More Magic

Journal 4-6

More Magic

I. In my last journal I wanted to know more about the training/schooling that magicians recieve. After doing some research I found that there are both online courses (i.e. MagicianSchool.com) and magic schools (i.e. The Magic College) that can help an aspiring magician achieve a career in the field.

II. The schedule recently has been really crazy due to SOLs, and because of that, we havent had very many classes. Therefore, there isnt very much to talk about. We're still in the magic unit and we've watched a lot of interesting videos. Some have been about magicians and some about psychics. We've studied how the two fields of magic and psychology are related. We've uncovered many of the hidden secrets of individuals that claim to possess psychic powers. One man, James Randi, is a scientific skeptic and stage magician who challenges paranormal claims. We watched an interesting film that validates his claims. We also watched a film about alternative medicines.

James Randi - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n.d.). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved May 30, 2011, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Randi

I think this unit has been a lot of fun. It's been cool to have some of the secrets revealed to us. I think the most interesting part of this unit is the "psychic surgery". I have never seen anything like that before, and it's honestly believable until you see the secrets uncovered. I also thought the film about alternative medicines was extremely intriguing. I wasn't aware that people used bee stings as a form of therapy until now. It's unique how the "doctors" that issue these forms of healing legitimately believe in them. The bee lady was entirely convinced that bee stings were saving her life and the lives of her patients. I personally am not sure if I believe that voodoo and chanting and everything like that is actually effective.

Psychic Development - Mediumship course and Healing in the Philippines. (n.d.). Psychic Surgery Anatomy & Physiology, Body Massage, Oriental Diagnosis, Health supplies Reiki initiations. Retrieved May 30, 2011, from http://www.therapies.com/surgery/medium.htm

One thing that the alternative medicine video didn't ever show is the claims of the "doctors" that actually manipulate people into trusting them. What do those people say to convince their patients that they can heal them? Do they say they're possessed by a spirit? Do they say that they have special supernatural powers? I can't see myself every buying into something like that, so I'm interested to know what those chanters and psychic surgeons have to do to get people to believe them.

What Are The Conditions That Can Be Treated With Bee Venom Therapy?. (n.d.). Alternative Medicine and Alternative Health. Retrieved May 30, 2011, from http://www.altmedicinezone.com/alternative-treatment/what-are-the-conditions-that-can-be-treated-with-bee-venom-therapy/

III. For next week's journal I want to know what are some other forms of alternative medicine. The video presented us with a breif overview but I'm curious to know what some other specific examples are besides bee stings.

MaGiC!

Journal 4-5

MaGiC!

I. In last week's journal I said I wanted to know more about outsourcing. When I was doing research I stumbled upon this video that I found to be extremely interesting. It talks about how individual Ameican employees are beginning to outsource their own jobs to people of developing nations because it allows them to spend more time on their personal desires. It also helps the people of the developing nations to support their families and themselves. Here's the video:

source:

AmericanMale1953. " YouTube - More American Workers Outsourcing Own Jobs Overseas ." YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. . N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2011. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYaZ57Bn4pQ.

II. Last week we watched the third of our "30 Days" episodes which was on immigration. I wasn't here to see that due to a death in the family but I talked to some classmates to get the general gist of it. It seems like the legal process of obtaining citizenship is rather tedious. The director of the film seemed to believe that illegal immigration was unacceptable because he himself was an immigrant who had to go through the taxing citizenship process himself. Later in the week we started the magic unit. We watched a bunch of short clips from Penn and Teller. Then we watched a TED Talk from a Swedish magician.

" Google Image Result for http://www.jaha.org/edu/discovery_center/push-pull/img/Ellis01.jpg." Google. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2011. <http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.jaha.org/edu/discovery_center/push-pull/img/Ellis01.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.jaha.org/edu/discovery_center/push-pull/index.html&usg=__ON9uXDz2nfPXmu5H_ahnvv6AgF8=&h=407&w=500&sz=96&hl=en&start=8&zoom=1&itbs=1>.

I don't have much of an opinion on the immigration video since I didn't get to see it, but from what I've heard it was pretty interesting. I think I'm in agreement with the director in feeling that there shouldn't be illegal immigration and as tedious as the citizenship process may be, it is entirely necessary. I loved Penn and Teller's magic. I think it's a cool touch that Teller never talks. It adds something interesting to their show. It was also pretty neat to learn that there are seven principles of magic: palm, ditch, steal, load, simulation, misdirection, and switch. I had never heard of these before now.

