A psi wheel is

pyramid A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilat ...

-shaped

top A spinning top, or simply a top, is a toy with a squat body and a sharp point at the bottom, designed to be spun on its vertical axis, balancing on the tip due to the gyroscopic effect. Once set in motion, a top will usually wobble for a few ...

-like device consisting of a small piece of

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distrib ...

foil Foil may refer to: Materials * Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine * Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal * Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food * Tin foil, metal foil ...

balanced on the tip of a pointed object (such as a toothpick or needle). It is commonly used in attempts to prove the validity of

telekinesis Psychokinesis (from grc, ψυχή, , soul and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), or telekinesis (from grc, τηλε, , far off and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), is a hypothetical psychic ability allowing a person ...

, by rotating the wheel claiming to use the power of the mind alone. However, this "experiment" does not prove psychokinesis or other parapsychological phenomenon as hidden heat and wind sources can be used to turn it. Psychokinesis is not proven to date, while many laws of physics prohibit it as such, psychokinesis is pseudoscientific.

History

In the 1968 psychic powers film '' The Power'', a group of witnesses seated around a table watch a stunned telekinetic as a psi wheel turns by the application of telekinetic force by one of the characters.

Construction

There are several designs for the shape of the psi wheel, but the most common is an inverted funnel-shaped pyramid. This psi wheel shape may be constructed by creasing a small (around 2 inch by 2 inch) square of

lengthwise, height wise, and diagonally both ways, then bending the square slightly along the creases to reach the desired shape. Another common type of psi wheel is in the shape of a cross made out of a very thin sheet of metal such as aluminum or brass. The arms of the cross are anywhere from 1.25 to 2 inches in length and up to 1/4" wide, with a small dimple in the middle so that it can be balanced on something sharp. This wheel then balances on a sharp pointed object such as a

thumbtack A drawing pin (in British English) or thumb tack (in North American English) is a short nail or pin used to fasten items to a wall or board for display and intended to be inserted by hand, usually using the thumb. A variety of names is used ...

, pin, needle, or

pen A pen is a common writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a nib or in a small void or cavity wh ...

cover firmly planted on a flat surface. An object such as a thumbtack or pen cover can stand on its base by itself, however an object such as a needle will need to be rooted in another stable object such as an

eraser An eraser (also known as a rubber in some Commonwealth countries, including South Africa from the material first used) is an article of stationery that is used for removing marks from paper or skin (e.g. parchment or vellum). Erasers have ...

sponge Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), are a basal animal clade as a sister of the diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate throug ...

box A box (plural: boxes) is a container used for the storage or transportation of its contents. Most boxes have flat, parallel, rectangular sides. Boxes can be very small (like a matchbox) or very large (like a shipping box for furniture), and can ...

, or

bottle cap A bottle cap or bottle top is a closure for the top opening of a bottle. A cap is sometimes colourfully decorated with the logo of the brand of contents. Plastic caps are used for plastic bottles, while metal with plastic backing is used for gl ...

in order to provide it with enough stability to hold the spinning wheel on its tip; one stable design even uses a plastic bottle cap filled with an equal amount of

J-B Weld The J-B Weld Company is an international company that produces epoxy products. The home office is based in Sulphur Springs, Texas. J-B Weld (stylized as J-B WELD) is the name of their flagship product: a specialized, high-temperature epoxy adhes ...

, a quick drying two-part epoxy, to hold a needle of any desired size upright in place. Sometimes such psi wheels are placed within medium-sized glass or clear plastic containers to prevent random bursts of air and possibly heat from the hands from causing spurious movement of the wheel. A detailed description on what is a PsiWheel and how to build one.

References

{{Reflist Psychokinesis Articles containing video clips Tops

History

Construction

See also

References