Doug Dyment - Calculated Thoughts

10 ,. 20 ,. 30 ' oO " •• 11 .. 21 .. 31 ' oO 41 At 12 2. 22 20 32 2. 42 2+ 13 ,. 23 ,. 33 ,.. 43 ,. 14 •• 24 •• 34 ' oO 44 .. 15 ,. 25 50 3S ,.. 45 " l' ,. 26 ,. 36 ... 4' ,. 17 7. 27 7' 37 7. 47 7t 18 •• 28 •• 38 . oO 48 •• I' 9. 29 9' 39 9. 49 " These relationshi p$ can be wmmitted to memory aimOliI instantly, as the two digits of any position represenl the suit and value of the card at tha t position (and ~ versa). So the ca rd at position 27 is the 7 of Hearts (2). And lhe i"J'5ilion of the 3 of Diamonds (4) is 43. A zero is trea ted as • 1e>1.. so the aord at position 30 Is the Ten of Clubs (3). You now know more than Ihree-qua rters of SnapStack. Tht Final Quarttr h ~inin g twelV1! positions are fi tled by the coun cuds. This can be done most simply by arranging lhem either by suit or value. Suit ordering yields /I slightly more til ndom il ppearana!, but as 77')!. of the d« k is preny much in suit order anyway, the point is fa irly moot, Sna pStack arranges lhe (:Qurt cards by value, as this leads to II more random ordering in the Q Slack (described in the following chapter). Consequently, the Jacks ~re in positions ]-4, th~ Kings in 5-8, and the Queens in 9-12 tre ~ting the two-digit positions 50/ 51/ 52 ilS the equivalent of 10/ 11 / 12), always in standa rd suit order, 15 fol lows: 1 J. 2 JO 3 J oO 4 J. 5 X. , XO 7 RoO 8 X. , .. SO Q. 51 Q4 52 a. One an a ther learn these court card positions by role, oralculate them by add ing the card's suit value to its mirror v~ ue'" (using zero in the case of Ihe Jack, which doesn't really have a normal mirror value), So the King (mirroc-4) of Hearts (2) is in position 6, .. nd the card in I .. , II", "'- '1" of ",,, .. ,,,,I po;" .. """,,Ob«! i~ ,h< c""f"" nolo", • s.q. .. "" ' n I .... n \';,.. .. k . '" ..... , .... 1<..'<1 rnk......,. >nd "",ful ........ kip!< "", ... n. 1 01

102 position 51 (11) is the Qu~n (mirror - 8) of C ubs (3). In practice, of course, one quickly comes to know thi!se rela tionships ,ulomatiCIIlly, with no arithmetic required.

The Q Stack (A Rllndomiud, Algorithmic, Playing Card MemDeck) [)ev(,loping an algorithmic solution to the memod~ deck problem is no simple task. 1be m~thernatics of a deck of playing cuds mnspire against one at every tum: we're presented with even numbers of suits (4), colours (2), and rourt ca rds (1 2), an odd number of cards in each suit (]3, which is abo prime, thus no d ivisors), and a oounti ng system with a dccimul baS(' (10) that meshes straightforwardly with none of the above. This explains the comparative rarity of attempts. and offers some insight into why they are not all that simple to use. The SnapStack approach. presented in the previous chapter, abandons all pretell5l' of producing a random-looking output. and opts for the simplest possible algorithm. The QuickStacJc 3.0 approach. 3150 described previously, is tetr<'distic: by deign (so not C(lmplelely random in appearance), and thus able to go ~ond the bask requirements for memorized de<:k work. 8u I what if one seeks a InIly random·appea ring slack, with just the basic ability to know the card at any posilion.. and / or u,.,. f"O'5ition of every cart!? Is it possible to construct an algorithm that is tndy simple to execute? My pu rsuit of tha i goal hu led to the crea tion of the Q Stack, expl ained here. This i$ Ihe fosl~1 algor;lllm of which I am aW8!"e that yields a slack order that appear~ rand om to !!Ve n quite c;Ireful observance, and is not particularly difficult to learn. Inception Mon than h alf I CIlntury ago, Bart H arding published'" ma\sonthmic !IOlulioo for a memoriU'd deck style of Slack that used I no'·el approadt. He began with a sort of 1Iase stack~, one that would be fairly straightforwa rd to memoriz.e, and then used a numl!IiC;J.11rid<. to scramble the po5ition numbers into a sequenCf! tha i would make the underlying Slack order invisible. The base stll(k he chooe fo r thiS purpose was the order in whidt many no:lW decks come packaged. with the cards of each individua l Sliit arranged in numerical sequence from Ace through King.

Harding's stllCk WllS popular in its time, as it yielded the then fasl~1 known algorithm for a card / position translation. lIS primary fault lay in the fact that his base stack was not p~rti cular y simple to wrnmit to memory, and required some significant ca lcula tion of its own. adding and wbtracting multiples of 13 s necess.ary. It wasn't oompletely consistent either. with several exceptions marring the otherwise uniform rules. Finally, dose observalion reveals seveeal repelted patterns. 1he Q Stack turns this system on its omd, repl$c1ng Harding'S -new d«k- base stllCk with one-SnapStack- lhmt is almost trivial to emori~ (by eliminating the "blocks of thirtrtn" prublcm). Then, instead of shuffling the position numbers, it shuffles the card suits and values thernselvi!$, using a combination of the DAO Stack ploy and the mirror ~r principle. Tht s\.IIek is best acquired in three distinct phases: first, master lhe mirror pilir concept (see "Hiding .. Sequence in PI.in Sighn; second, get the base stack (see "SnapStack" ) down pat; and third, learn the simple conversion rules (describO!d. below). Transforming SnapSlack The Q St •• d: .. then. ls simply ~ straightforward (and hilly consistent) trU\5fonnation of SnapStack, made necessary because the latter looks anything but random. TIle values.. as we shaU see, areconverred with a very simple addition step that uses the "mirror pair" principle, and applies identically 10 aU values. "The suits are a bit more challenging. as we need at least three d ifferent conversion methods to hide those long sequences of identical suits. One ls easy: just retain the suit without transformation (this is u~ for ~ of theardsl. ASKI)nd is almost as trivial: US<' the other suit of the same colour (this applies 10 31'1' of the ards). But we need one mOff for the fi",,]3 1". Onesimple solution is 10 use the following $Uit in the nonnal wit order. This produces iI functional SlillCk"', bu t introduces two issues: (1) any kind or arithmetH:-however trivi~1- can easily get confused with the modest arithmetic used 10 convert the values, and (2) usingildditionorsublraction means that you have 10 remember 10 reverse Iheoperation when converting in the opposite direction. Neither issue is a show.stopper, but both can be eliminated using a mirror·pi'ir·like approach (to avoid confuslen.1 use the term 66. 1. I'ta. ,hI> " .. ,ho .. "" .... hod .."j i .. my lo~iIl ......,. "',1 .. Q :. ... . II., I dit<>okd io 1. (,-. ,tI , .... ·"'mpl.. ........ .- ... ~> ~ ""l' 'f'I't>< ~",""Iy _ d,Hi.."k ". kano. bul .. 104 ,,,,,oIdrtM;.l,. 1.. ... '''''''F'''''''" 10 "'''''' .....

"complement" ra ther than "mirror" in conjunction with suits). This will come easily to those familiar with Contract Bridge or any other card game that inCO'lX'rates the notion of "major" (Spades &< Complementary SuIts Spades (1) ::; Hearts (2) Clubs (3) ::; Diamonds (4) Heart.<;) and "minor" (Clubs &. Diamonds) suits, We simply vi ew the two suits in each cah'gory as complementary pairs. Conversion Rules Each Q Slack card is a simple (once you have mastered mirror pairs) conversion of the corresponding card in SnapSlack. There an: no exceptions. thus no unruly cards. The v~lur is detennined by adding Ihe SnapStack card suit 10 the mirrOT of its valut. The Diamond suit value (4) is ignored (treated as zero) for any calculation; this eliminates all arithmetic lor a quarter of the de<;k (you just use the mirror value). The suit is ascertained using this calculated value to select one of three simple rules: I. For the fou r non-numeric values (J ,Q.K,A), use the complement of the SnapStack suit. [Remember: "Court" suggests "Complement" 1'" 2. For the five even numeric values (2,4,6,8."), use the SnapStack suit it,;elf. [Remember: "Even" suggest.<; "Equal"] 3. For the four odd numeric values (3,5,7,9), use the other suit of the same colour as the SnapStack suit. [Recmemb<:>r: "Odd" suggests "Other"J This yields the complete Q Stack. shown here juxta posed with SnapStack (in which each card is represented as a pair of characters,. suit followed by value; recall that a value of"O" isinterpreted as "KI"). G7. ·It.. A<e. of (0."", ;, • _ ",<d. "',,. wu" <>«1. [,u, t hoi", lumped ;, whh ,.., lo,,,,, d"" "' ;'" .t~hoI""i<--th", '",0-.""><1"00-"1'''''"''''''. ("A"). 10

106 I-J m H 2-7 ,~ , ,. 14 .t. . 27 '3 t 40 2 t 2-J (I) ,-> ,-, H , 10 IS • • 28 i. 41 7. s-J (J) ,-8 , .. .., l .. 16 m. 29 8. 42 II . 4-J (4} 1-7 "" ,-, • ,. 17 2. 30 5. 43 5. 1-I(s} 1-6 >-l .... 5 ,. 18 , . ,, 11+ 44 K'" 2-1 (.) , .. >-Z ,-, , ,. 19 7. 32 H 453. l-I (l) ,~ >-, ... , 7. 20 4 • n o. 46 g. 4-l f') ,-, ,. 4-1 , .. 21 g. 34 ::I. 41 '''' Hi m ,-, >-, ,-8 ' 94 22 " . 35 II. 48 " ... ~ ,-, ,.. .. " ,. 23 7+ 36 a t 49 l!it ,-, 2-4 >-7 2-a (5Q) 11 6. 242. 37 4 ... 50 10 . ,-, ,-, ,.. 3-Q (51) 12 J. 2S 5t 38 2'" 51 J t l-l Z-8 ,.. 4-0 (51) 13 II. 26 J. 399. 52 8 t SnapStad: Q Slack Given the extreme uniformity of its construction. the Q Stack exhibits I surprisingly random appearance, not unli ke a fairly shuffled dedL Conversion Exampl~ ~ foUowlrlg two examples show in detail the completto process of determining. cud al a particular position. and the position of a s~ificca rd . To Convfrt fn)m a Position 10 a Card Name Two or three brief menIal steps reveal the name of the (ard at any specific position. For tumpft. wIw/ if alrd ,zrn 1. Rec~n the l\llp t~ k ~rd '5 suit &. value: This step is only needed for po6itioru 1-9 and 50-52.; in .11 other C~~ no recoUtrtion Is ~ as the position alone provides the two p iece5 01 information that you -1uil\" (2 &: 9 in this l'.X~mple). 2. IHtennlne the value of the Q Stack card: Add the suit (2) to the mirror of the v~! W'! (9), yielding the Q Stack c~ d'5 value (2+6), ~n Eighl 3. Determine the suit of the Q Stack end: Adjusl the original 5uit as specified by the Q Stack card', value. Eight is an even number, &0 the suit is the 6IImt as the original one (2). The card is the Eisht of Hearts.

