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| THE BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF PARAPSYCHOLOGY DR. ADRIAN PATRUT 
Dr. Adrian Patrut is the PF International Affiliate for Romania. The following informal biography was written for a booklet distributed to other International Affiliates. Each affiliate was asked five questions about their background and interest in the field, the situation of parapsychology in their countries, and about their hopes for the future. A more formal biography will be posted in the coming months. From Dr. Patrut ... My interest in parapsychology goes back more than 25 years, being aroused by the research of certain recurrent spontaneous phenomena in a forest near my home-town of Cluj-Napoca (anomalies on photos, apparitions, strong sporadic radioactive emissions, magnetic deviations, biological effects etc.). I have so far published four books on parapsychology in Romanian: From Normal to Paranormal, Vol. 1 (Dacia, Cluj-Napoca, 1991); From Normal to Paranormal, Vol. 2 (Sincron, Cluj-Napoca, 1992); From Normal to Paranormal, 2nd Ed. (revised), (Dacia, Cluj-Napoca, 1993); and The Phenomena of the Hoia-Baciu Forest (Divia, Cluj-Napoca, 1995). Currently, I am working on two books: Introduction to Parapsychology and Dictionary of Parapsychology. I have been the President of the Romanian Society of Parapsychology (RSP) since its foundation in 1991. I was the Editor-in-Chief of Paranormal, the Journal of RSP (issued between 1991-1996). I was also an Affiliate Member of the Parapsychological Association (1993-1996); but since 1996, I have been an Associate Member of the Parapsychological Association. I am also Professor in the Faculty of Chemistry of the Babes-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca and I teach courses in General Chemistry, Quantum Chemistry and Inorganic Chemistry. My research areas are: coordination chemistry, supramolecular chemistry, polyoxometalates. As for the state of parapsychology in Romania, interest in nonconventional phenomena, including psi, underwent an explosive increase after the December 1989 Revolution. Shortly after that event, a number of societies and associations, which tried to study phenomena of mainstream and especially fringe parapsychology, appeared. Journals and magazines attempting to present phenomena and cases from these viewpoints were also published. But slowly these societies and associations disappeared, mainly for lack of funds and also the dwindling interest of individuals who had hoped to find quick and easy answers to the problems raised by non-conventional phenomena. The only society still active is the Romanian Society of Parapsychology (RSP). Research proper, which struggles under an acute lack of funds, is limited to the study of certain spontaneous phenomena, especially poltergeist cases and the very strange recurrent phenomena of the Hoia-Baciu Forest. For instance, in the last 10 years, around 20 strong and very strong poltergeist cases have been satisfactorily investigated, although without being presented outside Romania. Currently, all journals and magazines that were more or less connected to mainstream parapsychology have ceased publishing. In the meanwhile, a so-called media-driven parapsychology, with strong folkloric, religious, spiritualistic, occult, magic and New Age connotations -- usually with very little connection with conventional psi phenomena and accepted parapsychology -- has appeared and undergone dramatic development. Scores of magazines of the type of Weekly World News are published in hundreds of thousands of copies. The academic scientific community in Romania has not yet adopted an official position concerning psi and parapsychology, mainly because of a severe lack of serious information. Nevertheless, we can say that its attitude is open to psi but unfortunately somewhat uncritical. In some state and private universities, optional courses of parapsychology are offered, but they are usually taught by individuals who are outside mainstream parapsychology. My hopes and aspirations for the future of parapsychology in my country can be summarized as follows: the appearance of minimal funds for research; the setting-up of a library of parapsychology with a minimal number of books and periodicals of parapsychology; the publication of a journal covering mainstream parapsychology; and the further connection of Romanian parapsychology to international and world parapsychology. Submitted 2001. |
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