http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ef7_1173822964

Talking about near death experiences, from the Penn and Teller show Bullshit.

One aspect of NDEs that wasn’t discussed, probably because there is no convenient scientific explanation, is that of “remote viewing”. I’ve read several accounts where unconscious patients, whose eyes were taped shut during surgery, were able to later accurately describe the layout of the operating room (which they hadn’t seen at any point); they described specific surgical instruments used, the actions of personnel in the operating room, etc. Others have reported seeing or “visiting” relatives in distant cities, accurately describing what they were doing during the patient’s NDE.

There have been accounts where NDE patients meet deceased relatives and are given information that can later be verified (one example was the location of an object hidden by the deceased relative).

Their accounts were later confirmed. How do we explain this if we define NDEs as simply the brain’s response to severe stress?

Regardless of how we explain NDEs, it is a phenomenon that gets its start in the brain. But the observation that NDEs (or psychedelic experiences) are accompanied by changes in the brain describes the phenomena. It neither explains nor proves any hypotheses regarding the phenomena.

Gibran your right. But its important to pay close attention to the people writing those studies. There are a couple people who have been caught red handed making fraud with regards to claims with NDE's. I forget the guys name but hes one of the big people in the field on the parapsychology side. He was caught bullshitting.

I personally have not scrutinized all claims so I can't say what the most accurate information is or isn't.

Additional thoughts/comments:

One of the outstanding features of many NDEs is the patient’s ability to see their environment from outside of their body. This goes beyond any OBE I’ve had with psychedelics. They are able to see, from a vantage point outside of their bodies, their physical body, the people around them, the actions of the people around them, and details of their surroundings.

The fact that a percentage of pilots exposed to strong G-forces in a centrifuge experience NDEs shouldn’t be a surprise: anoxia seems to be a common trigger for such experiences. Anoxia induced in a controlled environment is, as far as the brain is concerned, no different from anoxia caused by physical trauma. All this shows is that anoxia causes a change in brain state, but didn’t we already know that? It neither proves nor disproves the validity of NDEs.

A psychologist in the video stated that every night he was able to fly and communicate with dead relatives – in his dreams, suggesting that NDEs are themselves dreams. From what I’ve read, NDEs are nothing like dreams (just as from personal experience I can say that DMT breakthroughs are nothing like dreams), so the comparison isn’t valid, and again, neither proves nor disproves the validity of NDEs.

Penn and Teller do a good job of debunking many false claims, but NDEs are generally purely subjective experiences (except where statements can be confirmed), and purely subjective experiences of the NDE sort can’t usually be refuted. When discussing subjective phenomena, things are rarely cut-and-dry.

For example, there is no scientific test that one can perform to prove that he is not dreaming right now. (The psychologist in the video who spoke of dreaming can’t himself prove he isn’t currently in a dream!) We apply criteria to determine what is real and what is not. If a subjective experience meets the criteria, then it is reasonable to define it as real. In the absence of conclusive tests, it’s the best we can do.

I like the Penn and Teller "Bullshit" show because they take sides. I don't think you'll find anyone who thinks they accurately portrayed the people in every episode. I, for instance, didn't think they did a good job on the Area 51 or the Alien Abduction episode. They seemed to be seeking out the fringe loonies as opposed to the dozens of credible people.I really enjoyed certain episodes, like the PETA and Recycling episodes. But all the episodes taught me a lot I didn't know.

I'm also glad they showed the people, talking about their experiences and saying "I would be skeptical too, before this happened to me". Penn and Teller have said before that they can't tell you what's going on in another person's body.
My close friend told me his "remote viewing" experience when he accurately described his mother's conversation, even though he was miles away. He and his mom both confirmed the story, and I have no reason at all not to believe him. I believe, that they believe, the story. So are they lying? I don't think so.

But we can't say anything really, because we can't see into other people's minds. Even if it's caused by the brain, we can't say it isn't connected to a higher power, or energy. A lot of us on here have experienced much more than these people, while under the power of DMT. It would be cool if we could get some DMT users into that chair and see if they have the same experiences.

Certain things do seem to be consistent with death, NDE's and tripping though. Like the tunnel. I've seen the tunnel of light multiple times.

That show is chock full of entertainment, and empty of information.

The series as a whole has a lot of good information in it. Some episodes they take the easy road though.

Sometimes its clear they are not thoroughly investigating an issue and they are just finding people to confirm their point of view. But its entertainment and they even admit that. Like in the episode about the environment. At the end they say "we don't know" about global warming. Later I saw an interview with Penn where he was sort of regretting that and he was like "its probably happening maybe we were wrong". Which is why I like them because they are honest and can admit when they are wrong.