Iraq swears by "dowsing" bomb detectors

The "experts" are correct. The dowsers are as likely to detect old pop bottle lids as explosives. Sigh. If only they would read up a little on ideomotor effect.

The "experts" are correct. The dowsers are as likely to detect old pop bottle lids as explosives. Sigh. If only they would read up a little on ideomotor effect. I guess if the bombers think they work, they may be a lil effective in deterring them.

Well...not to put too fine a point on it, but mine detection is a rather results-oriented business. I can only imagine that any teams they have putting this theory to work will rapidly make a list of pros and cons.

Although some people may scoff at the idea of dowsing rods, the people who use them swear by em'. My Grandfather in Oklahoma used to drill water wells and he used dowsing rods and always got water where he said there would be. Also in VietNam, the Army used them to locate the tunnels where the VietCong hid and where they hid they're ammunition. I'm not saying that I believe in them completely, but there must be something to it. Odie

No, there isn't something to it. At all. Completely ignoring the fact that there is NO mechanism by which it could work, controlled experiments show it to only work when the person holding the dowsing device knows where the thing they are looking for is (or has a pretty good idea) and that when this knowledge is taken away it is entirely chance. The indicating of a spot is due to the ideomotor effect, where you expect something you are holding to do something and your muscles do juuuust a little to make it actually happen. It is not voluntary, but it happens. This WILL get people killed.

It is nonsense, and it is dangerous nonsense.