This can be rep~ted diagrammatically as illustrated at left below. The dilglllm on the right illustrates the conversion from position t32 to the King of Diamonds. 2 9 - • • • • • • To Convert from a Card Name to I Position , Simil8rly, three simple steps (essentially, a reversa l of the above"') take you from a card's name to its pa;ition in the pack, For txampi(, wlrUt i, lire s..U.1I of Diamonds? 1, Determine the suit of the Sn~p ad( card: The Q St<tCk ~rd's suit (Diamonds) is adjusted as ' peocified by its value, Seven is an odd number. so theSnapStad< suit is the s.amecolour as the QSta.:k suit; thus, Hearts. 2. Determine the v .. lue of the SnapSladt. cud: nw SnapStaclt card's mirror value is Seven minus its suit (so 7- 2-5). 'The SnapS'aclt card's actual value is the mirror of this; thus, a nu... 3. R« .. 11 the position of the Sn"'pStlck card: The Three (3) of Hearts (2) is not a court card, so its position is given by its two numbe rs: '23, The diagram for this is similar, as illustrated at left below, The di agr3mon the right illustra tes the convl."I'Sion from the Six of Hearts 10 position 2-K; this is a court vilue, 80 the actual pa;ition is thesuit plU$ the mirror of the value (2+4), or 16 (or else you simply remember it). 23 ~-, ~- 2K • •• • (6) II o • r.s I,', p,,,","I.,I, in..,.""", '" ", ... m"", dw. """'" ,_" ... "n~ fA"" .",.;'.'" '" ,~ "I ,,, .... ,"" """" .. do ... ",i...! ~"" . t<,II,,. • ..J by <l>< ..... , wfw.,. 1""'1 !ron, a rd ,um. '" po>ition. "'-~ do, .... k>r , ... · .. iI fitt<, ,h<.o ,Ik .,J"", 1 07

108 Finally, there is little arithmetic of any ronsequence used in the Q Stad:, so little opportunity for calculation shortcuts. Sut if you find thM\ helpful mOl5t 01 the shortcuts discussed in the MWrap-AroundM C.lculation Shortcuts SKtion in the DAQStack chapler will function here as weI!. Recall that. because the Diamond suit Is given a zero value in theQ Stack. ~dding and subtracting lour is never necessary. Conversion Practice Here al(> eight more ronvel'$ion e)C~ mp es.. in both directions: WhoII is am1116? Addlng the 5uit (1) to the mirror of !heSix (9)produoes a Ten. This is an evl!'n number. SO the Q Stack card's 5uit is the Silme as the original one: Spades. n... card is the Ten of Spades. W11trt is lilt Act of HNrls7 A~ is.l court value, so theSnapStack card'55uit Is tlu> oomplement: Spades. Subtracting this suit from the Q Stack value (1-1) gives us a King. whaw mirror is Four. Thua. the SnapStack Grd is the Four (4) 01 Sp.1des (1), whidl is at position ' 14. Wlr.:!t amI is at pc>SiliDn '107 Adding the suit (1) to the mirror of the Ten (2) produces a 1hn-e. This is an odd number, SO the Q Stack card's Mli t is the same colour as the o riginal one: Oub~ The card is the Three of Cubs. W1anr is ~ QUMt ",Clllbs? Queen is a court vaiUl', SO the SnapStack card'. suit is the complement: Diamonds. So no arithmetic is ne.:ess.ary, and the value remains a Queen, whose mirror is Eight. Thus. the SnapStack card is the Eight (8) of Diamonds (4), whlch is at position *48. ~ ~ ~"' ~ ~ ~

Whnl aI,d is 42'" from I~ lop? As the suit is a Diamond, no arithmetic is necessary, so the mirror of the 2 gives us a Ten. This is an even number, so the Q St<'C"k card's suit is tho. same a$ lhe originaL suit: Diamonds. lhe card ill the Ten of Diamonds. Whm! is tht ~,. of Sp<ides? Seven is an odd number, so the SnapStack card'!! !luit is the same colour as the Q Stack suit: Clubs. Subtracting this suit from theQStack vaLue(7- 3) gives us r'()ur, whose mirror is a King. "fhu" the SnapStack card is the King of Clubs (31.:), the COl,lrt card in position #7 (llSing whichever melhod you have chosen to leam the court cards). Io'IIr.:It is tl~ 50'" Cf/rd7 The 50'" C2rd in SnapSlack is theQueenof Hearts; adding its suit (2) to ils mirror value (8) yields a Ten. This is an even number, so the Q Scack card's suit is the 5anle as lhe original: Hearls. The card is the Ten of Hearts. INlw·" is the KinS of Spadts7 King is a COI,lr! value, $0 the SnapStack card's suit is the complement of the Q Stack suit: Hearts. Subtrlding this suit from the Q Stack value (13-2) giV6 us a Jack, which is its own mirror. Thus, the Sn.apStad<card is the Jack of Hearts (2;1). the court card in position #2. ~ .. , tn - • 2 J J - I . 0' - < For a more thorvugh exercise, rfle't to HAn &ercise PlanH in the p~ing chapter (on QukkSIaCk3.o). 109

110 The Zenith Stack (An Optimal, Sequential, Cyclic, Standard Zener Symbol Stllck) Approaching the Zenith ~ut till stacks needn', be restricted to pl~ying (aros alone. Zener !ymbol tards (aka ESr cards, Rhine cards), are the archet ypal ~ESP testing" tool. Constructing 3 sequential stick for a stnndard Zener deck is more problematic than with playing (ards, as there are multiple replications of aU five symbols. Consequently. the only "'\( that enabl" I card 10 be specified by a single adjacent card is a • repelted sequence (such as a + • 0 1l' 0 + • 0 0 0 + ... ). In create I stll(k with anythillg like. random appearance, we 1ft to L15ing the two preceding cards o~fy ~ (a'Bel carel. 'm. means that the cards must be arranged such that any palr of symbols is unique in the stad<. .. . in whidl ;tll symbol pairs an! Il"presenl<!d uniquely is mathematicians ;l$ I i)( 8ruii" K'Iumu"'. Fortuna tely, the l Zener deck exhibits the precise characteristics necessary to }fall' ~ch seque~, and many of them can be constructed. nen ~ Earle proposed a ~ B71Iijn sequence solution" , he ghlighted its challenge: when given a particular symbol p air, how docs one d~termine the following symbol? Lee suggested treating the stsck as a memorized deck, but d id not offer any simple solution (beyond rote memorization)to commit the stick to memory. I advanoed this notion with the publication of a simple mm'monic . h. _,~ _ .. ~ Rod>oodOtwli.r.J~ _a.>~ .....,. .... ,.,. ...... .,.. .... ;" hio houk II>< Ii-? _ Mi>Jm.Jn QOII2). PI' 11_10. ~ _ .... J""" ....... _ of .... __ -.. '," .......... "';' -.I • ..r.. .. -......"....... I • .-.do ......... !ooo. Ao •• r... ..... " """"""'_ of ..... .... , .... .. , .... 4 (<rp<ric"",,1 ' ~ (,;_ .. ,ho: 1"', .... , • H. . ,h .. _ <0<11 (0_ , ... _ """""".~ ct-. "lomt, ., • .bol)..-," J<~ (n>m '''''I''"'"- Md . .. _ .... ;, ...... i .. , 1«1"""" of "f'<- 1"'"'''' """'p.....,.W"II m.. .. ode ... , .. " ..... lP"l I, i •• fo. r,wI, ditF.cuk '" ,,,, .... ,loll ..... I" <bt ... ...,.. di,..ro.,n (I .•.• ...... "''''''. ,......., •• s .,mbol). 70. Such .. q<>m«> ... n • .,..,J .r.., to. hI< Nicob>< Coom - U;,;k' d< 8"'ii_ ........ in 19<16 d<-riood 'n "1""'0"' r .. ,0.;, _,utKtjo". 71. l.c<' poopo .... "M'd.d ,impl, -ESP Suck', an ... ~ in /01"../ 6 M",;c MotgUi_ 1'0l0I ..... t. bow 10, -'+>riI1~') . PI' Z-} .

technique" lor committing such sequences to memory, an idea that will be shortly revisited. But the search continued for the elusive algori thmic i501u tion. enabling a simple ulculation of any symbol. based on the knowledge of the preceding two. My own previous ~t effort in this "l>ard was nea tly surpassed early in 2012, when Paul Lesso released a simple, novel tl'Chnique", dramatic.ally changing the l~ ndsCilpe for lgori hmic approaches. Attaining the Zenith The Zenith 5tack f' plained here is II substantial evolution of Paul's technique, embracing the same concept. but substituting a different algorithm in order 10 obtain a considerable amoun.t of optimization" when compared to the original. As with much Zffier-symbol-related material this slack exploits Ihf' ~natur.l~ numbering1$ of the five symbols ( 0 + • 0 0- ); consequen.lly, each symbol is considl'-red interchangeable with its corresponding vllue. To Determine MS" Hen'! i~ the surprisingly short Zenith algOrithm for determining a target symbol (5), when the two p~vicus symbo15 in the Slack (Q followed by R) an'! known: 5 n tu.... , '" o,...-, 1\oI~ .lQO.I ""-""'-. ). pp..47_n "', . ~'" _..-..I z...., "",I:.. "'" b< "-"';" ~ 71. ",",I. ci<pm ·un So.d -. ........ ",rll<. __ "' .... Nti< -.,..-....,.;o,-.d "' ... _ ""bIookod ;,.. 1,...M ... o{Ow-..l. Ed;.r "' p.. 1OU). Pf' 100-103. 7 •. u. ... I. ....... I ..... s... . .... m'""'" "'""' ~ . _ <ok .... , .......... ,,,",~ d", z..i<h Sudt (on - "p" '" 2.44 ("'<. ,,...t...I """1""-.1 00 .~l).", ,," ,t-< """ ..... _ d;J\;', .. k (both .. i, "".~.IIr . ... <O(II'i,rwiyl. "" roml"'''''"'' ,t.., Oot<1l;II<I ,..,..' ........ '''''n ,""'" __ .HI >«p. I .... 'Y'roboi ~G"" ",h'" ,h •• <II< 7"ni,hl ... ,t.., ~'".,,''' Ji,..,iu .. """'" Ii,'. ~ui" I"' .... fo,. ,I,. ... ""), 7'l, ·1lI.: ,~Iu< , ......... ' y",bo( ,~o I>< " ' .n .. ' "" num .... oI"li ... " •• ,.' .... r m.I" ... .. ,,. >iO"I"~ ,'" iW". ,. n! " .. .. , p<n'"p .. n 1*,. ·[hl. i", .. <l ;O/), .. ,,{ul «1 .. 10<>11>11' ~kidl P<"'~Q' ~ .. ,* .. ,_'" _I"'" .... ~,~ ,,~b,-/.C . ·Jham_ J<.IA h" -Mi.Jnish' ~t..d, .... - """In<, f"'bIi ...... ~ .,.. J"",. 100 ... IH, 24 April l')i I. 111

II 112 I. Add the values of the two symbols (0 + R). 2. If the symbol adjacent to the , .. rget is;l. 4 or 5 (R .. " or 5), decreage the result by one {-l}. J. 1/ 1M mull is grtIl''''" 1M" jirJt, subtrKt five (- 5), The resulting value will be that of the larget symbol folluwing the pair used fOf the calw lation. So irs I simple, straightforward procedure: add two values; if the second value is large (4 or 5), subtnlct one; if the result is (still) too large (greater than 5), subtract five. And that'! it! neA! are I few examples: Given symbols+ and " , the following symbol i5 2 + 3 ,. 5 (I). Given symbolsO 9nd 0. the next symbol is 1 oj 4 _ 5 - I _ 4 (0). Given symbols 0 and "', the next symbol is " • 3 _ 7 _ 5 .. 2 (+ J, Giwn symbols+ and tr, the next one is 2 + 5 ,. 7 -I .. 6- 5 = 1 (0). lhe first ~ample alxwe requires but a single step, the next two lake two steps Nell (albeit diffe rent ()ne$l and the third ne-eds all three steps. To Determine "P" 11'$ oca.s.icnally useful to determine the prroiur<s card in R 5 a sequential Slack'", Here is the I matching Zenith algorithm for determining ill target symbol '- _...J __ .l... __ !I _ __ .1 {P}, wilen the two;> jollr:rwing symools in the stack (Q followed by R) an! knoJwn: J. 1/lymOOl R i$ kis tlum syonb'Jo' Q. add five (-+ 5) to R. 2. SubtlOld the Vllul!of symbol Q from that of symbol R. 3. U the symbol Mljacent to the target is I 0 or (I {Q. 4 or 5}, increase the result by one (+ 1). Again. the resulting value will be thaI of the arget symbol pnctdirz8 the pair used for the c .. lculation.

11le «lmplete stack, then, .ppears as followil: ZENITH STACK o 113

Built·In Zenith Stack Adjustments The Zenith Stack is designed 10 support additional uSC's of Zener ards wilh minimal adjustments. The transition for ·Couplet· ;s described in ~ colll'Sponding chapter for thai plot. Anat""r useful obsIervalion is thai the lop ten cams of the stack (as shown in the origin~1 d iagram) comprise two compk!t~ sets of the five d ifferent Zener symbols; this is useful when p~ring to perform Bob's Your 1Jn<1e". Further, by moving a single card, the 5ame group of len ~rds can be am~rled to a stay-stack (i.e .. one in which lhe order of cards in the first half mirrors th~ order of cards in the second half), wh.ch can be useful for a variety of effects, most not ably Richard Osierlind 's popular -Vie~d ESP Prediction·''"''. This conversion to a Hkard stay-stack orderc.n be d one in either of two ways: by moving the second card (a circle) five positions lowe(, or by moving ~ fifth card (also a riroe) four positions lower (as UlustnltN below). c 0 ')1 [ I J, l(J..Cn rd Slnck·Slnck # 1 IO-Cllrd SlIIet·Stllck 11 2 With I bit more effort, a 12-ca.rd siay-stack can be created, by extracting the P';f of cirdes &om the CftItre of the stack and plating them 11 positions eight and eleven (as ilIUlitrated below). 12-Cl1rn Slack-Slna

