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Cos'è il CICAP
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E' questo il tenore di un ''profilo'' pubblicato oggi dal sito
dello CSICOP (Committee for the Scientific Investigation of the
Paranormal: http://www.csicop.org/genx/polidoro/ - qui riprodotto
in coda al messaggio) e dedicato a Massimo Polidoro, Segretario
nazionale del CICAP (Comitato Italiano per il Controllo delle
Affermazioni sul Paranormale:
http://www.cicap.org).
L'occasione dell'articolo e' data dal riuscitissimo giro di conferenze
negli Stati Uniti che Polidoro ha appena terminato. E' la prima
volta che un esperto di divulgazione scientifica e di pseudoscienze
europeo riesce a ''conquistare'' il pubblico e i media americani
(durante il viaggio Polidoro e' stato piu' volte intervistato
dalle tv americane e ha registrato alcuni interventi per un documentario
sul paranormale a cura del Discovery Channell).
E' gia' in programmazione per il prossimo anno un nuovo tour,
esteso questa volta anche al Canada e all'America del Sud. Il
tour coincidera' con la pubblicazione del primo libro in inglese
di Polidoro: ''The Final Seance: The Strange Friendship Between
Houdini and Conan Doyle'', dedicato alla curiosa amicizia intercorsa
negli anni venti tra lo scettico illusionista Harry Houdini e
lo spiritista Arthur Conan Doyle, creatore di Sherlock Holmes.
Polidoro sara' prossimamente (22-24 settembre) tra i relatori
di
MosaicoScienze (http://www.mosaicoscienze.com) insieme a Rita
Levi Montalcini, Franco Malerba, Alberto Oliverio e Roberto Vacca.
Per ulteriori informazioni e contatti: redazione@cicap.org
* * *
INTRODUCING ITALY'S VERSION OF HARRY HOUDINI
At the age of 31, Italian paranormal investigator Massimo Polidoro
is the author of a dozen books, performs and lectures to standing-room-only
crowds across the globe, runs a national organization of Italian
skeptics, and is a hit with the Italian media. A life that may
seem very complex to most is very simple to Polidoro: he is merely
leading a life inspired by his boyhood hero Harry Houdini.
Ithaca, N.Y.; August 31, 2000
Matt Nisbet
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Most ten-year-olds growing up in Italy dream of feats of national
heroism
on the soccer field, with visions of professional soccer stardom
dancing in their heads. But as a young boy Massimo Polidoro dreamed
of magic. It all started when Polidoro saw the 1953 Tony Curtis
classic Houdini. A romanticized version of the life and times
of the legendary escape artist and debunker, the film chronicles
Harry Houdini's early beginnings in show business as a dime museum
performer to his ultimate, and inaccurate, death on stage in the
Chinese Water Torture Cell. Amazed by the story of Houdini, young
Polidoro developed a fascination with the paranormal. He tried
bending metals like popular 1970's television personality Uri
Gellar, and delved into books about telepathy and spiritualism.
Fantasy turned to skepticism at the age of 15 when Polidoro came
across thebook Journey Into the Paranormal World by well-known
Italian journalist Piero Angela. The book introduced Polidoro
to the adventures of American magician James "The Amazing"
Randi. The teenage Polidoro wrote to both Angela and Randi, with
Randi responding by sending books to Polidoro on skepticism and
the paranormal. A short time later when Randi visited Italy
on a lecture tour, Polidoro met with the magician and Angela.
Randi recruited Polidoro to serve for the next year as his "sorcerer's
apprentice," traveling the globe testing psychics and dowsers,
and working in front of television cameras to unmask mystery and
trickery for global audiences.
Today, at the young age of 31, life is no less exciting for Polidoro
as he has built an international profile as an author, journalist,
lecturer, and professional skeptic. He is co-founder and Executive
Director of the Italian Committee for the Investigation of Claims
of the Paranormal (CICAP - Comitato Italiano per il Controllo
delle Affermazioni sul Paranomale), has published more than a
dozen books, and draws standing room only crowds at public appearances
across the globe. In mid-August, I traveled to
Amherst, N.Y., to meet and interview Polidoro, who spent the month
on a speaking tour of the United States. His first stop was at
the Center for Inquiry-International, headquarters for the Committee
for the Scientific Investigations of Claims of the Paranormal
(CSICOP), and Skeptical Inquirer magazine.
About two inches short of six feet tall, slender with a well-groomed
Don Quixote goatee, Polidoro speaks fluent English, looks younger
than his years, and unlike many international celebrities, lacks
the slightest trace of hubris or arrogance. Polidoro and I sat
down for about an hour before his evening lecture to discuss his
career and insights on the world of the paranormal.
After spending a year abroad with James Randi, Polidoro returned
to Italy in 1990, and began to shop around to Italian publishers
the manuscript for his first book Viaggio tra gli spiriti (Journey
into the Spirit World).
Polidoro encountered difficulty in convincing publishers that
a book skeptical of the paranormal would interest readers, but
Viaggio tra gli spiriti finally made it into print in 1995, and
experienced strong sales.
