Phenomena: The Secret History of the U.S. Government’s Investigations into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis

Phenomena documents the U.S. government's military and intelligence investigations into extrasensory perception and psychokinesis over more than four decades. The CIA, DIA, NSA, DEA, Navy, Air Force, Army, and Joint Chiefs of Staff all participated in these programs, using them to attempt locating hostages, fugitives, secret bases, and downed aircraft, as well as to gather intelligence on other nations and predict security threats. Annie Jacobsen draws on declassified documents and exclusive interviews with more than fifty individuals involved in these programs, many speaking on the record for the first time. Her sources include former CIA and Defense Department scientists, analysts, program managers, and the government psychics themselves. The book examines who the government recruited for these classified initiatives, how participants explain their work, how scientists approached the subject matter, what motivated government interest, and whether such research continues.