I had an idea:

It seems that with the rise of interest/hype in “tech” we see a similar rise in “spiritualism” (for lack of a better word).

I recall during the late 1990s with the rise of the internet/.com boom, that Aliens/UFOs was all the rage and the X-files was one of the biggest shows on TV. Hmmm.

I see now with the AI-boom hype/LLMs/ChatGPT and the rise in conspiracy theories, UAPs, telepathy tapes, graham hancock, etc.

Maybe we can draw similar lines in the early 1990s with Occult/Aleister Crowley and the industrial revolution in high gear, and again during WW2 with the bomb/jets/etc. and Nazi Occult interest, foo fighters, etc.

This is all very hand-wavy. Not scientific.

I checked in with gpt4o:

Possible Explanations for the Pattern

  1. Psychological Coping Mechanism: During times of rapid technological advancement, people may feel a loss of control or an inability to fully comprehend the changes. The paranormal or occult offers an alternative framework for understanding the unknown and reestablishing a sense of wonder or control.

  2. Technological Anxiety: New technologies often raise existential questions (e.g., AI and humanity’s role, nuclear weapons and global destruction). The paranormal, such as UFOs or telepathy, may reflect a projection of these anxieties into the realm of the unknown, providing a metaphor for fears about the unknown consequences of technology.

  3. Media Amplification: In periods of technological innovation, mass media tends to flourish (e.g., the rise of film, TV, and now the internet). These new media often explore paranormal or speculative themes to capture public imagination, further intertwining the two trends.

  4. Search for Transcendence: As people grapple with the limits of science and technology, they may look to the occult or paranormal for a sense of transcendence or spirituality that purely materialistic or technological narratives might lack.

Examples Supporting the Pattern

  1. Late 19th to Early 20th Century:

    • Tech Boom: Industrial Revolution, widespread electrification, early aviation, and radio.
    • Occult/Paranormal Resurgence: Theosophy, spiritualism, seances, Aleister Crowley’s influence, and early UFO sightings.
    • Cultural Context: These movements coincided with a fascination with unseen forces like electromagnetism, which had an almost mystical aura at the time.

  2. WWII Era:

    • Tech Boom: Radar, jet engines, nuclear weapons, and rocketry.
    • Occult/Paranormal Resurgence: Nazi occultism, “foo fighters” (UFO-like phenomena reported by pilots), and popularization of mysterious archetypes like Atlantis.
    • Cultural Context: Secret technologies and the fear of espionage blurred the line between science fiction and reality, heightening interest in speculative topics.

  3. Mid-20th Century:

    • Tech Boom: Space Race, television, computers, and the early internet.
    • Occult/Paranormal Resurgence: UFO phenomena (Roswell, Area 51), the rise of Scientology, and the popularity of the X-Files.
    • Cultural Context: The Cold War era mixed paranoia with awe at technological progress, creating fertile ground for conspiracy theories and paranormal intrigue.

  4. Present Day (AI and UAPs):

    • Tech Boom: Artificial intelligence, machine learning, blockchain, and advanced robotics.
    • Occult/Paranormal Resurgence: Renewed interest in UFOs/UAPs (declassified reports, congressional hearings), exploration of consciousness (psychedelics, telepathy, remote viewing), and speculative narratives like simulation theory.
    • Cultural Context: AI, like UFOs, raises fundamental questions about consciousness, intelligence, and humanity’s role in a universe full of unknowns.

Why Do These Resurgences Happen?

  1. Mirroring and Shadowing: The unknowns created by technological progress—“How far can it go?” “What are the risks?"—are mirrored by paranormal phenomena. UFOs, for instance, represent the ultimate “other,” paralleling fears of AI becoming a godlike intelligence.

  2. Cultural Feedback Loops: Media and technology both amplify and reflect societal anxieties and fascinations. Movies, books, and TV shows (e.g., X-Files, Black Mirror) fuel interest in both technology and the paranormal.

  3. Unresolved Mysteries: Tech advances can answer many questions but also open new ones, leaving space for speculative answers (e.g., quantum mechanics and consciousness leading to discussions of remote viewing).

How This Cycle May Continue

As long as technological progress accelerates and outpaces our ability to psychologically integrate its implications, the “equal and opposite” resurgence of interest in the paranormal, occult, and UFO phenomena seems likely to persist. These areas offer a means of grappling with the mysteries that technology alone cannot explain.

The aspect that resonates with me is “Psychological Coping Mechanism”.

Makes sense.

Is there anyway to measure the effect?

Two ideas came to mind:

I tried a suite of terms in Google Trends and did not get anywhere.

Similarly in the Ngram Viewer. I made pretty plots, but no obvious patterns in the rise of tech and co-rise in “spiritualism”.

Oh well.

Maybe an academic in the humanities has some better ideas on how to investigate this (or already has…).

Here’s some pretty pics: