Magic tricks illusion. It `s Magic! – magical facts about magic and illusionists

Most of us are familiar with the phenomenon optical illusions thanks to entertainment sites, popular science books and the work of artists, for example, the engravings of the famous Maurits Escher. But optical illusions can not only surprise - they help scientists better understand how our sensory perception of the world around us relates to objective physical reality. The American organization Neural Correlate Society promotes such scientific research: every year she holds a competition where anyone can submit an optical illusion they have discovered with an illustration and a short description. T&P chose five winning illusions different years from those published on the competition website and described their action.

The mechanisms responsible for the occurrence of optical illusions are located in different parts nervous system human: from the retina to the visual cortex of the brain. The image falling on the retina contains great amount information, and not all of it is transmitted to the brain. Let the numbers speak for themselves: the retina contains an average of 125 million photoreceptors and a hundred times fewer ganglion cells that generate nerve impulses. Our brains have to use abstract models to complete and piece together scattered pieces of incoming visual information. Sometimes he copes with this task too successfully: he creates a sense of integrity where there is none - in other words, he creates an optical illusion. Using the example of several of them, we will show exactly how our brain misleads us.

The illusion of "impossible movement"

The wooden balls in this video appear to be rolling up the slope as if they were being attracted by a magnet. Their behavior is inexplicable, as it contradicts the laws of physics. The image is not a 3D computer model, it’s just that the location of the gutters is perceived by the observer “in reverse” - in such a way that the downward movement of objects along them is mistaken for an upward one. Notably, the illusion, created by Kokichi Sugihara of Japan's Meiji Institute for Advanced Study of Mathematical Sciences, uses tangible three-dimensional objects and physical movement instead of a conventional two-dimensional image. IN in this case the deceptive effect is achieved by building a certain perspective: it is obvious that if we looked at this structure from any other angle, the illusion would not work. The material model of the Penrose triangle or “impossible triangle”, which was invented by young enthusiastic scientists, works according to the same laws. True, in order to be deceived, you will need to make an effort, because the illusion will work “correctly” only if you look at it from a certain point.

The "rotating mask" illusion

Whether we look at the convex or concave side of a mask, we cannot visually distinguish one from the other and will always perceive each as a face. As already mentioned, everything we see is the result of electrical signals transmitted from the eye to the brain through optic nerve. It is the brain that processes these signals and constructs a specific image that our consciousness can perceive. Moreover, neuroscientists believe that there are certain areas in our brain that are responsible for recognizing faces. From our experience, we know that faces are convex, and the brain produces an image that corresponds to our expectations and established models. The habit is so strong that even the three-dimensional model of reality that is created by our stereoscopic vision is ignored. Interestingly, people suffering from schizophrenia cannot be deceived and are able to visually recognize the concave side of the mask. Raw visual information in their case, it is not “overwritten” by higher cognitive processes occurring in the brain. Some psychologists believe that such dysfunction in signal processing (when sensory perception dominates consciousness) increases the feeling of dissociation from reality in patients.

The Leaning Tower Illusion

Despite its apparent simplicity, the effect of this illusion was first described in 2007 by scientists at Canada's McGill University. The two images of the Leaning Tower of Pisa are identical, but the observer has a strong feeling that the right tower is tilted more, as if it were photographed from a different angle. The fact is that adjacent photographs are perceived by us as one image. Typically, due to the laws of perspective taken into account by our visual system, the contours of two nearby towers tend to converge on the same point as they move away from the field of view. But if their contours are parallel, our brain assumes that the towers should diverge in different directions. The main discovery of scientists was the fact that our visual system interprets two identical images as a single landscape: no matter how hard we try to perceive them separately, we will always see the “Twin Towers of Pisa”, whose perspective can only be explained by the fact that the slope of one of the towers is much greater.

Dynamic Ebbinghaus effect

The Ebbinghaus geometric illusion is possible due to our perception of the relationships between the sizes of objects. A person of average height will appear taller or shorter depending on whether he stands next to a professional basketball player or a hobbit. Likewise, the central circle will appear larger or smaller depending on the size of the objects surrounding it. This phenomenon can be explained as follows: our perception adapts to a certain relationship between an object and its environment and extracts from it a certain criterion, which is then transferred to new situation. For simplicity, this can be compared to the perception of sounds: if your laptop suddenly stops humming, you will instantly become aware of the silence in the room, although before that you may not have paid attention to the noise it made. In the classic Ebbinghaus illusion, objects are static, but it turned out that visual effect significantly increases in dynamics: according to scientists at the University of Nevada, the authors of the illusion, the error in the perception of size almost doubles.

