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From: cooper@pbsvax.DEC (Topher Cooper HLO2-3/M08 DTN225-5819)
Newsgroups: net.physics
Subject: Metaphysics.
Message-ID: <3359@decwrl.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 30-Jul-85 12:03:53 EDT
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Posted: Tue Jul 30 12:03:53 1985
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>chapter "After Physics" = Metaphysics. The closest "modern" field is
>probably Parapsychology(which likewise has nothing to do with
>Psychology). It is the 'study" of the supernatural/divine world.
>
>	    ... 
>				Sarima (Stanley Friesen)

The reference of the "It" is a bit ambiguous, but the last statement is
incorrect in either case.  According to my American Heritage Dictionary
("Paperback edition" 1980 page 445) metaphysics is "the systematic
investigation of the nature of first principles and problems of ultimate
reality."  It is a branch of philosophy.  The adjective "metaphysical" is
often used in a derogatory fashion to refer to "scientific" theories which are
insufficiently verifiable, but this use is metaphorical and not really
relevant to the field of metaphysics (which doesn't claim to make scientific
theories).  Because of the relatively recent derogatory usage, people engaged
in legitimate metaphysics (e.g., such as people trying to deal with Ken
Rimey's three questions, which I won't take the space to quote) shy away from
the term.  The closest "modern" field is certainly metaphysics.

Parapsychology is the scientific study (without reviving arguments about
whether or not its practitioners exemplify good or bad science) of certain
supposed phenomena.  Many of these phenomena are associated with the
"supernatural" in the general population.  So were, however, at one time,
almost all observable phenomena studied by science.

The name parapsychology is misleading, since it implies that it is a branch
of psychology.  This is not true, in my opinion.  Parapsychology is an
interdisciplinary field.  Just now, however, it bears a particularly strong
connection to psychology because of much of parapsychology's experimental
techniques have been adopted from psychology, and because collaboration with
psychology (e.g., in studying correlation between extroversion/introversion
and psi scores) has been particularly fruitful.

		Topher Cooper

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Disclaimer:  This contains my own opinions, and I am solely responsible for
them.