The Spectacle of Illusion: Magic, the paranormal & the complicity of the mind - Brossura

Tompkins, Matthew L.

Brossura

ISBN 10: 0500022429 ISBN 13: 9780500022429

Casa editrice: Thames & Hudson, 2019

Riassunto

Magician-turned-experimental psychologist Matthew L. Tompkins investigates the arts of deception as practised and popularized by mesmerists, magicians and psychics since the early 18th century

Su questo libro

Informazioni sull?autore

American magician-turned-psychologist Dr. Matthew L. Tompkins obtained a DPhil in Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford. Previously, he had obtained a BA in Psychology at the State University of New York at Geneseo and an MSc in Psychological Research at Oxford. His research, which has been featured across various international media outlets, including the Washington Post and BBC Future, focuses on the cognitive psychology of illusions. Matt worked as a professional magician before he began his academic career, and his experiences performing continue to influence his work. He recently became the first member of The Magic Circle to be admitted on the basis of a peer-reviewed scientific publication.

Dalla quarta di copertina

In The Spectacle of Illusion, professional magician-turned-psychologist Matthew Tompkins traces the evolution of the arts of magic and illusion from the 18th century onwards. Organized thematically within a broadly chronological trajectory, the book presents the art of witches, magicians, illusionists, hypnotists, mediums and faith healers, and exposes the mechanisms and the fakery behind the claims.

After discussing the art of the trick, the power of suggestion and what magic can tell us about memory, belief, bias and perception, the book examines the practices of spiritualism and mesmerism and the misuse of hypnotism and magic tricks to sway belief and fool people. It highlights how gurus, faith healers and mediums have been challenged over the last 200 years by scientists and magicians, and examines some of the scientific investigations into the paranormal. Highly illustrated throughout with entertaining and bizarre drawings, engravings, double-exposure photographs and test sheets from the Wellcome Collection, the Harry Price Library and the Society for Physical Research, the book also features newly commissioned photography of Ouija boards, trick tables, props, automata and illusion boxes. It concludes with a modern-day analysis of anomalistic psychology – sleep paralysis, change blindness, hallucination and false memories – showing how unreliable the mind is, and how complicit in the success of the illusion.

Dettagli dell'edizione

• Editore: Thames & Hudson
• Data di pubblicazione: 2019
• Lingua: Inglese
• ISBN 10: 0500022429
• ISBN 13: 9780500022429
• Rilegatura: Copertina flessibile
• Numero edizione: 1
• Numero di pagine: 224
• Contatto del produttore: non disponibile
• Persona responsabile: non disponibile