Spoon bending
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Spoon bending is the deformation of objects, especially metal cutlery, apparently either without physical force, or with less force than normally necessary.
During the 1970s, there were reports of people who claimed to have the ability to cause such events. The most notable was Uri Geller, a former stage magician who demonstrated his alleged psychic powers by bending metal spoons (hence the popular name) as well as metal keys and several other objects and materials.
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[edit] Stage magic
Causing spoons, keys, and other items to appear to bend without any physical force is a common stage magic trick that has many variants. The result is a single bend or break, usually at the point where the object would be easiest to bend by hand. In one of the more elaborate demonstrations, magician Daniel Rotbardt bent a spoon in a 1971 filmed performance (called a "trance") that took nearly 2 hours. He used only one hand to hold the spoon, without using his thumb, and did not flick the spoon. In the last five minutes, the audience saw it bend slowly to about 90 degrees, and quickly bend back.
In most cases, the trick uses misdirection, a basic tool of the stage magician. The performer draws the audience's attention away from the spoon during the brief moment while he is actually bending it with his hands. The typical bend, where the bowl meets the handle, requires relatively little force. The magician then gradually reveals the bend.
Uri Geller, in one of his performances, combines suggestion and misdirection. He starts by rubbing a spoon at the neck, where it already has a curve by design. As he rubs it, he remarks that the spoon is starting to bend, causing people to notice the curve. As he stands up to display the spoon, his body moves enough that the audience does not notice him also bending the spoon with his hands. The audience believes that the additional bending is merely a continuation of the (nonexistent) bending he commented on before.[1]
Other methods use a metal spoon that has been prepared so that a simple flick will cause it to bend or break. This can be done, for instance, by repeatedly bending the spoon at the desired spot, until the metal cracks and weakens. If the spoon breaks, the magician holds together the two halves of the spoon as if it were unbroken, then slowly relaxes the grip, making the spoon appear to bend before splitting in two.
If a magician has control over the viewing angle, the trick can be done by using a spoon that is already bent at the start of the trick. The spoon is initially held with the bend along the viewing angle, making it invisible. The magician then turns the spoon slowly to reveal the bend.
[edit] Houck method
Another variant of spoon bending has been promoted since 1981 by engineer Jack Houck through "PK parties."[citation needed] Michael Crichton says he has attended one of these parties. According to his description, guests think about making silverware bend, then hold the silverware while they continue with the party. Later in the evening many guests notice (usually after some distraction, such as conversation) that the silverware has become surprisingly easy to bend, and they can twist it into arbitrary shapes with their hands before it returns to its usual strength.[2]
[edit] Symbolism
Due partly to the publicity surrounding Geller in the 1970s, spoon-bending has become a common visual symbol for paranormal ability. It appears in the Pokémon franchise, where creatures Kadabra and Alakazam carry spoons as proof of their psychic abilities. Another Pokémon character, Sabrina, discovered her psychic abilities as a child by inadvertently bending a spoon. In the 1999 film The Matrix, protagonist Neo watches a boy bend a spoon without any force. The boy cautions Neo that bending the spoon is impossible; he must "bend" his perception instead and realize that the spoon, like the rest of his world, does not really exist.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Larsen, Claus (October 2002). Uri Geller & Spoon Bending: How he really does it. SkepticReport. Retrieved on February 25, 2007.
- ^ Crichton, Michael (1988). Travels. ISBN 0-06-050905-8.
[edit] External links
- PK Parties: Jack Houck's official site.
- Fork-You.com: An description of the Houck bending technique, with video demonstration
- PK Silverware: Photographs of 15 pieces of silverware bent at a "PK Party."
- Parapsychologist Dean Radin on PK parties: Personal account and photograph of a spoon with the bowl bent
- Exerpt from Travels: Michael Crichton's account of attending a PK party.
- Follow-up comment from Michael Crichton: Crichton comments on the controversy over spoon bending
- Mass Spoon Bending in Australia: Video from Sydney Skeptics in the Pub where everyone is bending spoons.