Multisensory "disappearing hand" illusion

Originally conceived by University of Nottingham scientists to simulate sensory loss in stroke patients, the illusion uses vision, touch and body position. The participant in the experiment does not notice how his perception of the position of his own hands gradually changes: after special manipulations programmed by scientists, the hands turn out to be much further from each other than it seems to the subject. When right hand disappears from the screen, he reaches for her with his left hand, but all he finds is an empty table. The combination of loss of visibility and physical contact with your hand creates the complete illusion of its absence. Experiments like these prove that perceptual errors can occur not only when viewing optical illusions - our entire apparatus for the reception and interpretation of reality is greatly limited abstract models, developed by our brain in the process of evolution. We don’t know what reality actually looks and sounds like, we don’t know exactly what it feels like, we are easily misled, but it is through scientific research that we can get closer to the most complete perception of the world around us.

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The art of mastering magic and illusion dates back to ancient times. It was in the Middle Ages that at fairs one could see all sorts of magicians who used mechanisms and tricks unimaginable at that time. This collection has kindly collected for you a selection of the most amazing tricks and tricks that won the hearts of even the most severe critics.

David Blaine “Frozen in Time” On November 27, 2000, millions of viewers watched David Blaine perform one of the most dangerous magic tricks on live television. He was placed in an ice capsule, and in this frosty sarcophagus he spent 63 hours 42 minutes and 15 seconds. Since the ice was transparent, everyone could be sure that Blaine was really there the entire time. After being removed from the ice capsule, he was immediately hospitalized as he was in a state of disorientation.

David Copperfield - “Portal”. David Copperfield deserves the highest mark among all illusionists due to his superb performance of many magic tricks. Many consider him the most talented magician of all time. In this case, he managed to teleport himself and another bystander to Hawaii. This trick was never repeated and it still remains a mystery to many people.

David Copperfield - “Thirteen”. David Copperfield is well known for his acting skills and a sense of humor, as well as the ability to easily find mutual language with any audience, which resonates in the hearts of viewers from all over the world. The trick is difficult to explain logically, and it is considered one of the best tricks in the history of magical art. After all, no one has yet managed to make thirteen people disappear in the blink of an eye.

Paul Daniels and his “Cup” (1995). Audiences loved Paul Daniels' performances because they were dynamic and truly exciting. With his quick movements of his hands, Paul could entertain the audience for so long that he was rightfully considered the best magician in his genre. Hollywood Academy magical arts in 1983 she even awarded him the prestigious “Magician of the Year” award.

David Copperfield and “Death Saw”. Many magicians follow in the footsteps of David Copperfield and continue to try to repeat this trick at their performances in Las Vegas. After all, this trick is the most famous in the history of magic and illusion. Copperfield made the public believe that he was actually sawed in two. Despite a large number of different versions of this trick, in which different ways illusionists saw their assistants, to this day no one has yet managed to repeat this trick exactly as Copperfield originally did.

Alvo Stockman's postmentalism is the future of written prophecies. This is a fast-growing type of magic trickery in which participants can write their predictions on a card, put an address, stamp it and send it to a friend. Predictions may contain information about the results football matches or any other questions that may interest the addressee, and the answer, to his amazement, will already come to him by mail.

Criss Angel walks on water. Criss Angel's shows like Trick of the Mind, Believe, and Phenomenon reached their peak thanks to his water-walking trick. After this trick, they began to consider him almost a black magician.

“Turning five one-dollar bills into five $100 bills.” And David Blaine again and again amazes people from all over the world with his magic tricks in his TV epic. Thus, one of his best tricks is considered to be turning one-dollar bills into hundred-dollar bills, which he then distributed in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina swept through there.

