Mysterious Stranger: A Book of Magic by American illusionist David Blaine was published on October 29, 2002 by Random House . Part autobiography, part history, and part armchair treasure hunt , the book also includes instructions on how to perform basic card tricks and illusions.
87-814: The book has been divided into 12 chapters — For Those Who Believe , Discovery of Magic , The Three Magi , Secrets of Cards , Confidence , Playing the Part of a Magician , The Man Ain't Right , Primitive Mysteries , Ehrich Weiss , The Premature Burial , Frozen in Time , Vertigo . In the chapter "Discovery of Magic", Blaine tells stories about his childhood, of how he became interested in magic, and of his devotion to his late mother. In "The Three Magi", he acknowledges Robert-Houdin , Max Malini and Alexander Herrmann as major influences; in "Confidence", he cites Orson Welles and Titanic Thompson as inspiration for his street magic persona; and in "Ehrich Weiss", he celebrates
174-419: A melatonin based photoperiod time measurement biological system – which measures the change in daylight within the annual cycle, giving a sense of the time in the year – and their circannual rhythms, providing an anticipation of environmental events months beforehand to increase chances of survival. There is debate over when the earliest use of lunar calendars was, and over whether some findings constituted as
261-413: A block of ice for sixty-one hours, and standing atop a 100-foot pole in high winds for thirty-five hours. In addition, scattered throughout the book are clues to Blaine's $ 100,000 Challenge, an armchair treasure hunt of visual ciphers and logic deduction devised by game designer Cliff Johnson , creator of The Fool's Errand . The Challenge was solved by Sherri Skanes on March 20, 2004, 16 months after
348-690: A broad range of social and scientific areas. Horology usually refers specifically to the study of mechanical timekeeping devices, while chronometry is broader in scope, also including biological behaviours with respect to time (biochronometry), as well as the dating of geological material ( geochronometry ). Horology is commonly used specifically with reference to the mechanical instruments created to keep time: clocks , watches , clockwork , sundials , hourglasses , clepsydras , timers , time recorders , marine chronometers , and atomic clocks are all examples of instruments used to measure time. People interested in horology are called horologists . That term
435-449: A dependable alternate, so as years progress the room of error between would grow until some other indicator would give indication. The Ancient Egyptian calendars were among the first calendars made, and the civil calendar even endured for a long period afterwards, surviving past even its culture's collapse and through the early Christian era. It has been assumed to have been invented near 4231 BC by some, but accurate and exact dating
522-469: A few of them. When Robert-Houdin first opened his theatre, it was sparsely attended and he realized that he needed something more extraordinary that would bring the public to his theatre. So he came upon the idea of doing a two-person mind-reading act, concocting a silly story about how his son Émile had created a game of hot and cold that resulted in Robert-Houdin using it for the stage. He named
609-428: A field of chronometry, it also forms a part of cognitive psychology and its contemporary human information processing approach. Research comprises applications of the chronometric paradigms – many of which are related to classical reaction time paradigms from psychophysiology – through measuring reaction times of subjects with varied methods, and contribute to studies in cognition and action. Reaction time models and
696-471: A glass of water into his son's hands, and Émile proceeded to drink from it. He was able to perceive the taste of the liquids that spectators from the audience merely thought of. Even then, the audiences were not entirely convinced; they tried to trip up Émile by bringing in books written in Greek, or odd tools such as a thread counter. During Robert-Houdin's time, all of Paris was enthusiastically talking about
783-491: A lunar calendar. Most related findings and materials from the palaeolithic era are fashioned from bones and stone, with various markings from tools. These markings are thought to not have been the result of marks to represent the lunar cycles but non-notational and irregular engravings, a pattern of latter subsidiary marks that disregard the previous design is indicative of the markings being the use of motifs and ritual marking instead. However, as humans' focus turned to farming
870-515: A major turning point in his life came when he became apprenticed to the magician Edmund De Grisi, Count's son and better known as Torrini. What is known is that his early performing came from joining an amateur acting troupe. He performed at social parties as a professional magician in Europe and the United States. It was during this period while at a party that he met Josèphe Cecile Houdin,
