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| '''Volney G. Mathison''' was an ] |
'''Volney G. Mathison''' was an ] ], writer, and inventor of the ].<ref name="cooper" /><ref name="singh" /> | ||
| == |
==Inventor== | ||
| Mathison invented a device called an ''electroencephaloneuromentimograph'' or ].<ref name="cooper" /> He came up with the design for the device and subsequently built it in the 1940s.<ref name="atack" /><ref name="singh">{{cite book | last =Singh | first =Simon | coauthors =Edzard Ernst | title =Trick or Treatment: The Undeniable Facts about Alternative Medicine | publisher =W. W. Norton & Company | year =2008 | pages =163-165 | isbn = 0393066614}}</ref> It was initially known as the "Mathison Electropsychometer".<ref name="freeman">{{cite book | last =Freeman | first =John | title =Suppressed and Incredible Inventions | publisher =Health Research | year =1987 | page =41 | isbn = 0787310913}}</ref> The E-meter "has a needle that swings back and forth across a scale when a patient when a patient holds on to two electrical contacts".<ref name="singh" /> Mathison was a ] and ].<ref name="clearthinking">{{cite news | last =Pilkington | first =Mark | title =Clear thinking | work =] | publisher =Guardian News and Media Limited | date =February 17, 2005 | url =http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2005/feb/17/science.research | accessdate = 2010-01-14 }}</ref><ref name="cooper" /><ref name="singh" /><ref name="pilkington">{{cite book | last =Pilkington | first =Mark | title =Far Out: 101 Strange Tales from Science's Outer Edge | publisher =The Disinformation Company | year =2007 | pages =85-87 | isbn = 1932857877}}</ref> He used the device with his patients in order to investigate their inner problems.<ref name="freeman" /> He then employed self-hypnosis tapes, and instructed his patients to use these in order to address their "inner" issues.<ref name="freeman" /> The device became popular and was used among other chiropractors.<ref name="singh" /> John Freeman writes in ''Suppressed and Incredible Inventions'', "Recalling my visits at the height of his career, I remember that, while his results were outstanding, he was typically fought by the Medical Profession."<ref name="freeman" /> | |||
| Mathison was a follower of ] founded by ].<ref name="atack">{{cite book | last =Atack | first =Jon | title =] | publisher =Carol Publishing Group | year =1990 | location =New York | pages =128-129 | isbn =081840499X }}</ref> Hubbard incorporated Mathison's device into ] practices.<ref name="cooper" /> Hubbard often called the inventor of the E-meter simply "Mathison" in his writings.<ref name="cooper" /> According to author ], Scientologists erroneously referred to the inventor of the E-meter as "Olin Mathison".<ref name="cooper">{{cite book | last =Cooper | first =Paulette | authorlink =Paulette Cooper | title =] | publisher =Tower Publications | year =1971 | location =New York | pages =145-146|id={{oclc|921001}} }}</ref> Simon Singh and Edzard Ernst write in ''Trick or Treatment'' that "The E-meter was also widely used by the Church of Scientology, so much so that many Scientologists believe that it was invented by their founder L. Ron Hubbard."<ref name="singh" /> | |||
| Mathison discovered through experiments with early lie-detectors during the 1940s that when the subject was reminded of certain past events, the lie detector needle would fluctuate. He further determined that the degree of fluctuation was in direct proportion to the strength of the subject's reaction.<ref name=biofeedback></ref> | |||
| After establishing usage of the E-meter in Dianetics, Hubbard sought for Mathison to turn over patent rights of the device to him.<ref name="pilkington" /><ref name="clearthinking" /> Mathison refused to give up the patent rights over the device, wishing that it remain the "Mathison E-meter".<ref name="pilkington" /><ref name="corydon" /><ref name="clearthinking" /> Usage of the E-meter in Dianetics practices was subsequently stopped by Hubbard in 1954.