Investigation Techniques & Equipment Usage Flashcards
7 cards from real CPI practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Investigation Techniques & Equipment Usage flashcards as text
What is 'matrixing' in the context of paranormal audio analysis?
Answer: The brain's tendency to hear intelligible words in random noise or white noise
Matrixing is the auditory equivalent of pareidolia — the mind imposes familiar patterns like words onto random noise, which is why EVP interpretation must be approached critically.
During an investigation, an investigator hears a loud bang from the next room. What is the correct first response?
Answer: Investigate and document the physical cause before attributing it to paranormal activity
Investigators must first seek a natural explanation for any sound — pipes, settling structures, animals, or other investigators — before considering a paranormal attribution.
A REM pod (Radiating Electro-Magnetic pod) alerts during an investigation. What does this device detect that triggers its alarm?
Answer: Disturbances in its self-generated electromagnetic field caused by nearby conductive objects or bodies
The REM pod generates its own EM field and alarms when that field is disturbed by an approaching conductive mass, which could be a person, animal, or anomalous energy source.
What is the investigative value of conducting a historical research phase before visiting a location?
Answer: It provides context for reported phenomena, identifies potential triggers, and reveals prior incidents
Historical research gives investigators background on the property's past, possible reasons for reported activity, and helps corroborate or contextualize client claims.
Why is it important to keep a time-synchronized log during a paranormal investigation?
Answer: To cross-reference events, experiences, and equipment readings across multiple investigators and devices
Synchronized timestamps allow investigators to correlate simultaneous readings across different devices and personal experiences, strengthening or weakening the case for any given anomaly.
What is the danger of using only a single piece of equipment, such as an EMF meter alone, to conclude that paranormal activity is present?
Answer: EMF meters can be triggered by mundane sources, so a single reading without corroboration is not reliable evidence
No single device provides sufficient proof because all paranormal detection equipment can be triggered by natural causes; corroboration across multiple tools is required.
When reviewing photographic evidence, what is the most common explanation for circular translucent shapes (orbs) captured in photos?
Answer: Dust particles, moisture droplets, or insects caught in the camera's flash or light source
The vast majority of orbs in photographs are caused by dust, moisture, pollen, or insects reflecting light near the camera lens, and these must be ruled out before any paranormal interpretation.