SHC - Spontaneous Human Combustion

I have written this article after a few requests and discussions on the matter.

Firstly, I will say I do not think that SHC is a paranormal phenomenon, and I like to think I can safely say that after spending over 15 years studying the Paranormal!! However, this does not mean that I do not believe in the possibility of SHC from a scientific point of view.

Over the past 300 years, there have been 200 documented cases of human deaths through unexplained burning, where in 94% of all cases, the torso, arms and head have been reduced to ash along with the bone structures. However, strangely enough, lower limbs have not been touched and show no sign of heat damage. The same can be said for materials around the corpses, including clothing articles, carpets and furniture apart from the immediate area where the corpse has settled.

To understand what might be going on with SHC, we need to go back to basics and look at what we need to start a fire. Let us look at the Fire Triangle: This states that we require three elements for fire to exist - A heat source for ignition, a fuel Source and Air. With these three elements in place, there exists the potential for fire to be generated.

So, firstly, let’s look at the obvious factor: Air. Unless you spend your entire life inside a sealed bubble with gasses other than Oxygen, Nitrogen and some other elemental gases, you are surrounded by Air! We even breathe it into our bodies and the gasses are even absorbed into our blood stream - particularly Oxygen, which we require to survive at 21% by volume to maintain optimum stability, although the body can tolerate deviations in this. However, breathing in Oxygen at 17% by volume, we start to show the first symptoms of hypoxia and as the levels grow less, the symptoms get worse and more deadly until at less than 6% we enter unconsciousness and face death within minutes. So, not enough Oxygen is very bad. What about too much? Again, not very good for you! There is such a condition as Oxygen Poisoning and it can affect the brain. But more to the point, and bears significance to this discussion, our blood can absorb 200cc of Oxygen PER LITRE, which is higher than the absorption rate of water. Too much Oxygen, such as the use of Oxygen masks or hyperventilation, will expand the limits of flammability.

Secondly, we need a fuel to burn. Unfortunately for us, that is our physical bodies. Now, despite the average adult human body being made up of about 60% water, the human body, under the correct conditions, burns very well. One of the main reasons for this is the supply of fat and oils we store within our bodies, which are predominantly stored in our torso, arms, buttocks and neck, which many of us know only too well!! It is also a revealing fact that some oils have the tendency of self-ignition under the correct conditions. This includes certain monounsaturated oils (vegetable based) that some of us consume on a regular basis. Linseed Oil, particularly raw Linseed which is used as a health supplement, is a Class I hazardous oil in the realms of Oxidation reactions and self-combustion.

Lastly, we need heat. We need something to induce the ignition. Our bodies are always producing heat, mainly from the burning of fat stores within. Most of the time, this heat level is maintained by our bodily mechanics, but sometimes, just sometimes, this mechanism fails us, probably because we have become ill, and our temperatures can soar well above normal levels. It is worth noting, as it bears relevance and taking our Linseed oil example from above, that in tests, the spontaneous heating effect of raw Linseed oil is favoured at temperatures from 24 °C to 44 °C. The normal core temperature of an adult is about 37°C.

So, scientifically, we possess within our bodies all the elements of the fire triangle that can result in fire production. Not only do we hold all the elements, but all of them can be found within the main area of the body that tends to be the main affected area within reported SHC cases – the torso. Is this a coincidence? I do not believe it is. How the actual ignition occurs and how the body actually burns, although I believe it is an internal, flameless combustion as opposed to a “bursting into flames” burning effect (almost like when we get scalded), is yet to be theorised and proven..

Life After Death?

So, the question – could there possibly be life after death?
Can we actually exist after we pass from our earthly bodies? It is my belief that we can, and do, and I'd like to take you through the logical reasoning for my views on this. By looking at scientific facts in the fields of Biology and Physics, I will put to you an argument in support the notion of an existence after we pass over.

First things first, let's look at some of those scientific facts. This isn't make believe, but proven and documented science.

Biology - The human body is a power generating marvel, capable of producing electrical energy on a cellular level. This electrical energy is the reason we live and survive. Everything we do is controlled and enabled by electrical signals running through our bodies via the nervous system. It is electrical impulses from the brain that tells us to breath. Electrical signals tell our hearts to speed up or slow down when we need it (in fact, if it wasn't for electrical impulses, our hearts wouldn't even beat at all). Our muscles contract and expand through electrical signals sent from the brain, and so on. Not many people are aware of this, but there is about 11,000 watt hours of electrical energy produced in the human body.

Physics - There are many phenomenon that relate to electrical charge. Electric charge is a fundamental component of everyday matter. Objects are made of molecules and atoms. Atoms are made of protons, neutrons, and electrons. Protons and electrons are made, in part, out of electric charge. Electrical charge is substance-like. If you have a quantity of charge, you can not destroy it, you can only move it from place to place. Some of the phenomenon, which relates to electrical charges are:

1. Electromagnetic Force phenomenon - An infinite-range attractive or repulsive force which acts between charged particles (the scientific phenomenon, I believe, we perceive as our bodies “Aurora”).

2. Contact Electrification - The phenomenon of electrification by contact. When two objects are touched together, sometimes the objects become spontaneously charged.

3. Electrical Conduction - The movement of electrically charged particles through transmission medium (i.e. air, water, etc).

4. Static Electricity - Class of phenomena involving the imbalanced charge present on an object, typically referring to charge with voltages of sufficient magnitude to produce visible attraction (e.g. static cling), repulsion, and sparks (the scientific phenomenon, I believe, that is what lays behind what we perceive as "poltergeist activity").

So, after looking at the scientific evidence and considering the documented fact that our very physical existence and memories are thanks to chemically induced electrical charges, and we know that an electric charge is substance-like and if you have a quantity of charge, you can not destroy it, what happens to our physical electrical charge when our earthly vessels expire?

This scientific knowledge is, in my belief, the basis for our existence after death. I believe that our energies, which is nothing more than an electrical charge, move around transferring from matter to matter, proton to proton and electron to electron through various electrical charge induced phenomenon.

So, what are your views? Do you believe in life after death? Do you oppose the argument I have presented in support for my beliefs? Do you have another theory for an existence after death?

Feel free to leave your comments!

The Sixth Sense

Everyone is aware of our five basic senses - seeing, feeling, smelling, hearing and tasting. What many of us may not be aware of, is our Sixth Sense - a connection to something more and greater than our physical senses are able to perceive. The Sixth Sense is a part of everyone whether we like it or not. It is an everyday part of the human psyche and is something that is not abnormal nor reserved for special or gifted persons.

Every human being is equipped from birth with what we need to communicate with the spirit world. Unfortunately, in the majority of us, this sense will be totally lost and will never be developed to it's true potential.

However, it is never too late to develop your own “Inner Awareness” and build upon your Sixth Sense. Meditation is the biggest aid to this and there are many websites on the internet dedicated to the subject.

I am currently using Isochronic Tones in MP3 recordings to aid in faster and deeper meditation levels and ultimately, to allow me to contact my own Spirit Guide(s).

I also believe that the Sixth Sense has a lot to answer for, especially when it comes down to experiences such as Deja Vu, but more on this later.

So the very first viewer debate for “Seeing The Unseeable” consists of these three questions:

• Q1: Do you believe in us having a Sixth Sense?
• Q2: Have you developed your own Sixth Sense and if so, what methods do/ did you use?
• Q3: What experiences have you had through use of your Sixth Sense?

That is all for now and I look forward to reading some of your responses.