“Passing through the Great Wall of China.” David Copperfield demonstrated a variety of amazing illusions, including the ability to walk through the Great Wall of China. When this trick was performed, video technology was not so advanced, so Copperfield took time to create and plan this trick. In this performance, he relied on his intelligence, speed and originality, and, ultimately, this unique trick brought Copperfield legendary fame.

“Removal of participants' front teeth.” David Blaine in Once again demonstrates his incredible abilities in front of passers-by. This time, moving from one person to another, he “took out” each person’s teeth from their mouths directly on camera. There has been a lot of controversy over this video, but don't forget that David Blaine is a certified specialist in the field of street magic and magic performances.

“Metamorphoses.” The ability to transform into something else is one of the most outstanding talents of an illusionist. So, the transformation trick ordinary guy to a pretty assistant and back just drives the audience crazy. This is one of the best tricks of modern illusionists, which requires remarkable ingenuity and agility from the performer in order for the trick to work as it should.

“Moving by truck.” Illusionist Penn managed to impress people with his trick with a truck tractor, which literally drove over him without causing any harm to the magician.

“Levitation” by Criss Angel. Despite the fact that David Copperfield has already successfully performed levitation tricks, Criss Angel's magic tricks are incredible and convincing because they were performed right on the street among spectators. Although some even believed that Criss really floated in the air, the author himself recognized his trick as an ordinary trick.\

Hans and Helga Moretti - “Shooting a Crossbow to the Head.” Such an impressive trick can lead to death, but it is not for nothing that the Moretti couple are recognized as one of best couples illusionists of Germany. Every time the blindfolded Hans points a throwing weapon at his wife's head, the audience definitely experiences a lot of excitement.

“Catching a bullet with your teeth.” Penn and Teller perform a trick of catching lead shells fired from revolvers at each other. Such bullets are often also marked by spectators, who then identify them. This trick is considered legal by experts.

Swallowing a hammer drill by Thomas Blackthorne. There are many magicians who love to swallow swords, but nothing compares to swallowing the drill bit of a working concrete breaker. Viewers were shocked by this action when it was shown on German television.

“Deadly number on a roller coaster." Lance Barton is known for his many stunts and is also the creator of the longest running magic show. Already at the age of five, Lance began performing magic tricks and to this day continues to amaze the world with his original tricks.

“Cigarette” by Derren Brown. Derren Brown is a respected mentalist and psychological illusionist. He has an outstanding memory, the ability to hypnosis, and can demonstrate such psychic abilities, like psychokinesis and clairvoyance.

As children, we didn’t think about how circus tricks worked - we simply believed in them. It is much more difficult to surprise an adult; it is not enough to simply pull a rabbit out of a hat. Illusionists such as David Copperfield and David Blaine work in this field - and then we see levitation, the disappearance of the Statue of Liberty and other impressive tricks. Sometimes magicians reveal their secrets - and it turns out that every trick has a completely reasonable explanation

1. Classic of the genre: sawing a woman in half
The assistant climbs into a long, coffin-like box. Then the magician announces that he will now saw this lady in half right in the box - and he successfully does this without any harm to her health! There are several ways to perform this trick. Classic way, described in 1923, is shown in the picture below.

The box actually contains a secret, enough for the assistant to tuck her legs under. And the cut off legs are played by fake ones (they were controlled using a special mechanism to imitate movement). Therefore, they must wear shoes to cover them as much as possible.

And this is more modern way when not one assistant takes part in the trick, but two. Just one hidden in a box in advance. After the “sawing,” one smiles, and the second moves her legs.

2. Levitation
The trick begins with the assistant lying down on the table in front of the magician. The crowd gasps in surprise when the magician suddenly clears the table and the woman continues to float in the air.

The assistant who helps perform this trick is usually dressed in a long, flowing dress, which the magician uses to hide the real magic: a mechanical "levitation" device that is attached to the magician and with which he holds the assistant. And here sleight of hand comes into play: in order to distract the viewer’s attention, the magician takes out a hoop and begins to move it, showing that nothing is supposedly attached to the woman’s body.

3. Levitation of street “fakirs”

It would seem that if he actually levitates, why does he need a staff?

And this staff is the whole point: it is a very strong structure that holds a hidden platform on which a person sits.

