Even though all participants in Brown’s experiment expected to receive a series of “vague and ambiguous statements” that could apply widely, they all still fell foul of the personal validation fallacy.
The Science of Scams is a new project from Channel 4 and mentalist/magician Derren Brown that aims to debunk the paranormal industry's lucrative claims about ghosts, fortune-telling, telekinesis and other assorted woo woo. Brown and C4 produced seven videos purporting to show the kind of "paranormal" activity held up as evidence of the supernatural and released them on YouTube for several weeks, allowing people to make what they will of them.
As Europes most controversial Ming-bearded mind-botherer and former cha-cha chamption, I offer here an insight into the techniques and thinking which have made me offensively rich and the best thing to happen to television since sliced bread. Improve your memory. Learn how to hypnotize. Read minds. Improve your memory. Its literally all here.
In this six-part video, Richard "God Delusion" Dawkins interviews stage hypnotist/magician Derren Brown about the techniques used by "psychics" to fool people (and maybe themselves) into thinking that they have extrasensory powers.
I've just finished Derren Brown's absolutely charming and fascinating book "Tricks of the Mind," which is one of those impossible- to- pigeonhole, eclectic nonfiction books that pulls together its subject matter in a genuinely novel way and ends up influencing how you see the world around you.
Stefano makes an interesting point that these acts rely, in part, on misinforming people about psychology. Derren Brown is a classic example where he often gives explanations after the trick so the viewer feels they are being let in on the secret, but which are obviously misleading and so are part of the more general misdirection that the feats are achieved through the 'power of the mind'.
Last week, I went to see mentalist/magician Derren Brown perform live at the Garrick Theatre in London's West End, catching the start of the run of his latest show, "Derren Brown, Mind Reader: An Evening of Wonders. It was absolutely fantastic. I'd met Derren and chatted with him, and seen his TV show, but I'd never seen him perform live. He's nothing short of brilliant.
I've just finished Derren Brown's absolutely charming and fascinating book "Tricks of the Mind," which is one of those impossible- to- pigeonhole, eclectic nonfiction books that pulls together its subject matter in a genuinely novel way and ends up influencing how you see the world around you.
One of my favorite Derren Brown videos where he plays with people's minds on the tube in London.
Derren Brown uses his photographic memory to play games with the Oxford Dictionary.
A one hour show where Derren Brown comes to America and attempts to be endorsed from five different experts in alternative fields ranging from religious experience to alien abduction. As always with Brown, his (not supernatural) abilities to interact with and influence people are legendary.
