<span class="SFPTagline"> From SCIFIPEDIA </span>

Dowsing is the act of using simple instrumentation (such as a forked rod or pendulum) to find hidden objects (most typically, underground water).

While it has been suggested that some sort of emanation or vibration is being detected, scientists generally dismiss the idea that the dowser is actually detecting anything.

Another theory is that the dowser is using psychic powers, and that the instrument simply serves as a method of mental focus. This particularly seems to be the case in "map dowsing", in which the dowser is working with just a map of the area.

The typical portrayal of dowsing (aka "water witching") is of a rural person (in the UK or the US) cutting a fork in a branch (preferably hazel) and walking up and down a field with the branch held by the split ends at about waist height until it suddenly dips down, indicating a place to dig a well.

In practice, dowsers have been used to search for a much greater variety of objects: oil; minerals; and dead bodies. Just as police departments have consulted psychics, official agencies have used dowsers (without officially stating a belief in what the dowser does).

External Links

• Dowsing.com
• The Skeptic's Dictionary on dowsing

For specific information, such as individual dowsers, books and so on), please click the Dowsing category link at the bottom of this article.