Name: Staring at Rupert Sheldrake
Start: 2026-06-10T19:30:00+01:00
Location: The Royal Oak

The next meeting of The Edinburgh Fortean Society
Staring at Rupert Sheldrake
We will start with part 2 of the auction, carried over from the meeting in May.
After that we will have a look at the work of Rupert Sheldrake and this will include some experiments, the results of which will be fed back to Sheldrake.
Originally a biochemist and plant physiologist at Cambridge University, Rupert Sheldrake is best known for his theories on morphogenetic fields and formative causation. A morphogenetic field is a biological field which has the means to shape both the physical nature and behaviour of any living system. It has been described as a living memory within nature. Formative causation is the theory that once an idea is known it is easier for others to also know it. Taking both of Sheldrake’s theories together we have the supposition that an event occurring once makes it more likely that it will happen again, Sheldrake believes that this is an underlying law of science and gives us an answer to how everything happens. For example once life has evolved in one area it can start springing into being everywhere and similarly once a useful adaptation has evolved it is more likely to evolve in other organisms as well.
As part of Sheldrakes ideas extra sensory perception would be a normal occurrence. Sheldrake has carried out experiments to test his ideas, these include testing to see if people know when they are being stared at and if pets know when their owners are returning home by the use of animal psi. Sheldrake’s ideas are derided by many but embraced as a paradigm shift by others. Sheldrake and his theories remain a controversial subject.
Wednesday 10th of June
The Royal Oak
1 Infirmary Street
Edinburgh
7.30pm, £1