Natasha Demkina

Natasha Demkina (Russian: Наталья Демкина; born 1987) is a female from Saransk, Russia, who claims to possess a special vision that allows her to look inside human bodies and see organs and tissues, and thereby make medical diagnoses. Since the age of ten, she has performed readings in Russia and in 2004, on television shows in the United Kingdom.

Appearance in New York

In May 2004 she was brought to New York City by the Discovery Channel to appear on a documentary titled The Girl with X-Ray Eyes, Administrator note and carry out a reading under partially controlled conditions. The test was arranged by Ray Hyman and Richard Wiseman of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) and Andrew Skolnick of the Commission for Scientific Medicine and Mental Health (CSMMH). The test required Demkina to match 7 volunteers against the list of 6 specified medical conditions (i.e., a healthy "control" volunteer was included). Administrator note

The testers made it clear that within the given setting of the experiment it is possible to make a definite conclusion ony about the presence of a strong effect. If Natasha indeed posseses the claimed abilities, but which are weak or erratic, it would have required a much more extensive testing. In addition, the influence of the "Clever Hans effect" cannot be ruled out in such a restricted setting. For these reasons the success threshold was set high: 5 of 7 attempts.

In the experiment, that continued about 4 hours, Demkina correctly identified 4 cases, including the healthy subject, and the testers concluded that she had not demonstrated evidence of an ability sufficiently pronounced to warrant their further study. Administrator note Administrator note The design and conclusions of the experiment were subsequently the subjects of considerable dispute between Demkina's supporters and those of the testers, not unusual in various evaluations of anomalous phenomenon . Administrator note.

Demkina has since graduated from school and passed entrance examinations to Semashko State Stomatological University, Moscow, where she is currently a full-time student.

References

1. Template:Anb The Discovery Channel, 2004, The Girl with X-Ray Eyes
2. Template:Anb Hyman R, Skeptical Inquirer, May 2005, Testing Natasha
3. Template:Anb Skolnick AA, Skeptical Inquirer, May 2005, Testing Natasha: The Girl with Normal Eyes
4. Template:Anb Hyman R, CSICOP, Statistics and the Test of Natasha
5. Template:Anb CSMMH, Answer to Critics
6. Template:Anb Scientists fail to see eye to eye over girl's "X-ray vision", Times Higher Ed. Supp., 10 Dec 2004