Episode One Hundred And Twenty Six – On Magic And Psychology – Interview With Anthony Barnhart

This is the first podcast episode where you need to bring your own deck of cards to the show – so you can do a magic trick along with the interview!

Anthony Barnhart (aka, “Magic Tony”) is a doctoral candidate in cognitive psychology at Arizona State University in the United States and a part-time professional magician with over twenty years of performing experience.

In the lab, he studies the psychological processes underlying handwritten word perception and the psychological foundations of magic and illusion.  An expert in the psychology of illusion, Tony has lectured on the topic at magic conventions and to students of psychology at colleges and universities. He has a new course coming out, called “The Psychology of Magic“, which will be taught this Fall and is also planned as an online unit:

As a performer, he employs psychological principles to elevate his magic’s impact and increase the audience’s sense of wonder. He was also an advisor for the book Sleights of Mind: What the Neuroscience of Magic Reveals about our Everyday Deceptions by Stephen Macknik and Susana Martinez-Conde. You can read more about of his magical-based interests at the group blog scienceofmagic.org.

The Token Skeptic book, The Scope of Skepticism is out now!

Additional instrumental music for this episode, Pale Blue Dot by Ice Core Scientist. Theme songs are “P&P” by Derek K Miller of www.penmachine.com and “Leap Second” by Milton Mermikides, of www.miltonmermikides.com.

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