Avada Kedavra Abracadabra Sumant S. Dangi | Chemical | B.Tech. 2 For centuries, mankind has lived in awe of the unexplained — the field of hocus pocus, the world of magic. Magicians were treated as mystic creatures, possessing powers that no other mortals could ever understand, let alone acquire and wield. While some made objects bend, float, or disappear, others played with fire, saws, and bunnies. One thing was guaranteed — the onlookers were left clueless, but amused enough to return for additional doses. What we earthly creatures categorize as ‘supernatural’ is really just a result of our limited perspective and physical inability to comprehend the bigger picture. Almost all magic tricks hinge on a particular characteristic of the human brain. Our eyes constantly see so much happening in front of us that the brain filters out some of the visual information it receives. Whether it be in a magic trick or out in the streets, for the sake of maintaining some order, the eyes only focus on certain parts of the view before us. The rest is automatically ignored. This loophole is what magicians (and sometimes politicians) exploit routinely. Humans possess an innate desire to only believe what they see. Using canny sleight of hand techniques, skilled
magicians divert the audience’s attention to a misleading place, showing you only what they want you to see. For example, the onstage wizard displays an ordinary coin to the spectators — nothing fishy about it. He makes exaggerated gestures with his hands while chanting random spells and poof — the coin is gone. When the magician dramatically transfers the coin from one hand to the other, the attention shifts to the movement of the coin. Misdirection is the key here and hence; onlookers never notice that the coin actually stayed in the original hand and are perplexed. This sleight of hand is mastered by practice and must look natural enough to bamboozle audiences without raising suspicions. We don’t live in the medieval era of witchcraft, alchemy, and sorcery anymore. Nowadays, most unexplained phenomena that previously were quite conveniently shoved into the category of ‘magic’ have been demystified. The water in the ‘disappearing water trick’ never vanished; it changed into a gel after being absorbed by sodium polyacrylate. The card set on fire emerged unscathed because it was already doused in a water-alcohol mixture. Even seemingly impossible natural occurrences are just
based on science and perspectives. The scientists always spoil the fun, don’t they? It’s their job; don’t hold grudges. The eyes play tricks on our brains that are sometimes unnoticeable. Ignorance is bliss and until you know the truth, your perception will continue to fool you, and so will others who exploit that limited perception. Although watching magicians exercise their mystical powers on stage may be quite enjoyable, remember that these tricks may be dangerous if you happen to be dealing with fork-tongued friends. So, next time you hear someone say the cliché line: “Pick a card, any card”, play along (you don’t want to hurt the wizard’s feelings). Just sit there, beaming to yourself as you notice every crafty move, and bask in the glory of your genius.
Polarizing History Tanmay Dadhania | Comps | B.Tech. 1 How can one be sure that their opinions are of their own making? Intricate viewpoints and thought processes are forged and refined over the course of one’s life. A person assuming that they are in full authority over their opinions, would only be half right. While we do have command over processing information, we forget that we can’t choose all the information that we receive. The world is deadlocked in an intense ideological war right now. Young and impressionable minds are planted with seeds of propaganda, to make them the perfect puppets to partake in this massive war. For these reasons, governments and communities around the globe tweak history to suit their self-interests. By doing so, they can subtly alter the mindsets of
subsequent generations to come. A notable example of this, is the outright denial by the Japanese of the war crimes they perpetrated. The contents of their history textbooks are profoundly influenced by the government to minimize the magnitude of the war crimes. The heinous events of the “Rape of Nanjing” have been boiled down to a single line in their history books. Outright denial isn’t necessarily the only way to go about it. Hiding and obscuring certain parts of history can also get the job done. A survey in the UK found that 43% of people thought that the British Empire was a good thing. As our ignorance persists, bigotry catches up to us. Our point of view becomes dangerously linear and the past and the future start becoming eerily similar. The
simple mistakes that we can avoid as a society, get repeated all over again. Embracing our history is ultimately a liberating experience. The reason why Germans today are largely apologetic for their Nazi-era crimes is because they are taught their history in its most factual narrative. This helped them come to terms with the past, and it instilled a sense of remorse in them. Just like Thanos, history being warped is inevitable. Only in an idealistic world can we expect governments to always do the right thing. There exists some level of individualistic responsibility that lies within us. Rejecting everything being taught to us isn’t the smartest way of counteracting this. The occasional bout of self-introspection and dubiousness about new information, goes a long way in this grand scheme of things.
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