Polidoro was then able to follow with a series of books, all in
Italian, that included Misteri (1996), Dizionario del paranormale
(1997), Sei un sensitivo? (1997), La maledizione del Titanic (1998),
I segreti dei fachiri (1998), L'illusione del paranormale (1998)
and Il sesto senso (2000). His first book in English, devoted
to the strange friendship between Harry Houdini and Sir Arthur
Conan Doyle, is scheduled to be published by Prometheus Books
in the Spring of 2001.
In 1989, Polidoro also teamed with Italian scientist Luigi Garlaschelli
to found CICAP, and, in the first years, the duo worked tirelessly
to recruit members and subscribers to the CICAP newsletter. The
newsletter soon grew into the glossy bound magazine Scienza &
Paranormale, reached bi-monthly status in 1998, and today boasts
about 2,000 subscribers. Since 1989,
Polidoro has contributed over 200 articles and papers, not only
to Scienza & Paranormale but also to the Journal of the Society
for Psychical Research, Skeptical Inquirer, Skeptic, and Swift.
As a chief spokesperson for CICAP, Polidoro delivers about four
lectures a month to crowds as large as several thousand. Polidoro
earned a degree in psychology from the University of Padua in
1996 with his thesis devoted to the study of the reliability of
eyewitnesses's reports of unusual events.
Polidoro views his work with the Italian media as possibly his
most
important achievement. "Before CICAP, the Italian media were
absolutely pro-paranormal, and rarely critical, but now CICAP
has grown into a friendship with many journalists," Polidoro
said. He and CICAP have tried to adopt a media-relations approach
that fosters a partnership with the Italian media, and makes covering
paranormal claims from a critical view easy. CICAP maintains a
media e-mail list and a state-of-the-art organizational Web site.
"There are skeptical journalists and they are certainly supportive
of our cause, " Polidoro said. "But most are looking
for a nice story. So if we find a way to present ourselves in
a more
interesting light, it can be very important." Polidoro names
alternative medicine (especially homeopathy), UFOs (specifically
the ancient astronaut claims of Robert Hancock), and various
miracle claims as the most frequent paranormal topics he encounters
among the Italian media and public. On the miracle front, Polidoro
believes that the canonization by the Catholic Church of stigmatic
Padre Pio has helped re-ignite widespread belief in miracles.
"In Italy, almost every actor or celebrity claims to have
been healed at some time by Padre Pio," Polidoro
said. "I think the Catholic Church might be following the
New Age and coming up with more miraculous events."
Polidoro envisions CICAP's main role as "letting people have
all the facts, so they can make up their mind. We are not trying
to convert people. Often people are asking questions about cases
that have already been solved. We are trying to give information
to people." Current efforts by CICAP include increased involvement
with schools, initiating programs with teachers to
teach critical thinking and science via paranormal topics, and
to provide books and tapes as educational resources. CICAP is
also expanding its Web resources, building a Skeptic's Web dictionary
in Italian, and offering the sale of books and other materials
through the CICAP site. CICAP sponsors 11 regional Italian skeptic
organizations, and has held a national conference every two years
that features international leaders in science and
skepticism. Late this fall, CICAP will unveil in the city of Padua
its new national headquarters. Occupying two floors of an office
building, CICAP will employ three full-time staff members, several
part-time staff, and dozens of volunteers. The organization bases
its operations on a growing annual budget of $150,000 raised mostly
through subscriptions and donations. I asked Polidoro if living
a life inspired by Harry Houdini ever struck friends his age as
a bit strange or eccentric. He claims it doesn't cause any problems.
"Though my work is a very important part of my life, I have
other interests. I play the piano and the guitar, and I am a big
fan of the Beatles. Very rarely do I talk about paranormal subjects
with my friends.
Sometimes they see me on television, and they say they didn't
know I do these things."
I also asked him about women his age. Did he have any thoughts
on the notion that women might be more prone to belief or fascination
with the paranormal? "It is possible," he answered carefully,
remarking that his girlfriend might have something to say about
his answer. "Maybe women are less likely to be attacking,
and are not as cynical. Maybe men are interested as well but don't
manifest their belief in the same way." Hmmm... stated like
a true escape artist.
Recommended Web Resources:
The Massimo Polidoro Web Site (In English and Italian)
http://www.massimopolidoro.com
The CICAP Web Site (In English)
http://www.cicap.org/en/
Recommended Further Reading:
Polidoro, M. (2000). Anna Eva Fay: The mentalist who baffled
Sir William Crookes. The Skeptical Inquirer, January/February.
Polidoro, M. (1998). Houdini and Conan Doyle: The Story of a Strange
Friendship. The Skeptical Inquirer, March/April.
Polidoro, M. (1997). Secrets of a Russian psychic. Skeptical Inquirer,
July/August.
Polidoro, M. (1994). The girl with the X-ray eyes. Skeptical Inquirer,
Winter.
Polidoro, M. (1993). Testing a psychic on Italian television.
Skeptical Inquirer, Winter.
About the Author
Matt Nisbet is a graduate student in the department of communication
at Cornell University. His research interests include science
and political communication, public opinion, and public policy.
From 1997 to 1999, he worked as public relations director for
CSICOP and Skeptical Inquirer.
Nisbet lives year round in Ithaca, New York. You can reach him
at
mcn23@cornell.edu.
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