The University of West Georgia’s Ingram Library, in partnership with the psychology department, is pleased to present an exhibit highlighting the career of former University of West Georgia faculty member, Dr. William G. “Bill” Roll entitled Bill Roll: Contributions to Parapsychology. The exhibit will be on display in the Ingram Library’s Thomas B. Murphy Reading Room from September 14, 2015 through January 8, 2016.
Dr. Roll (1926-2012) was a renowned parapsychologist and psychology professor at UWG. In 1958, Dr. Roll rose to professional prominence during a poltergeist investigation called the Seaford case, which he conducted along with a fellow colleague at Duke University, J. G. Pratt. During the course of the Seaford case, in which objects appeared to move without human interference, Dr. Roll and Pratt coined the term “recurrent spontaneous psychokinesis” (RSPK). Dr. Roll served as project director of the Psychical Research Foundation (PRF) at Duke University and was later appointed professor of psychical research and psychology at West Georgia College, now the University of West Georgia, with funding from the PRF in 1986. Throughout his career, Dr. Roll investigated multiple claims of poltergeist phenomena and made numerous guest appearances on the television show, Unsolved Mysteries.
This exhibit highlights Dr. Roll’s contributions to the field of parapsychology, especially his work on ESP and the links it held to poltergeists, near-death experiences, and other psi phenomena. Materials in the exhibit showcase Dr. Roll’s early life, scholarly research, teaching career at UWG, and his prominent investigations such as the Tina Resch case. The exhibit incorporates photographs and artifacts, published books and articles, research data, teaching syllabi, and a variety of objects including Zener cards and eating utensils allegedly bent by using the force of the human mind.
This exhibit is free and open to the public. Parking on UWG campus is unrestricted on Saturdays and Sundays (other than handicapped, reserved, yellow curb, and red curb spaces). For more information, contact Blynne Olivieri at bolivier@westga.edu or 678-839-5455.
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