactory stimulation. Simpson had been introducing the dogs to the water, giving them special training in connection with underwater mines. The next tests were conducted in the same manner as on land except that water covered the sand. The sand hardened more definitely underwater, and the theory of contact with the feet was rendered inapplicable. Moreover, the coldness of the water greatly reduced the sensitivity of the nerve endings in the dogs’ feet. The results were such as not to be expected by chance alone more than once in five hundred such experiments. Tessie contributed most of the extra-chance success, though not all of it. It has not been possible, in thinking over the situation and reanalyzing the data from different angles, to see any other explanation than that some unusual perceptual factor was operating. At this point it was obvious that several things were needed. First, more dogs, so the training of two more, Venus and Caesar, was undertaken by Simpson. But the most urgent need of all was for a more accessible place for training, since the beach was a four-hour drive away. A small artificial pond on the grounds seemed the only possible solution, and it was decided to concentrate various lines of effort in a December showdown demonstration. It is impossible to appraise the various factors involved. A matter of this kind is necessarily experimental, and Simpson can be excused if he is considered a probable limiting factor in the situation as it developed. I am personally inclined to think that something in Simpson gave out through the long, tedious period of training and retraining those dogs. Although there was sufficient monetary reward, there was not the reward of daily demonstration with recognized success to which he was accustomed. Moreover, during that cold, rainy period the pond became a rather messy mudhole, whereas the trips to the beach had been in the nature of an outing. Certainly I can say that during those four days Simpson was personally not himself. He was manifestly nervous, slightly irritable with his dogs, and, judging by the little signs one learns to look for, not enthusiastic about going on with the project. In my judgment he was frustrated and was dealing with something that was beyond him. It is hard to say whether Simpson holds to the conviction that an extrasensory factor was ever involved or not. He says he does. With this introduction to the personal angle, I turn now to the actual results. They were all explainable by chance, and there was not in any dog’s performance any exception to this. This is See Spot Explode, a reading, originally from October 2006, published Monday, October 30, 2006. It is part of Power, which is part of Readings, which is part of Harpers.org. |
- [PEN-L] speaking of the "Vagina Monologues" Jim Devine
- Re: [PEN-L] speaking of the "Vagina Monologues"... Leigh Meyers