957-410: A nervous breakdown. He closed the theatre and had every intention to close it for good, until a friend agreed that the venture was a silly idea. Instead of admitting defeat, Robert-Houdin, irked at the friend's effrontery, used this insult to regain his courage, and persevered in giving the show a long run at his little theatre. Although the forty-year-old magician was unpolished at first, he soon gained
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#17327930640891044-453: A number of ways. All dependable methods – barring the exceptions of thermoluminescence , radioluminescence and ESR (electron spin resonance) dating – are based in radioactive decay , focusing on the degradation of the radioactive parent nuclide and the corresponding daughter product's growth. By measuring the daughter isotopes in a specific sample its age can be calculated. The preserved conformity of parent and daughter nuclides provides
1131-410: A sensation and brought the throng to see his shows. Eventually, Robert-Houdin changed the method, so instead of asking his son what was in his hands, he simply rang a bell. This stunned those that suspected a spoken code. He would even set the bell off to the side and remain silent, and his son still described every object handed to his father. Robert-Houdin made the test even more difficult. He placed
1218-406: A sequential and chronological sense, and Kairos , a concept based in a more abstract sense, representing the opportune moment for action or change to occur. Kairos (καιρός) carries little emphasis on precise chronology, instead being used as a time specifically fit for something, or also a period of time characterised by some aspect of crisis, also relating to the endtime. It can as well be seen in
1305-441: A series of lessons from a man named Maous from Blois who was a podiatrist but also entertained at fairs and parties doing magic. He was proficient at sleight of hand, and taught Robert-Houdin how to juggle to improve his hand-eye coordination. He also taught him rudiments of the cups and balls. He told young Robert-Houdin that digital dexterity came with repetition, and as a direct result, Robert-Houdin practiced incessantly. Magic
1392-587: A special presentation for several chief men of their tribe. He was invited to the home of the head of the tribe of the desert interior, Bou-Allem. In dawn of the Arab desert, Robert-Houdin was challenged to do a special trick. He obliged by inviting one of the rebels to shoot at him with a marked bullet, which he caught between his teeth. He was given a certificate from Bou-Allem, who wore a red robe symbolizing his loyalty to France. With this scroll praising his mysterious manifestations, Robert-Houdin went back to France with
1479-418: A stimulus event either immediately before or after. This testing emphasises the mental events' time-course and nature and assists in determining the structural functions in human information processing. The dating of geological materials makes up the field of geochronometry, and falls within areas of geochronology and stratigraphy , while differing itself from chronostratigraphy . The geochronometric scale
1566-624: A theatre opened in Paris , a legacy preserved by the tradition of modern magicians performing in tails. Robert-Houdin was born Jean-Eugène Robert in Blois , France, on 7 December 1805—a day after his autobiography said he was. His father, Prosper Robert, was a watchmaker in Blois. Jean-Eugene's mother, the former Marie-Catherine Guillon, died when he was just a young child. At the age of eleven, Prosper sent his son Jean-Eugène to school thirty-five miles up
1653-504: A week. Much to his dismay, he found out that Compars Herrmann beat him to the territory. Not only was he billing himself as "the Premier Prestidigitateur of France", but he was also using pirated versions of his illusions. Despite this, Robert-Houdin still accomplished a success there. So much so, in 1848, he did a command performance for Queen Victoria. After a three-month tour of England, he went back home after about
1740-424: A woman ten years younger, who soon took over the household. Robert-Houdin loved to watch the big magic shows that came to Paris. He dreamed about some day opening his own theatre. In the meantime, he was hired by a friend by the name of Count de l'Escalopier to perform at private parties. Now that he had free time, he began constructing equipment for his own use instead of selling it to others. The income from
1827-410: A wooden bench. His youngest son Eugène stood on the middle one. With the instructions from his father, he extended his arms. Robert-Houdin placed two canes on top of the stools and positioned them under his son's arms. He took a vial of ether and opened it. The audience smelled it wafting through the theatre. He placed the vial under his son's nose, and he went limp. In reality, the vial was empty, with
