Today I have two things to say. First, the Telepath mind reading app is now available for Android. Get it here and convince people that you are telepathic!
Second, this is sooooooooo gorgeous….
10 points to anyone who can give a clear explanation of why the effect works!
Like mountains and lakes? Perhaps this would be your dream location….
Except that there is no lake – that is a wall (via @rebeccawatson)
Also, how about the levitating boat….
Except of course the apparent levitation is just due to a shadow (via @thewildbunny)
Did they fool you? Which is your favouite?
OK, first of all, if you can spare 5 mins, it would be great if you could take part in this online experiment into facial appearance and honesty. Participate here. many thanks.
Onto the puzzle. Here are ten matchsticks making up an equation based on Roman numerals….
Can you move ONE matchstick and make the equation correct? You are not allowed to remove the matchstick completely and can’t leave any blanks (e.g., XI + = XI isn’t allowed). At least one of the solutions is very simple and one is very sneaky. How many solutions can you come up with?
As ever, please do NOT post your answers, but so say if you have solved it and how long it took. Answer on Monday!
I think that is is perhaps the best ‘moving image’ illusion that I have ever seen….
However, every time I post something like this, many people simply cannot see the ‘movement’. Surely everyone gets this illusion?
This is wonderful….
It was originally created by Pech Misfortune. Can you see it rotate one way and then the other?
Here are three answers
A) Answer A
B) Answer A or B
C) Answer B or C
There is only one correct answer to this question. Which answer is this?
As ever, please do NOT post your answers, but do say if you solved it and how long it took. Have a good weekend!
Yesterday I went to see the opening of a new animated film called The Illusionist. It looked beautiful and the plot was soooooooooooooo slow. Feel free to miss it.
On a brighter note, I have teamed up with New Scientist to launch a new experiment testing people’s ability to predict penalties. It would be nice if you could join in by clicking here.
Tomorrow I am off to speak at an atheist conference with Richard Dawkins and James Randi in Copenhagen. Details here.
Now then, to business. I find this clip very funny, but I do wonder if there are big gender differences going on here. So, take a look and then vote….
A few weeks ago someone sent me an alleged ghost photo, saying…
“This is a picture I took in Eau Claire, Wisconsin last summer. The young girl in the front is my cousin. The slightly older girl I swear was not there when I took the picture. When I showed the picture to my father he immediately recognized the older girl as his sister (the younger girl’s mother) as she looked when they were kids. She passed away a few years ago from complications of a stomach tumor. I don’t know anything about ghosts, and my immediate instinct would be to assume it’s a glitch in the camera. It made me think fist of a double exposure shot, but it was taken on a digital camera. Can ghosts manifest as younger versions of themselves?”
Here is the pic….
Any thoughts?
UPDATE: The original file can be downloaded here
I have long been a fan of Felice Varini’s amazing illusions. David L emailed me a few days ago to say that Varini has just produced a new artwork in New Haven, Connecticut, so I thought I would use the opportunity to post some of my favourite examples of his work. Here is the New Haven piece:
And here are two other pieces…
If you are not sure how they are made, here is a clue…..
Which is your favourite?
The monkey had a tough time in the box during the Big Dream Experiment. To make it up to him, I want to give him a cup of banana juice. I have a big vat of the stuff (don’t ask), but can only give him exactly 4 fluid ounces (any less and he gets angry, any more and he dies). However, the really bad news is that I have a cup that will contain 5 fluid ounces when full and another one that contains 3 fluid ounces when full. How can I use the two cups to measure exactly 4 fluid ounces and so keep the monkey happy?
As ever, please do NOT post your answers, but do say if you solved it and how long it took. Have a good weekend.
The day before yesterday I placed a mystery item in a box. Last night over 200 of you attempted to dream about the contents of the box, and posted your dreams on the blog. Many thanks for taking part in the study. Tonight I opened the box….
Yes, the mystery object was a puppet monkey. Interestingly, Kimberly had the following dream….
“I dreamt that I was walking across a bridge high above a jungle, a swingy rope bridge that was not secure. I got distracted and started to slip, and somehow I ended up at my house with a box that seemed empty. I tried to throw it away but I would find that someone had put it back on my table. After awhile I figured out that if I thought of something it would be in the box, but it was only as long as I was thinking of it – if I thought of fruit it would be there but as soon as I associated another thought (monkey!) then there would be something else (monkey!) in the box. I got frustrated but I don’t know what happened, because all of a sudden I was at a baseball game when I knew I had meant to show up at a football game. I sat down and the people in the seats near me told me not to buy an iPhone 4.”
So, Kimberly wins (please email me and I will get a signed copy of 59 Seconds to you).
What do you think? Were any of the other dreams close? Was it all just chance or is it time to question the fundamental laws of physics?
OK, this is it! Did you have a dream last night? Think that you might know what is inside the box of mystery? Regardless of whether your dream was about the experiment, please describe it in the comments section. A free signed copy of 59 Seconds goes to the person with the most accurate dream (announced tomorrow).
Today I am announcing the start of a new fun experiment. Here is the idea…..
1) I have placed a mystery target item in this box…..
2) Tomorrow morning I would like you to come to the blog and describe any dreams that you had during the night. I will then send a signed copy of 59 Seconds to the person who had the dream that best matches the mystery item.
So…..are you on for joining in with the Big Dream Experiment?
Oh, and here is a wonderful video showing how to make a wonderful optical toy…
A knight arrives at a castle carrying a lance that is five feet long. The guard tells him that no-one is allowed in the castle with an object that is over four feet long. The knight is a tad upset, but then has an idea. He goes into town, finds the local carpenter and asks him to make something. The knight then returns to the castle and the guard lets him in. Due to his clever thinking, the knight finds himself inside the castle with his lance. The lance is fully functioning, and has not been cut in away way. How is this possible?
As ever, please do NOT post your answer, but do feel free to say if you think you have the solution and how long it took. Answer on Monday!
