The Full Facts book of Cold Reading
by Ian Rowland · first published 2008
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I can really recommend Iran Rowland's book "The Full Facts Book of Cold Reading" to anyone who wishes to arm themselves against psychics and other charlatans. http://www.thecoldreadingbook.com/
on “The Cold Reading Technique (How to Read Minds Like a Stage Magician)” ↗…area of mentalism I don't perform but I have read plenty of theory. Your HD reading was probably based on Barnum statements/cold reading. If you're interested to learn more about this I'd suggest "The Full Facts Book of Cold Reading" by Ian Rowland. For a more fun exercise, get a reading at a medieval fair or from some "medium" (please don't pay a lot) and compare it to your HD reading.
on “Language is primarily a tool for communication rather than thought [pdf]” ↗…OP to say that polls get it right when everybody is getting it right, and when everybody isn't sure what's going to happen, polling accuracy is around 50/50. The best book to read about polling is The Full Facts Book of Cold Reading by Ian Rowland. It also tells you how to write defenses like this, which are part of the con. ----- edit: Section headings from "The Win-Win Game" from TFFBoCR, which teaches 10+1 ways how to make…
on “An election forecast that’s 50-50 is not “giving up”” ↗