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#17327930640891914-406: A wooden box was brought forth by one of his assistants. The audience noticed that the tree was barren of any blossoms or fruit. The blue flame from the vial was placed underneath it. The vapors from it caused the leaves to spread and sprout orange blossoms from it. Robert-Houdin then picked up his magic wand and waved it. The flowers disappeared and oranges bloomed forth. He plucked the oranges from
2001-525: A year and a half away. He reopened the theatre and became a permanent fixture in Paris. In 1850, he handed the Palais Royal to his brother-in-law Hamilton (Pierre Etienne Chocat). This left him free to tour France. He did so for two years. Then he went to Germany and on a return engagement to England, where he ended up performing a second time for Queen Victoria. He did a brief tour of France and then, at
2088-547: Is delayed. The root word is correlated with the god Chronos in Ancient Greek mythology, who embodied the image of time, originated from out of the primordial chaos. Known as the one who spins the Zodiac Wheel, further evidence of his connection to the progression of time. However, Ancient Greek makes a distinction between two types of time, chronos, the static and continuing progress of present to future, time in
2175-470: Is difficult in its era and the invention has been attributed to 3200 BC, when the first historical king of Egypt, Menes , united Upper and Lower Egypt . It was originally based on cycles and phases of the moon, however, Egyptians later realised the calendar was flawed upon noticing the star Sirius rose before sunrise every 365 days, a year as we know it now, and was remade to consist of twelve months of thirty days, with five epagomenal days. The former
2262-620: Is periodic, its units working in powers of 1000, and is based in units of duration, contrasting with the chronostratigraphic scale. The distinctions between the two scales have caused some confusion – even among academic communities. Geochronometry deals with calculating a precise date of rock sediments and other geological events, giving an idea as to what the history of various areas is, for example, volcanic and magmatic movements and occurrences can be easily recognised, as well as marine deposits, which can be indicators for marine events and even global environmental changes. This dating can be done in
2349-671: Is referred to as the Ancient Egyptians' lunar calendar, and the latter the civil calendar. Early calendars often hold an element of their respective culture's traditions and values, for example, the five day intercalary month of the Ancient Egyptian's civil calendar representing the birthdays of the gods Horus , Isis , Set , Osiris and Nephthys . Maya use of a zero date as well as the Tzolkʼin 's connection to their thirteen layers of heaven (the product of it and all
2436-844: Is smaller but located nearby. Other good horological libraries providing public access are at the Musée international d'horlogerie in Switzerland, at La Chaux-de-Fonds , and at Le Locle . In France, Besançon has the Musée du Temps (Museum of Time) in the historic Palais Grenvelle. In Serpa and Évora , in Portugal , there is the Museu do Relógio. In Germany, there is the Deutsches Uhrenmuseum in Furtwangen im Schwarzwald , in
2523-730: Is the Museum of Timekeeping. A more specialised museum of horology in the United Kingdom is the Cuckooland Museum in Cheshire , which hosts the world's largest collection of antique cuckoo clocks . One of the more comprehensive museums dedicated to horology is the Musée international d'horlogerie , in La Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland, which contains a public library of horology. The Musée d'Horlogerie du Locle
2610-736: Is the examination of behavioural sequences and cycles within micro-organisms. Adapting to circadian and circannual rhythms is an essential evolution for living organisms, these studies, as well as educating on the adaptations of organisms also bring to light certain factors affecting many of species' and organisms' responses, and can also be applied to further understand the overall physiology, this can be for humans as well, examples include: factors of human performance, sleep, metabolism, and disease development, which are all connected to biochronometrical cycles. Mental chronometry (also called cognitive chronometry) studies human information processing mechanisms, namely reaction time and perception . As well as
2697-411: Is the production of light from a heated insulator and semi-conductor, it is occasionally confused with incandescent light emissions of a material, a different process despite the many similarities. However, this only occurs if the material has had previous exposure to and absorption of energy from radiation. Importantly, the light emissions of thermoluminescence cannot be repeated. The entire process, from
