Connie Sonne has been presented with the following protocol:
CONNIE SONNE, Dowser
Materials Required
Dowsing pendulum
40 coin envelopes (of a variety large enough to contain a playing card) with adhesive seals
40 larger coin envelopes (large enough to fit the smaller envelopes inside) with adhesive seals
4 large manila envelopes with adhesive and bracket seals
1 new, previously unopened deck Bicycle poker playing cards
1 magic marker
1 10-sided die with sides marked 1-10
1 card table
Stipulations
No speaking aloud, except as noted within the protocol.
No walkie-talkies, aside from those used by testers, within the test.
No cameras, camcorders, camera-phones, etc. aside from those used by the JREF or testers within the test.
No sleight-of-hand, trickery, or cheating.
If any of the above listed are violated, or if it is determined the subject has attempted to tilt the results in her favor due to trickery of any kind, the test will be halted immediately and considered a failure.
If there is a setup or technological problem, or if for any reason the test must be halted due to extenuating circumstances rather than trickery, the test may fourth set of suit cards may be used to replace one of the original three. If there are further setup problems, the test may be rescheduled once. These re-test guidelines do not apply in cases of simple failure.
Testing Protocol
Pre-test setup:
In the days before the test takes place, JREF staff or a volunteer tester will open the deck of Bicycle poker playing cards and separate the cards by suit, removing and throwing away the rules cards and jokers.
Jack, Queen, and King of each suit will be separated and set aside.
Each remaining card, ace through ten, will be put in a separate small coin envelope resulting in ten small coin envelopes for each suit (forty total). The envelopes should still be separated by suit, so that there are four sets of ten envelopes. The cards should be placed inside the envelopes so that the front of the card is facing the envelope flap closure. The envelopes will then be sealed.
Each small coin envelope will be placed inside a larger coin envelope so that the flap closure of the small coin envelope is facing the flap closure of the larger coin envelope it is placed inside. The envelopes will then be sealed. The envelopes will still be separated by suit, so that there are now ten double-enveloped cards of each suit (forty double-enveloped cards total).
The double-enveloped cards should be shuffled so that the tester is unaware of the order.
The envelopes belonging to each suit will be placed inside a large manila envelope, which will be labeled on the outside with the corresponding suit.
The envelopes will then be sealed with both the adhesive seal and the bracket. The JREF staff or volunteer tester will sign their name across the seal to ensure there is no tampering.
All forty envelopes and the remaining cards will be brought to the testing location on the day of the test.
Ms. Sonne will arrive at the testing location, and JREF staff or a volunteer tester will conduct an open test.
OPEN TEST INSTRUCTIONS:
JREF staff or a volunteer tester will place the remaining un-enveloped cards (jack, queen, king of each suit) face-up on the card table. Ms. Sonne will be asked to dowse for the jack of hearts, the king of clubs, etc. until she feels sure her dowsing abilities are working. Ms. Sonne will not be permitted to touch the cards.
Once it has been established that Ms. Sonne's dowsing abilities are working to her satisfaction, the closed test will begin.
CLOSED TEST INSTRUCTIONS:
JREF staff or a volunteer tester will open the first manila envelope containing ten double-enveloped cards of a single suit. The tester is permitted to tell Ms. Sonne which suit she will be working with.
The double-enveloped cards will be placed side-by-side, flap-up on the card table. Ms. Sonne will not be permitted to touch the envelopes.
The tester will roll the ten-sided die. The number rolled will correspond to the face value of the double-enveloped cards, such that ace is one, 2 is 2, and so on through ten.
Ms. Sonne will be asked to dowse for the card that corresponds to the number rolled by the tester on the 10-sided die.
When Ms. Sonne feels that she has discovered the card that corresponds to the rolled number, she will point to the envelope she believes contains the correct card. The tester will pick up the envelope, write the selected number on the exterior of the envelope, and set the envelope aside. The remaining envelopes will be returned to the large manila envelope with the corresponding suit printed on the outside, and the steps will be repeated for two more suits.
The fourth suit will only be used in the case of a setup problem.
After Ms. Sonne has made her selection from three suits and the three chosen cards have been labeled on the exterior of the envelope with her selection, the envelopes will be opened and the value of the playing card checked against the number on its corresponding envelope.
If all three of Ms. Sonne's selections are correct, the test will be considered a success and Ms. Sonne will begin negotiations for a final Challenge test.
If any of the selections are wrong, Ms. Sonne's test will be considered a failure and she may re-apply for the Challenge one year from the date of the failed test.
Time required: No more than one hour.
