Download or read book Mysteries and Secrets Revealed written by Loren Pankratz and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2021-04-01 with total page 481 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mysteries and Secrets Revealed uncovers the reality behind mysteries of nature and secrets of frauds that eluded common understanding. The journey begins in the ancient Greek city of Delphi, where priests claimed the gift of a priceless gold lion was an acknowledgement of their clairvoyant powers. But their concocted story concealed an embarrassing blunder. Those sufficiently savvy to catch the lie became aware of even deeper problems. Author Loren Pankratz then guides us through the conflicts of Renaissance scholars, including Galileo who explained things in ways that enraged philosophers and infuriated priests. Galileo's methods of investigation were perpetuated by the meticulous work of the Academy of Experiment, and Bernard Fontenelle's enthralling dialogue enabled common people to accept life in the rearranged sun-centered universe. Clairvoyants in a mesmeric trance claimed they could visit distant planets and endure brutal surgical procedures. If any of this was real, how was it possible? One nineteenth century mesmeric savant, Alexis Didier, was so convincing that someone claimed no case of clairvoyance could be made for anyone if his accomplishments were not real. This unchallenged declaration is now unraveled here for the first time through information gleaned from uncommon documents and rare antiquarian pamphlets. The surprising manifestations of modern spiritualism quickly escalated into a psychic arms race that included mysterious tipping and turning of tables. Scientist Michael Faraday devised ingenious experiments to show how subtle muscle reactions outside of awareness created these manifestations. On the other hand, explanations for table levitations and mysterious writing on slates could only be solved by individuals with acute observational skills and acquainted with the methods of trickery. Each story in Mysteries and SecretsRevealed captures the tension of conflict, the thrill of discovery, and the strategies of science that unmasked frauds, fakes, false belief, and the enigmas of our natural world.

Download or read book A Place of Darkness written by Kendall R. Phillips and published by University of Texas Press. This book was released on 2018-03-01 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “An illuminating history . . . it’s clear that the right story can still terrify us; A Place of Darkness is a primer on how the movies learned to do it.” —NPR Horror is one of the most enduringly popular genres in cinema. The term “horror film” was coined in 1931 between the premiere of Dracula and the release of Frankenstein, but monsters, ghosts, demons, and supernatural and horrific themes have been popular with American audiences since the emergence of novelty cinematographic attractions in the late 1890s. A Place of Darkness illuminates the prehistory of the horror genre by tracing the way horrific elements and stories were portrayed in films prior to the introduction of the term “horror film.” Using a rhetorical approach that examines not only early films but also the promotional materials for them and critical responses to them, Kendall R. Phillips argues that the portrayal of horrific elements was enmeshed in broader social tensions around the emergence of American identity and, in turn, American cinema. He shows how early cinema linked monsters, ghosts, witches, and magicians with Old World superstitions and beliefs, in contrast to an American way of thinking that was pragmatic, reasonable, scientific, and progressive. Throughout the teens and twenties, Phillips finds, supernatural elements were almost always explained away as some hysterical mistake, humorous prank, or nefarious plot. The Great Depression of the 1930s, however, constituted a substantial upheaval in the system of American certainty and opened a space for the reemergence of Old-World gothic within American popular discourse in the form of the horror genre, which has terrified and thrilled fans ever since. “[A] fascinating read.” —Sublime Horror

Download or read book Magic written by and published by . This book was released on 1908 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Circus and Allied Arts written by Raymond Toole-Stott and published by . This book was released on 1962 with total page 420 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Western Manuscripts and Miniatures written by Sotheby's (Firm) and published by . This book was released on 1985 with total page 550 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

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Download or read book Shorttitlecatalogu written by Harry Price and published by Da Capo Press. This book was released on 1982-05-21 with total page 560 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book A Bibliography of Firework Books written by Chris Philip and published by . This book was released on 1985 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over 600 entries representing more than 250 authors.

Download or read book Catalog of the Theatre and Drama Collections Theatre Collection books on the theatre 9 v written by New York Public Library. Research Libraries and published by . This book was released on 1967 with total page 770 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Catalogues of Sales written by Sotheby's (Firm) and published by . This book was released on 1991-06-06 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Short Title Catalogue of Works on Physical Research Spiritualism Magic Psychology Legerdemain and Other Methods of Deception Charlatanism Witchcraft and Technical Works for the Scientific Investigation of Alleged Abnormal Phenomena from Circa 1450 A D to 1929 A D written by London (England) University. Council for Physical investigation Library and published by . This book was released on 1929 with total page 454 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Dictionary Catalog of the Research Libraries of the New York Public Library 1911 1971 written by New York Public Library. Research Libraries and published by . This book was released on 1979 with total page 604 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The National Union Catalog Pre 1956 Imprints written by Library of Congress and published by . This book was released on 1980 with total page 626 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

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Download or read book Sophie s World written by Jostein Gaarder and published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. This book was released on 2007-03-20 with total page 599 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A page-turning novel that is also an exploration of the great philosophical concepts of Western thought, Jostein Gaarder's Sophie's World has fired the imagination of readers all over the world, with more than twenty million copies in print. One day fourteen-year-old Sophie Amundsen comes home from school to find in her mailbox two notes, with one question on each: "Who are you?" and "Where does the world come from?" From that irresistible beginning, Sophie becomes obsessed with questions that take her far beyond what she knows of her Norwegian village. Through those letters, she enrolls in a kind of correspondence course, covering Socrates to Sartre, with a mysterious philosopher, while receiving letters addressed to another girl. Who is Hilde? And why does her mail keep turning up? To unravel this riddle, Sophie must use the philosophy she is learning—but the truth turns out to be far more complicated than she could have imagined.

Download or read book The Old and the New Magic written by Henry Ridgely Evans and published by . This book was released on 1906 with total page 422 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Magic Stage Illusions and Scientific Diversions Including Trick Photography written by Albert A. Hopkins and published by DigiCat. This book was released on 2022-09-16 with total page 509 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "Magic, Stage Illusions and Scientific Diversions, Including Trick Photography" by Albert A. Hopkins. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.