Sleight of Hand’s Weird Science

Magic is usually placed under the heading of entertainment or performance art. Rarely is a sleight-of-hand card trick or a levitation stunt viewed as a scientific endeavor.

But there are some very scientific reasons why polished magicians successfully execute their seemingly incredible feats of illusion. That’s why the California Science Center spent the last four years piecing together its “Magic: The Science of Illusion” exhibit, which opens Saturday.

“We found in our research that most people don’t think there’s much science involved in entertainment magic,” explains Diane Perlov, deputy director of exhibits at the California Science Center and the curator of the magic exhibit. “But of course there has to be, because what magicians do is possible. They only make it seem impossible. One reason why I wanted to do this exhibit is because we like people to find science where they least expect it.”

Perlov also found that magic has a wide age appeal, which made it an ideal topic for the family-oriented museum.

“Magic: The Science of Illusion” uses custom-made illusions and shows to help illustrate various scientific principals. Four illusions were developed with the help of professional magicians.

The Amazing Living Head is introduced via videotape by wisecracking magicians Penn & Teller. Visitors can take part in this illusion, which makes it appear as if one’s head has been disembodied. Backstage, the secret behind this feat is revealed. It all has to do with the science of reflection and optics.

In another illusion, the weight of a chest changes from light to heavy, courtesy of electromagnetism. Meanwhile, a mysteriously rising chair secretly employs camouflage lighting and levers and pulleys.

Mind Reading and Mathematics

An illusion called the Magic of the Mind explores the field of mentalism, or mind reading. Visitors secretly select one of 16 symbols on a table. A video projection of mentalist Max Maven then correctly identifies that symbol after asking a handful of simple yes-or-no questions. The secret behind Maven’s mind reading lies in mathematics.

“Max Maven is very interested in using his magic to help people understand science and math,” Perlov says. “In fact, he’s done several television series in Canada about this subject.”

Because magic is at its most powerful when observers are left baffled and amazed, the challenge in constructing the exhibit was to reveal some of the science involved in magic without totally negating the mystery behind it.

“We tried very hard to create an exhibit that was a win for science and a win for magic,” Perlov says. “So when we show how the disembodied head is accomplished in the Amazing Living Head illusion, we also show video clips that demonstrate how that same illusion is also done in different, unexplained ways.”

The science of illusion is also demonstrated in a live theater performance titled “The Nature of Magic.” Actors explain the role that magic plays in daily life. Volunteers are also invited on stage to participate in various magic demonstrations. (To cover the cost of paying the actors, $1 is being charged to observers of the show in the exhibit’s 80-seat theater.)

“Magic is a performance art,” Perlov says. “But it’s difficult to do an exhibit about something that is a performance. So we wanted to create opportunities for people to see magic and to experience magic’s impact [firsthand].”

Visitors can also learn four simple magic tricks in an area called Magician’s Training Academy. The psychology and math involved in close-up magic are explained through these tricks. Written instructions and help from volunteers are available.

Exploring Everyday Superstition

Magic Off-Stage is a segment of the exhibit that explores how magical thinking in the form of superstition impacts people’s lives. An original documentary called “Magic at Work” takes a look at the superstitious beliefs and practices of professional baseball players and Norwegian commercial fishermen.

Perlov found many similarities between these seemingly disparate groups in terms of how they use magical thinking in their professions. A baseball player may not allow a pitcher to touch his bat because pitchers are notoriously poor hitters. It’s also taboo for a ballplayer to mention a no-hitter to a teammate who is in the midst of throwing one. Norwegian fishermen have lucky clothes they wear and are not allowed to utter certain words on a boat.

“The notion [behind this segment of the exhibit] is that people can easily suspend their belief in a magic show because in everyday life they do the same thing,” she says. “This is something that is worldwide. People tend to use magical thinking more in times of uncertainty and risk. We try to control unpredictable events to get some handle on our lives.

“In baseball, you do everything you can to practice and have those skills, but you have no guarantee that you’re going to hit the ball out of the park at that particular moment. So baseball players do a lot of magical thinking for that extra edge. We show that scientific thinking and magical thinking do overlap.”

Houdini and the History of Magic

The history of magic is explored in an exhibit utilizing photographs, illustrations, video, text and artifacts. Entertainment magic dates back to ancient Egypt. Perlov says the golden age of illusion transpired between the mid-19th century with the advent of large magic theaters in Europe through the 1920s and the death of vaudeville.

Among the artifacts on display are a milk can Houdini squeezed into in the early 1900s and magic plumes used by famed female magician Adelaide Hermann in the late 1880s.

“Eugene Berger, who is a historian of magic, has this wonderful phrase: ‘Magic reminds us that the world is full of wonder,’ ” Perlov says. “That sums it up in terms of what’s so appealing about magic. It really renews our childlike enthusiasm for all the wondrous things there are in the world that we see and that are worth exploring. That appreciation for the wonder of the world is really what gets scientists excited about their exploration.”

BE THERE

“Magic: The Science of Illusion” opens Saturday and runs through Feb. 28 at the California Science Center, 700 State Drive, Los Angeles, (323) 724-3623. Daily, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Free admission. Parking, $5. Reservations required for groups of 15 or more.