An Optional Zenith Stack Algorithm The Zenith Stack algorithm as described above is, I believe, the optimal one for most people (being easily understood, consistent, and simple to execute). [t is possible, though,. to reduce the number of steps taken, at a cost of more difficult steps (involving n~ tive numbers). For completeness, therefore, I describe that here; only a tiny number of people wiII find this to be an improvement. As originally described, the algorithm incorporates an extra step (step two, subtmcting one) for symbol pairs that end with the square Or star. Further, it almost g uarantees in these situations that the third step (subtracting five) wiU be necessary as well. Both of these drawbacks can be eliminated with II simp[", change in procedure. The op ti miz~tion results from dealing with the square and star (when th(!y are adjacent to the undetermined symbol) in a slightly different way; a5 part of a revised first step (making it more complicated both to describe and exerute): Add the values of the two symbols; but, if/he sy",bol adjtN.:tnllo the target is a slar or squat!, trellt that symbol's value as -lor·2.- respectively. The second step IS consequently "Iimmat"d. Srep 1M?e, which 15 now less likely to be re<Juired (spedfically, in only 36% of transitions, where previously it was 52%), be<omes: If 1M rfsui! is outside the range 1- 5, add or subtract five as necessary. If you are the kind of person for whom this is actually an improvement, then you will mjoy working out the reverse algorithm (for detennining the preceding symbol), so I will leave that up to you. But again,. most people will find all of this confusing and more erro .... prone, even though-theoretically- the number of steps is reduced. They can happily stick with the original explanation and not worry about it! Memorizing the Zenith: An Elective Adjunct The stnmgth of the Zenith stack is its simple algorithmic derivation. That said, there are /l very few specifi~ situations (e.g., assembling the stack from a mixed pack of cards. and naming a lengthy sequence of contiguous symbols) in which;t is helpful not 10 have calrulations115

simple though they ~re-at every step. A simple mnemonic technique offers ~ straighlforw~rd alternative for those who wish it." To begin. note that ead> of the fiw Zener symbo1s can be associa ted with ooe of the five EngIi5h-language Yflwels:'" 6 - A, • '" E, + - I,O-O,O·U Accordingly; by ",placing the Zenith su.ck symbols with their asrociated vowels, we have the following f!quivalen t sequence: 10 E U 0 AA U E I A 0 OlE A II U A E E 0 U U By itse lf, this 15 no easier to memorize than the symbol!; themselves, but now we h8ve the option of introducing consonants to form words, as part of II (somewhat) coherent sentence: I OvErdUb vOcAls: lAcklUstEr d IAlOg frOm IdEAlIstic UnshAvEn ghEttO gUrUs. The following sen~, then,. serves as a mnem(lflic kl.')' to the Zenith .tIck: I overdub vocals: lackluster dialog from idealistic, unshaven ghetto gurus. Commit this firmly tomemoty,;md you'll have a useful Ql/n nMiw tool for assembling (and ~ntiall y even using) this stack." n . F.d ,..r.c..,. r_ '--........ "'" _ .......... ;1 __ n. 1"'-_~ _ ~ and d<icrib<d;., 'M Ab.:uda',"n~, in <h< ~.<fIt,,,,,,,.,.' wet .... <Ii do:.. h<>ol. 86. A_a. "", .... hoot ......... ~ ,he u~ ~ .... _~ .. -ciialoz .. •. II. Ir _'" Ilk. '~"f .s.. .... ,....."""" fH'.n«,""" .... , ..... prin<lpi<. '" nul.. r., '«""e<' ."""n."" ••• 1"" .......... .....,J, with ,h, 1<.:", r: ~ho<hoft,,\ w, .... .......t in Ensli>h. ,oJ <an l>< «>""'~n ," I" ook, ,0 ",.k< ,he "1"'"'''' 1><'-<0 _I, <1<.,. ,,,,id -.I., HI .... i<h "",Idpk ..,..<J. ,It <O<'Io.oI .. d in '"os!< .,.noW.. A.-ord 10k I«pw. Co. .... "'f!i<. h .. ro."...".,ds, t.u, ~"'" '..0 .yjlobb. oo.l.iro." Jillic"h ",d,~ ,he Uf ..... , o!o< I. ,/ul ' hnr" "'"' .... 1. "k~, 116 £. N_ , .... ,he ~ ""!<n<r "*"" .n~ oyIobIet.. .""dy.- Co.""" .,..obo>I.

The Chroma Stack (A Sequential, Cyclic, Coloured Zener Symbol Stack) Rationale Although black symbols alone w,,~ originally used for Zener <:ard de<:l:s, n'cent years have seen the availability of colol.lred decks, in which each occurrence of a given symbol is of a different colour'" (commonly black, red, blue, green. and yellow'll, Although nontraditional. each card in such decks is unique, making for a broader range of possible demonstrations, based on the fact that a selected card is now one of twenty-five or more-rather than merely fivepossibilities. Somewhat surprisingly, though, almost nothing has been written about sequenti al stacks for such decks". The Chroma Stack"", des<:ribed here, extends the concepts of the DAO Slack to provide an effect\ve solution to th ... problem. Revelation In order to develop an algorithmic (i.e., calculation-based) slad:. for this deck, we need a way to number the various symbols and colours. There is al dy a well-known "natural" sequence'" for the Zener symbols. butone mustbedefined for the colours; thisis a<XQmplished as follows; 82. It. ""1""'"'"' '0 ""I;,., oIut """'" ,01""tcl 7.<"« drd " <10 twO ,"is m. ",I""" "'''''' tlIr 'ymt>oil It .... ,II ,;,01" '''' no< <"I.,." .• 11 .... " . " " .""""'. <te.): """ 001<>.", u",u<ubk to, ,M. ",ek (.o ,, ~ ,,,ker ro>l . ,b ... weill. ' l . So,,,,, <1<01:, oil<, .i. «>Iou" (Q""5< ""in, ,ho ron,m". "'''''' .,.,d . j>«tnitti.&. )(\.atd p><k in>t<;,,j of ,il< '~ ",I 15 .... , t:t« rOt """'" i, ;"01"""" 1.:",. ' ...... "",010 "'.pt.'";O r. ul Holt..· fi"" -H,II,..,,,,I' . r",no hi> book TOTAT R;./(, Apl~ (Sh<I""Id . l?'Iol ... ><I "1',<bt;"',,( i. hi. IWI) .... Mi,J "".ff(~ M.> ..... 1(107). AI ... wi,h ;" ." ie< ''''''''J ",,,,;on •• 11<1 . 1""","" tIct <010., ",",,",n. ,h ~ ",,,,,k_,,,",,, ",bj<.«Ol ,,, ' ''l" "''''''' I<,.'i",.-" ..... h • ,k"'.I<.JI), k;..,b..·" nJoo, ,,«1<,. BS . ... d~oI )' diffi,,,,", .. ,,"''' of ,h ~ ,,><:I< " .. I"'bli,h,'d " <><lot ,o. .;de "11.: ChmmfSl' 0::1'1.,". In ];".,.Ii< (1),"'1: llptl<n'. 10101 1'1' 11_1 1. 36. 11.., •• 1 ... of <.oduy.,b,J <>.n t.: " k," ,, ' h< """,1.: .. ,(1;",, .....""..,pod",. ,d<ONid...iog ,I.: 1[ .. ,.""i",«1 ' ''" • • r<""~'" \ * 1. 'l hi. I'ermi,,. <impk ".""rio: o,oi<"n" 11 7

118 "Colour Symbol Mnemonic compte- Value Auociatlon ment 1 Black 0 black hole Yellow 2 Red + (ed cross Green 3 Blue ~ blue water Slue 4 Green 0 vilillge green '" green screen 5 Yellow ~ gold star Slick In the Chroma Stack,. these symbols arid colours are the rough equivalent of nu.rn/.Jen and suits in playing ca rds. In place of the notion of Hsuil$of the ume colou .... , ~ UR thit of Hcomplement'uy colours H. Thesoe are Sl~k /Yenow (think "bumblebeeH) and Red/ Creen (think "ChristmasH ). Blue complements itself: Like the ans, It is constant. Rather than divide the symbols into odd imd eYen groups (which 1can be slower to recall), we Nopl the ronvention used in the Zenith Stadt: ,= wlwrs (0 + .o) vs. high VGlllrs to 11-). He ... , then, Is the (2.Xard) Chroma Staek,. in its entirety: B]~&.o, Red +, Greet"! 0. Yellow _, Black _, Yellow a. BJack a. Yellow 0, Black -0-, Red 0, Blue-, Green O, Red -0-, Bluc+, Blue -0-, Green _, Yellow +, Black +, Red -, Green -0-, Red 0. Blue 0, Blue 0, Green +, Yellow 0 And hel"f> are the calculation rules for the following (Htarget") card: Symbol: the current eard's symbl>!-wllu plU$ its colollr-Nlw, Colour. for IOW-NIIU! target cards. the nexl colour in sequence; for Irigh-Qllllt target cards, the cumplrmmlllTY colour

To ~callthc low- vs.high-ualuedi5tinction,. ~member that the~a~only two high-value symbols, and only two colours in a complementary pair. An example (R<:'d 0 ): add the value of the colour (2) to that of the symbol (1), yielding three (. ); this isa low-value symbol, sothe target card is the colour after Red ... Blue"". Another <:'xample (Black 0): add the value of the colour (1) to that of the symbol (4), yielding five (er); this is a high-value symbo~ 50 the target card is the complementary colour to Black ... Yellow"'. When calculating results approaching five, simply "counting" from the current card is often easier than doing "wrap_around" arithmetic An example of thiS (BlueD): rather than think '"Blue is three, plus four (0) is 7, but that's bigger than 5, so I have to subtract ... ", it'S easier to think " ... rour'" five ... one'" two (+j"; this is a low-value symbol, so the target card is the colour after Blue ... Green+. Two useful "wrap-around" shortcuts: first, any yellow symbol is always followed by the same symbol (though of a different colour); second (for the 25-card slack only), any ~ card is always followed by the symbol corresponding 10 the colour of that~. Use these or not as you prefer. Adding Another Colour (thus more cords) In order to add an additional colour {say Orange'll, expanding the deck by nve ca rds, we must first ascribe it the next value in sequence (i.e., 6). This value doesn't correspond to any Zener symbo~ so that column is ldt empty, but Blue loses its singular quality, and becomes complementary with Orange (a traditional pairing). This adds an additional row to the bottom of our ch~rl; 6 I Orange I I 'NOIIlI"9 rhymesl Slue . wtlh orange' . &7. "\h;' I, rl", .<l<l I, Oo .tl ';-',~) o> "".r~"nJ In ,h< 61q<l. ·ESPT, .. OKk' (!!.O.k, b><k).()d, .. dt-ck. '''"l""''' Jlff",."n, "'~".' ''. or ''"'I><. ~, ,~i> " bk wuuld n«<l '" i>< m.-.. M;. ... o«o<w"~ .,. 11

1 120 CoMequenlly, here is u,.., ~xtended (30·catd) Otroma Stack.: Black 0, Red + , Green q Yellow ., Orange -, Blue Q Green +. Yellow 0, Orange 0 , Black +. Red til, Green n, Redo. BlucO, OrangeQ. Bl , Green -, Yellow + , Orange + , Black -, Yellow 0. BlackQ YeUowtl, Black n, Red 0, Blue., ~nO, Red 11, Blue+,Orange!t The calculation ro les for this s.lack are identic~l to those of the regular 125-<ard) ~rsioll, remembering tnat there Is a sixth colour in the list. Con5O.'qut:nlly, one can move back ilnd forth between the two without ronfusion,. or the need for relraining. Another ·wrap·'II'OlU1d" shortcut (ior the 3O-card Slack): Orange can be considered the same as Black (value .. 1) when determining ",-. An Alttrllative Colour Those who preMT to stid<. with a traditional 25-<'ard pack. but wish to use Bicycle cards, might COO$ider replacing the yellow symbols (which can be diffiUllt to see ~t a d istan(f') with the oungt ones. Think "Hallowe'en" for the new compl<!mentary black / orange pair.

The ChroMem Stack (A Rondomiud, Algorithmic, Coloured Zener Symbol MemDeck) Completing the Set In the previous chapters of this $<'ctivn, I have preselltec:\ two sequentia l, cyclic stacks for playing cards; ~ sequential cyclic stack for standard Zen~r symbol cards; a sequential, cyclic §Iack for CQloured Zeru>r symhol cards; and three algorithmic memorired de(:ks for playing cards, This chapler presents the mil>iSi1l8 link- in the collection: an algorithmic memorized deck for coloured h ner symbol cards.· this is. to be sure, not ill particularly -high dfomand'" item. but one that is easily acromplished. The Basics The values (shown a t right) assign«! to both the Zener symbols and the different colours are identica l to those used in the Chroma Stack; visit that cha pter for more detail, and mnemonic aids. The ChroMem Slack i:s organized as five Banks 01 five cards each. These Banks are numb<!:red. sequentially: Bank 1 (locations 1- 5), Bank 2 6-1 0~ Bank 3 (11-15). Bank " 0(",,20), and &onk S (21-25). You should find it quite simple to commit these to mm1ory. The Positio" . Value Conversion Within eaeh !:lank, the five coloursill\' arranged in stnd order: Slack · Red · Blue - Green · Yellow (1-5). The symbol value for each position i$ defined as its colour value plus the Bnnk •. &8. A, .1""I,hml< "~~«l <i«k r.,.. #4""'''' I_h""""kl Z."" •• y.","""" b .,f 'I'", ~ ...... bk ",,,,,,,,,I .alIot . .. u.....'" only 1\", d .. I ... , <>..!, ..... Iabk 1(.,",,", 0/ ,h~ '*"1'''' ,,;110\ . ...... «1, >« ..... '" < •• ,,,,,"'" ....d. ... "' ... '« •• """14 "'''"I''''''' " .. fW. 121

/m EJ,o .. plrs: rd (3" card, Bank 1) in the stKk is the Blue 0 (3~ I .. 4 _ Tht th;! ~1fth card (2"' card, Ban k 3) is the Ked 0 (2~3 .. 5 .. ~o~ ). '""0"). ~1. ... card (3" card Bank 4) is the Slue + (3 +-4 .. 7 I ~7-S _ 1hr ~~,teef\'" , 21 "··"). Note lhallhe sum of the position and roIour values (3 ..... ) I!xc<.'O:'ds 5 In tlw! third example, 50 it is necessary to ·wrap around " by blJading 5 to gel the symbol value. . 5U FiMlly, ff!lllize that conversions in Bank 5 are partIcula rly simple, as the adding and subtracting of five cancel e.en other out: ronseque-ntly, the symbol value in Bank 5 is the S<!Orne as thl! colour value (which is also the ~me M the position in that B.nk). H!~, then. is the Chroma Stack in its entirety: 8Iid:+, Red"', BlueD, GreenU, Yel!owQ, Black -, Red D, Blue U, Green 0, Yellow + , Black 0, Red U, BlueO, Gll'eT1 +, Yellow _ , Blad: U, Red 0, 8Iue+, Green"', YelJowo.. BladO, Red+, Blue-, Greeno.. Yellowu Tht Value .. Position Col1vtrsiun Findingthe positionofasproficsymbol isequal1ysimple. The colour value Is the position within the Bank, and subtracting thiS from the symbol v.l ue yields the Bank , . 1/ the colour value Is too large to subtract, add 5 to the symbol value first. And ~member thai a subtracted value of zero refers 10 Bank 5. Eg"'plK; T11e Rtd /I is in the 2'" position (Rfd .. 2) of 8;m]o:. 3 (S-2 ., 3). .e~ pwilion 1 12. Tho: Grem D is in !he 4- posilk1n (Green .. 4) of Sank 5 (4-4 .. 0 1·5j). i.e. position' 24. The ~llow 0 is In the S'" position (Yellow ... 5) 01 Bank 1 (t-5 1+51 - I; i.e~ position IS. Again. note tho.- w"'p ~roundN issue in the third example, where 5 mllst be added to I 10 make the subtraetion po55iblO!. And once more we see • Situation where a $hortcut is possible: adding and subtracting five is self-c.o1ncelling. ~ when the symbol is a sta r (5). yOll ClIIJimply use the colour val ue as the an .

