Why people recommend it
Phenomena by Annie Jacobsen provides a comprehensive investigation into the declassified historical files of United States government programs, such as project Grill Flame and project Stargate, which explored extrasensory perception and psychokinesis. On an episode of On Purpose with Jay Shetty titled These Kids Are TELEPATHIC, guest Ky Dickens recommended the book as a vital resource for understanding these topics, pointing to Jacobsen's deep dive into these declassified CIA papers. Later, on the Lex Fridman Podcast episode 420, host Lex Fridman welcomed Annie Jacobsen herself as a guest. During their conversation, Fridman referenced her book Phenomena directly, summarizing its core subject matter as the secret history of government investigations into psychokinesis and extrasensory perception. Across these podcasts, the book was highlighted as an authoritative text for navigating the strange intersection of national security, intelligence agencies, and fringe scientific inquiry into human consciousness.
Who recommended it
- Ky Dickens Recommended
- Lex Fridman Discussed
Ky Dickens — 1 mention
“this is one of the books I read and like trying to understand all of this is there's a great book by an author named Annie Jacobson and it's called phenomen and what it was about was the Declassified papers from the CIA about their project Grill flame and project Stargate programs”
Lex Fridman — 1 mention
“You've written, like you said, the book "Phenomena" on the secret history of the US government's investigations into extrasensory perception and psychokinesis.”