Nina Kulagina
Encyclopedia
Nina Kulagina, Ninel Sergeyevna Kulagina (aka Nelya Mikhailova) (30 July 19261990) was a Russia
n woman who claimed to have psychic
powers, particularly in psychokinesis
. Academic research of her phenomenon was conducted in the USSR for the last twenty years of her life.
at 14, entering its tank regiment during World War II
, but she was a housewife
at the time that her alleged psychic abilities were studied and she entered international discourse in the 1960s. During the Cold War
, silent black-and-white
films of her appearing to move objects on a table in front of her without touching them, were produced. These films were allegedly made under controlled conditions for Soviet authorities and caused excitement for many psychic researchers around the world, some of whom believed that they represented clear evidence for the existence of psychic phenomena. According to reports from the Soviet Union, forty scientists, two of whom were Nobel
laureates, studied Kulagina. In Investigating Psychics, Larry Kettlekamp reports that Mikhailova was filmed separating broken eggs that had been submerged in water, moving apart the whites and yolks, during which event such physical changes were recorded as accelerated and altered heartbeat
, brain waves and electromagnetic field
. To ensure that external electromagnetic impulses did not interfere, she was placed inside of a metal cage while she supposedly demonstrated an ability to remove a marked matchstick from a pile of matchsticks under a glass dome.
Kulagina claimed that she first recognized her ability, which she believed she had inherited from her mother, when she realized that items spontaneously moved around her when she was angry. Kulagina said that in order to manifest the effect, she required a period of meditation
to clear her mind of all thoughts. When she had obtained the focus required, she reported a sharp pain in her spine
and the blurring of her eyesight. Reportedly, storm
s interfered with her ability to perform psychokinetic acts.
One of Kulagina's most celebrated experiments took place in a Leningrad
laboratory on 10 March 1970. Having initially studied the ability to move inanimate objects, scientists were curious to see if Nina's abilities extended to cells
, tissues
, and organs
. Sergeyev was one of many scientists present when Nina attempted to use her energy to stop the beating of a frog
's heart floating in solution. He said that she focused intently on the heart and apparently made it beat faster, then slower, and using extreme intent of thought, stopped it.
In 1974 Jürgen Keil, of the University of Tasmania paid a surprise visit to Kulagina. According to Keil she was friendly and invited the scientist in without preparation and also asked them to stay for dinner. Kulagina performed without prior preparation and was filmed during the dinner.
In the late 1970s, a near fatal heart attack
forced Kulagina to scale back her activities. According to a report produced by Dr. Zverev, her heartbeat
was irregular, she had high blood sugar
, and her endocrine system
was disturbed. Over the long term, she suffered from pains in her arms and legs, could not coordinate properly, and experienced dizziness
. The report said that these symptoms were the result of her paranormal exertions, and limited her ability to demonstrate psychokinesis under controlled conditions.
and the Italian Committee for the Investigation of Claims on the Paranormal (CICAP) express strong skepticism regarding the truth of these claims. It is noted that the long preparation times and uncontrolled environments (such as hotel rooms) in which the experiments took place left much potential for trickery. Skeptics have argued that many of Kulagina's feats could easily be performed by one practiced in sleight of hand
, through means such as cleverly concealed or disguised threads, small pieces of magnetic metal, or mirrors. They further point to the fact that no sleight of hand experts appear to have ever been present during experiments, and that the Cold War
-era Soviet Union
had an obvious motive for falsifying or exaggerating results in the potential propaganda
value in appearing to win a "Psi Race" analogous to the concurrent Space Race
or arms race
.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n woman who claimed to have psychic
Psychic
A psychic is a person who professes an ability to perceive information hidden from the normal senses through extrasensory perception , or is said by others to have such abilities. It is also used to describe theatrical performers who use techniques such as prestidigitation, cold reading, and hot...
powers, particularly in psychokinesis
Psychokinesis
The term psychokinesis , also referred to as telekinesis with respect to strictly describing movement of matter, sometimes abbreviated PK and TK respectively, is a term...
. Academic research of her phenomenon was conducted in the USSR for the last twenty years of her life.
Biography
Kulagina, who was born in 1926, joined the Red ArmyRed Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
at 14, entering its tank regiment during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, but she was a housewife
Housewife
Housewife is a term used to describe a married woman with household responsibilities who is not employed outside the home. Merriam Webster describes a housewife as a married woman who is in charge of her household...
at the time that her alleged psychic abilities were studied and she entered international discourse in the 1960s. During the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, silent black-and-white
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
films of her appearing to move objects on a table in front of her without touching them, were produced. These films were allegedly made under controlled conditions for Soviet authorities and caused excitement for many psychic researchers around the world, some of whom believed that they represented clear evidence for the existence of psychic phenomena. According to reports from the Soviet Union, forty scientists, two of whom were Nobel
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
laureates, studied Kulagina. In Investigating Psychics, Larry Kettlekamp reports that Mikhailova was filmed separating broken eggs that had been submerged in water, moving apart the whites and yolks, during which event such physical changes were recorded as accelerated and altered heartbeat
Cardiac cycle
The cardiac cycle is a term referring to all or any of the events related to the flow or blood pressure that occurs from the beginning of one heartbeat to the beginning of the next. The frequency of the cardiac cycle is described by the heart rate. Each beat of the heart involves five major stages...
, brain waves and electromagnetic field
Electromagnetic field
An electromagnetic field is a physical field produced by moving electrically charged objects. It affects the behavior of charged objects in the vicinity of the field. The electromagnetic field extends indefinitely throughout space and describes the electromagnetic interaction...
