A Discussion of Stranger and Stranger: The Neuroscience of How Mind and Cosmos Communicate by Richard Silverstein, PhD.
”Certain ancient concepts, which modern scientists
have often dismissed as mere folklore or magic,
have genuine scientific validity.”
Foreword by Dean Radin, PhD
Silverstein‘s book bridges neuroscience and psychic, or paranormal, research. I am excited that neuroscientists in this and my previous article seem to be validating what those of us in the metaphysical world have believed for years.
All quotations, except the foreword cited above, are from the author.
“The view that consciousness, and all its attributes, are solely a consequence of physical processes and brain activity is currently the dominant view among neuroscience researchers.”
The author claims, though, there is a major “shift in science, echoing…the developments of relativity and quantum mechanics a century ago.”
That is a powerful statement. Dr. Silverstein discusses a small but growing body of rigorous scientific research on the nature of consciousness. These new studies challenge some of the most basic assumptions in fields as diverse as medicine, cognitive science, neuroscience, and even physics.
I only present one of the experiments the author mentions. The study I find most fascinating and important is about a group whose meditation helped decrease the amount of crime in DC. The number of Transcendental Meditators who were meditating together in Washington, DC increased from twenty-five hundred to four thousand in the period from June 7 to July 30, 1993.
The Washington, DC Police Department confirmed the crime rate went down during that time. This illustrates the power of people uniting to use their strengths to counteract negative acts.
The fact that the universe is responsive to focused intent has profound significance. “The experiment or demonstration undertaken by the Transcendental Meditation movement in influencing the crime rate in Washington, DC, is an example of what is possible when we take the transformative capacities of consciousness seriously.”
“What has emerged from my consideration of recent findings and their implications surprised and even shocked me.
Terms such as a conscious universe that are typically regarded as metaphorical or poetic now seem grounded in reality.”
If Silverstein is surprised by the results of his findings, we certainly should be also.
“While higher levels of consciousness are associated with a sense of oneness and love, the domain that responds to our focused intent appears to be agnostic to the ethical or moral dimension of that intent.”
“In other words, an appropriately exercised focused intent
can bring both positive and negative outcomes into existence.”
Unfortunately, adverse outcomes are also possible if too many people focus on dark thoughts or hatred. This surprised me, but I just never realized this possible, detrimental outcome.
Some of the prevalent negativity is the result of social media, which captures viewers’ emotions. “The two strongest emotions that are likely to lead to viewers returning to a given website are fear and hatred. Hatred emerges from fear.”
Silverstein’s findings suggest that “we are all subtly influenced by the collective emotions of humans throughout the world.” Our responsibility is to use the strength of our positive energy to negate the fear and anger.
As the author summarizes his book:
“We stand at one of the most transformative tipping points
in humanity’s history.
Our responsibility is to apply our actions, thoughts, and intent
to facilitate humanity’s successful transition to a more humane and
compassionate civilization.”
Footnote: I do not suggest that everyone read this book. I offered the same advice about a previous review in “Conscious Evolution” (Sept 2026 on Substack). Scientists in both books provide proof of their work, which is one of the reasons I chose them. Again, I just provide an overview of the complicated research results. (Anyone wanting more data can find it in the book.)
