Picture: Dragana Gordic from freepik.com
From social networks to online games, today there are several applications for all kinds of users, different purposes and tastes unimaginable. In this universe you can even find ghost hunter apps with magnetic field meters (spiritual fluids) that are used by those who believe in spirit manifestations. Many people trust the veracity of this software, but are they really effective?
In the United States, professional ghost hunters Roger Pingelton and Jill Beitz have developed an application called "Spirit Story Box", which promises to capture the signals emitted by spirits and decode them to text message. The application promises to interact with ghosts by capturing elements of the environment and detect patterns and changes in these signals, which are supposedly manipulated by spirits. This is where the device's algorithm comes in, which in a few minutes interprets all of this and translates it into words, according to the entrepreneurs.
Besides this, we list some other applications in case you want to check if there are any spirits under your bed.
This tool is used to detect electromagnetic fields. Therefore, the smartphone must have a magnetic sensor, otherwise it will not work. Not all devices, including the latest releases, have a magnetic compass sensor, but the application will notify you that the hardware needed to work is missing. Therefore, do not think that it is a failure of the application.
In Play Store, the application has a rating of 3.9, with a total of 2,792 ratings. It has over 100,000 downloads, requires Android 1.6 or higher and is available from Spain Paranormal. This app is based on the company's own theories and research in the paranormal field.
The True EMF Detector also uses the magnetic field sensor integrated in the device to show the received data on an LED indicator display and a graph that is updated in real time. A flashlight button is also included to quickly use the flash to see around in the dark.
The developer reinforces that the application does not alter or modify the readings received from your phone's hardware, and shows the true, accurate and unchanged magnetic field strength values around your phone. This application can be used to look for the presence of paranormal entities, when they are supposed to emit fluctuations in the surrounding electromagnetic field.
The flashlight button on the screen offers a quick way to activate it to search in the dark. It also has other features such as a tutorial explaining the user interface layout and use in detail, the option to alternate the sound of the beep and night screen.
In Play Store, the application has a score of 3.6, with a total of 613 ratings. It has 100 thousand downloads, requires Android 4.0.3 or higher and is available from Mach 2 Studios.
Like the previous ones, the application can be used to analyze haunted places and discover where paranormal entities are present, and follow their movements. The application promises greater accuracy and sensitivity than any of the others.
According to the developer, they are working on future updates that will bring phantom radars and trackers. However, they signal that the application offers no guarantee that its accuracy will be accurate and that it is targeted for fun and entertainment purposes. The sensitivity may vary from device to device.
At Play Store the application has a score of 4.0, with a total of 92,000 ratings and has passed the mark of 1 million installations. It requires Android 4.4 or higher and is offered by Talgame ent.
Picture: Gilles Lambert from unsplash.com
According to the analysis of the university professor, master in computer science, Fabricio Bortoluzzi, from the technological aspect, this is not the first time that the effectiveness of devices like this is speculated. "Near the year 2000, when Sony was working with cameras that shot with magnetic tapes, they launched a camcorder with the night vision feature. With this feature there was an effect that allowed the capture inside the clothes of fine fabrics. At the time, there was much speculation that there could be the capture of spectra, ghosts, spirits and the like. However, it was nothing more than the use of a different tool for the capture of light, as well as infrared and ultraviolet", he says.
Thus, he concludes that so far there is no consistent evidence that electronic instrumentation and frequency ranges, such as x-ray, ultrasound, gamma rays, visible light, all possible forms for the manifestation of this spectrum, none of which have so far had a forceful effect in capturing them. "It is true to say that if they were effective there would be some scientific method that when reproduced proved its effectiveness and veracity. The answer to that question is no, they don't work", he adds.
On the Internet there is little content on the subject on websites. On Youtube, there are some videos, but both are sensationalist and without any consultation with experts. Even if the applications may be ineffective for what they propose, you can still use them for fun or to make your own conclusions.