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2784-519: Is the study of biological behaviours and patterns seen in animals with factors based in time. It can be categorised into Circadian rhythms and Circannual cycles . Examples of these behaviours can be: the relation of daily and seasonal tidal cues to the activity of marine plants and animals, the photosynthetic capacity and phototactic responsiveness in algae, or metabolic temperature compensation in bacteria. Circadian rhythms of various species can be observed through their gross motor function throughout
2871-594: Is used both by people who deal professionally with timekeeping apparatuses, as well as enthusiasts and scholars of horology. Horology and horologists have numerous organizations, both professional associations and more scholarly societies. The largest horological membership organisation globally is the NAWCC, the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors, which is US based, but also has local chapters elsewhere. Records of timekeeping are attested during
2958-909: The Black Forest , which contains a public library of horology. The two leading specialised horological museums in North America are the National Watch and Clock Museum in Columbia, Pennsylvania , and the American Clock and Watch Museum in Bristol, Connecticut . Another museum dedicated to clocks is the Willard House and Clock Museum in Grafton, Massachusetts . One of the most comprehensive horological libraries open to
3045-513: The Loire to the University of Orléans . At 18, he graduated and returned to Blois. His father wanted him to be a lawyer, but Robert-Houdin wanted to follow in his father's footsteps as a watchmaker. His penmanship was excellent, and it landed him a job as a clerk for an attorney's office. Instead of studying law, he tinkered with mechanical gadgets. His employer sent him back to his father. He
3132-616: The Paleolithic , in the form of inscriptions made to mark the passing of lunar cycles and measure years. Written calendars were then invented, followed by mechanical devices. The highest levels of precision are presently achieved by atomic clocks , which are used to track the international standard second. Chronometry is derived from two root words, chronos and metron (χρόνος and μέτρον in Ancient Greek respectively), with rough meanings of "time" and "measure". The combination of
3219-628: The 15,000 francs to turn his vision into reality. He rented out a suite of rooms above the archways around the gardens of the Palais Royal, which was once owned by Cardinal Richelieu . He hired workmen to redesign the old assembly room into a theatre. They painted it white with gold trim. Tasteful drapes were hung, chic candelabras were placed throughout, and the stage furniture was set in the style of Louis XV . On 3 July 1845, Robert-Houdin premiered his 200-seat Théâtre Robert-Houdin in what he called "Soirées fantastiques". No critics covered Robert-Houdin's debut, and in his memoirs, Robert-Houdin said that
3306-524: The French Army commanders maintained order in the newly pacified region. They supervised local Muslim administrations and the " bureaux arabes ". These areas were closed off to colonization by the Europeans. Napoleon III was worried about religious leaders called Marabouts . The Marabouts were able to control their tribe with their faux magical abilities. They advised their leaders to break ranks with
3393-637: The French. Napoleon wanted Robert-Houdin to show that French magic was stronger. The magical mission began with an informal show at the Bab Azoun Theatre in Algeria, where he would give performances twice weekly. He also gave many special galas before the country's tribal chiefs. He used The Light and Heavy Chest during these performances, but instead of playing it for comedy as he had in Paris, here he played it straight. Robert-Houdin once invited
3480-918: The London area include the Clockmakers' Museum , which re-opened at the Science Museum in October 2015, the horological collections at the British Museum , the Science Museum (London) , and the Wallace Collection . The Guildhall Library in London contains an extensive public collection on horology. In Upton, also in the United Kingdom, at the headquarters of the British Horological Institute , there
3567-563: The Palais Royal. The following February, a revolution ended the reign of Louis-Philippe. With it, show business also ended. The Revolution closed all Parisian theatres. Robert-Houdin shut down his theatre and went on the road. He toured the Continent briefly, and then he headed off to Great Britain. With a company of French dramatists, Robert-Houdin made his English debut at the St. James Theatre in London. He presented his programme three times
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3654-519: The age of 48, retired from public performances. He gave the theatre back to Hamilton, who continued to fill the little theatre. After Robert-Houdin retired, he devoted himself to his inventions with electricity and his writings. His home, "Le Prieuré" (the Priory), was a marvel in advancement. In 1856, he was asked by Louis-Napoleon to pacify the tribes in French Algeria . During this period,
