Mathematical Amnesia by Mike Kempner

A little math brain teaser turned into a mental effect ...

Would you like to be able to make someone (even a Harvard graduate!) Forget basic math? I'm talking math that even an elementary school student could do, like 545 + 5? Well, this manuscript is perfect to seemingly induce your spectator with mathematical amnesia.

After you "hypnotize " your spectator, he or she will forget basic math functions. For example, he or she will not even be able to figure out what 545 + 5 equals. We all know, it equals 550 , but the spectator WILL be stumped. Your audience (you can perform this one-on-one if you want to make this more of an intimate performance) will burst into laughter, as the spectator has seemingly lost cognitive ability. When you explain the answer, the spectator I will say "I can not believe I could not figure that out, yes that does equal 550! ". That will be their genuinely honest reaction. No stooges (of any type) at all . This is 100% effective on a genuine spectator (yes, you can do this on your friends and family, too), and the best part? This is all completely impromptu!

1st edition 2014, 2 pages.
word count: 770 which is equivalent to 3 standard pages of text