Ian Rowland - Sense of Touch.pdf - Ian Rowland - mcgregor2001

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Contents

Part 1: Seeing with fingertips

Effect

Background

Development aims

The Method

Method part (a): Preparation

Method part (b): Detection

Method part (c): Disguising the detection

Presentation and routine

Additional throw-offs

Afterword on the SWIFT Challenge

Extending the SOT system

Detecting suit and value

Sherwood's Two-Phase Routine

Diminishing the challenge element

Leoni's Touch

Part 2: Related effects

Interlude: Of marks and methods

SOT with Blank Cards

Hot Or Not

A Touch of Graphometry

Lover Hater

SOT with Printed Cards

Tel-ESP-athy

Self-ESPression

Tarot Touches

SOT with custom-made card designs

Chromatouch

Bonus Idea from Phanthomas: A Softer Touch

Final notes

Using someone else's deck or cards

Patter

Protecting the Secret

A note about originality

Credits

Appendix

Sales Boost Section

Sense of Touch

Part 1: Seeing with fingertips

Effect

Sense of Touch is a versatile principle, rather than one particular effect. To

illustrate its potential, I will first of all describe a 'test conditions' routine which I

have performed for many years, called the SWIFT Challenge ('SWIFT' = Seeing

With Finger Tips).

The performer offers to demonstrate 'seeing' with his fingertips, and gives a pack

of cards to a spectator. While the performer looks away, the spectator chooses a

handful of red and black cards and mixes them. The performer takes back this face

down packet of cards. By lightly feeling the face of each card with his fingertips, he

is able to tell whether it is red or black.

The performer senses that the spectators are not very impressed. They may

suspect the cards are marked on the back or that other 'trick' methods are in use.

The performer offers to repeat the demonstration under any conditions the

spectators want to impose. He does so and is still 100% successful.

The performer is also able to differentiate high cards from low, or odd from even, or

court cards from spot cards, using his fingertips to 'see' or 'sense' these

differences.

The spectators may impose any controls or conditions they want. yet the performer

is always successful (or as successful as he wants to be). The effect can be

repeated as often as required. Everything - including the performer's hands and the

cards - can be examined at any time. The performer can even give the cards away

at the end.

In Part One of this booklet, I will explain the SWIFT Challenge routine in detail.

Later, in Part Two, I will describe related effects which use the Sense of Touch

principle but do not use playing cards.

Please read Part One before reading Part Two.

Background

I have long been fascinated by psychic and paranormal claims. Occasionally,

writers covering these subjects describe an impressive 'psychic' feat and then add

a comment to the effect that 'there was no possibility of trickery'. In some cases,

the writer lacks any specialized knowledge of deception, but is assuming that

shrewd and intelligent observation alone is sufficient to preclude trickery. This is

untrue.

Skeptics sometimes illustrate this point by demonstrating a particularly baffling

magic trick. Opponents tend to dismiss such demonstrations, arguing that magic

tricks only work when the magician controls the procedures, whereas 'genuine'

psychics subject themselves to independent controls. This is not entirely accurate,

but the point about magic tricks has some validity. In virtually all magic tricks, the

magician has to control the conditions and procedures involved - at least at critical

points.

Fascinated by this theme, I wanted to devise a close-up 'psychic-flavored' illusion

where the spectators could impose any controls or conditions they want. Sense of

Touch is the result. It is not perfect, but it will do until something better comes

along,

Development aims

I set myself the following aims:

1. the effect is easy to follow and pseudo-psychic in nature

2. it can be repeated as often as desired, under close scrutiny

3. the spectators can impose any conditions or controls they wish

4. everything can be examined, at any time, and to any extent

5. no stooges or confederates

6. it is easily carried around, and always ready to perform

7. it is low-tech with nothing to go wrong

Once I had hatched the Sense of Touch principle, I discovered it has many uses

beyond debates about psychics. It provides the basis for some first-rate and very

entertaining Mentalism. Please guard the secret well. and resist the urge to share it

with every other deceiver you know.

The Method

Sense of Touch is a very subtle marking system. It does not rely on visual marks,

but on marks you can detect by sense of touch (hence the name). These marks

allow you to tell red cards from black by touch alone. You can use the same

marking method to differentiate high from low values, or to tell even values from

odd (we will look at further possibilities later).

The marking system is very well hidden. I suppose it would be wrong to say I can

guarantee that no spectator will ever detect the secret. What I can say is that over

the past twelve years I have performed Sense of Touch countless times to lay

audiences, mentalists, magicians, specialist card-workers, scientists, reporters and

fairly drunk people at parties. None has ever discovered the secret. In fact, the

secret is so well-hidden that - in my experience - even if people suspect the cards

are marked, and want to examine them closely for precisely this reason, they still

never discover the marking system.