<ref name="pilkington" /><ref name="corydon">{{cite book | last =Corydon | first =Bent | title =] | publisher =Barricade Books | year =1992 | pages =332-333 | isbn = 0942637577}}</ref> In writing that use of the E-meter should be discontinued, Hubbard said, "Yesterday, we used an instrument called an E-Meter to register whether or not the process was still getting results so that the auditor would know how long to continue it. While the E-Meter is an interesting investigation instrument and has played its part in research, it is not today used by the auditor.... As we long ago suspected, the intervention of a mechnical gadget between the auditor and the preclear had a tendency to depersonalize the session...."<ref name="corydon" /> Scientology engineers manufactured a similar type of E-meter device, and this began usage in the movement in 1958.<ref name="pilkington" /><ref name="clearthinking" /> The version of the E-meter developed by Joe Wallis and Don Breeding was powered by a battery and was smaller than Mathison's device.<ref name="corydon" /> This device was called the "Hubbard electrometer", and was seen as a necessary part of the Scientology practice of "]".<ref name="corydon" /> In 1966, Hubbard received a patent in the United States for a "Device for Measuring and Indicating Changes in Resistance of a Living Body".<ref name="pilkington" /><ref name="clearthinking" /> | |||
| It was Mathison's idea, by way of his study of ]'s theories, to create a special lie-detector for examining unconscious and subconscious reactions rather than conscious ones.<ref name=biofeedback /> This notion, however ], was directly appropriated by fellow science fiction author ], who enlisted Mathison to build similar devices for use in his still-developing concepts of ] and ]. The devices were called '''Mathison ]s''', short for "electro-psychometer" or sometimes "electroencephaloneuromentimograph".<ref></ref> | |||
| Mathison and Hubbard's business relationship ended in the mid-1950s, when Hubbard, who already had coerced Mathison into giving him exclusive rights to the device, now urged Mathison to transfer complete ownership of the patent. He refused.<ref>Mark Pilkington, , '']'', February 17, 2005</ref> Hubbard discontinued use of the E-meter and issued a statement that read in part: | |||
| {{cquote|As we long ago suspected, the intervention of a mechanical gadget between the auditor and the preclear had a tendency to depersonalize the session.<ref name=true>, quotes from ''Messiah or Madman'' (1992) pages 332-333:</ref>}} | |||
| Four years later, in 1958, the E-Meter returned, but it was now called the ''Hubbard'' E-Meter, with only slight modifications to the design having been made by Don Breeding and Joe Wallis.<ref>]. , '']''. (2005)</ref> E-meters once again became an essential part of Scientology's ] process, and no further mention was made of the four-year period in which Hubbard had disavowed it.<ref name=true /> | |||
| ==Bibliography== | ==Bibliography== | ||
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| * ''The Power and Glory of Sex'' | * ''The Power and Glory of Sex'' | ||
| == |
==References== | ||
| {{Reflist}} | {{Reflist}} | ||
| == |
==Further reading== | ||
| * '']'', expanded paperback edition, Bent Corydon, L.Ron Hubbard Jr., Barricade Books, 1992. | * '']'', expanded paperback edition, Bent Corydon, L.Ron Hubbard Jr., Barricade Books, 1992. | ||
| Line 41: | Line 37: | ||
| * | * | ||
| * | * | ||
| {{DEFAULTSORT:Mathison, Volney}} | {{DEFAULTSORT:Mathison, Volney}} | ||
Revision as of 10:30, 14 January 2010
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Volney G. Mathison was an American chiropractor, writer, and inventor of the E-meter.
Inventor
Mathison invented a device called an electroencephaloneuromentimograph or E-meter. He came up with the design for the device and subsequently built it in the 1940s. It was initially known as the "Mathison Electropsychometer". The E-meter "has a needle that swings back and forth across a scale when a patient when a patient holds on to two electrical contacts". Mathison was a chiropractor and psychoanalyst. He used the device with his patients in order to investigate their inner problems. He then employed self-hypnosis tapes, and instructed his patients to use these in order to address their "inner" issues. The device became popular and was used among other chiropractors. John Freeman writes in Suppressed and Incredible Inventions, "Recalling my visits at the height of his career, I remember that, while his results were outstanding, he was typically fought by the Medical Profession."
