CICAP (Comitato Italiano per il Controllo delle Affermazioni sulle Pseudoscienze; in English Italian Committee for the Investigation of Claims of the Pseudosciences) is an Italian, non-profit, skeptic educational organization, founded in 1989. CICAP's main goal is to promote a scientific and critical investigation of pseudosciences, the paranormal, so-called mysteries and the unusual, with the aim of encouraging a more scientific attitude and critical thinking. It is a member of the European Council of Skeptical Organisations.

History

CICAP was founded by the Italian science journalist Piero Angela together with a group of scientists including

Margherita Hack Margherita Hack (; 12 June 1922 – 29 June 2013) was an Italian astrophysicist and scientific disseminator. The asteroid 8558 Hack, discovered in 1995, was named in her honour. Biography Hack was born in Florence. Her father Roberto Hack was ...

, Tullio Regge and Sergio Della Sala. The first attempt at creating an organization that investigates alleged paranormal phenomena in Italy dates back to 1978, only two years after the founding of CSICOP (today CFI), when following Piero Angela's television show ''Indagine sulla parapsicologia'' (Inquiry on Parapsychology), 22 scientists and researchers of various disciplines released a common declaration calling for the establishment of a committee for the examination of alleged paranormal phenomena.

The initiative did not come into being until 1987–1988, when Piero Angela organized numerous meetings amongst the Italian subscribers of ''Skeptical Inquirer'' magazine that led to an initial public meeting in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. Th ...

on October 9, 1988. During the meeting, the association's goals and objectives were defined and the committee was named: ''Comitato italiano per il controllo delle affermazioni sul paranormale'' (Italian Committee for the Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal), chosen because its acronym "CICAP" resembled the word "check-up" in English. The committee was formalized on June 12, 1989. Steno Ferluga was appointed president, Lorenzo Montali secretary and

Massimo Polidoro Massimo Polidoro (born 10 March 1969) is an Italian psychologist, writer, journalist, television personality, and co-founder and executive director of the Italian Committee for the Investigation of Claims of the Pseudosciences (CICAP). Early lif ...

the director of the association's magazine. Two

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfre ...

laureates are or have been members:

Carlo Rubbia Carlo Rubbia (born 31 March 1934) is an Italian particle physicist and inventor who shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1984 with Simon van der Meer for work leading to the discovery of the W and Z particles at CERN. Early life and educat ...

and

Rita Levi Montalcini Rita Levi-Montalcini (, ; 22 April 1909 – 30 December 2012) was an Italian Nobel laureate, honored for her work in neurobiology. She was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly with colleague Stanley Cohen for the ...

. Other notable members include the philosopher,

semiotician Semiotics (also called semiotic studies) is the systematic study of sign processes (semiosis) and meaning making. Semiosis is any activity, conduct, or process that involves signs, where a sign is defined as anything that communicates something, ...

and novelist

Umberto Eco Umberto Eco (5 January 1932 – 19 February 2016) was an Italian medievalist, philosopher, semiotician, novelist, cultural critic, and political and social commentator. In English, he is best known for his popular 1980 novel '' The Name of th ...

. In the beginning, CICAP was primarily concerned with parapsychology (

telepathy Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic ...

psychokinesis Psychokinesis (from grc, ψυχή, , soul and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), or telekinesis (from grc, τηλε, , far off and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), is a hypothetical psychic ability allowing a person ...

, etc.). With time, CICAP began branching out into other areas of pseudoscience (such as

alternative medicine Alternative medicine is any practice that aims to achieve the healing effects of medicine despite lacking biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or evidence from clinical trials. Complementary medicine (CM), complementary and ...

), both historical (such as those involving dragons or the sword in the rock) and above all, contemporary legends (

urban legends An urban legend (sometimes contemporary legend, modern legend, urban myth, or urban tale) is a genre of folklore comprising stories or fallacious claims circulated as true, especially as having happened to a "friend of a friend" or a family m ...