3741-414: The audience with the square cage, and they applauded thinking the trick was over. "Nothing here now—neither anything, nor anybody," he said as he knocked on the upright flap. For a finale, he closed the portfolio one last time and produced his young son from it. The number of tricks he invented for his theatre was extensive, but his most remarkable one was the "Light and Heavy Chest". He took advantage of
3828-500: The basis for the radioactive dating of geochronometry, applying the Rutherford Soddy Law of Radioactivity, specifically using the concept of radioactive transformation in the growth of the daughter nuclide. Thermoluminescence is an extremely useful concept to apply, being used in a diverse amount of areas in science, dating using thermoluminescence is a cheap and convenient method for geochronometry. Thermoluminescence
3915-503: The book's publication. Robert-Houdin Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin ( French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ øʒɛn ʁɔbɛʁ udɛ̃] ; 7 December 1805 – 13 June 1871) was a French watchmaker , magician and illusionist , widely recognized as the father of the modern style of conjuring . He transformed magic from a pastime for the lower classes, seen at fairs, to an entertainment for the wealthy, which he offered in
4002-470: The box.") The Arabian pulled on the handle of the chest, but it would not budge. He tried and tried until he tried to rip it apart. Instead, he screamed in pain, as Robert-Houdin had rigged the box to give the Arabian an electrical shock if he tried to rip the handles off. The Arabian let go of the handle, ran off into the aisle, and ran screaming out of the theatre. After his performances were done, he gave
4089-400: The case with the spine facing the audience. He removed the expected drawings from it. One of those pictures showed a bareheaded woman. Then, he produced two lady's bonnets decorated with flowers; one for winter, the other for summer. He lowered the flap for each production. Then, he showed a picture of birds, followed by a stuffed bird flat as a pancake. With that, he proceeded to produce from
4176-403: The confidence required for the stage. With each performance, Robert-Houdin got better, and he began to receive critical acclaim. Le Charivari and L'Illustration both said that his mechanical marvels and artistic magic were comparable to those of his predecessors like Philippe and Bartolomeo Bosco . Even with all of this, still relatively few people would come to the little theatre during
4263-422: The course of a day. These patterns are more apparent with the day further categorised into activity and rest times. Investigation into a species is conducted through comparisons of free-running and entrained rhythms, where the former is attained from within the species' natural environment and the latter from a subject that has been taught certain behaviours. Circannual rhythms are alike but pertain to patterns within
4350-493: The craft of clockmaking for the rest of his life, and is widely credited with inventing the mystery clock . When he got home and opened the wrapping, instead of the Berthoud books, what appeared before his eyes was a two-volume set on magic called Scientific Amusements . Instead of returning the books, his curiosity got the better of him. From those crude volumes, he learned the rudiments of magic. He practiced at all hours of
4437-411: The daughter of a Parisian watchmaker, Jacques-François Houdin, who also originally came from Blois. Jean-Eugène fell in love with her at their first meeting. On 8 July 1830, they were married; he then hyphenated his own name to hers and became Robert-Houdin. He and Josèphe had eight children, of whom three survived. He moved to Paris and worked in his father-in-law's wholesale shop. Jacques-François
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#17327930640894524-441: The day. From that point on, he became very interested in the art. He was upset that the books he got only revealed how the secrets were done but did not show how to do them. He found that learning from the books available in those days was very difficult due to the lack of detailed explanations, but the books piqued his interest in the art. So Robert-Houdin began taking lessons from a local amateur magician. He paid ten francs for
4611-475: The egg on the table. Carefully, he picked up the egg. The audience expected him to crack it open and produce the spectator's handkerchief. Instead, he made that disappear too. He told the audience that the egg went to the lemon. This was repeated with the lemon and the orange. When he made the orange disappear, all that was left was a fine powder. This was placed into a silver vial. He soaked this vial with alcohol and set it on fire. A small orange tree planted in
