Souls have weight?

by ButtLight 9 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  ButtLight

  First off, I'm always confused as to what the difference is between a soul and a spirit. But I read this article, and found it quite interesting. (maybe even funny). But if you believe your soul lives on after death, you may find this interesting too. Our souls weigh 21 grams?

  http://perdurabo10.tripod.com/id787.html
• 

  whyamihere

  I have no soul, or was it heart?
• 

  Octarine Prince

  The energy called the "Breath of Life" by some seems to have some weight.
• 

  LtCmd.Lore

  Snopes did an article about this.

  It's true that this test was done, but it was so poorly handled, and had so many conflicting results, that this can only be considered pseudo-science.

  http://www.snopes.com/religion/soulweight.asp

  It would take a great deal of credulity to conclude that MacDougall's experiments demonstrated anything about post-mortem weight loss, much less the quantifiable existence of the human soul. For one thing, his results were far from consistent, varying widely across his half-dozen test cases:

  1. "[S]uddenly coincident with death . . . the loss was ascertained to be three-fourths of an ounce."

  2. "The weight lost was found to be half an ounce. Then my colleague auscultated the heart and and found it stopped. I tried again and the loss was one ounce and a half and fifty grains."

  3. "My third case showed a weight of half an ounce lost, coincident with death, and an additional loss of one ounce a few minutes later."

  4. "In the fourth case unfortunately our scales were not finely adjusted and there was a good deal of interference by people opposed to our work . . . I regard this test as of no value."

  5. "My fifth case showed a distinct drop in the beam requiring about three-eighths of an ounce which could not be accounted for. This occurred exactly simultaneously with death but peculiarly on bringing the beam up again with weights and later removing them, the beam did not sink back to stay for fully fifteen minutes."

  6. "My sixth and last case was not a fair test. The patient died almost within five minutes after being placed upon the bed and died while I was adjusting the beam."

  So, out of six tests, two had to be discarded, one showed an immediate drop in weight (and nothing more), two showed an immediate drop in weight which increased with the passage of time, and one showed an immediate drop in weight which reversed itself but later recurred. And even these results cannot be accepted at face value as the potential for experimental error was extremely high, especially since MacDougall and his colleagues often had difficulty in determining the precise moment of death, one of the key factors in their experiments. (MacDougall later attempted to explain away the timing discrepancies by concluding that "the soul's weight is removed from the body virtually at the instant of last breath, though in persons of sluggish temperament it may remain in the body for a full minute.")

  Another thing they don't tell you on the site you quoted, is that this study was published in 1907. He continued his studies after that, and so far nobody has confirmed his speculations.

  Lore - W.W.S.D?
• 

  hillbilly

  id ont know about soul's but the shadow of my ass weights 150 pounds.

  kinda related... isnt the theory that all that paranormal stuff may be energy trapped in certain places that just hasnt changed states yet?

  ~Hill
• 

  ButtLight

  You would think someone else would try to prove it since 1907!

  isnt the theory that all that paranormal stuff may be energy trapped in certain places that just hasnt changed states yet?

  From what I've read and heard, they change states right away, but some dont know they are dead, some dont want to go to the "light" just yet, and some are earthbound, and can never leave. (just what I read, not saying its real)
• 

  Gopher

  I wonder about people who come up with BS like this -- do their brains have any weight?

  (Just my opinion. Hi there BL !! )
• 

  Seeker4

  What nonsense. Sounds like another urban myth to me, that became a cool movie title.
  
  We just need more people kicking off while on the scale.....
  
  S4
• 

  Sad emo

  It's probably the weight of the body fat or protein used up in the final moments because the brain will still be working (frantically!) and trying to keep your body functioning.

  Alternatively if it is said that the wind has 'weight', why not the human breath too? So the drop in weight might be attributable to the final expiration.

  Just my idle ramblings...
• 

  JH

  Maybe all their heavy problems in their head goes away at death.