h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hi!

I'd like to hone my psychic skills here. Would someone like to volunteer so I can give them a reading?

Hmm, and what would, this involve?

You have a special creative talent. Not many people know about this talent you have because you’ve kept it mostly to yourself. You would like to develop this talent further in the future and hope to get some recognition for this talent.

There has been a car accident in the past few years that has upset you a lot.

You have been involved in a long distance relationship. The distance made it difficult to meet but you were determined to make it work.


Any good?

These are discussed in a very good book called 'Bizarre Beliefs'. (Out of print now but still available from libraries). They are called 'Barnum statements'. Most people given a 'reading' using these statements will think that the 'psychic' doing the reading is a real psychic as the statements are 'so accurate', but it doesn't take much common sense to realise that they can pretty much apply to anybody.

I've tried using various barnum statements in chat rooms before (the above and some that I've made up myself) and managed to achieve the 'oh my god how do you know that' response from some.

Do people think that the above BS's would have fooled them?

The other point of this thread is to ask people for more barnum statements. I would like to try them out in a chat room (I do tell people about the BS at the end, I'm not trying to pass myself off as Uri Geller).

Hmm, non of the statements seemed to apply to me really... 'cept perhaps teh car crash one, but I'd have to inturperate it as 'a few years' meaning a decade or more, and the car in question being an articulated lorry ... How about another comment something along the lines of 'You don't find your work entirely rewarding, and feel you are underestimated at your work.' or something along those lines? though I'm not in work, most people I know who are, have some level of hating their jobs...

Go on then, be psychic at me as well.

B

The above are the only three barnum statements I've got at the moment. I was hoping people would contribute more.

I don't suppose bricklaying means anything to you? Someone in the family is a bricklayer? Or you've been laying bricks lately? Ooh. Now I can see a cat etc etc.

A net pal of mine is very good at this. She described my bedroom very well - right down to the colour or the carpets, my dartboard and what was in the cupboard. She told me I had one book on my table and it was blue and about computers. Totally right! She also told me that I like to relax in my lunch break by going to the pond and watching the ducks. She told me there was a regular guy there who walks a dog. That was quite good, because when I saw the man with the dog I knew it was time to go back to work.

You do get people with genuine psychic ability too! ..though I'd agree there are a lot of frauds around.

i just knew you were going to say that

I think there are also frauds who don't realise they're frauds - they're just very good at reading body language and reading people.

Go on then

I don't know any bricklayers and I hate cats.

B

You're not one of those Catlayers we hear so much about?

Sounds pretty disgusting to me.

B

You need a good strong mortar