Card Capers Performan.ce Pieces with Playing, Tarot, and Zener Symbol Cards

I

Menoogue (A Hallds-Off Diary Effect) Bob Cassidy's classic "Chronologuc .... was one of [he first effects [ used in my professional mentalism repertoire. I eventually replaced it, however, when Lewis Jones e-mailed me about his discovery of a new principle" in diary-related methodologi<'S. I have subsequently modified (.md extended) Lewis' method somewhat, and describe the result here with his enthusiastic permission. This approach sacrifi<;% the personal connection (using a chosen date) incorpora ted in the Cassidy plot, but makes for a more hands-()ff, baffling-and even repeatable-result. Plot A pack of playing cards (borrowed, if possible) is shuffled by a participant. While this takes piaC(', the entertainer describes the rather extraordinary relationship between playing cards and the calendar year. To wit • The (two) colours of the cards represent day and night. • The (four) suits represent the four seasons of a year_ • The (12) court cards represent the months (and zodiac signs), • The (thi,-tet,n) values of the cards repn>Sent the annual lunar cycles, • The number of cards (52) is the number of weeks in a year, • The sum of all the values (365)" is the number of days in a year. 69. Ilob', 'W»'""" -md ,rio;k "d'M", ",tds' (, •• 11. """ 0() ..... pubi;.:lr ",,~.tkd oR b~ M..,'" Mi'-'<l".WJ"o (Mci, Yodiod M'I'" ZII02). 90. u,..;,' "M.", My o..y' <an b. fuuod it> St,,, 8<:,m', SrotM.~ c,...t r.;"" VII! n,..pdoot 1'n>d>J,,""'" WI 0), I'!" I W-l H. 91. ·lhI, .", i. rIO< ~" ; .. " "" , " ,II< ,-ar<l """'" ><"-,,,lIy ' um to}(.4 . r« ' ..... b<,n ,-.11«1 on I,. bu, if ', .... , [',pp<n" I'm p«!"ml 'v""" ,h" <on",",f"">'Y 1'"'''' in< luJt o}ol«, to ",alto up ..... <x,,. J..~ ( .. ,d often • >=od 1,,1«, <Q xoou,,' fo, k,p )"<>,,). My Mono. di,,), n", • 10,,, on ............ 'r 29·. 125

126 Conrul1"ffilly, a d atebook/ diary, with a playing card clearly writtm next to each day of the yNI", is offered for examination. A prediction is then written and given to a third party (from this juncture, the entertainer does not touch any of the p rops). TIM:. p~rtldpant fairly cuts Ih"'5huffled pack, turning over the cut half; the value of the card cut to spedfies a month. The remaining Julf is also turned face up. and the two visible cards added together to p«ify a particular day in that month. The participant turns to that date in the diary, and n!ads the n,lDle of the aS50ciated un:!; it is tile only date In that month when1 that particular card .ppears. Th ... prediction is revealed,. and seen to be corJ(>ct. Method The lnIsic secret of MeooIogue revolv" around the fact thai the card names in the diary. which appear to be completely r .. ndom (except for the Idol duplkuClj in any spe6fic month). actually incorporate a fixed block 01 thirtten cards replicated (It differrnt positions) in Nch month. In tum, the dare selection process ... nsures tha t a date will be chosen from one of !helle blocks. The card SIeCluence itselt which incorporates the mirror pair principle, is that defined in Hiding a uence in PI.in Sight, an eulierch.apter in this book,. namo.ly: As explained in that dtapter, when given a number lrom 1-13, the card at that position can be rapidly ~t ... rmined. Ensure that you know this sequence thoroughly. Preparing the Diary r""puation of the diary (a one-rime activity) begins by acquiring a suitable book.. A generic design (l.e., not specific to a particular calendar year) will mean that you will not need to prepare a new one on an annual basis. A weoek-at-a-giano:e layout is better than _ monthat-a-glance, beeouse although the Litter is thin.roer, it makes it easier to deled the shifting card blod:: in ",ado month. Also, the weekly ~rs n beUer emphasiul; the sheer number of entries, and mai<" the result seem that much mort' impossible. The best solution of all is actually neithl'T a Ddiaryff nor an "organizer", but wh8t is commonly tenned a

Monologue Diary Entries Jan feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep OCt Nov Dec 1 2 , 4 3 , 7 8 , 10 11 12 13 U 13 " 17 18 19 20 21 22 " 24 " " 27 28 " 30 31 ~ 70 ,. ,. K+ , .. g. U •• e • ,. n e. 4+ .. ~ I:-t K • 40 • 7 • • J+ e. .. W1 ' At I. n ,. tH:J 2. J. -n t:7t !I ' J4 3. 7' 3' JO ,. 70 .. , . .. ,. K. , .. ,. ,. K. , .. 9. ,. ,. U 90 ,. .. u 9. •• .. ,. 2. •• .. ~ 2. • • e. n ,. 4+ e. n U 4+ .. :-!- 7. 4+ •• •• e. 5+ 2. , . 4' .. 2. •• 4 • .. ,. •• 70 AO .. e. .. 2+ .. e. ,. .. ,. , •. • ,. g. A. 20 •• •• e. 4 • J' •• tH •• ,. 2. 3 • •• 7+ 3. At ~ •• J. •• n ,. 2' 3' K. 2. , . •• ,. ,. • 0 , . J+ U ,. 70 At •• •• 3. z. e ," ,1It ,. ,. , . •• e. 7. e .. 3 • •• ,. JO ,. ,. •• 70 •• •• ,. .. .. 2. 5 .. ,. ,. e .. ~ e. K • •• K' ,. I. , . 4. U 4. 7. ,. K+ 50. •• ,. ,. 9 • •• •• ,. K+ ' 0 I. , . •• JO u . ..,. K+ ,. •• ,. B. .. .. •• ,. K+ , . •• 7. ... .. u •• , . .. , . . ~ 2. , . .. u . 0 ,. X+ 50. J. ~ ' 0 .. u g. ,. K+ B. ~ 2 • . 0 .. u •• ' 0 4+ e. J. 2. e • .. u ' 0 •• 4+ e. J. 2. ' 0 •• u ,. A. 4+ e. n ,. e. .. •• 5+ •• 4+ e. n 2. ' 0 ,. I . J+ ,. 4+ e. n 2. ,. •• ,. e. e. 4+ e. J. 4. 7+ 7. 4. 2+ 50 4+ e. •• 4. e. u .. 2 • .. 4+ e. u At e. K. 3 • .. •• •• ~ •• ,. ,. 7. e. ,. 4. ,. 4 • •• J+ •• ,. I . .. ,. XO , . •• ,. I . 50 I. .. ,. 2 • •• .. J. 7+ L!l! ,. J. S. ~ 127

"birthday book-, some q\lite nice vm;OJ'\S of which can be obtairK'd.!' Enter the above l:k;ord sequence in the dates 2 through 14 January, wtitingoul the names in lull (-Seven of Spades'" T~l her than -'. -). Repeat this $arne sequence f{)r each of the remaining months, offsetting the bloo:;k by one additional d~y in each subsequent month: thus the sequences will b@gina t 3 February, 4 March, 5 April. and so on. the final block running from 13-25 Oece:mber. Fill in the remaining dates with random ca rd names, ensuring that there are no duplicates in any month. no nearby d\lplicatC5 (monthto-month). and an even distribution of suits and values. All of this is more easily said than done, so I have included (on the previou$ page) a suggested list of enlri<!S, to save yO\l the effort of working one out. Notice the shifting position of the 13-ard force block in each month (naturally, th~ ~ni~ are not specially marked in any way in the diary). Alternativt Sequences Those who have already mastered a memorized playing ca rd stack (th llJl having already rommitted to memory a set of posilion/card rorrespondeno:>f) can simply substitute the first thirteen cards of that Slack for the group desaibed here. If you do this, you'll need 10 work OUI your OWn mtries for the remaining dates,. paying '-d to the aforement:ioned cautions. PerformanCt! In general, this is perfonned as des<:ri~ under NEffed-. The key element omitted !Torn that description is the fact that, following the flNll shuffling of the ded,. you glimpse the bottom card. With many lay participants, this is 0("", a "hands off" Iask. ~cromplished Jimply by watching for them \1) flash a view of the haltom card. Should you not be SO lucky, briefly retrieve the shuffled pack,. al arm·s length, betw~n thumb (bclow)and finger(s) to convey it 10 the table, getting a glimp5<' as thf' front .-eIgc of the pack drops slightly. Or \lse it to push the diary forward for viewing. or gesture to other partiripant(s). asking if they ~ cnnlent with the state of the deck,. or would like to shuffle as weU. Ot'-$I>ould a situational glimpse r>OI: prove possibJe..-an all.around square-up glimpse" will deliver the n . 1\ (iruV .. "",h ro. ·blnhd.or book· (,ndJ .. ·1" "IMl'l"' boon ",tl 'ufo, up. ""i«y of .,.,,,,, .. """" ",u. ''''''~'''I''<1<III>< __ '''''itioo. I b ..... ""'" J>o,.,L r",,,, 1'<, II"""",. I .... ,~"" .p., .".' '''". c .. , ~j . Rot.rno (;;,..w.r ...... ,to;, <~'""""''''''' *'1ft< .. ~"' (:-I r..a.,. J (5<w<!It. 1?961. p.lP.

ne«ssary informlltion in ~ clean bshion. Even if such an overt action becomes rK.'O!$Qty, performing il casuaUy will make it unlikely tha t a.nyone will recall your ever having touched the deck. Alternatively, a mmpletely hands-off presenlation can be gua.rant~ by using marked card, (actually, only the va/uo!S n~ to be ma rked ), and aski ng the partidpilnt to set the deck down on the table when finished shuffling. Time the writing of the pA<'CIiction such that you are fi nishing just as the participant tables the deck (when you can read the a rd). The deck is then <:u t as before, though in this usage the <:u t ha lves remain fa~ down on the table, and the card on top of each half i, tur ..... d OVt'f. In any case, the IXllue (the suit being irrelevant) of the secretlydetermined card is used 10 deduce the pr",dicted card, in the manner described nbove. Thus, if the card should be (9-8Y ) a Three, then the 10m! card to be predicted is the "Five of Clubs". The ntndomly rulto Clrd is the one first uposec\, and it specifies the month. TIten the glimpsed card is revealed,. and ad ded to the firsl to determine the date within the month (which will be found to contain the predicted card name). Observations and an Option Occasionally, the cut·to card will be a k ing (1 3), which does not mrn.'Spond to a month. Having the participant either cut again or disc:ard the King and USE' thenex! c:ard are reasonable options in such cases. You mal' chOOSE' to announ~ this possibility in ad an~, prior to reve~ in g the card. in order to dispel ally notion tha t you might be Hchanging the rulesH as you proceed. The diary is quite examinable ; given enough time, though a particularly attentive audience memNr might d iscern the shifting block of cards, so it is wise not toallow too much study. Though I prefer to eliminate calculations as much as possible during performance, an alternative method (or spc;ocifying the suit of the predicted card is to divide its vllue by four and ~ the ~mainder; I .. Spades. 2 .. Hearts, 3 - Oubs, and 0 .. " .. Diamonds. Should you choose this option. you will need to use the following (modified) shifting block of cards, and work out your own layout for the rt"ITIlir>der of the diary, paying heed to the aforementioned cautions. 129