4698-603: The human digits, twenty, making the 260-day year of the year) and the length of time between conception and birth in pregnancy. There are many horology museums and several specialized libraries devoted to the subject. One example is the Royal Greenwich Observatory , which is also the source of the Prime Meridian and the home of the first marine timekeepers accurate enough to determine longitude (made by John Harrison ). Other horological museums in
4785-493: The illusions after knowing that they were invented by Robert-Houdin. Robert-Houdin's little theatre became a mecca for magic enthusiasts. Herrmann was a constant visitor to the Palais Royal. It became the place for the Paris elite to go. Even King Louis Philippe rented out the room for a private performance. After the triumph he gave at the Royal Palace, in 1847, the king decided to take his entourage to see Robert-Houdin at
4872-412: The importance and reliance on understanding the rhythms and cycle of the seasons grew, and the unreliability of lunar phases became problematic. An early human accustomed to the phases of the moon would use them as a rule of thumb, and the potential for weather to interfere with reading the cycle further degraded the reliability. The length of a moon is on average less than our current month, not acting as
4959-432: The infancy of the usage of electricity, especially the then-novelty of Hans Christian Ørsted 's discovery of electromagnetism , to his advantage. Robert-Houdin brought on a small wooden box about a foot wide. He said that he had found a way to protect it from thieves. He asked a spectator to lift it, usually a small child. The child lifted it with ease. Then, he brought an adult male up from the audience and asked him to lift
5046-414: The inherent relation between chronos and kairos, their function the Ancient Greek's portrayal and concept of time, understanding one means understanding the other in part. The implication of chronos, an indifferent disposition and eternal essence lies at the core of the science of chronometry, bias is avoided, and definite measurement is favoured. Biochronometry (also chronobiology or biological chronometry)
5133-491: The light of an advantage, profit, or fruit of a thing, but has also been represented in apocalyptic feeling, and likewise shown as variable between misfortune and success, being likened to a body part vulnerable due to a gap in armor for Homer , benefit or calamity depending on the perspective. It is also referenced in Christian theology , being used as implication of God's action and judgement in circumstances. Because of
5220-418: The man we know as Houdini . In "The Man Ain't Right", Blaine describes the evolution of his street magic act and how a masterfully timed card trick cinched his television deal with ABC . In "Premature Burial", "Frozen in Time", and "Vertigo", Blaine details his grueling regime in preparation for each of his stunts of endurance, respectively, being buried in a glass coffin for seven days, standing inside
5307-486: The material's exposure to radiation would have to be repeated to generate another thermoluminescence emission. The age of a material can be determined by measuring the amount of light given off during the heating process, by means of a phototube, as the emission is proportional to the dose of radiation the material absorbed. Time metrology or time and frequency metrology is the application of metrology for timekeeping, including frequency stability . Its main tasks are
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#17327930640895394-474: The mission accomplished. "The blow was struck", Robert-Houdin said, "...henceforth the interpreters and all those who had dealings with the Arabs received orders to make them understand that my pretended miracles were only the result of skill, inspired and guided by an art called prestidigitation, in no way connected with sorcery". He went on to say, "The Arabs doubtless yielded to these arguments, for henceforth I
5481-553: The moment when, so to speak, it exploded." This brought letters of protest against Robert-Houdin, thinking he was putting his son's health in jeopardy, although the ether had nothing to do with the trick. Robert-Houdin was not the first to perform the Levitation Illusion. The first in Europe was Ching Lau Lauro in the 1830s. The illusion was also reported to be performed by an Indian conjuror before that, but sitting cross-legged rather than lying down. This trick
5568-464: The mysterious uses of " ether ". He took advantage of this by presenting an illusion that appeared to use the pungent liquid. He told the audience that he had discovered a marvelous new property of ether. "If one has a living person inhale this liquid when it is at its highest degree of concentration, the body of the patient for a few moments becomes as light as a balloon," Robert-Houdin claimed. He proceeded to "prove" just that. He placed three stools on
5655-445: The odour being produced by his son Émile pouring real ether on a hot iron shovel. Robert-Houdin took the stool away from his son's feet, and he just hung limp as a rag. He took away one of the canes, so he was dangling by one arm, and carefully placed his head against his upraised hand. This was startling enough. What he did next was stunning. He lifted his boy upright in a horizontal position by his little finger and then let go until he
