Friday, March 21, 2008

Professor Richard Wiseman: Quirkology

Richard Wiseman, Ph.D., is the first and only Professor of Public Understanding of Psychology at the University of Hertfordshire. He is also a practicing magician (a Tannen's Magic customer) and was one of the youngest members of The Magic Circle. Wiseman has published over forty papers in academic journals and gained an international reputation for research into unusual areas of psychology, including deception, luck, and the paranormal. He is the author of eight books, including The Luck Factor, which has been sold in twenty-five countries as well as Magic in Theory: An Introduction to the Theoretical and Psychological Elements of Conjuring. He lives in Hertfordshire, England.

His latest book is Quirkology: How We Discover the Big Truths in Small Things. For over twenty years, psychologist Professor Richard Wiseman has examined the quirky science of everyday life. In Quirkology, he navigates the backwaters of human behavior, discovering the tell-tale signs that give away a liar, the secret science behind speed-dating and personal ads, and what a person’s sense of humor reveals about the innermost workings of their mind- all along paying tribute to others who have carried out similarly weird and wonderful work. Wiseman’s research has involved secretly observing people as they go about their daily business, conducting unusual experiments in art exhibitions and music concerts, and even staging fake séances in allegedly haunted buildings. With thousands of research subjects from all over the world, including enamored couples, unwitting pedestrians, and guileless dinner guests, Wiseman presents a fun, clever, and unexpected picture of the human mind.

Take a look here at one of his experiments called the Colour-changing Card Trick.


Professor Richard Wiseman: Colour-changing Card Trick