). The rise in popularity of other pseudoscientific phenomena prompted the organization to change its name. In September 2013, CICAP announced a change in its name altering the P of the acronym to signify 'pseudoscienze'' rather than ''paranormale'' (paranormal). The new name includes not only supernatural phenomena, but also pseudoscientific ideas and claims regarding practices whose efficacy is not scientifically proven, conspiracy theories, urban legends, and historical falsifications. A short list of CICAP investigations during its history includes verifying astrological predictions, powers of

magicians Magician or The Magician may refer to: Performers * A practitioner of magic (supernatural) * A practitioner of magic (illusion) * Magician (fantasy), a character in a fictional fantasy context Entertainment Books * ''The Magician'', an 18th-ce ...

, dowsers, healers and

fakirs Fakir ( ar, فقیر, translit=faḳīr or ''faqīr'') is an Islamic term traditionally used for Sufi Muslim ascetics who renounce their worldly possessions and dedicate their lives to the worship of God. They do not necessarily renounce al ...

UFOs An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are ide ...

, the blood of St.Januarius and contacts with the afterlife. CICAP also deals with verifying astrological predictions. In fact, every December, it collects a sample of astrological predictions made by astrologers and clairvoyants during the year and publishes a year-end report on the outcomes of the predictions. Since 2009, CICAP organizes an annual "Anti-Superstition" day in various cities on a Friday the 17th. The organization has always worked closely with Italian media to help ensure accurate coverage of paranormal topics. In the early 2000s CICAP purchased its current headquarters in Padua, with the proceeds of a fundraising campaign called "Progetto CICAP 2000". In October 2004, CICAP and the CSI co-sponsored a World Skeptics Congress in Italy. CICAP features several local volunteer groups that organize activities such as conferences, investigations and courses for journalists and teachers. The first local group was created in 1994; , sixteen local groups are present. In 2011 CICAP became an Associazione di Promozione Sociale, a form of nonprofit organization that allowed it to claim donations on income tax forms and enabled members to become more involved in the decisions of the association. In 2015, "thematic groups" were created within CICAP. These work groups are composed of members from across Italy and abroad who focus on a specific project, such as educational activities for schools. In May 2016, Italian science journalist Piero Angela was appointed "honorary president" of CICAP. Since 2018, CICAP has been acknowledged by the Ministry of Education, University and Research for the training of school staff pursuant to the MIUR 170/2016 Directive. , the president of CICAP is neuroscientist Sergio Della Sala .

Scope

The subject matters investigated by CICAP can be divided into three categories: * Paranormal Phenomena which would violate the fundamental laws of modern science: investigations of

parapsychology Parapsychology is the study of alleged psychic phenomena (extrasensory perception, telepathy, precognition, clairvoyance, psychokinesis (also called telekinesis), and psychometry) and other paranormal claims, for example, those related to near- ...

such as

precognition Precognition (from the Latin 'before', and 'acquiring knowledge') is the purported psychic phenomenon of seeing, or otherwise becoming directly aware of, events in the future. There is no accepted scientific evidence that precognition is a ...

clairvoyance Clairvoyance (; ) is the magical ability to gain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception. Any person who is claimed to have such ability is said to be a clairvoyant () ("one who sees cl ...

telekinesis Psychokinesis (from grc, ψυχή, , soul and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), or telekinesis (from grc, τηλε, , far off and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), is a hypothetical psychic ability allowing a person ...

. Other subjects that fall under this category are generally described as "scientifically inexplicable":

fire-walking Firewalking is the act of walking barefoot over a bed of hot embers or stones. It has been practiced by many people and cultures in many parts of the world, with the earliest known reference dating from Iron Age India . It is often used as a rit ...

Electronic voice phenomena (EVP) Within ghost hunting and parapsychology, electronic voice phenomena (EVP) are sounds found on electronic recordings that are interpreted as spirit voices. Parapsychologist Konstantīns Raudive, who popularized the idea in the 1970s, described E ...

, religious paranormal events, and so on. * Pseudoscience: those disciplines that claim to be scientifically valid but that systematically elude experimental verification when the scientific method is applied: astrology,

creationism Creationism is the religious belief that nature, and aspects such as the universe, Earth, life, and humans, originated with supernatural acts of divine creation. Gunn 2004, p. 9, "The ''Concise Oxford Dictionary'' says that creationism ...