4. Michael Jackson Tilt
Remember that incredible 45-degree tilt that Michael Jackson and his dancers did? They wore special boots with a specially shaped heel: at the right moment, pegs appeared on the surface of the stage, onto which the heel caught.

Here you can see how it works

5. The most famous trick of all times: pulling a rabbit out of a hat
A rabbit can hardly be hidden in a hat, but where does it come from then? Surely there is a simple explanation.

Well, there are three ways to hide a rabbit:
1) In a secret hole in the table. When the magician puts down his hat, he matches it with the secret door.
2) He's really wearing a hat! But the hat has a clever flip flap.

6. Zigzag Girl To perform this trick, you first need a skilled assistant, because her task is to position herself correctly in a cramped closet. It is necessary to position yourself in such a way that the face, hand and foot maintain a natural straight position standing man, and the audience did not suspect anything.

7. David Copperfield's trick of making the Statue of Liberty disappear

In 1983, David Copperfield convinced a crowd of spectators for a few minutes that the Statue of Liberty had disappeared. He did this trick once and never repeated it again.

Disappearance of the Statue of Liberty
There are two towers in front of the Statue of Liberty. A brightly illuminated Statue is visible against the background of the night sky, and a mark from it is visible on the radar. A blanket rises on the towers, David covers the radar, the blanket falls - the statue has disappeared, only a ring of lights around it is visible. The radar blip also disappears. The blanket rises and falls again - the statue appears as if nothing had happened.

There are several guesses as to how this was done.

a) Turntable

The spectators did not notice it, but their viewing positions were located on a giant rotating platform. After looking at the statue at the very beginning, they were slowly turned to the point where it was no longer visible. How did they not notice the rotation? Everything happened at night, the statue is located on the island, there are especially no identifying marks there.

b) Light curtain
At the appointed moment, the autonomous lighting of the statue turned off. Only 2 spotlights remained working on the island, crossing behind the towers, and spotlights on the towers, blinding the audience and not allowing them to see anything in detail. In fact, the spotlights did not illuminate the statue, but were directed upward and away from it.

c) Staging
That is, it is simply deception, a hoax, and hired actors act as spectators. Skeptics usually favor this view.

There are many films about illusionists and magicians, but few of them are remembered for years. The thing is that it is not easy to show a truly impressive illusion in cinema; the viewer must believe in a genuine miracle where every second is a miracle. Still, we managed to implement several noticeable tricks on the screen.

We invite you to recall the most memorable screen tricks.

The illusion of deception - 2

Those who watched the film will probably remember the moment when Atlas in the square, surrounded by a crowd of spectators, stopped the rain and then made it go in reverse. It looks so impressive that doubt creeps in: is this a special effect? But no. At the beginning of the film, in the magic shop, the riders pay attention to a small device in which the drops move in reverse, like rain at the end of the film, this is the solution.

Stroboscope - that's the main thing actor in this focus. This is a device that allows you to quickly reproduce repeating bright light pulses. To roughly understand how it works, remember any night club and flashing bright White light, thanks to which it seems that you are moving in jerks, like a robot, this is a strobe and stroboscopic effect, i.e. visual illusion.

For those who find it difficult to understand what we are talking about, this video the blogger talks in detail about this trick and even repeats it.

Illusion of deception

And again, Daniel Atlas, the hero of Jesse Eisenberg, surprises you already in the first minutes of the film, plus he makes you part of his card trick. Admit it, you also wished for the seven of diamonds? The secret is that while flipping through a deck of cards, he pauses twice for microseconds on this particular card.

Simple to the human eye you can't catch it, but if you look video in slow motion, you'll see what we mean.

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone

Not the most successful, but quite funny comedy “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone”. Alas, impressive cast, which included Steve Carell, Jim Carrey and Steve Buscemi, did not save the picture from a box office failure, but this film will not simply be erased from your memory. If only because some tricks from it penetrate like a drill into the very brain.

Not very smart, but fun and a little scary - Jim Carrey drilling himself temple.

Prestige

The fight between the characters of Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale gives the audience many impressive scenes that excite the imagination, and the explanation of the tricks will drive you crazy. How do you like, for example, a trick where Hugh Jackman's character moves between two doors at fantastic speed?

The secret of this magical teleportation is simple and, of course, like all the tricks in this film, is explained to the viewer, but focus looks elegant and truly spectacular.

