James Randi's million dollar prize taken I think...

Overblood · 30-08-2009 11:14pm #1

This is a video of a guy who claims to have psychic powers... via his computer. Randi tests him in this video... and ends up giving him a $10,000 down-payment of the $1,000,000. Wonder if he got the full million. The test could have been a bit more stringent. I'm sure Randi has every avenue covered anyway.

It's only half an hour long, it's a good watch.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7313554370457120575

SV · 31-08-2009 1:37am

Wow, Love it.

Guess you have to watch it till the end to see it all though.. Pretty amazing.

GhostInTheRuins · 31-08-2009 11:19pm

That was great

Thornography · 31-08-2009 11:40pm

I was sickened at the end.

Overblood · 31-08-2009 11:43pm

Randi's site is keeping pretty quiet about it but maybe the payout takes a while.

GhostInTheRuins · 31-08-2009 11:48pm

Overblood wrote: »

Randi's site is keeping pretty quiet about it but maybe the payout takes a while.

You did watch it all yeah?

Overblood · 01-09-2009 11:08am

Yeah I watched it all.

ChocolateSauce · 02-10-2009 8:46am

Unless this guy's claim can be demonstrated both under the supervision of a team of scientists and using the scientific method, and can be done repeatably under different teams of scientists, that money isn't going anywhere.

5uspect · 02-10-2009 9:00am

No, I think this is undeniable. Randi must hand over the cash no more questions asked.

iamhunted · 02-10-2009 10:05am

ChocolateSauce wrote: »

Unless this guy's claim can be demonstrated both under the supervision of a team of scientists and using the scientific method, and can be done repeatably under different teams of scientists, that money isn't going anywhere.

I love the way people refer to the scientific method as though its one individual thing, rather than a collection of various techniques.

By the by - many things in nature wouldn't meet your specifications.

MarkR · 02-10-2009 12:19pm

I was thinking that the first one could be explained by the computer reading the unconcious movements of the eye as it tracked past the selected card. The second two are tougher to explain obviously.

5uspect · 02-10-2009 12:35pm

Has anyone watched the entire video I wonder?

Oryx · 02-10-2009 1:05pm

I hate to be a party pooper, but as mod I suppose its my job: if its not already clear, this is a spoof.

MrStuffins · 02-10-2009 1:43pm

Its hilarious that people are arguing with each other, those arguing obviously didnt watch the entire video!

I'm very skeptical, but i was getting excited by the prospect of this guy actually having a "Psychic Computer"

But, alas, i had been fooled

GhostInTheRuins · 02-10-2009 4:05pm

5uspect wrote: »

Has anyone watched the entire video I wonder?

I tried to make that point three weeks ago.

5uspect · 02-10-2009 4:56pm

Indeed and yet some people didn't notice.

SV · 06-10-2009 9:59pm

Well I did look at the entire thing but didn't want to spoil it for others who were going to look..

I was fooled by it though..

bigeasyeah · 06-10-2009 10:45pm

It was a bit childish,I expected more from Mr.Randi.

Overblood · 07-10-2009 5:23pm

Oryx wrote: »

I hate to be a party pooper, but as mod I suppose its my job: if its not already clear, this is a spoof.

Why did you do that?

SV · 08-10-2009 5:15pm

Overblood wrote: »

Why did you do that?

No other purpose other than to ruin the video it seems.

Thornography · 08-10-2009 9:09pm

5uspect wrote: »

Has anyone watched the entire video I wonder?

I have

Its AWESOME at the end :P

As I said in my previous post, I was SICKENED

lugha · 16-10-2009 10:50pm

MarkR wrote: »

I was thinking that the first one could be explained by the computer reading the unconcious movements of the eye as it tracked past the selected card. The second two are tougher to explain obviously.

I had read the party pooper post before watching the video so I can’t say if and when I might have twigged. But certainly the second challenge should have sounded alarm bells. Seth merely had to install some key stroke logging software in the laptop which is transmitted to a plant in the audience who replicates the image search. There would still be a logistic challenge in said plant conveying the image to him covertly but it would hardly be an insurmountable problem. I would think Randi would be a little more carful if a real test was being conducted.

As for the third test, I have fancy that something like that may eventually be possible. The electrical signals in our brains contain the required information, it is essentially an engineering problem, albeit a fairly challenging one, to read and interpret this data in a reliable matter.

Oddly, and in contrast to you, I find the first test the hardest to explain. But I have seen plenty of clever cards tricks in the same vein which I also cannot explain, so I expect there are any number of ways it might be done.

koHd · 24-10-2009 4:15pm

I didn't read ahead of the first post so any surpirses weren't ruined.

While I didn't cop the full premise of what was going on until the end, I knew the tests were way too flimsy and mistake ridden to be anything official that would warrant handing over one million quid and declaring a revelation of the heights that this prize is seeking.

And obviously, the fact that this video was a year old and I had heard nothing of it also gave away that nothing revolutionary was going to happen.

I'm unsure if this was fun, or a complete waste of time. heh

iamhunted · 08-11-2009 8:58pm

i dont know if this is a p*ss take, but Im sure we'll find out in the next few months either way:

http://www.scientificblogging.com/hammock_physicist/telepathy_and_quantum_0

(hint, read the whole thing)

James Randi's million dollar prize taken I think...

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