Human soul weighing 21 grams. Dr. McDougall's Experiments

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

On April 10, 1901, an unusual experiment was conducted in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Dr. Duncan McDougall set out to prove that the human soul has mass and can be measured.

For the experiment, the doctor selected six of his patients who were closest to death. For them, special super-precise scales were prepared, on which they were placed immediately before death. Magdugall's idea was to compare the weight shortly before and immediately after death.

First patient

In the company of four other doctors, McDougall carefully measured the weight of his first patient. But as soon as he died, something strange happened - the arrow of the balance deviated and never returned to its original position. The lost weight was 21 grams.

The experiment continued. The next patient showed the same results. McDougall felt extraordinary excitement!

The arrows of the scales deflected at the same instant, as soon as life ceased. As if something were suddenly bursting out of the body.

Five doctors took their own measurements and compared the results. Not all patients lost the same weight, but the fact that they were losing weight could not be explained in any way. Unfortunately, only 4 out of 6 results were obtained. In other cases, patient death occurred before the test equipment was brought to the site.

But still, what about this mysterious weight loss? After all, everything was taken into account - from the air in the lungs to physiological fluids.

Interesting data

An interesting case occurred with a third patient. After death, his weight remained unchanged. After about 60 seconds, it was 28 grams lighter. The doctor associated this with the temperament of the deceased. In his opinion, the soul in the body of a phlegmatic person could stay a little longer.

After experiment and discussion with other doctors, it was found that the average weight loss is 21 grams. McDougall concluded that this is how much the human soul weighs.

The doctor then performed the same experiment on 15 dogs. As it turned out, after death, their weight did not change in any way. For McDougall, this was another argument in favor of the fact that a person has a soul that is inherent only to him.

In 1917, a physics teacher at Los Angeles Polytechnic High School tried the same experiment on mice. He came to the same conclusion as Dr. McDougall. When the mice died, there was no deviation in weight.

Dr. McDougall was Haverhill's respected physician, but his experiment is still subject to criticism, from methodology to moral and ethical considerations.

The doctor himself admitted that more research was needed on this topic, but his attention turned to another occupation. He began to look for an opportunity to photograph the soul at the moment when it left the human body. Unfortunately, no breakthroughs were made in this area, and in 1920 Dr. Duncan McDougall passed away.