 

" Google Image Result for http://www.magicbob2000.com/resources/Hocus%20plate%20small0003_edited-5.jpg." Google. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2011. http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.magicbob2000.com/resources/Hocus%2520plate%2520small0003_edited-5.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.magicbob2000.com/&usg=__t4R9N_dATjoAePmIr7Q3vHU4ldc=&h=399&w=395&sz=99&hl=en&start=1&zoom=1&itbs=1&tbnid=ONGXMdLxo_Tf.

I have to wonder when we watch all this magic stuff...what kind of training goes into a show like that? I mean, how much time do magicians like Penn and Teller have to spend mastering those tricks? That's seriously some mind blowing stuff. Even when they took the time to explain their tricks, I couldn't even begin to understand how they did it. Even once it's clear that there is logical planning behind each magic trick, it still must take a ton of skill to be able to carry it out. I would love to know how much time is spent training for those things.


III. For next week's blog I want to research magic schools so that I can get a better understanding for the training that comes with magic tricks. There must be some kind of classes the magicians take in order to learn what they know.

"30 Days" Analysis

Journal 4-4


"30 Days" Analysis


I. In the last journal I said that I wanted to know more about B.Z. Goldberg, the director of the film "Promises". After doing some research I found that:
-Was born in Boston but grew up in Israel
-Attended New York University Film School
-Returned to Jerusalem in 1987 when the Intifada broke out to produce TV news
-Starting in 1992 he worked for a number of US based consulting firms
- He is fluent in Hebrew and conversant in Arabic
-Worked for the Israeli army, the Toyota group (Japan) AT&T, MIT, Columbia University, The Interfaith Committee on the Middle East, and Solidarity (Poland).

Source:

The Promises Film Project - The Filmmakers. (n.d.). The Promises Film Project. Retrieved May 8, 2011, from http://www.promisesproject.org/credits.html

 

 

Center for International and Regional Studies - Documentary Film - Promises. (n.d.). Center for International and Regional Studies - Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS). Retrieved May 8, 2011, from http://cirs.georgetown.edu/105461.html

 

 

 

II. This past week in class I can only remember doing one thing, which is watching two different "30 Days" segments. The first one involved a man named Dave living in a Muslim community. He left behind his wife and his home to go to Michigan and live with a host family. He dressed the same way they did, ate the same way they did, and basically mirrored their lives for 30 days. Dave met with various teachers to help him learn Arabic and understand the muslim faith. He found it difficult to conform to the lifestyle, because it conflicted uncomfortably with his own. The second of the "30 Days" episodes involved a man whose name I do not remember. This man had a job that was outsourced to people in India. So, he decided to travel to India in an attempt to get his job back. He is also living with a host family and attempting to conform to their lifestyle. He ended up realizing that the people over there are much more in need of his old job than he was.

 

I think that the concept Morgan Spurlock has come up with here is really cool. There's no better way to understand something "different" than to actually experience it in person. By taking on the challenge of exploring a lifestyle other than their own, these people are setting themselves up for new horizons. I think that Dave was rather stubborn and wasn't as open to the Muslim way of life as he should have been. He was opinionated and argumentative throughout his entire stay in the Michigan Muslim community. The other guy, however, was very open-minded and understanding of the unique way of life in India.The other guy ended up gaining a whole lot more because of his willingness to cooperate. I think it's really powerful that he was made aware of how difficult life is for many of the people in India. He was almost grateful that his job was outsourced by the end of the film. I think that is a really great thing for Americans who watch the "30 Days" segment to be made aware of.

 

 

Oleander - - الدفلة: 30 Days, as a Muslim in America. (n.d.). Oleander - - الدفلة. Retrieved May 8, 2011, from http://oleander.blogspot.com/2005/07/30-days-as-muslim-in-america.html

 

 

I think a valuable point to be made is that Americans are closed-minded in the way we see things. Like I just said, the guy who was willing to cooperate in an unfamiliar setting had a much better experience than the guy who was stubborn and unwilling to adapt. The stubborn guy (Dave) kinf of represents typical Americans I think. We think we know everything there is to know. It doesn't matter if we've never seen it, heard it, witnessed it, lived it...we just believe what we want and that's what we preach. Perhaps if we were all presented with an opportunity like that of the men in the "30 Days" episodes, we'd be much more understanding and cooperative with the rest of the world. We tend to be spoiled and conceited and look down upon other countries. We don't bother to try and understand how they work, we just see what we want to see and make judgements.

 

 

III. For next week's journal I would like to know some statistics for outsourcing. I'm aware that it is a reality, but I don't honestly know too much about it. Which kinds of jobs are being outsourced? How many? What are the biggest effects of it?