, Earth Radiation,

numerology Numerology (also known as arithmancy) is the belief in an occult, divine or mystical relationship between a number and one or more coinciding events. It is also the study of the numerical value, via an alphanumeric system, of the letters in ...

, etc. * Mysteries and legends: stories that are not strictly paranormal but are unusual such as

urban legend An urban legend (sometimes contemporary legend, modern legend, urban myth, or urban tale) is a genre of folklore comprising stories or fallacious claims circulated as true, especially as having happened to a "friend of a friend" or a family m ...

s, UFOs and alleged alien events such as

crop circle A crop circle, crop formation, or corn circle is a pattern created by flattening a crop, usually a cereal. The term was first coined in the early 1980s by Colin Andrews. Crop circles have been described as all falling "within the range of the ...

s, traditional legends such as those involving dragons or the sword in the stone.

Method

CICAP applies

rational skepticism Scientific skepticism or rational skepticism (also spelled scepticism), sometimes referred to as skeptical inquiry, is a position in which one questions the veracity of claims lacking empirical evidence. In practice, the term most commonly refe ...

in its activities. This posits that every empirical statement can only be accepted after experimental verification. CICAP applies the scientific method to its investigations. CICAP often employs the collaboration of magicians in its investigations to ascertain the possible use of tricks. For example, Silvan is a CICAP sympathizer and has collaborated with CICAP in some of its initiatives.

Limits

CICAP does not cover metaphysics, in particular religion and faith, because these phenomena cannot be studied scientifically. CICAP investigates religious claims regarding material manifestations such as relics or the St. Janarius blood miracle in Naples because these phenomena are subject to scientific examination. CICAP is interested in informing the public. Its members have different religious and political beliefs, but they all agree that alleged pseudoscientific phenomena must be investigated and the results publicized.

Organization

The association is self-financed: the main sources of income are registration fees, donations and revenues from publications and courses. Curious, given that his fortune was based on the artistic and literary paranormal, was the adhesion of Tiziano Sclavi, who contributed five million lire. Sclavi is in fact a supporter of CICAP and declared that the occult and paranormal are great in fiction but that reality is a whole other thing. The national headquarters is located in Padua. Most regions have local groups or chapters with their own CICAP branches. Currently, there are local groups in Abruzzo-Molise, Aosta Valley, Apulia, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Liguria, Lombardy, Piedmont, Sardinia, Sicily, Tuscany, Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto. Furthermore, there is a local group in Canton Ticino, Switzerland.

Associative bodies

According to the internal statute (article 18), the main associative bodies are the assembly (ordinary or extraordinary), the executive council, the president and the vice-president. The executive council, whose offices are carried out on a voluntary basis, manages the association. The executive council appoints from among its members a president and a vice president and, optionally, one or more national coordinators. , the members of the executive council are Sergio Della Sala (president), Lorenzo Montali (vice president), Andrea Ferrero (coordinator), Marta Annunziata (local groups coordinator), Francesca Guizzo (legal advisor). The coordinators of the local groups are elected by the active members of the respective regions or provinces, while the effective members are chosen by the board of directors, upon written request by the applicant. The ordinary assembly, composed of effective members and coordinators of the local groups, approves the budget of the association, appoints and revokes the members of the executive council and other corporate bodies, and deliberates on the general guidelines of the association. The extraordinary assembly, composed of full members only, deliberates on decisions of particular importance such as changes to the statute and the transformation or dissolution of the association.

Local groups

CICAP activities are organized within local groups and present on most of the territory. , local groups are present in the following regions: Abruzzo-Molise, Apulia, Aosta Valley, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia (regional group, provincial group of Pordenone), Lazio, Liguria, Lombardy, Piedmont (regional group, provincial group of Cuneo), Sicily, Tuscany, Veneto. There is also a local group in Ticino, Switzerland. Each local group is managed by a coordinator, elected by the active members of his area, and approved by the Executive Council. The coordinators of all local groups, together with the effective members, take part to the Ordinary Assembly and to the election of the Executive Council.