PokerFace (A Participatory Perceptwn Prestntation) Plot ~ IDlt I~Nlre am ProfdSCT Datoty MII,lin,lund once $p« .. I~ltd IhQ/ what we n(lto ",II 'psychic ability' may On.! day tit rrftrrtd 10 liS simply 'paying aUrnli(m'. Indml. 'int~ilicm';s moslly bling Stn$ili!J<'-somdiml'S on D suboonsticus kvcl-lo Ihe wany littlt signals and cuts all around us ... '''formalion tho/ most p«Jplt joi[lo dtl«1. ·SonlC pwpIt, of rouru, do a tlttl" job of ccmualing theSt ClOt'S Illan a/lwrs. Som, twIT hovu rtpu/aticnfwdoing so t::rlrtmtly wtll. How mOllY of)lOll art fomilia, with ,~ 1m" 'pok", fila'! [show of hands] Y.es, it coma from ctlrd plRying. [entertainer remove$ a pack of playing cards from ils ClOse. and asually shuffl0!5 !hem while COntinuing] bU I IIOW prtlly mild! Ik:$cn~ ."yont who (illl mp Q $ITflighi foa. HIIW many of yuu blow pt'OfIk li~ I""'? [show of hands] How mQ/ly of you am gtnmllly t«p D good 'poI:tr FIX'? [entertainer seleC'ts Wei.! volunteers-Andy. Bob, and Charlie-.J1d invites them onstagtl "7111$1 twrybody', SIIld Mr. Doolty'", '!JIll 0:"111 Ihe ,ards!' [ent~rt.liner gives the pack :o. complete rut, then passes it to Charlie] I/YQU IIIQu/d, Chnrlit, plttzSt CuI Iht CQ,d5 Qli I did, "nd ,,"SS lite pIIc~ 10 600. [he does so] Now, &b, if you will cuI ,,,..", <lSWI!'Ii, and pa5s Ihem 10 Andy. (he does so] And $0 WI!' rome 10 you, Andy .. . Mr. Poktr Fact! Tht dtck luis n.no bten shuff/td 4nd CIIllly Ihn!r: propit.1'I1 mil .... aW/lY, in'~ you ·,t ron...,,,,td IIMI till aNs miShl !:oe- mQrktd in some way, IISIr you 10 CUI II" ""ds 1m..., I1UJrt, .nd $tf 1M CIII-t;/[ portion 1m 1M IQ!Ik. (he eomplies( Nobody in Ihis room COIl/d possiblt mow 1M card rwIII.' tM Ie:,> of 11141 p«d, Sl1 /'1/11Sk you 10 IGkt lhill CIIrd, withoul Itlting anyone sa it 4nd p4S5 Iitt ",maining fHlCk. !Nr(k. to Bob. (he dotS sol Bob, if!lO" wo"ld, pltIUt IUt tha t (llrd, aoo Uqn"S it compldrllj stCrlt, and giVl! Ott I'fmllinins «Tds 10 Char/it. (he does so] And CM,/it, IGkt lhil t CAN for you.wf, Qnd put IItt- rat of tht (SIrds on tilt 'Q!Ik with till o/he~; WI!' won't br .. ~inS Ihm. anymort. [entert.uner tums to faa. the audwnce directly, ~dng away from the on-silise participants, but still Spellking to them] '1<1. 1)'" <pi""" q_od Iwt.....".. f..,... Rooky T ... " Ilo .... •• ,14 .. DooI?< l'bi"-fJil (i.oodooo. 130 ,!lU n.p ... u(J.

"OllcugaIM, ,~ch af you pl(a~ loobzl your CRrd Ie ,nswl? IIuII you know il"",/I, th'M pul it in your ~I or olhaw~ hold il 50 IIuII i/ 0'111'/ bot 5«11. [while they Il~ doing this, entert~iner addl"f!S$C5 the audience) Thru pI/lylng arrd$, (ach IlIk", frorn 4 ralld"", pl<JCr in a pildc s1r.uJfttd IlruJ cui by -"" propIe. Cards known ollly to Andy. Boll, ,"d C/rQrlk, who will now show us their /onl 'pcku /tl=', lIS we try to idtll/ify wllllt Ih~ III? /roJdillg. NNaw I'm 1101 cllfiming Iha/this is (aSY, I~gh wilh II bit of pracl;a, "~ 1It/lUllly ,uilt Q bil rasirr 1111111 you mighllhillk. Bul hey, /IIOiS/ of yoll II,.. nttl> to Ihis, 50 1'", going 10 SIar' with CIuI"it, alld <lSk him to giflt us II b,'S 11;'1/ to htlp liS gtl slIIrted. C/rQrlk, pltll~ amlinlle to k«p Iht sui! of you, card-$pildt, hN,I, clllb, or diamond-<l St<1?/, bulltll t~tryone htre lilt v.l\le of your ca rd. [he J\'spon<is, say, 'a n Eight'] Now Ihal makn il II /0/ las ,',., righl? W, ollly !Iud 10 idrnlify Ollt of follr possiln.lilj~ With Bob, UJt'/Iasainlisk for II hint bul IlltSSI!r Om! Ihm, Chllrlit's. /lob, pltQ5t! conti"ut /0 k£tp tilt: valut of your CIIrd_ Act through Killg_ a s«rtl, butld U$ know Just tlv suit. [he h!plies, say, 'a Club'] Tiuzl mliUs this lask nzsirr Il5 wrll, toollgh _ difficult Ihl1ll wilh Chtz.rlie, IlS th~ time IDt ",,.,, mentify Ollt of Ihirlt'tn possibililits. Andy'S no/ plllnning 10 giw Ilwtlyanythillg, I know, so WI!'lIltl him k«p Iht full idffllity of his O'Ird 10 himself "Ld's I/(g"", will, Charlie. Thm! <m! emly four po5$il1ililits, so watrh tr'"fully for Chllrllt's 'Itlli' - his hidden ,igna/$-I/$ J ask him aboul hill CII,d. CJu,rI",Il~SwtT '110' tach limt, aruJ Iry 10 dose wi/houl giving any/hiltg 1IWCiY, 1/$ If 101 of wry obstmilll foJks IIrt W/llchiltg you. Ito audiencel Thlit'S calltd 'Illming up Ihe pressure'. Agllin, Chllrl~, 'no' /0 mtry I/lUSlion. Is you, O'Ird a I?d amt? ['no' ] 15 your card II black rnrd? ['no'] [to a\ldience[ Whal S/ly you? How maMY beliroc Charlit haSIf rtd (ard? ]show OfhaMds] Haw malty thl"k in black? {show of Millis} IlIgm; [as appropria te) I tMnk Charlie's holding If blllCk amt, 71ul1 would makt illl Spilde or a Club. Still simple 'no' QnswtTS, ChIlrlit. Is yo"r t:#rd II Spilrk? ['no'] Is your clUd ~ Club? ['no') How 111>0 .. 1 il? H()fQ "IIIIIY thillk OM""', hming Q SpcliU? [show of hands] A Clllb? [show of hands] I'm goillg 10 go wilh Spildt:S this i~. FOI'rtlli this li~, Chtz.rlie, ClJII you show UJ t1u fight ofSpiltks? [hot does sol Now, [to 3\1dience] how nwnyofyou got a,l_'0m! allSWtT l'ml'I.'C/? [show of hands) Sn? This Sluff rNlly work$. " The entertainer ft'po!alS this p rocedu re with Bob, wod:ing through pichJ.re vs. numbf!r rds, high "5. low values, then the individu~1 va lues, until Bob is asked to show everyone his Five of O ub$. Audience response is encouraged, and they are always asked, at the reveal of each card, "How mlfny of you gO/ lit ItII$/ O"t Rn5wtr corru/?", which Inva riably p rod uces a goodly show of hands. 131

"NI1/Q Am/y" !I,~ IuIrd emt. 1/,. 51ak", nre milch h,'gh(T; cm~ card Qut of Ih. mr,~inins fifty. O,..r CJlrd Inlce!, QI random from Q dtd: ,JlII.!fkd ... lind OJ! ... by Anctyl A"d I .. 's tllf" " lOre Ihl",~lntd IhQn I!1iCT nol 10 S'''' Qnythlns QWIIy. \'1.'_ prt!ty nI"ch"" I",possill/e lISle QI this poin' . So I dlMIttI. 'MIlk wt Wl'rt QltlIlyz.lns Bob Qnd CIHlrl~, ud A"dy', SIlQrd WI>S %wt,. bit, I WOIS lOll/chinS his m>dions lIS wtll. So I fori prelty crJnfidmt $lnS Andy 10 slKnO us his ... T1rr« ojH_f$r [he does sol The eflterlairu.>r thanks his particip;mts. retuming them to their seats, perhaps pn?senting the pack of cards to Andy 18 a souvenir of the occasion. Methodology The deck u stacked, using a sequential method". The shuffles an:- false". If you remain somewhat baffled, it's likely because you are unfamiliar with a clever stratagem fitst revt'aled in the 1970s by Ron Woki"', who di$COYl!red that it is ~ry to know tho.> compl~ identity of. card in order to determine its position in a sequential slack.. In the OAO Stack.. for exampll!, if you know only the WI/Ul! 01 one card, and the 1"111 01 the precWing cud, you have sufficient data to detmn ~ the full identity 01 both cards (plus.. of OOUfSl1, neighbouring ooesJ". ' ). J _ ........ _ .... "'~""",," , .. ;sy J<co..w"",,,j " • • r;, S"Hi .. '" f.JP Ki"l' ."",k ........ Tht ...... ipon" ... ;,. .. .....",,.,... ... '" p ,he 11.<'< J, ........ td , ,t>J ,I>< <If«o_ - ,..... ................ ..&rx...,. """"& , ... ....,. "'Ii~ <» "'~ ,hat. ,"" DtlO ~~. ~. io ,8 "",",,,, fit lot 0hio- %. , ......... , ...... _.dod D .. C.Im,' .u...I« ... , ..... 0...","'0.1 SI.uII! ,' .,~ ;II"",.",,, """...-", .. fWdo_ .. """ ... ~ ... ",,~ IDI t91Z _ ,"""",, .. """ U .s.A • ..... 10. r •• Glm Iodirw.- ,Iuo ..... t>IO.n......, _ .. ...,......, ................ ".h ployms ",<do. ...4 ,"" 1..--r ko.d ~ rillk ......... 101_ 11001; _h .. of <hi., boo, , v<>< -r ... .,.,.. ;., ,"" .. 01 ...... II< \nupII:II< 01 <>«111"'11' dtc ..... l1/li, .... Mt. ond ........ "'b - • ..t, ..-.k.< ... ~ _ '"" • "'~Icd .. mnk. 1ht ........... <""""'I "''''1''''''"''' .. ...,)J,;. _""'" ~'. W< to ..... ,...,_, riIIk""'IA< " ,....""'''"'>01;,,*. n. M,. IX"ohI, • """,iu. ,.,ro. .... . """ <100 .... "'" ~tIi. n . t ... .." .,,,'" i. """om",,"'~ """""I"'" ~'U G.""" ,,,,,lor' "",' h 0>0« .. ,,~,fon.~td (.od "'",,",I ,ppo-ol<h TAl ......, in h" <II"" '(~ M, G,I""o~. f", .. C,m/ cAlft.p~, nl,,,,'I«" 1't=. l~ , pp. ~3-S9. 1Iu, ",;m., 01 ... ~ ,.,,,. ~"'. <>1' <1';", "'", 'r. ,,,. .11«, ..... r..,. """mod ;n !O< ....... ,.n,.' 1.0, ....... ,,'" ..".. [."doledl • .,.. ""btnhrd .. ·\.'oc.oIcWm" ill ....... 'o;/';v,,', C<Mlr<..J. .... 1bt J._ Ri<. 1oW __ 0....(1-1", ..... 0< 132 1_.1tI(ID/. pp 168S-t60!9,