Illusionist

Neil Berger's film "The Illusionist" only hides behind a sonorous title - in fact, the film contains much more drama and romance than magic tricks and mystical transformations. And yet, the film could not do without demonstrating the skills of the mysterious Mr. Eisenheim.

The impressive scene with an orange seed growing into a full-fledged bush bearing fruit will not leave the demanding audience indifferent. We, too, are ready to applaud Edward Norton's hero, especially in light of the fact that this trick was actually demonstrated to the public in the 19th century by Robert-Houdin.

Secret The trick lies in the pot itself and the special mechanism.

The Dark Knight

The villain from the film “The Dark Knight”, the Joker, pulls off a very impressive, but deadly trick, “The Vanishing Pencil”. True, we wouldn’t wish anyone to be his assistant in performing this trick - the Joker’s assistants are kind of disposable. Although

The secrets of magic tricks have always aroused our imagination and interest. Even as children, we believed that somewhere in the world there was real magic, and even as adults, many of us, somewhere in the depths of our souls, retained at least a small part of this hope. This is why magic tricks are so popular all over the world: they allow a person to plunge into the world of mystery and, at least for a few minutes, believe that miracles really exist.

Secrets must remain secrets

Among illusionists there is a rule not to divulge the secrets of tricks, although not everyone follows it. One of the most famous magicians in the world, Harry Houdini, himself personally told the public how some of his magic tricks are performed. And the Safronov brothers, now popular in Russia and the CIS countries, even hosted a program on Channel One, where they showed the disclosure of the secrets of many tricks, for which, by the way, they were expelled from the Society of Illusionists.

But this is rather an exception to the rule. And at a time when many tricks are just sleight of hand, and even a simple schoolchild can solve them, there are also secrets of magic tricks that not only spectators, but also other professional illusionists have been struggling with for many years to no avail. Having become familiar with the principle of execution classic tricks, perhaps you will be the one who will unravel the secret of their execution in the future.

Levitation

One of the tricks that has amazed audiences for many decades not only on stages, but also right on the street. The secret of the trick lies in a hidden mechanism that lifts the magician.

You can note that under the illusionist, even if he performs in an open space, there is always a mat, an assistant or some kind of platform, under which the main heavy part of the device is hidden.

Its other flexible part is hidden under clothes that are quite spacious to hide not only it, but also a small seat.

Torn bill

There are many variations of this trick, but the classic version used a pencil, with which the bill was torn in two, and then appeared whole again in front of the audience.

The secret of the trick is in the pencil: it consisted of two halves magnetized to each other, between which, thanks to sleight of hand, the piece of paper slipped easily.

Cutting in half

One of the most well-known tricks, which now also has a lot of different performances.

But the classic magic of trickery is more than simple: the box consists of two separate sections, in one of which the assistant is already hidden in advance.

During the cutting, the saw passes between them, and the audience essentially sees parts of the bodies of different people.

Catching a bullet with your mouth

A fairly simple trick, which nevertheless led to several disastrous cases throughout the history of its existence.

Of course, it is impossible to catch a bullet with your teeth, and, as many viewers guess, the weapon is fired with a blank cartridge.

The most common version of the execution is this: the bullet that the audience is given to sign is not real, and while the image is being applied to it, cameras are filming this process close-up, broadcasting it to screens behind the stage.

The assistants who are there quickly repeat on another bullet an inscription similar to the one applied by the viewer, and smear it as if it had actually been in the barrel.

Metamorphosis

That's what it was called famous trick Houdini, which he did with his wife.

She tied his hands, placed him in a bag and locked him in a box, which she hid behind a curtain, where she herself disappeared. There she clapped three times, the curtain fell, and it turned out that Houdini was already free, and his wife was in the box.

The secret of magic lies in simple skill and practice. Excellent ability to handle different types knots and ropes, the magician's hands were free already at the moment when he was placed in the bag.

It was also possible to easily get out of it through the back panel, and it was no longer his wife who clapped her hands, who at that time was doing the opposite of his actions, but he himself.

Through constant training, the couple learned to perform all these actions in just three seconds.

Do you want to know what other secrets of magic tricks have been hidden from the average viewer all this time? Watch the following video:

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