So excited to announce that our taxonomy of forcing techniques has just been published! I hope this will facilitate knowledge transfer between magicians and psychologists 🎩👩🏻‍🔬 Looking forward to having some feedback on this one! sciencedirect.com/science/authSh…

Want to know a magic trick that can help you make better decisions? 🐇 ✨🎩 Voila! The TED Talk by Alice Pailhès inside our article teaches us a secret brain hack that will help you to make choices that are, in fact, truly yours! #choices #impulses buff.ly/36oFG4W

Our latest paper in #JEPGeneral on the Equivoque force examines how people fail to notice inconsistencies and experience illusory sense of agency over action outcomes ! psycnet.apa.org/record/2020-87…

Our Reply to Cole has been published online in #PNAS : Do magicians mislead science ? pnas.org/content/118/3/… PNASNews Gustav Kuhn MAGIC Lab

2/2 We argue that although magicians frequently mislead the public about the psychological principles they use to manipulate what we perceive, there is great value in studying conjuring principles scientifically.

Fun exchange in PNASNews: 1. A paper (pnas.org/content/117/30…) imports a Derren Brown magic trick into the lab: Ask subjects to name a card; describe card as "bright & vivid"; make a diamond with your hands; gesture at 3 spots for suits; subjects more likely to name 3 of ♦️s.

What do magicians know about the sense of agency that cognitive scientists don't? Looking forward to this week's GoldsmithsPsychology seminar from Alice Pailhès, on how magicians manipulate feelings of volition and agency. Thurs 11th Feb, 4pm. Email me if you'd like the link.

It’s time to start respecting magicians, apparently.

"Magicians are not alone in using such techniques and we believe that magicians’ forcing techniques provide a valuable tool to raise awareness about the ease by which our choices can be manipulated." cell.com/trends/cogniti…

Our new paper reviewing the research on magicians’ mind control tricks has just been published in Trends in Cognitive Sciences! Cell Press Trends in Cognitive Sciences Gustav Kuhn authors.elsevier.com/a/1ceDP4sIRvHk…

“Many of the psychological principles that underpin magicians’ forces can be applied to domains outside the magic performance.” Trends in Cognitive Sciences Cell Press Alice Pailhès Gustav Kuhn authors.elsevier.com/a/1ceDP4sIRvHk…

Revealed: the magical secrets to tricking your free will | gold.ac.uk/news/magicians…

The tricks and tools used by magicians to influence their audiences are the same as those we encounter as we make key decisions in everyday life, such as what to buy or who to vote for. New research by Alice Pailhès Gustav Kuhn GoldsmithsPsychology gold.ac.uk/news/magicians…

Don't miss tomorrow's (Sunday) SoMA Conversation on Science, Magic, & Society. Jay Olson will moderate discussion by Brian Brushwood (Brian Brushwood), Koen Peeters Grietens (@SEHR_ITM), Patricia Kingori, & Simon Henderson on 'Deception Offstage.' Register at: forms.gle/GEotg5f1i8UNqm…

In both cases, people didn't know they were being influenced. Magic paper: pnas.org/content/pnas/1… Entrepreneurship paper: research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/files/7…

Study by Alice Pailhès et al finds that naturally embedding primes within a person’s speech and gestures effectively influences people’s decision making, and illustrates that people often do not know the real reason for their choice: buff.ly/3o8a8rs

(Slightly belated) Happy New Year from SoMA! bit.ly/3fSEniG

Have you heard? After a 3-year hiatus, the SoMA Conference resumes this summer in London! Registration is now open at scienceofmagicassoc.org/2022tickets. Watch this space for exciting announcements about our speakers and the gala show. #SoMA2022

My article on magicians’ Too Perfect Theory has been published today in PeerJ - the Journal of Life & Environment! 🪄 Can a trick be too perfect to be good? Do people really find out the secret method when there’s no flaw? Find out here: peerj.com/articles/13449 #Neuroscience #Psychology #magictrick #magic

Who is looking forward to the #SoMA22 Gala Show? Tickets are still available, and the public is welcome! somagala2022.bpt.me