Patrick Burns, Paranormal Investigator

As a paranormal investigator, Patrick Burns says, "I am first and foremost a skeptic. Not a cynic who just dismisses. I question."

He studies anything outside the normal understanding of scientific principles. "It's a very wide-ranging topic," he says. "ESP. Telekinesis. UFOs. Cryptozoological, which is the study of creatures like the Loch Ness Monster or Bigfoot. It's any kind of phenomenon that has been reported but not officially documented. Our ultimate goal is to prove these things that have been sighted."

His career began in 1994, when friends showed him the mysterious Paulding Light in Watersmeet, Michigan. "I saw this glowing, shimmering light, and I was haunted for the next week. I decided to conduct my own investigation, to figure out what was causing this. Eventually, I was able to determine that the 'lights' were car headlights going through a slit in the woods. I got my start by debunking this phenomena, although I was heartbroken doing it." Since then, Burns has delved into hundreds of cases, and he says, he generally can find a legitimate, scientific explanation for about 90% of them. The remaining 10%, he says, cannot be deciphered.

To investigate paranormal activity, Burns uses a variety of scientific tools, including laptop computers, thermometers, voice recorders, infrared cameras and instruments that can detect changes in the earth's magnetic field. "I am interested in abrupt, highly localized temperature changes," he says. "The proverbial cold spot. The theory is, when you find that, it means there could be a ghost right there."

Burns lives in Atlanta, Georgia with his wife and two sons. He enjoys scuba diving, although he has yet to try a paranormal investigation below the water's surface. "I think the problem might be differentiating between a ghost and jellyfish," he notes.