Thematic groups

Thematic groups were officially born in 2015, although some of them were already active previously. They are composed of volunteers from all of Italy who collaborate to realize activities on specific topics. The following thematic groups are active: * CICAP-Med: born in 2017 to respond with expert advice to questions on pseudoscientific aspects related to health and medical problems in general * Chiedi Le Prove: it is inspired by the experience of Ask For Evidence for the correct use of scientific information in the media * Investigations: responds to requests that reach CICAP regarding pseudoscientific claims or mysterious phenomena, by consulting experts and conducting field investigations * School: aims to carry out educational initiatives in schools, to promote critical thinking and a rational approach to problems * RadioCICAP: official podcast where scientific, rational and skeptical topics are dealt with using interviews and insights * Razionale Alcoolica: Italian version of

Skeptics in the Pub Skeptics in the Pub (abbreviated SITP) is an informal social event designed to promote fellowship and social networking among skeptics, critical thinkers, freethinkers, rationalists and other like-minded individuals. It provides an opportunity ...

. Instead of conferences with a clear separation between speaker and audience, it is composed of meetings in breweries or restaurants with an expert who introduces the topic and has a conversation with those present * Social Networks: created to manage CICAP communication on social networks (mainly Facebook, TWitter, Instagram, Linkedin and Telegram)

Events

Conventions

Since its foundation CICAP organizes, generally every two years, a national convention where internal and external speakers of the Committee meet to discuss a topic related to the paranormal or pseudosciences. The conventions are open to members and the public but require a participation fee to finance the group's activities.

National Conventions

* I National Convention, ''Scienza e paranormale'',

Padova Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

, 1991 * II National Convention, IV congresso degli Euroskeptics, ''Paranormale: quali prove?'', Saint-Vincent, 1992 * III National Convention, ''Contatti con l'aldilà'',

Cormons Cormons or Cormòns ( sl, Krmin, german: Kremaun) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about northwest of Trieste and about west of Gorizia, on the border with Slovenia. Cormons borders the f ...

, 1993 * IV National Convention, ''Energie misteriose'',

Macerata Macerata () is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy, the county seat of the province of Macerata in the Marche region. It has a population of about 41,564. History The historical city centre is on a hill between the Chienti and Potenza r ...

, 1995 * V National Convention, ''New Age: Nuova Era o vecchie idee?'',

, 1997 * VI National Convention, ''Scienza, paranormale e mass media'',

, 1999 * VII National Convention, ''Medicine alternative: tra bisogni reali e irrazionalità'',

Reggio Emilia Reggio nell'Emilia ( egl, Rèz; la, Regium Lepidi), usually referred to as Reggio Emilia, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, and known until 1861 as Reggio di Lombardia, is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has abou ...

, 2001 * VIII National Convention, ''Il ritorno della magia'',

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The ...

, 2003 * IX National Convention, V World Skeptic Congress, ''Misteri risolti'',

Abano Terme Abano Terme (known as Abano Bagni until 1924) is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Padua, in the Veneto region, Italy, on the eastern slope of the Euganean Hills; it is southwest by rail from Padua. Abano Terme's population is 19,062 ( ...

, 2004 * X National Convention, ''Paranormale, Watson?'',

, 2006 * XI National Convention, ''L'evoluzione del mystero'',

, 2009 * XII National Convention, ''2012 – Si salvi chi può'',

Volterra Volterra (; Latin: ''Volaterrae'') is a walled mountaintop town in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its history dates from before the 8th century BC and it has substantial structures from the Etruscan, Roman, and Medieval periods. History Volt ...

, 2012 * XIII National Convention, ''L'arte del disinganno. 25 anni di avventure ai confini della scienza'',

Cesena Cesena (; rgn, Cisêna) is a city and '' comune'' in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, served by Autostrada A14, and located near the Apennine Mountains, about from the Adriatic Sea. The total population is 97,137. History Cesena was ...

, 2015 * XIV National Convention, ''Il valore dei fatti nell'era della post-verità'',

, 2017

Other conferences

* I International Conference on Metropolitan Legends, ''Contaminazioni'',

, 2004 * Conference, ''Eppur si crede... Superstizioni e credenze alle soglie del XXI secolo'',

, 2008 * Conference, ''I conti non tornano – Il fascino dei numeri tra scienza e mistero'',

, 2011 * Conference, ''Il valore dei fatti'',

Milano Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ha ...