5742-406: The portfolio four live turtle doves. He showed a picture of a cartoon of two cooks fighting with pots. This was followed by three enormous copper pots. One was filled with beans, another with flames bursting forth, and the third pot was filled with boiling water. As an afterthought, he lifted the top flap of the portfolio and pulled out a large cage filled with birds. He walked forward towards
5829-474: The process of expressing the temporostructural organisation of human processing mechanisms have an innate computational essence to them. It has been argued that because of this, conceptual frameworks of cognitive psychology cannot be integrated in their typical fashions. One common method is the use of event-related potentials (ERPs) in stimulus-response experiments. These are fluctuations of generated transient voltages in neural tissues that occur in response to
5916-477: The realization of the second as the SI unit of measurement for time and the establishment of time standards and frequency standards as well as their dissemination . Early humans would have used their basic senses to perceive the time of day, and relied on their biological sense of time to discern the seasons in order to act accordingly. Their physiological and behavioural seasonal cycles mainly being influenced by
6003-478: The same box. The adult male was unable to lift the box. Robert-Houdin's inventions were pirated by his trusted mechanic Le Grand, who was arrested for making and selling duplicate illusions. Many of those illusions fell into the hands of his competitors, such as John Henry Anderson, Robin, Robert Heller , and Compars Herrmann . It is not known whether Herrmann or the others bought the illusions directly from LeGrand or from another source, but they willingly performed
6090-417: The scale of a year, patterns like migration, moulting, reproduction, and body weight are common examples, research and investigation are achieved with similar methods to circadian patterns. Circadian and circannual rhythms can be seen in all organisms, in both single and multi-celled organisms. A sub-branch of biochronometry is microbiochronometry (also chronomicrobiology or microbiological chronometry), and
6177-439: The shop and his new inventions gave him enough money to experiment on new tricks using glass apparatus that would be (or at least appear to be) free of trickery. He envisioned a stage that would be as elegant as the drawing rooms in which he was hired to perform. He also decided that a magician should be dressed as such by wearing traditional evening clothes. He obtained financial backing from Count de l'Escalopier, who fronted him
6264-408: The show had been a disaster. He suffered from stage fright that caused him to talk too fast and in a monotone. He said that he did not know what he was saying or doing, and everything was a blur. He believed that a magician should not present a trick until it was mechanically perfected to be certain of avoiding failure, and this caused him to over-rehearse. After the first show, he was close to having
6351-406: The store, which was owned by a Père (Papa) Roujol. There, he met fellow magicians, both amateur and professional, where he engaged in talk about conjuring, and he met an aristocrat by the name of Jules de Rovère, who coined the term "prestidigitation" to describe a major misdirection technique magicians used. At Papa Roujol's, Robert-Houdin learned the details to many of the mechanical tricks of
6438-399: The strongest tribesman on stage and asked the Arabian to pick up the wooden chest placed on stage. The Arabian picked it up with no problem. Then Robert-Houdin announced that he was going to sap his strength. He waved his wand and declared: "Contemplez ! Maintenant vous êtes plus faible qu'une femme ; essayez de soulever la boîte." ("Behold! Now you are weaker than a woman; try to lift
6525-595: The summer months, and he struggled to keep it open. To meet expenses, he sold the three houses that he had inherited from his mother. The following year, he added a new trick to his programme that became especially popular. Seats at the Palais Royal were at a premium. This new marvel was called Second Sight . Second Sight drew the audiences into the little theatre. Once there, they saw the other creations Robert-Houdin had to offer. He also performed outside Paris, sometimes with local magicians, as he did in Liège in 1846 with
6612-427: The then well-known Belgian magician Louis Courtois . Robert-Houdin combined his mechanical abilities along with "showmanship, humour, and artistic handling" to produce his illusions. Robert-Houdin felt that every magic programme should be arranged so one trick builds upon the others. One surprise should lead to an even bigger surprise. Some of the tricks and illusions Robert-Houdin presented became classics. Here are