A Worked-Ollt Example99 Consider the cards u:;:W in the foregoing plot description: Churi .. , W<' know, is holding an Eight. Sob, whose ca rd pl'l'O!des Charlic'~ in the t~ k. has a Oub. As Charlic'$ card is .. ven, its suit is the same colOlJt Il$ Sob's, making it B Spad .. : the Eight of Spades. Rob's aub card ha~ a suit-o.d" of three, 50 its value must ~ ttm-.e It'SoS than Charlie's Eight: the Five of aubs. And y's Ci'lrd precedes Bob's odd Oub, so its suit is one less, making it a Heart (suU-ordu two). The vatue of Andy'~ cud, then, is two less than Bob's Five: the Three of HM rts. This reads a bit oomp1ic~ted when expounded in such a detailed fashion, bu t once you have gained some familiulty with the stack, it will all ~m painfully obvious. Really. And the p~ ta ti onal structure provide, YQU with plenty Qf time to -'Ort everything QUI. Performance Points Although it'$certainl y notessential, I prefer to usemale participants for this plot,. partil;l,llarly fQr the role Qf Andy" . Men a"" -'OfIU'what motl: likely to be familiar with playing cards. and I am also trying to portray I (very}slightly advetsarial n;olationship with Andy, which is mort.' appropriate with a male. When garnering participants, I try to filJ the HAndy" role with someone who is particularly convinced 01 his Hpokcr lac:e H abilities.. But not too much of a Hhard case" (i.e., one who might give mt' trou!;>]t' on stage). As with uny routint' of this ty~, the main conrern ist'nsuring that the cards are managed as you inslnlct"·. The best way to ensure that the deck is not dropped is to have a second t>oxed /stacked pack at the ready. okerF~c:e· falls very mud!. in the ~cks smaU, plays bigH category of efferu.,. <'5I;entiaJly 61ling a room with nO m()n! than I deck of playing cams, and invoking Iotsoi audience engagement As such. it's a useful Hicebreakt'r" ea rly in a program. And it's uncannily dea..'Pth·e; I have known it to baffle some very knowledgeable people, who were unaware of Ron Wohl's clever insight. <>9. ~ .... "'rt' '~"m'" ,h .... of ,f., n.~0 ) <xk tou. R..., ),>10""," f... <hlof",j • .k1~h,r..1 f"'"" of LnJ""'" '0 hctp ro .... "n f"""il" "" w .. h .h<i, .own ;,It-.... ...." w'" ...... ki I>< ,!<>n, .n,h ... ",t<!<, ,,01 J'><iog,ty I'<,,,.;'w<! ... n. """"I, ~< k fo< )'>U lor"" 'Ill-;'" P"II to"'" I."" r- """1:' J-* of "":lot ,~"". « ... ,.;,..u, 1M f"I"t,. "" ... 1-,... IWo ... p." ""..n, 1"'''1.'' ,""-fo. _ So "7 _,. • .mri,.." .... , ,.. .. ",""- PIt .. .0-_,. ,hi •• f.1'*" • L""'r! 133

134 PokerP ay (A Simple Stack, Substantiating Suggestion) PID' ow IIIQ"Y Poker pla~5 do W('.' hatJC! hm /tmighl? [show of hands I And hew mtmJl of you Itavo:, Q/ somt point Qr anotker in Q gomt, found yoursel1l<'S thinking something li~, 'S_II of Hemts ... S~!I/!n of Hearls , .. pltrDU ... $rom of HtlIrls'? Prtl/y CJ:)mmon, I gufS5, if no/ wry reliable: it's hard /0 dwngc 1M p/gy of ,,"'IS iust /Jy wishing. Bul what about hypnosis? lNhal 000111 using hypn05is to infiumrx, no/lht cards l/um~Jut$, bul/he players making I~ cJwias? J don 't meIIn SVI'IIga/i mind-clouding and al/ OUlI; I'm talking Qbout llu skil1td use ofvuN/ Iwd non-vtrbal suggestion /0 uffod 1M ou/rome of a game of dumC't. ·Sir, )iOIllook lika bwwlt:dg(tlblt ard player. [choosing someone who raised his hand earlier] PI~ j<>i n me Mrt, and I'll giw you Q dtimet to win some mo,,"'!. [as he makes his way to the stage, <,>ntertainer shuffles a pack of playing cards, and then removes the top ten cards] I hllV(' hm: 1m playing cards, exactly mough for two hands of Poker. 1 also have tm dollars [showing an appropria tebanknote) thai I'm willing 10 bd on II hand of Poker wilh you. Nol a 101 ... this suggestion stuff doesn'l alwllYS "",rk ... bul I hopt tnough 10 buy your interest for Q ftw mlnut~, especially bm/ust you dDn'/ rom lIud /0 millch my ~t,lnl! you 'll still gel tht I(n dollars if you choose th( win ning htmd. HNow I Q~ Q big .wvanlage in this gamt, [said while carefully looking over the packet of cards) b«a~ 1.bIow the Idm/llies of l/test pIlrticular cards, lind you MM't. S!J I'm going 10 milk things fiJirer by offrring you on roen bigg!!" /ldvanlage: yOIl getla cJwost tvtry single card that will go illto both of our tumds! I'm going to try hartl/a infiutnct IhosaJlOirts, bul ali 1M i1«isians will be yours. rll;r meugh! [he agrees] Thrn It/'s begill. HWe'lI start by having yo~ stled our resptcli~ holt cards, one for ellch of us. [entertainer deals first two cards, face down, side-by-side) You ~I to choose which olle starts off your hIInd, lind which is mine. [he does so, and one ca rd is positioned to begin the participant's hand, one the entertainer'51 T/lke If pro: al your holt C/lrd. [both view hole cards) Now, wtb-egin Ihedm/. And again, you makealllhtelroicts. [entertainer deals two cards, face down. Side by side) C~ tilher card for your

ha~d. [he does; cmcrrainer deals two more cards in the salT\(' fashion] Hut, I'll mllb i, more ill'trtSling; lu , " tilhtr ('!I.d wtr. [he t\lms one card (:laY the Queen of Sp~desJ over] Knowi"g IItt (!lrd dooll" alWll)'S htlp. A Qu~n 1$ uswallycOJ1Suurtd a pretty good amt, bul maybt '101 if you haw IKI olhtr Qwun~, 0' 5p<1d~. 8ul yc .. d«Uk; do yow ""IMI l/uz/ OIrd, 0' this unknown onc? (he ~dds his dloscn c~rd to his hand] ·ut's dlOOM II OINt for my /uJ"d. [entertainer deals two more cards in the sa""" fashion] OK. your dtci$io"; wltidl o~ got5 ill MY luzmn· These Mtions are repealed, on ce ~gain al10wins the participant to tum up one card before choosing the card to be .ddPd to the entertainer's hand. Two more cards get de..lt. and one is chosen for the participant's hand. Then two more. with one d>O$<'1\ for the enleminer's hand.ln.1I of this, there ismru;lderab~ opportunity for patter in k~p;ng with the ~5uggestion· premise, depending on thEparticular cards revealed. ·W. s«m to br dow" to tilt jintl/lwo C/lrd5, A.nd just Ii« with nJf:ry o/Mr OIrd, you mtly tllke Iht CMd of your ,hota. 8tfon doing so, though./ _'II you 10 looJc at the ha"d yow haw d!osffl so for. /n~ ,ht Cflrds, a"d thillk abolll IItt tind of Polar halld Ihty mab. (he does S(JJ Now, IIIke a loot al bolh of Iht n!mailling CArd,. (he does] Don O~ of Ihost amts btnq;1 yow, halld nuJrt: Ihan Ihrolhrr? (he indicates that this isindeed thecaseJ GTtaI; add lhal c/lrd 10 your hand, arut giw mt tht olill, Ollt. ·So, Ihis is your jilUl/ hand, with I!"!!try single ('!In! chen" by you. 1$ il II haM l/uzt you normally would bt willing 10 btl em 7 [yes!] You may l1~ th ~ btl ifYl1ll'd likt. (said with an evil smile] ·OK. you sl'(iw us yours, .. (pa rticipant displays his hand ; he has (say) Ihree Queens and two Sevens] A.folllrou~, 11'1 actllt~1 halld by any mtl/Sun!1 Hard 10 ~at, in /del, IIn/w yo~ have four of a kind, 0, a slraight fIu$h. But tt>ery ~;~gl~ C/lrd in my hand WIlS ,hostn by you. Wtll, / glltsS iI's tim. lo,nrxv you mi"t ... ~ [entertainer d isplays a straight flush in Spades) llIe p!'eSenlation as described above is ferr a close-up or modestsized audience, whet\' regul.r-sited cards could be used. But the plot can be presented to larger groups, using jumbo cards. And .llhough it may well be unnecessary, it on be t\'peated (MDouble or nothingr) If desired. with a different outcome. Methodology: Introduction Given the complete ~bsencfl of any manipulation on the part of the entertaine~ il should come AS no surprise that this plot uses a pt\'lnanged set of CitrdJ; in floCt, in the inilial p.1rt of the routine, the 135

136 entertainer i5 completely upfront about the facl that the cards are known. although the fact that th~y a~ also pmma"ged is hidden via a false shuffle'" (specifically, it is emphasized th.t the entertainer knows the cards, which gives him an ~dvantage; it is not mentioned tholt he knows the onfn, though this will be apparent to anyone thinking about the plot later-thegoal is not 10 keep Ih .. f;}(1 a ~cret, but rather to avoid c .. llin!': attention to the notion of ~ord~ ). What may come as IIl(lrl! of a revelation ill the ract that one ,imple setup permits the full range of options I " ggested by the plot description: from a lMChanical perspective, the plot is completely self-worldng. lt'sdifficult to concei ve that such a free range of options, with the participant-as claimed- literally choosing every single card ror both hands, can rewlt in a preordalned outcome! 'The secret lies in the fact that although the partidpant is allowed a con'pletely free choice of cards, he is not given the choice of any card for any hand: the dealing procedure, in conjunction with the stad". c~r1y ensure; tholt, whenever a choice is offered, it does "CIt ",alleT .midi card/lit pt"ticipllnl cItoos4 You can imagine how delighted I was when I first worked this out"', but-u isoften thecaSll.'-I was eventually reminded yet again th.at tktft is little new under the sun. The inherent concept date back to Bill Simon'"' (in 1964), was further exploited by Karl Fulves''', and saw print in an almost identical construction to my own by nO 1l'SS than pastPboord luminaries John Rannon and Dave Solomon''', though theirs is a particularly NmagicaY presentation, explained in a limited ra5h.ion, and lacks the repeatability and flexibility of the version dcscribf:d he~. A look al the underlying mathematics was offered by Colm Mulc .. hy, in his column'" for Th~ MQlitmultiOl£ MsocIQtion of Anu-riCtl. Bero~ g~g into the details of how to select cards ror different 101 ~11_. ",<10,_ ~ ... Q ,* ..,_ '" dod.los "",", I"nio,"", ... """.".,.nd "'" <bow< ~ 1"_ obi. IIIl. Ilo. .",,', Fnoo. q ............. """"b hot d..mc.J ... _ ..... Io,ouI . kw ,.,... .".-, .... ~ pobI;~ '. hi>~"~. 10-1., 5"'b ..... , So..., 111641. 1'1'- ~I . 1-10..,. I"", ... l.!ln ..,-d_ ~ .. -0. . .1 II< 1>ud.· I_ .......... "", ... os ,,,-< Qoo« .. ) I. h .. I~ ...... "I'_. 19(7). "'", 4~ 'S3 IU.l. _ ."" Moo ... l .... f"*<;...,-.• \'_Ir -0.,." Ih ~ w,..oJ- .,'P< '" ,Ik.. •. GO" I:>< bond I" ,t.. M.~ 1'161 ..... of /1", IIIltb,", I/,_ I'r .. "",. Nil, ""'. 1" I(H, ·It.: s.:.t.:.m.",IIIo"""" ,!f.,.,. ,,,,I.W .,'" _. ,.(I'ok«, .. old<, I" -""'" Il.m", •• DtA. M" "" • ..., t<"J'IK..,.. :toIH). pp. 1~~I 97, lin , .... 1,,, """" •• • iI<, ~,-d M.,.i<>n M.t",,, i" 1oIN,K; ~t.,."'" IA"", .. I I".I?), 9<V 76. 10'. M"k"'1' ,,,, "",no 'Cud ("...I .. " , ..... ,.,J (ill ""'~ !OO(,~ " ...... !'" of ..... , lit .... >«1 - MOl Si_· • .Iot,,) . ...... l'rindpl<"

outcomes, you might want to try this yourself, using the specific setup that produ<:<Xl the result in the foregoing plot description. Arrange the following ten cards, in order from top to bottom (fare): [f you now work your way through the above script, performing the actions suggested, you will find tha t the two hands tha t result are efft'(tively the same as described. You may tum up different cards than our hypothetical participant, and make different choi~s, but the results will be equivalent in all essential ways. There's one important element that is not included in thedescriplion: on all but the first and final choices, only one card is added to a hand, the non-chosen card being returned to the boltom of the packet. I encourage you to try it on~ before returning to this expLanation: you'll amaze yourself! Methodology: The Structure It's possible, of course, simply to use the stack as listed above-without comprehending how it works-in order to ae<:omplish this small miracle. If you wish to repea t th" plot, though, or devise different outcomes to your own liking, you'll need II deeper understanding of the mffhanisms at work. n.... ten-card stack is actua1ly partitioned into three distinct segments. From the bottom (face), they are: a group of four cards intended for the entertainer's hand, a second group of four for the participant's. and II pairof cards tha t canend up in either hand. Thus: Z cards .. fo r e ith er hand , cards . ,,, participant' s h~Od , ca r dS for .. o tertain .. r ', hand The card orderings within..nch >tgmtnt are irrelevanl. Because we can't control which of the two cards in the top segment will end up in the entertainer's hand, both of them must be able to complete the hand. One example of a hand that permits this is the straight flush. Consider the following sequence: 137

