Joseph Cecil Maby (1902-1971) was a British
biophysicist
Biophysics is an interdisciplinary science that applies approaches and methods traditionally used in physics to study Biology, biological phenomena. Biophysics covers all scales of biological organization, from Molecule, molecular to organismic ...
, dowser and
psychical researcher.
Maby was born in the
Colony of Natal and moved to England as a child. He lived near
Cheltenham
Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...
. He alleged that he had experienced
paranormal events at his family's home. He developed a lifelong interest in psychical research.
Maby with physicist T. Bedford Franklin wrote the book ''The Physics of the Dowsing Rod'' (1939). They postulated that
dowsing occurred due to some form of
radiation
In physics, radiation is the emission or transmission of energy in the form of waves or particles through space or through a material medium. This includes:
* ''electromagnetic radiation'', such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visi ...
. A review in ''
Nature
Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physics, physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomenon, phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. ...
'' noted that there is "no direct evidence for such waves and the author's discussion of their polarization cannot be justified on our present physical knowledge." Psychologist
Donovan Rawcliffe
''The Psychology of the Occult'' is a 1952 skeptical book on the paranormal by psychologist D. H. Rawcliffe. It was later published as ''Illusions and Delusions of the Supernatural and the Occult'' (1959) and ''Occult and Supernatural Phenomena' ...
wrote that claims in the book have no scientific validity.
Maby was a
.
"Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society"
May 8, 1925. He was a member of the British Society of Dowsers and Society for Psychical Research.
Publications
Books
*''Walls of Jericho'' (1932)
*''By Stygian Waters'' (1933)
*''The Physics of the Divining Rod''; being an account of an experimental investigation of water and mineral divining (1939, 1978) ith Thomas Bedford Franklin
*''Co-operative healing: the curative properties of human radiations'' (1947) ith Leon Ernest Eeman
*''Confessions of a Sensitive: a critical study of the paranormal and of occult faculties in man'' (1966)
*''Physical Principles of Radiesthesia; collected papers: 1944-65'' (1966)
*''A Naturalist at Large: a candid commentary upon modern life and fashions'' (1967)
Papers
*Maby, C. (1935). ''An Experimental Test of Astrological Claims''. ''Journal of the British Astronomical Association
The ''Journal of the British Astronomical Association'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal of astronomy published by the British Astronomical Association since October 1890. It is currently edited by Philip Jennings and publishes original re ...
'' 45: 165-166.
*Maby, C. (1936). ''Micellar Structure of the Tracheide Wall in Certain Woods, in Relation to Morphogenetic and Mechanical Factors''. '' New Phytologist'' 35 (5): 432-455.
*Maby, C. (1940). ''Science and the Divining Rod''. ''Journal of the Royal Society of Arts
The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...
'' 88 (4559): 520-539.
References
External links
*
1902 births
1971 deaths
British physicists
Dowsing
Parapsychologists
Colony of Natal emigrants to the United Kingdom
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