Mathison was a follower of Dianetics founded by L. Ron Hubbard. Hubbard incorporated Mathison's device into Scientology practices. Hubbard often called the inventor of the E-meter simply "Mathison" in his writings. According to author Paulette Cooper, Scientologists erroneously referred to the inventor of the E-meter as "Olin Mathison". Simon Singh and Edzard Ernst write in Trick or Treatment that "The E-meter was also widely used by the Church of Scientology, so much so that many Scientologists believe that it was invented by their founder L. Ron Hubbard."
After establishing usage of the E-meter in Dianetics, Hubbard sought for Mathison to turn over patent rights of the device to him. Mathison refused to give up the patent rights over the device, wishing that it remain the "Mathison E-meter". Usage of the E-meter in Dianetics practices was subsequently stopped by Hubbard in 1954. In writing that use of the E-meter should be discontinued, Hubbard said, "Yesterday, we used an instrument called an E-Meter to register whether or not the process was still getting results so that the auditor would know how long to continue it. While the E-Meter is an interesting investigation instrument and has played its part in research, it is not today used by the auditor.... As we long ago suspected, the intervention of a mechnical gadget between the auditor and the preclear had a tendency to depersonalize the session...." Scientology engineers manufactured a similar type of E-meter device, and this began usage in the movement in 1958. The version of the E-meter developed by Joe Wallis and Don Breeding was powered by a battery and was smaller than Mathison's device. This device was called the "Hubbard electrometer", and was seen as a necessary part of the Scientology practice of "Auditing". In 1966, Hubbard received a patent in the United States for a "Device for Measuring and Indicating Changes in Resistance of a Living Body".
Bibliography
Mathison authored a Science Fiction novel called Radiobuster, and also published many non-fiction books over the years on various topics, some less scientific than others:
- How to Achieve Past Life Recalls
- The Secret Power of the Crystal Pendulum
- Practical Self-Hypnosis
- Space-Age Self-Hypnosis
- The Secret of Lourdes Revealed
- Creative Image Therapy
- Electropsychometry
- The Power and Glory of Sex
References
- ^ Cooper, Paulette (1971). The Scandal of Scientology. New York: Tower Publications. pp. 145–146. OCLC 921001.
- ^ Singh, Simon (2008). Trick or Treatment: The Undeniable Facts about Alternative Medicine. W. W. Norton & Company. pp. 163–165. ISBN 0393066614.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Atack, Jon (1990). A Piece of Blue Sky. New York: Carol Publishing Group. pp. 128–129. ISBN 081840499X.
- ^ Freeman, John (1987). Suppressed and Incredible Inventions. Health Research. p. 41. ISBN 0787310913.
- ^ Pilkington, Mark (February 17, 2005). "Clear thinking". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media Limited. Retrieved 2010-01-14.
- ^ Pilkington, Mark (2007). Far Out: 101 Strange Tales from Science's Outer Edge. The Disinformation Company. pp. 85–87. ISBN 1932857877.
- ^ Corydon, Bent (1992). L. Ron Hubbard: Messiah or Madman?. Barricade Books. pp. 332–333. ISBN 0942637577.
Further reading
- Messiah or Madman, expanded paperback edition, Bent Corydon, L.Ron Hubbard Jr., Barricade Books, 1992.
- Article from Fortnight magazine, 1953
- skepdic.com on the E-meter
- The Aberree, Vol. 8, #2, May 1961
- Early advertisements from Mathison
- List of Scientology patents, including Mathison's
- L.Ron Hubbard Jr.'s affidavit