7 Most Insane Historical Attempts To Create A Super Soldier

Some years back, UK’s Ministry of Defence conducted serious research into the possibility of using psychics in warfare. After drafting a bunch of volunteers for the experiment (who were presumably chosen based on the weirdness of their hairdos) the MoD had them guess the contents of sealed envelopes, which included pictures of “a knife, Mother Teresa and an ‘Asian individual.’”

So far, the whole story sounds like a ridiculous relict of the Cold War, much like the idea that Sean Connery’s James Bond would make a good spy. But, nope, the MoD study was actually conducted in 2002. Yes, right around the time that Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones came out, UK’s government was seriously trying to determine if there was something to this whole Force thing. Shockingly, there was not.

While about 28% of participants came close to guessing what was in the envelopes, it was determined that they were, well, just guessing. The project was ultimately deemed a failure and we can only hope that the person who first proposed it was fired for spending nearly $36,000(?!) to prove that The Dead Zone was not based on real events. Top notch job, guy.