The International Consciousness Research Laboratories (ICRL) is a consortium of individuals dedicated to understanding consciousness with a view to improving humanity’s future. Founded as an educational outreach of the Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research (PEAR) laboratory, it has since evolved as a platform to better understand and utilize consciousness through the domains of science, art, education and health.
History
In 1979, Robert Jahn, then Dean at Princeton University’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, founded the Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research (PEAR) laboratory, to explore whether human intentions could impact sensitive engineering systems. Over 28 years, Jahn and Brenda Dunne, the laboratory manager, amassed data demonstrating real, unconventional effects that highlighted the interplay between consciousness and reality.
In 1990, a global, interdisciplinary group emerged from this effort, leading to the formation of the International Consciousness Research Laboratories (ICRL). After PEAR closed in 2007, ICRL expanded and became a non-profit, staffed by new colleagues and former interns.
Initially, ICRL explored scientific anomalies tied to consciousness. With ICRL Press, it extended its reach, embracing science and art. Today, ICRL extends collaborative exploration into understanding the nature of consciousness within various domains. It holds workshops, distributes research grants, offers scholarships to students, and publishes books and articles. It also maintains an online presence, with regular meet ups and hosting podcasts.
Publications
Books
Being and Biology: Is Consciousness the Life Force (2017) is a collection of essays edited by Jahn and Dunne with contributions by Rupert Sheldrake, William Bengston, Rollin McCraty and others on parapsychological evidence that suggests consciousness is a fundamental force in nature.1
Connected: The Emergence of Global Consciousness (2019) by Roger Nelson describes the story of the Global Consciousness Project which he directed, in which the accumulated results of 500 explorations show a 7 sigma (3 trillion to 1) departure from chance expectation.2
Articles
Abel, I. (2013). Introducing Real-Time Indeterminate Synthetic Music Feedback (RT-ISMF) as a Therapeutic Intervention Method. Journal of Nonlocality, 2/1.
Cook, I.A., C. Warren, S.K. Pajot, D. Schairer, and A.F. Leuchter (2011). Regional Brain Activation with Advertising Images. Journal of Neuroscience, Psychology, and Economics 4/3, 47-60.
Dunne, B.J. and R.G. Jahn (2011). Uses and Misuses of Quantum Jargon [Letter to the Editor]. Journal of Scientific Exploration 25/2, 339-41.
Moga, Margaret, M. and William F. Bengston (2010). Anomalous Magnetic Field Activity During a Bioenergy Healing Experiment. Journal of Scientific Exploration 24/3, 397-410.
Rosenbaum, R. (2011). Exploring the Other Dark Continent: Parallels Between Psi Phenomena and the Psychotherapeutic Process. Psychoanalytic Review 98/1, 57-90.
Michael Duggan
Literature
Dunne, B.J., Jahn, R.G. (2017). Being and Biology: Is Consciousness the Life Force? ICRL Press. Eldersburg, Maryland.
Nelson, R. (2019). Connected: The Emergence of Global Consciousness. ICRL Press. Eldersburg, Maryland.