6699-611: The time as well as how to improve them. From there, he built his own mechanical figures, like a singing bird, a dancer on a tightrope, and an automaton doing the cups and balls. His most acclaimed automaton was his writing and drawing figure. He displayed this figure before King Louis Philippe and eventually sold it to P. T. Barnum . On 19 October 1843, Josèphe died at the age of thirty-two, having been ill for months. At her death, having three young children to take care of, he remarried in August to Françoise Marguerite Olympe Braconnier,
6786-444: The tree and tossed them to the audience to prove they were real. He did this until he only had one left. He waved his wand again, and the orange split open into four sections, revealing a white material of sorts inside of it. Two clockwork butterflies appeared from behind the tree. The butterflies grabbed the end of the corner of the white cloth and spread it open, revealing the spectator's handkerchief. The Marvelous Orange Tree trick
6873-432: The trick "Second Sight", a title that was already used by magicians such as John Henry Anderson , but the effect was entirely different. Anderson had a box into which items were inserted. The medium would then describe the contents inside. In Robert-Houdin's version, he walked into the audience and touched items that the audience held up, and his blindfolded assistant, played by his son, described each one in detail. It caused
6960-475: The two is taken to mean time measuring. In the Ancient Greek lexicon, meanings and translations differ depending on the source. Chronos, used in relation to time when in definite periods, and linked to dates in time, chronological accuracy, and sometimes in rare cases, refers to a delay. The length of the time it refers ranges from seconds to seasons of the year to lifetimes, it can also concern periods of time wherein some specific event takes place, or persists, or
7047-506: Was among the last of the watchmakers to use the old method of handcrafting each piece and embraced his new son-in-law's ambitions for mechanism. While Houdin worked in the main shop, Jean-Eugène was to tinker with mechanical toys and automatic figures . With his work in the shop, Jean-Eugène was still practicing magic. Quite by accident, Robert-Houdin walked into a shop on the Rue Richelieu and discovered that it sold magic. He visited
7134-409: Was his pastime, and meanwhile, his studies in horology continued. When he felt he was ready, he moved to Tours and set up a watchmaking business, doing conjuring on the side. Much of what we know about Robert-Houdin comes from his memoirs—and his writings were meant more to entertain than to chronicle, rendering it difficult to separate fact from fiction. Robert-Houdin would have readers believe that
7221-512: Was likely inspired by the Indian mango tree trick, where a performer would grow a tree from a seed to a sprout, then into a tree with fruit. On one of Robert-Houdin's side tables, he had an egg, a lemon, and an orange. He went into the audience and borrowed a lady's handkerchief that was in style then. He rolled it into a ball. He rubbed the ball in between his hands, and the handkerchief got smaller and smaller until it disappeared, passing through to
7308-410: Was on the most friendly terms with them." He was rewarded for his services by the French government for suppressing any possible rebellion. Horology Chronometry or horology ( lit. ' the study of time ' ) is the science studying the measurement of time and timekeeping . Chronometry enables the establishment of standard measurements of time, which have applications in
7395-403: Was suspended in mid air. Robert-Houdin stepped away to leave his son in that suspended state, balanced only by his right elbow and no other support. When it was apparent that the drug was wearing off, Robert-Houdin returned his son to his upright position. When he woke up, he seemed no worse for wear. Robert-Houdin built up the surprise of spectators until, "… by gradually heightening it up to
7482-445: Was told that he was better suited as a watchmaker than a lawyer, but by then, Jean's father had already retired, so he became an apprentice to his cousin who had a watch-shop. For a short time, Jean-Eugène worked as a watchmaker . In the mid-1820s, he saved up to buy a copy of a two-volume set of books on clockmaking called Traité de l'horlogerie ("Treatise on Clockmaking"), written by Ferdinand Berthoud . He would go on to pursue
7569-717: Was used by the eponymous conjurer in Steven Millhauser 's short story "Eisenheim the Illusionist" and its film adaptation The Illusionist (2006) , where a more complex variant is shown. It is also alluded to in Donald Barthelme 's short story "Sentence". Robert-Houdin brought in under his arm a large portfolio used for holding documents or art work. The portfolio was only about one and three-quarters of an inch thick, too small or too thin to hold anything but pictures. He set it on two thin trestles to hold
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