, 2014

CICAP Fest

The XIV national conference in Cesena was also the trial edition of a new annual event, CICAP Fest, in which CICAP offers meetings, workshops and shows in line with the principles of the association. The conference is held altogether in Italian, but usually accommodates English speaking speakers with simultaneous interpretation, to enable international participation in panels and talks. The general direction of the event is by Massimo Polidoro. In 2018 the conference focused on magic. Speakers included

James Randi James Randi (born Randall James Hamilton Zwinge; August 7, 1928 – October 20, 2020) was a Canadian-American stage magician, author and scientific skeptic who extensively challenged paranormal and pseudoscientific claims. Rodrigues 2010p. ...

, Susan Gerbic, Carlo Faggi, Max Vellucci, Gianfranco Preverino, Pino Rolle, Francesco Busani, Marco Aimone and Alex Rusconi as well as TV personalities. The 2018 CICAP Fest had over 200 events at ten locations.

Other events

Since 2009, CICAP has been organizing every year on Friday 17th (in Italy the number 17 is traditionally considered unlucky) an "Anti-Superstition Day", with the aim of making the general public reflect, on the absurdity of superstition. Usually, in various cities of Italy, CICAP local groups organize various types of events: meetings, conferences, debates and "practical" demonstrations. CICAP takes part regularly, with information points and with the organization of scientific dissemination meetings, in events such as the Turin International Book Fair and

Lucca Comics & Games Lucca Comics & Games is an annual Comic book convention, comic book and gaming convention in Lucca, Italy, traditionally held at the end of October, in conjunction with All Saints' Day. It is the largest comics festival in Europe, and the second ...

Investigations

The organization has investigated a number of paranormal phenomena including: * The alleged San Gennaro blood miracle in Naples * Russian psychic Nina Kulagina * The alleged miracles of

Padre Pio Francesco Forgione, OFM Cap., better known as Padre Pio and as Saint Pius of Pietrelcina ( it, Pio da Pietrelcina; 25 May 188723 September 1968), was an Italian Franciscan Capuchin friar, priest, stigmatist, and mystic. He is venerated as a ...

* Italian crop circles In September 2005, National Geographic Channel's program ''

Is It Real? ''Is It Real?'' is an American television series that originally aired from April 25, 2005 to August 14, 2007 on the National Geographic Channel. The program examines popular or persistent mysteries to determine whether the featured cryptozoolog ...

'' (episode 10) asked for a demonstration of "Knockout" Chi (a no-touch knockout technique), during which instructor Leon Jay was unable to knock out Luigi Garlaschelli, an investigator from CICAP.

Publications

CICAP continues its dissemination activities through conferences and public lectures, radio and television appearances, through the publication of ''Query'' a quarterly magazine (formerly ''Scienza & Paranormale'', Science & Paranormal), books and articles regarding these topics, through the conservation of a library and an archive of articles. Additional material, both on CICAP own research as well as foreigner skeptical and scientific papers translated into Italia, is published o
QueryOnline
the online version of the printed magazine. In 2020 CICAP launched on its YouTube channel "CICAP Live", a section of live video interviews with protagonists of science and culture with the aim of scrutinizing specific topics related to science and rationality. The main publications are: * ''Query'', quarterly popular science magazine * ''Query Online'', online magazine, with free access * ''Magia'', a six-monthly magazine dedicated to illusionism * Quaderni del CICAP, monographic books of popular science * Quaderni di Magia, monographic books on illusionism * YouTube channel, which collects extracts from conferences and from the CICAP Fest, video sections

Logo

CICAP's logo is based on the

grid illusion A grid illusion is any kind of grid that deceives a person's vision. The two most common types of grid illusions are the Hermann grid illusion and the scintillating grid illusion. Hermann grid illusion The Hermann grid illusion is an optical illu ...

. Designed in 1992 by Franco Ramaccini, was amended in 2009 and in 2013 with a more modern style. File:CICAP_2.jpg, The logo used from 1992 to 2009 File:Logo CICAP 2009.png, The logo used from 2009 to 2013 File:Logo CICAP 2013.png, The logo used since 2013

References

External links

* {{Skeptic organizations Skeptic organisations in Italy Organizations established in 1989 Non-profit organisations based in Italy