138 If we use the first and final cards of this sequence for ~ top qment, we are assured of our straight Rush. whkheV('r C<1rd ends up In the hand. lbt participant, na turally, receives !heother card, 5(l the I1(>xt task is 10 devise a S«Qtld hand thaI would also benefit from eilher <;;Ird of ~ top segment. For our example, an u Cf'llent choice is the followi ng: By themselves, these cards ronsliture two pairs, and either card from the top wgment of the stack will tum th~ into a full houS(', a very s!n)TIg hand, beatable only by four a! a kind and a straight nush. It's not quite this simple, howewr. one additional ronsideration must be lUi'll inlo;tCCOl.lnt. When the$<! cards are stKktd as described. and the first eight h;iw been d istributed according to the procedure ~bed un~ -Effect"", the paItidpant will ~ holding one card from the top segment and Ih_of'u uris from the middle SO!gment (the -participant's hand"); the entertilintr will ha~ the other card from the top segment and Ihrft"of 1M rHd5 from the bottom segment (the "entertainer's hand"). The final c:h.l1enge, then, is to ensure that, when the participant chooses between the last two cards, he selt<:1S the rorred one (i.e., the remaining card from the "participant's hand"). In our example, only one of the final two cards will beller that hand (it will do so dnomJtically)' ;md this is the card that he is instructed to ~hoose''''. Specifically, he wiD either ha~ two pair (o.-n$ and Sevens), Ihree Queens. or three So!vens. and (of the final two cards) one option advances the hand to a full house, while the other d~ not improve the hand al all. Methodology: AiJdnssing Inconsistencies "There are two (slight, but neo::essary) departures from -normaln beNviour in the sele<:tion process, both of which I <lm carefu l to il;gui~. The first is UlI.t the card-c:hOO5ing prot:ess 15 AOt a consIstent one. 106. A .. ft\c"ndy OI"'Y 1"";';'£""' <.In '"""-.... ,h .. ""', ... Or s',,,,~ ''8 lIIua.,..~,nd .1100.1"5 ,h ........... - <.0«1 (iii< """Iho,...;I1 ..,.lm~ h~ bndJ " ,I" .. ,d. C;""" ",,,,,,,,hl< I" ., ~ ... ""' .... "It1~ ..... ;. ""'" ..... Io.ly. but b< ''''' 10 .. ..I ,!.t <On ........ -1I<r<""'S ,flo [!lea" t... •• "PI;",.,] _ .. _

In all eight casn,. the putidpant is p~ted with two card5. ln two ill$lan~ though, he choasesone card for each hand, whereas in the remaining til<. he chooses a card for one hand only. ilIld the Il'jected card ;s returned to the (bottom of the) p.icket. FOl1unatl'ly, these inconsistent selectiot\ p~ures come at the ~nning and end, and are thus easily disgui!ed. In the fi~t aose, mention ill made of a "hole card", which poker players know is treated d ifferently as a matt..,r of course. In the 9O!«ln<i case, there are only two cards le ft in pl~y, so it's impossible to return the last one to the (now none~istent) packet ilIlyWay. Mort' of a concern is distracting attention from the fact that. following each of the midd le si ~ selections, Ihe non-chosen card is returned to the packet. I do this by casually placing the packet atop the rejected card (having returned lhe latter to the face-down position, if nec'e$$8ryl, while instructing the participant on what to do with the ~ltJC!nl card (Le .• add it to his or my hand). ... !be!«Ond departure from the norm is that the middle We choices are not made in strict alternating sequence. After the hole card is chosen. the sequence goes: second parricip.int card. Ih int parliripGnl ami, sewnd entertainer c.mI. third enlclRi,,"Cfml. fourth puticipant card. fourth enlel1l1iner card. I obfuscate thi, situation by offering_ for the two italicized steps-to let tlw pal1idp.int view either of the two cards before making his selection decision.. Methodology: Presentation Considerations Although it would be simple enough to adjust the card denominations in the abo~ example to enable the possibility of I tOyll flush, I prefer not to do this,. as I think it makes the plot a Uttle too pedect~ for the mentalist (though a magiciilll migh t prefer thisapp~ l, suggesting ifo~. Given \hilt this i5 a fOr«: (of sorts), it's also possible to l ugment the plot by includ ing a predictionol theOUirQrT>t, such a5,. "I predict that you will choose a ~ry respectable full house (Queens and Sevens),. but tha t I will belt you with a !l.trilighl flush in Spadeso.~ Again, t01. If ooI-S ",~;.,. wt, U.., ~mbo co ..... ' h< P"'"" "'"" t.. boo"" kr, "'"8 on ,to. <>bit. "u-.., ,h.,"..koI, r",m ;" ,he ,,,,,at f.un .. ". fo.r N<h ,,< ~ ... d", J>'<""".;o.,. """_ ,I>. "'P"''' =w.oo 1 .. 101 ,I,.... up. bodo ~;"5- Ii>. ,I..- 1""0:1.,.,,, '6 m ..... hi. ,,1«,;0 ... u • ....w con;!, ""n .. " .",IiT .. ,,,,.td '" 'h, (bo,,,,,,, or h<ll"" <! " ...,..;,..!, ,his I, f..:ill,,«d i f,,", p><,,", ~ po,;,,,. «1 ........ """5 ,t.. tabl. .". . ,m..Ii , .",,,,,,. Hili. N"" ,..,. I,',,,.,. ro-iblt '" ..... dia. """" Ao:>h 1""1t.<)",, I",~"'" "'_ OU!. """" • • .lout.!. .. .....,...,. .. 1 ... ) . ...... portidp.<"' ", ... a.-., ,'" An • h" I.oIt <><d. 139

140 though, I consider this unwise for " mentalist. l iso bei:aus.e it implies (in fact, ("iel)' .screams) that the outOXlIlW! is l bit too preord~jnc . Bec.u5e this is Largely a self-working plot, it is tempting to 11'1 the participant handle the cards, doing all the de~li g. in order to prove that no sleig:ht-of-hmd if; involved (not tha t I would <!Ver use tha t lecminologyl. But this is offse t by I~ fad th.1t it now becomes nKe$S8ry to instruct him dearly to return the non...:ho$en card of most p.ail'$ to the boUom of the packet, and I preftr nO' to draw Ih is to anyone's anennon. n.e cards are also fer from unanticipated mixings wlum in my hands; I just handle them gingerly, at the fingertips. to alleviate potential <:Qn(I!trI$ about chea ting. When choosing cards to make up the two hsnds, be awa re of the need to show variation In the example, for instance, there is intentionally. prepondeunceof red cards in the middle segment, to offset all the black Spild6 in the other two. Resetting the stKk for walk-around presentations is simple and straightforward. if you remember (or mark) the two cuds tha t belong on lop of the initial Jl<ICket. Simply atract those two (there will be one card_which was inifually the hole card_in ea<:h hand), then plOOI th. 1ftt 01 the pMticipant's h""<l on !heir "'~, followed by t .... R'mainderol theentertainer'shand (again, 1'K,1l tha t the ordmngs of cards within the th"", ~gmentsare unimportant). Mr. Solomon, in hi, version of this plot"", suggests tha t it's a good idea to have available one of those NRank of Ha nds" tards that often rome included with playing ca rd packs, as a referencc for those who might be unfamiliar with Poker rule,,;. J concur.

Methodology: Repeating the Effect Should you have no inteIl'S! in n:>peatmg this plol, or modifying the ~ults "", it's unnecessary to n:oad further. Any I'I!pttitiOn5, ho ev~ demand diffenmt outcomes. endings other tIuon the fuU houso.> vs. '!'digh! nush~ that results from the original In order 10 manage this, we need some sort of mode! tha i offers a deeper understanding of how to construd hands that appropriately match the three-segment arrangement. A Model for Desiglling PourPlay Hands Here is 11 simple visual template tha t simplifies hand analysis and design: •• ,... .., Po ker PliI y Te mpl ate f or Hand Design .. c. ... The rour cards in the top row an' intended for the p .. rticipant's hand. those in the bottom row for the entertainer's. The two cards in the IlCalnd row_ which,. comprising the top segment, are the "hole" cards-can end u p tn either hand (one in each). Within any row (each of which represents a stack segment), the uro orde r is irrelevant W the result. Depending on the final sele.:tion by the participant,. anyone card from the top (participant's) row could be swapped with any one card from the bottom (<.>ntertainer's) row. This ("In be managed by the hand design. either preventing il (by inducing the participant to tab the right~ CIIrd} Or m~king it irrelevant (with tith<.'rstate being a win for the entertainer). Selecting Hallds 10 Fit the Model In order to fi t this model we need to devise six-card groupings that (an be divid ed to supply both ~ho e" cards, such lhat either will produce the deSired result. This can be easily Icoomplished with a 1(1\1 ( )( ""',," i.., ..... pk • ..,.~, ~ ..... I"" ,~ .. IJ"" ,,,", <..,do u. ,~ "",k ,. p""'~« J;ri"«<nt full ~~"' ...... ,,1JIt, ~~"""'" 14

142 variety of standard Poker Nods,. sud! .H: Fo u r of a Ki nd - ? I KKK K I ? " 11 ",, .. - AIAA9919 FI"h - . 1 •••• 1. S'co"h' - 314 5 6 7 18 TwoP", - ? I JJIOIO I ? The hand described above unde.r HEffect" uses a fun house for the participant's hand, and B straight flush (a combination of straight and flush) for the m tertainer's.1n this elISe, the fInal selection is managed by directing the particip.onttotake thecerd that betters his ha nd. The model for thk particular setup looks like this: f ltu, ..... . , ..... 7t " .... 7. 7+ Q+ U' ..., Full House vs, o. Stra ight Flush 8. 9. m. J. --' Another Example: Straight V5. Four oj a Kil,d .. , Sogmo., Bo t tom Sogmon ' Hen!', an illustrative rrnxlel for this pair of hands, whim brings an additional feature to bear (the suits In" immaterial to the outcome here. but chosen to provide ~ good assortment): f it ... H •• d hle"o ' •• H •• , . , ..... 9+ ", L.... m+ J. o. K • !lht vs. Fou r of a I( l n d 4. 4. 4. 4+ ..., A. --' ,., 5.,,,, •• , Uttom Se gm o n'

Working through the plot with this set of card5 will p roduce the following d istribu tion immediately prior to the participant's final selection: • Theentertainer will have ~ Fours (plus ti~ thegt or , . as a hole card). • 1bc pa rticipant will M \"e a straight that is missing one card. The final choice offered to the participant will be betw~ a card (lit , J4 . g_ , Of K. ) tha t fills his stra ight and .. Four, which does not. If he chooses t1~ Mcorre.;;tH card, the final rtS\Ilt will b<!o his straight (Nine through King... or Ten through Ace) lOSing to the entertainer's four of a kind (Fours). Should the participant choe>se-foI any ~ason- t to fill his straight, and take the random Four instead, the final result will be his no-pair hand losing to theentertaint'r's three 01 a lUnd (Fo\lrs). So here we have an example where it does not matter which of the final two cards is~n by the participant even a blatant attempt to spoil the ~ing will fai]. Yet Ana/her Example: Flush tIS. Full Hou~ Here's an iII\lstrative model for this pair of hands: " r" J. Q. 3. 2. ..., K. Flush vs. a. Fu ll House , ', 4 KoI. K+ a+ a", --' Worlting through the plot with this card packet wiU produce the following d istribution inunediately prior to the pa rticipant's final seltrtion: • The entertainer will have two pair, or th~ of I I<.ind (including either the K. or 8_ ali a hole card). • The participant will have a flush in Hearts that is missing one card. The final choice offered to the participant will be between a card (J_, 11 _ , , or 2_ ) that completes his flush and one (I. , P; t , 8t , or No) that does nOl.lfhe chooses the ~co=ct" card, the final 1"C5\1lt will 143

be his l-teart flush losing'" to tht: entertainer's full houlie (Kings and Eights). Should the p.ilrlicipa!lt t1ect not to improve hiS hand. a!ld take the non.Htart card instead. his final result wiLl be a flO<pair hand, I05i!l8 tothetn~rtainer 5 !wopair or Ihreeof a kind. en~ once agai", this is an vcample where it is not ~ry to ensul"(' that the> participant uses common _ in choosing his final cud. One More Example: Two Pair vs. Three of a Kind Hcl"('·s an illustrative model for this pair of hands: INQrking through the plot with this card sequence will result in the fol1owing distribution immediately prior to the participant's final sele<:tion: " r" 9. 9. 3+ 3. .., m. Two Pa ir vs. J+ Three of a Kind •. , 4 a u it 7 • ..... • Th@ en~rt~iner will have eith~r two or three AC'l'5 (aod either the ... or Jt as a hole card). • TIle pa rticipant will have eitht:r a pair of Nine$ or a pair of Threes. n.e final choi ce offered to the participant will be between a card , g. , ' . , or , . ) that improves his hand 10 two pair (Nines and Threes) and one ( .... , ' . , H , or 7. ) tha t does not. 1£ he chooses the ~t"Orrect" uid, the final result will be his two pair losing to the I!ntertainet""s threeof a kind (Aces). Shoold the participant 13 ke the Min<:orrect~ card instead, his liml result will be. single pair (01 Nines or 1brees~ losing'" to the enttrtlliner'$ Wet of a kind or pair (of Aces. In both cases), another fail-safe ending. 110. I ... d" r.. ,h;, '. ~<>rk. .... mY ...... '&1 "htn ""'s.I .. , ..... "',.It '0 ,n", .. ,"" ;, ~ 110< .-.a.1< &,.. ,h< f"" "'lptn' '0 <ornpol<t< ~j, ~"'" ""h. c • ..! from , .... """n;"",·, h",.J ( .. itlt f",,,, , •• holr oa..!. r..,..+o"" ... ., ...• t..""'r """""''"''). II , . In -. ro, ,hI> .. work ..... _ ... ,"'" of tho ",,,",,,. ,..', ,ripl<, .,,'" "" F""'" , .... 144 olo.r of ,010<. of,...., P",it:ip.nt., run.

