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Can science explain the near-death experience

Bruce Greyson

The Journal of near-death studies 1989 DOI: 10.17514/jnds-1989-8-2-p77-92. (opens in new tab)

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed
Topics Near-death experience
Keywords Humanity Consciousness Engineering ethics Scientific evidence Epistemology Law
Key points Argues that the benefits of scientifically studying near-death experiences outweigh the risks, given the unique insights they offer into consciousness and death.

Abstract

Article discussing empirical questions about near-death experiences (NDEs) that can be explored by the scientific method. Scientific study poses risks both to NDErs and to our understanding of the NDE itself. However, because the NDE allows unique access to information about consciousness and death, those risks are outweighed by the benefits to NDErs and to humanity derived from a scientific description of NDErs.