. To ensure that external electromagnetic impulses did not interfere, she was placed inside of a metal cage while she supposedly demonstrated an ability to remove a marked matchstick from a pile of matchsticks under a glass dome.
Kulagina claimed that she first recognized her ability, which she believed she had inherited from her mother, when she realized that items spontaneously moved around her when she was angry. Kulagina said that in order to manifest the effect, she required a period of meditation
Meditation
Meditation is any form of a family of practices in which practitioners train their minds or self-induce a mode of consciousness to realize some benefit....
to clear her mind of all thoughts. When she had obtained the focus required, she reported a sharp pain in her spine
Vertebral column
In human anatomy, the vertebral column is a column usually consisting of 24 articulating vertebrae, and 9 fused vertebrae in the sacrum and the coccyx. It is situated in the dorsal aspect of the torso, separated by intervertebral discs...
and the blurring of her eyesight. Reportedly, storm
Storm
A storm is any disturbed state of an astronomical body's atmosphere, especially affecting its surface, and strongly implying severe weather...
s interfered with her ability to perform psychokinetic acts.
One of Kulagina's most celebrated experiments took place in a Leningrad
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
laboratory on 10 March 1970. Having initially studied the ability to move inanimate objects, scientists were curious to see if Nina's abilities extended to cells
Cell (biology)
The cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all known living organisms. It is the smallest unit of life that is classified as a living thing, and is often called the building block of life. The Alberts text discusses how the "cellular building blocks" move to shape developing embryos....
, tissues
Biological tissue
Tissue is a cellular organizational level intermediate between cells and a complete organism. A tissue is an ensemble of cells, not necessarily identical, but from the same origin, that together carry out a specific function. These are called tissues because of their identical functioning...
, and organs
Organ (anatomy)
In biology, an organ is a collection of tissues joined in structural unit to serve a common function. Usually there is a main tissue and sporadic tissues . The main tissue is the one that is unique for the specific organ. For example, main tissue in the heart is the myocardium, while sporadic are...
. Sergeyev was one of many scientists present when Nina attempted to use her energy to stop the beating of a frog
Frog
Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
's heart floating in solution. He said that she focused intently on the heart and apparently made it beat faster, then slower, and using extreme intent of thought, stopped it.
In 1974 Jürgen Keil, of the University of Tasmania paid a surprise visit to Kulagina. According to Keil she was friendly and invited the scientist in without preparation and also asked them to stay for dinner. Kulagina performed without prior preparation and was filmed during the dinner.
In the late 1970s, a near fatal heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
forced Kulagina to scale back her activities. According to a report produced by Dr. Zverev, her heartbeat
Cardiac cycle
The cardiac cycle is a term referring to all or any of the events related to the flow or blood pressure that occurs from the beginning of one heartbeat to the beginning of the next. The frequency of the cardiac cycle is described by the heart rate. Each beat of the heart involves five major stages...
was irregular, she had high blood sugar
Blood sugar
The blood sugar concentration or blood glucose level is the amount of glucose present in the blood of a human or animal. Normally in mammals, the body maintains the blood glucose level at a reference range between about 3.6 and 5.8 mM , or 64.8 and 104.4 mg/dL...
, and her endocrine system
Endocrine system
In physiology, the endocrine system is a system of glands, each of which secretes a type of hormone directly into the bloodstream to regulate the body. The endocrine system is in contrast to the exocrine system, which secretes its chemicals using ducts. It derives from the Greek words "endo"...
was disturbed. Over the long term, she suffered from pains in her arms and legs, could not coordinate properly, and experienced dizziness
Dizziness
Dizziness refers to an impairment in spatial perception and stability. The term is somewhat imprecise. It can be used to mean vertigo, presyncope, disequilibrium, or a non-specific feeling such as giddiness or foolishness....
. The report said that these symptoms were the result of her paranormal exertions, and limited her ability to demonstrate psychokinesis under controlled conditions.
Criticism
Many skeptical individuals and organizations, such as the James Randi Educational FoundationJames Randi Educational Foundation
The James Randi Educational Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 1996 by magician and skeptic James Randi. The JREF's mission includes educating the public and the media on the dangers of accepting unproven claims, and to support research into paranormal claims in controlled...
and the Italian Committee for the Investigation of Claims on the Paranormal (CICAP) express strong skepticism regarding the truth of these claims. It is noted that the long preparation times and uncontrolled environments (such as hotel rooms) in which the experiments took place left much potential for trickery. Skeptics have argued that many of Kulagina's feats could easily be performed by one practiced in sleight of hand
Sleight of hand
Sleight of hand, also known as prestidigitation or legerdemain, is the set of techniques used by a magician to manipulate objects such as cards and coins secretly....
, through means such as cleverly concealed or disguised threads, small pieces of magnetic metal, or mirrors. They further point to the fact that no sleight of hand experts appear to have ever been present during experiments, and that the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
-era Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
had an obvious motive for falsifying or exaggerating results in the potential propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
value in appearing to win a "Psi Race" analogous to the concurrent Space Race
Space Race
The Space Race was a mid-to-late 20th century competition between the Soviet Union and the United States for supremacy in space exploration. Between 1957 and 1975, Cold War rivalry between the two nations focused on attaining firsts in space exploration, which were seen as necessary for national...
or arms race
Arms race
The term arms race, in its original usage, describes a competition between two or more parties for the best armed forces. Each party competes to produce larger numbers of weapons, greater armies, or superior military technology in a technological escalation...
.
External links
- Braude, Stephen. Unusual Powers of Mind Over Matter
- The Psychic Powers of Nina Kulagina Comprehensive Biography of Nina Kulagina
- Nina Kulagina and Psychokinesis In Russia
- Secrets of a Russian Psychic Magicians and parapsychologists describe mundane methods