According to the Harris Poll, 4 out of every 10 Americans believe in ghosts.

In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of people interested in seriously studying the paranormal in as scientific a way as possible.

Patrick Burns and his group, Ghost Hounds, are among those people. Ghost Hounds, is based in metro Atlanta and is the largest paranormal investigation group in the Southeast.
Its website (www.ghosthounds.com) s in the top ten of all paranormal websites in the world, with over 500,000 page views each month. Membership in the website and the group is free. To quote the website membership information:
"We ask members to open their minds; not their wallets."

Ghost Hounds also performs investigations for free for people and organizations who feel they may be experiencing paranormal events in their location.

The group is open not only to believers, but to skeptics and even cynics, who are willing to be open-minded enough to seek unbiased evidence.

Says Patrick Burns, "I am first and foremost a skeptic. Not a cynic who just dismisses. I question everything with an open, objective mind."

Ghost Hounds use the equipment which has become standard for serious ghost hunters: Video and audio recorders, infrared cameras, Electromagnetic Field sensors, and digital thermometers. They seek to record visual anomolies, register unexplained cold spots, and
capture EVPs (Electronic Voice Phenomena, or unexplainable voices from seemingly nowhere.)

For instance, in October of 2003, Ghost Hounds made both CNN and Headline News with its investigation of Anthony's Restaurant in Atlanta. Among the unusual things that happened in this investigation, they caught on tape unexplained voices saying, "I'm over here," and "Turn it off."

Patrick Burns has received more media attention recently as he was chosen to be one of three stars of Court TV's new series, Haunting Evidence.

You can meet Patrick and many other Ghost Hounds at Ghostock 5 in Savannah, Georgia, October 2007.