If you listened to our recent Halloween story "Haunted," and you're still skeptical of our skepticism about spirits talking through flashlights, this is for you. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, go listen to the story here After I first heard Dennis’ story, I poked around on the Internet, looking for someone to explain how a flashlight could communicate with the dead. A bit of googling led me to a 21-minute-long video on YouTube that breaks down the particulars of what are known as "flashlight sessions." The video was made by a man in Germany named Burkhard Reike. When I called him up, I was greeted with the most incredible sound I have ever heard. Once out of his cocoon, Burkhard told me this started for him when he was watching the ScyFy show “Ghost Hunters” (I’m assuming you get the gist of the show from the name). Over and over, these ghost hunters would pull out flashlights, ask questions into the air and then - just like in Dennis’ story - the lights would flash on and off.

At first Burkhard thought, eh, they're probably just tapping the table or some sly trick. But then he noticed something: all the different ghost hunters were using the exact same flashlight. The mini-Maglite, two-cell AA, with an incandescent lightbulb. So Burkhard bought a couple, brought them home, and took them apart. Now, the thing about these flashlights is that to turn them on or off, all you have to do is screw or unscrew the top of the flashlight. Lounge Furniture Rental TrinidadWhen you do this, two tiny bits of metal come into contact with each other. Diy Broken Digital CameraWhen they're touching, the electrical circuit is open and the light is on. Baby Cot Bed Bedding Sets UkWhen they aren't, the circuit is broken and the light is off.

Here's an illustration of the inside of the flashlight from Burkhard's video (contact point is on the right-hand side, in yellow): Burkhard ran through a dozen or so trials and experiments, five weeks worth, and found that this whole trick comes down to one part of the flashlight, the reflector. It's the dome-like mirror that surrounds the light bulb and focuses all that light. And here's how it works: When you turn a flashlight on, the bulb generates a bunch of heat and the reflector starts to get really hot. As it gets hotter and hotter, it starts to expand, getting bigger and bigger. Then, if you want to ask some ghosts questions, what you do is you unscrew the top of the light JUST enough so that the light goes off. Now, because the light is off, the reflector starts to cool down and contract until it pushes one tiny piece of metal into contact with the other tiny piece of metal and … The light bulb goes on. With the light back on, the reflector gets hot again and starts to expand … and expand … until it pulls the metal pieces apart again.

And the light goes off. Then the reflector contracts, and so on. Burkhard used a microscope camera and math to figure out that the expansion and contraction of the reflector is basically like turning the head of the flashlight 3 degrees. But, I should say that it gets way more complicated than that - there's oxidization, fritting, molten metal - but the point is, as Burkhard said, "this is by definition something that is normal and not paranormal." If you want to dive into the deep end, check out his explainer video. He's a good man and thorough.Even though I review mostly audio gear, I jumped at the chance to test the Cree LED High Power Searchlight. My interest was piqued when I bought a 250 lumen flashlight to replace my aging Maglight and its pathetically weak bulb. But once I saw that the Cree light was 800 lumens, I couldn’t resist. I was shocked how the Cree really lit up my yard at night. My backyard is one-acre, so searching for stuff or letting the dogs out before bedtime in pure darkness has become almost fun.

Lumens is simply a measurement for brightness. The higher the number, the brighter the beam. There’s more to it than just numbers, but this isn’t a science forum, so we’ll leave it at that. The 800 lumens comes from one tiny bulb. I can only imagine what two or more bulbs could do. There isn’t much to the Cree Searchlight. It’s lightweight and comes with a built-in rechargeable battery, charging cord and a handle. The metal shell is light and tough with a water-resistant on/off button and charging port on the handle. You can safely use it in the rain, but I wouldn’t dunk it. The handle is a nice touch that allows for easy carrying. The shell does not get hot, so it can also be held as you would any flashlight. Pressing the on/off button twice dims the beam by half for those times you don’t need a light quite so bright. Trust me, sometimes the light is too bright. Pressing three times causes the light to flash repeatedly which can come in handy if you need someone to locate you or simply just want to annoy friends.

Pressing and holding down the button sets off a repeating morse-code SOS signal. The rechargeable batteries are removable should they ever need replacing. Although the rechargeable batteries are nice and eco-friendly, I would have preferred its ability to accept batteries I can buy anywhere. I’m old-school like that. And since the batteries are not a standard size, finding replacements might be a hassle. Once I tried the Cree Searchlight, I was immediately impressed how it totally out-shined my 250 lumen flashlight. The beam is not only brighter (duh), but it’s wider with a super-bright center spot. We recently had a serious outdoor water leak late at night. A plumber came and had to dig in the back yard looking for the problem. Even though he had a headband with a light attached, the Cree light came in handy as a backup light I could hold while he worked and stay out of his way. My one-acre back yard has many pine trees over 100 ft. tall. The Cree Searchlight easily illuminates the tops of those trees as well as across our small lake into the woods on the other side.