A Final ugg tion Should you elect to play any additional rounds beyond the first, it is convet'\icnt to ha,~ the subsequent ten-card setup{s) rf' dy and wa iting at the lop of those cards rf'mainin3 in the ~k.. All four hands analy-.ted ht-re could ~ played from the same ~ck. if desired, though I do not think that this plot 5hould be repeated more than once f(){ the same ~udien~. 145

An Immoderate Deception (All Unfathomable ~Pick Q Ctlrd" Rou line) Progenitor This is esscnti~n)' a different presentation for Harvey Scrg's The Ilt!m~culQt t Pm;qlilm plot"', and differs only slightly from his methodology. The staging.. though. is more in keeping with my perfotming $Iyle. As I believe tha I IIII!fItalists should tread carefully when using playing cards in their perf ~ I boldly introduce this as -. card trick"1 Prtsenfotwn Wbtn IIIIQS png..1 had Orttcfl~ unda wlw:ldo Clml lrid's. He IDIIS good. lind //!qugh he Inn! /0 IfIJ(:/r lilt 50rnt of Ihan. I "nor, /rlld much IIpl iluiU for Ilrat sort rJ/ thing. E""n /lll/lly, thol/gII, I disrooo"td somtthing I did haw "n aptitudtfo., S(! wa~fi,," l1y "bit to dOli "aml lrict" Ihlll po/td my Undt Hmry! Ltl me show ytJu, wirh the hdp of ,/rrt( assistants. Mo enjoys CIlrd SlImts r [Entertainer !ieleo:t:s three volunteers. brings them to the stage, and introduces them to the audien~; we will call them Tom, Dick,. and Harry.) WI'11 UR" dtd: of standard pl"y;ng '~rds, IUdI mind, though lIS you'll s«, fllllf ITtJlly dotSll'/ mil/In hrrr. IEntertainer removes a pack from iI standard card case,. shuffles the cards several times. ilnd shows their faces to one or mo~ of the participanl$.] Tom, yoo'rt: f~mjliQr with Iht ""1IIfl of flIIlw ,,,r-ds' I'm g<Jing /0 p/Mt Ilttm fda down Mrt: 1111 1M t.IIlt, "lid giw YOU!OJllt imm.dimts in just" IIIOmtlll. IEntt'llliner rums nrds f~ down. gives tht"m a OOI.lple of additional shuffles and final cut, tht'n \fIbles the dt'Ck.] /'1/ $lnJld wtll aWlly, $0 !f<.lu - ""d Uncle Henry-will know I aln'l ~ using mnrW am1s. Qnd,,~ ",ell of my as.;$tQJI/s /0 /If r"rrful nol /0 Id anyone- nltn uell othtr-s« tnt fronts Or backs of tht cani, k ing chasell. Now tach of!f<.lll pltll~, Mginning wilh Tom, CII/ off n partien of the CIIrds, ! Entertainer pantomimes the desired actions.] !ooJr CIIrtfolly at tht c.lrd

you hll~('II1 111-1l1li/ is, Ih( wI/om OI,d of you, pacUl-lind Ihffl hold the pM/((1 10 you. chtsl so Ihlll nobody 01" _ I"" omu. Tom, you'll nud to ~ CS1.rrft<1 no/ to ('III offloo w.~ 0 portion, 115 wlh Did orul H""Y 1uI~ /0 follow you. [rarticipanls ~ Cilrds.1 Clnlrly /'m nol using ",romp/ices ~ lIS Iitt ClI.dlllwiloWt to -:Jr. ptr5l1n dtJItnd on IhoM prruiouslychostn. Noont hIlS strown hi$ $C/«tf<i I3lrd 10 anyont, SO nobody Irnr could ~ signaling mt in llny way. Nul will you ol/ligm liull I'w dont nothing 10 inJllltnCf! YO'" $C1«lions1 [Entertainer tums Iw~y. 1 Ncrw tol'" of YO" tola Ont 1IISIIoot OIl YO'" e-.d to fix il in you, mind, Ihffl mix you, J1I'cket 10 lhe point whm not even you know when thuII.d is. Tam. ~'II begin with YO " " . I'd lila you 10 deal your cruds down onio tht tablt into Ihm sq>aralt pilts_ III this point, nobody- including you - hDW$ where you, chasm CQrd lies. NrnD pick up ellch pile ill tufll, lind look through it for you, Cilrd.1j you find your e-.d, plaa it fo~ up on Iht top of 1M pildul; othl'rWi~, cIroost at1y card you wish and pilla thaI ant faa up. Whtn you'rr finiWd. ant rif IItt /hnJt !li$iblt Cilrd$ will bc yours. bul yo'" dullltngt is to k«p a sll"llighl pohT faa and nol signm to mt whidl Ont i/ is. My job is tofind YOW" CIIrd. [Entenainer turns away from the participant while he complies, then turns back and unerringly identifies the selected Cilrd.1 Ptrhtqn this WIIlIn't 5ufficinrl/y imprasivt. Tom did II good jo/> of hiding his QIIOto"ons, builifttr 1111, r did ham II an~in-Ih~ challet of iust g"($Sing ro.rrclly. $(lId', mllru il flWTl' diffinlil. Did:, lWuld you plta5t dtlll your C1/,ds il1to eml!! IWO pilts? Now QS I .tIgoin t~'" my back, look Ihrough the two pUts 10 find th~ CII,d you selected ea,lier; and p/Qet ilfQet down on lop ofil$ packel, thell placr the other packtl Oll/op of it, buryillg you, C1/rd onre agllill. [Participant oomplies, and (>n~ again entertainer identifies the selected card.) F", you, Hllrry, I'd lila to mau Ihuh.tllltngt Ihe ",ost diffiOlIt of 0/1. [)(J lilt SOImt IU Did, tin/illg tlttauds inlo hw pi/a, bul if1Sltfid ofusing YOUt p<lCul, Ust 1M (JIrtJs mtloillillg on 1M 14b/t. You, mostn orrd isn1 rom "'10118 I~, ofrourst. so lIS J I"rll my!wk, /'d /itt you "'simply imagine findillg it, mow tht imaginary Cl/fd 101M lop of tht pill, ond COlltt it with the lImlli"ing pilt. N(JW m"(1~ aU I~ e-rds from the tablt, .nul j"$1 think of you. $llec/ion. [For tlw final time, entertainer correctly identifies the selected ard.1 &51 ill ptIlfZ. U"dt Hrnry! 147

Performance . To an audience, all of the above appears unfathomable. Yet Its ~xeeution. rouldn' t be simpler (providing thai you have mll.stered a m('mOriud deck methodology") . The initial shuffles and cui olN fa . 1 prefer to ~ a good ~rfIand al~ shuflk"', as it is less sugg~tive of proficiency with card handling. Finally, liable the cards using a casua l and " IS(! very naturalistic false cui.'" To identify the cards, it is sufficienllo know their original positions in the deck. ~ are easily determined by rounting the cards while the participants deal their cut-off padets into smaller pjJe~. The fact thai they have been shuffli!d by this time is immaterial; It is only their WIM';~ th.1 matters. If the first participant dea ls out i~teen cards, his is the 16· aId in the stack. If the second deals out twelve cards, his i5 the 28010 card (16 + 12). (f the third deals out len cards (recall that this is the mII.fning card. stod<:. not the packet he cut off). his is the 42-' card (52 - 10). Postscript This routine bears a modest resemblalloC(" to Cody Fisher's"f '11tteeCatd Mentalism" , which also employs ... stacked deck,. but ~ a ...... rking system in ~ of counting the dealt cards. As such, that plot is Ies impossible seeming. is ~ prone to di$ccvery, and obviously dQe!;n't rule 0\11 the use of a marked deck (as it requires one). It does play faster. however, which will be 0/ benclil in SoOme venues, and certainly warrants consulta tion for additio",,1 presentational ideas. Finally, if you use ~idS'1Id 3.0 to perform An Immodml/e DtcqtIW"_ you will be able to exploit the first suggestion in the-rhree Useful TIps"' section, by c:ounting in batches of thirteen, and keeping track of the CUrTmt Bank number (for the third p~fti cipant, remember to count brorchruds from ~n). In this way, no subtraction is nee "ry to dettnnine. particul~r card: y<:>u will Instantly know its I ll. 8o<h QooId&.oo; ~ j)I ..... Q Suock . .. id<>I to. .,..., >nd -* ~ """""'" , .... - ......... _ "'" <led. -" ~ be .so.. . ld.o... '-' .. FuIr .....-im! ,t.. _1e. 110. ron on ocIoo<.!< of [MIl Go.", • . , ~ ~ ..... SIIo1fk·. d<xrib.d .Dd ill"", • ....! '" "" 1'J'l1 ~ (" ......... ,." USA. _ 2Q. liS J"", IOn- Con.,j...,. M<I s."."".., <Ics>'" ( .... . ";1, ..... " Jl ·Wo" niP"ll F.b< C",·. """,,It>.d II'" ilI.M ..... .. F,," (;.,c,", 1?11 booJ<. MiU.I .. DoJJ., (",", s..-.. W }-~ • . I, i .. l><I .. pl.l..-..! in IIobe<KI{:.;ol,l,;",( •• , .... Co//q<, \oW_I (lml. f".Itt 17 ... "An Opek . l Fob. c..., from ,t.. H.nd". I\,y 1""";'"" ".."..,., ., u,.1.q """ of,.,. .... h, fofd;""",. I~ - Ih......c.nl ~k"uIIwn· "" Ix: IWIId ;., Cody T. F ...... 1Irfo'"'" _", (ZOO I). pp. 148 IS-I'.

value, and almost., quickly its SUil. Even if your mental conversions aIe /I bit slow, you'll have plenty of time to perfonn them while the participants follow your instructions. And should they mess up your d~ions. bit. you'l1stil1 know wha t cards they selected, as most of wtUI! they are doing is merely window d ressing.l'he only important part ill tbilt Ihty look at (and remember) the OOllcm canis of their cutoff portions of the original stack. 149

150 Major Arcanum (An Unusually Clean Tarot Card Prediction) Affribution This plot is I~ rsely original with me, but WI5 inspired bY-----ilnd contains the germ of an idea from---an ESP card prediction once marketed by Bob Mason. EmpLoying the Major ArcaM (only) from a regu lar Tirol pack and a pair of (preferably) casino-quality dice, it is intended 15 a "squeaky-clean" prediction for intima le presentations. As Experumced in Performance (In this Silmple scrip .. !he entertainer Sptlk$ to a particular partidp;tnt-Muy-;\lS well asany assembled aud~ J Is ,Itt wnitoO'Se ~I w5 lIS nmdom II1Id disinlurstd lIS 501M would Iurw 1/5 kl~7 O r Qrt ~liU/t-Imdostood foTas at worI;. drIIwing alllntclions in OIiT 1i1l<tS ,/r", oft~ ItlIlniJtsllhtmsdws Q5 'rQ"~ "lTd IOOIIdrous eo,'"cidtn(t5? [Entertainer spreadscards face up on tab\(>; they are seen to be well mbr:ed.] TIInl! 1m r"rol am/s, 1M Majer ..4.TCllII" ... p!1!«rful, rnyslffious symlloJ! from I/~ /m<r/ttnlh om/wry Ih", 5~k 10 many ptoplt today. IEntertainer introduces dice.] These art c1ia, "n aPt" mort uncient too/ ftYr invoking rUM dum aPtnts. Butlhes{! ~ modern ClIsillo diet, IIsi",!!! twentyfirs! erlltllry t ngiMffl'f"8 pm:isirm /0 tllSunt • ctrt ll ly of " mdolll"tsS IIl1moWII 10 1M tllriy .ld!emists ' nd sooth5ilytrs, Choou Dllt of l/tnt diet, lind WI! will list il 10 stIIrd! for IIII!: ""MlIHltdnns 11101 is wtr-pntStnl for IN« who choost to:;nt il. IParticipant chooses I d ie.) Btfort "'" "'ti", ,\Wry./n me ~aactlywhll l we will do. You will roll this d~ Ih_ !imn, cm!fing thT« IIlIm/lm Ih'l "' lit of 115 /wY COIiId pouil1ly pttdid illllilllAlla. Wt will add thast lIumbtrs to prodlla olorg"' /(nlll. Thol lottl will sptrify 0 .... oj Ihtst nrot (n dJ, ~ idmtity also lfnjld IlOl pos.sibly ~ brow" 10 'ny of lIS pnstrl l, And Iht conltllts of !his _ltd t llwlopr, which "",'U oprll <if/mlIQrd, will ,,/Its! '0 ,"" sigllifiamct of wll41tvt1 Iulpptll5. IEntertainer gathers Tarot pack together again, making room to cast the die; the cards n>main face up.) So IIOW, if YO" will , .. 1/ Ihra, all lIuspiciolis beginning! "'nd agaill, •• II ir. 1I',oIJur appant"lly n/lldDm OCC'IITmlU. "'lid filllllly .. . a 1<00, for " 100tzi of t/notn. New Mary, 1 Si>id umn WO! ~n thai you tOflllld CrlSI tilt d~ !hntt limn, bUll don" wall! YOII