When you have marked a deck using Sense of Touch, you can use it for any other

purpose including other card tricks (although it will be best to perform the other

tricks after Sense of Touch, rather than before).

To explain how it works, 1 will assume for the time being that you are going to

perform the SWIFT Challenge effect described earlier. In Part 2 of this booklet we

will look at other possibilities, including routines for those of you who would rather

saw your right leg off than use playing cards.

I will explain the method in three parts:

(a) preparation: how to mark the cards you are going to use

(b) detection: how to detect the marks using a secret move

Method part (a): Preparation

You will need:

· a brand new deck of cards

· some spare, unwanted cards to practice on

· a clean white wax candle

· a clean dry cloth

Ideally, choose a brand of cards that will be well-known and easily recognized by

your spectators. Let me emphasize this point. Usually when I'm performing

close-up magic I use 'Bicycle' playing cards, like countless other magicians.

However, here in the UK these cards are not on general sale and hence are

unfamiliar to most lay audiences. Therefore when I perform Sense of Touch I tend

to use 'Waddingtons No. 1' cards which, in an impressive testament to the

marketing skills of Waddingtons Games, are sold on every high street in the land.

Whichever cards you use, they should be of reasonable quality but cheap enough

to give away.

The cards must be brand new. This is partly because new cards will give the best

and most reliable results. Another reason is that during the SWIFT Challenge you

encourage spectators to examine the cards for any kind of 'secret marks'. Cards

pick up all sorts of marks and blemishes through normal wear and tear, and

spectators tend to seize upon these as somehow being part of the secret. It can be

very difficult to persuade them that this is not the case!

The candle must be white wax. It should be about half an inch in diameter and

fairly hard at room temperature. Beeswax is too soft.

Sorry to sound like your mother, but before you start you should wash and dry your

hands thoroughly.

Marking the first practice card

To learn the marking method, first try it out on some spare cards or unwanted

jokers from another deck.

Take your first practice card. Hold it face down, lengthways, as shown. Your

fingers should extend almost to the far short edge of the card, but stop a little way

short. You must not buckle or bend the card at any time. At the end of the

marking process, you still want the card to look like it is brand-new.

Touch the short edge of the card to the surface of the candle, about one third of

the way along the card's short edge (measuring from the corner nearest you). I'll

call this the 'one third point'.

Apply just enough pressure to register the card against the candle's surface. Do

not apply so much pressure that you bend or buckle the card. Now move the card

away from you at a moderate pace, applying even pressure, so that you deposit a

thin layer of wax along the card's edge from the 'one third point' to the corner.

(Note that the arrow in the photo is showing the card moving, not the candle).

The wax only extends from the corner about one third of the way along the short

edge, as indicated by the black line.

You do not want any wax on the card's face or back. The wax is only applied to

the card's edge.

To check this, scrape along the card near the waxed edge with your left thumbnail

on top (the card's back) and left forefinger nail underneath (the card's face).

Scrape away any wax which may have ended up on the face or back of the card.

Do not pinch the card too tightly when you do this - remember the card must still

look brand-new once you have finished. Study the card closely to make sure you

have removed any stray wax on the face or back.

Turn the card end for end, still face

down. so that you can repeat the

identical procedure along the other

short edge. Mark it with the wax, then

make sure no wax has adhered to the

card's face or back.

Congratulations - you have marked

your f i rst card! This first one probably

took a while. Do not worry. Once you

get the hang of the procedure, it will

not seem quite so time-intensive.

Having had lots of practice, I can

usually mark up all 26 red cards in

about 20 minutes.

You may want to prepare several

practice cards before proceeding to

the next page.

Method part (b): Detection

Make sure both your hands are clean and dry, especially the pads of the

fingertips. Hold your marked card face down in your right hand (obviously you can

adjust these instructions to suit your own handedness and preferences).

Place the pad of your left forefinger tip against the short edge of the card,

approximately half-way along, as shown. There is no wax at this point.

Apply just enough pressure to keep the pad of your fingertip in contact with the

card's edge. Now slide your finger smoothly along the card's edge, all the way to

the near corner. I will call this action the 'detection move'. The action should be a

single smooth stroke, taking less than a second. You are trying to detect the

difference as your finger passes from the non-waxy section to the waxy section.

You should detect a distinct difference in friction. This difference tells you the card

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