By Lawrence JeromeOur Price: $19.95 Our Item Code: crystal Postage Code: book1
195 Pages, Cover Size: 9 x 6 inches |
| Our Review | Opinion of the webmaster, subject to debate |
Do crystals hold magical powers to heal, energize and improve gas mileage? Will meditating under a pyramid improve your psychic powers? Chances are, you already have your own answers to these questions: Either (A) you believe in crystal power, or (B) you don't. If you believe, then you probably won't touch this book; if you disbelieve, then you may already understand most of the pitfalls described. According to the author, people who believe they have experienced the magical power of crystals are experiencing instead the Placebo Effect, wherein a purported remedy always tends to fulfull a patient's expectations for it. If you believe that meditating with crystals will cure your headache, then it probably will -- either by selective attention or by the improved attitude this belief has given you. The author reviews the proven uses of crystals in industry and conducts methodical experiments disproving specific New Age claims: that crystals increase plant growth, purify water, improve healing, increase gas mileage, etc. (The only trouble with this kind of exercise is that for every claim you disprove, others emerge in its place.) Claims that crystals increase ones psychic power are dismissed in one short chapter arguing that "ESP powers remain unproven and only vaguely possible theoretically." (We think the author ought to stick to addressing specific claims.) Apart from the blanket dismissal of parapsychology, this book is intelligently written, and we carry it because it fills a niche, but we balk at the high price. For twenty bucks, we expect more inspiration. -- Glenn Campbell
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| Information from the Publisher | Always supportive |
Crystals have become the ubiquitous energy tokens of the New Age. Claims about the powers of crystals run the gamut from medical (healing) to psychic (increasing ESP abilities) -- and are often simply wishful thinking. This book critically examines crystal power from a variety of viewpoints: historical, scientific, theoretical, and experimental.
Jerome evaluates the placebo effect in medicine and psychiatry and its relation to crystal effectiveness. To test claims of crystal "energy," Jerome turned to the laboratory. In this book he reports the results of his experiments and also discloses the findings of a national survey of crystal-power advocates. His study of these fascinating, mysterious gems shows that the much-vaunted powers of crystals are not in the stones themselves—but in the minds of those who "believe."
Lawrence E. Jerome is an adjunct professor, College of Professional Studies, University of San Francisco. He has written numerous articles for scientific publications, and is the author of Objections to Astrology and Astrology Disproved.
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