Atheists used to deny the existence of magic as they believe that man couldn’t see non real things, but did science prove the existence of magic? ……
New scientific study
Scientists say they have pinpointed the brain region involved in a curious phenomenon called “change blindness”. Most of us know what it is like to look at something but fail to see the obvious, such as a traffic light turning green.
UK researchers at University College London, along with US colleagues from Princeton University, have located the brain’s parietal cortex as key.
There has been increasing evidence from brain scan studies to suggest that awareness of what we see is not only down to the part of the brain that processes visual information – the visual cortex – but also other brain regions.
Professor Nilli Lavie and colleagues at UCL focused on an area called the parietal cortex, which is involved with concentration.
Using a process called Trans cranial magnetic stimulation, which delivers currents to the brain; they were able to temporarily switch off the parietal cortex in nine healthy volunteers. When they did this, the volunteers failed to notice big changes in visual scenes, such as when one of four faces on a video screen was replaced by another face.
The exact critical spot in the parietal cortex lies just a few centimeters above and behind the right ear – the area many people scratch when concentration.
The researchers believe their findings explain change blindness, a phenomenon often exploited by magicians.
Magicians often exploit change blindness for their tricks
Professor Lavie said: “The finding that this region of the brain has these functions, concentration and visual awareness, explains why we can be so easily deceived by, say, a magicians’ trick.
“When we’re concentrating so hard on something that our processing capacity is at its limits, the parietal cortex is not available to pay attention to new things and even dramatic changes can go unnoticed.
“If you’re concentrating on what the magician’s left hand is doing, you won’t notice what the right hand is doing.” Said Lavie
Medical Research Council scientist Dr John Duncan said: “Doubtless, many other parts of the brain are involved.”
He said findings such as these might help shed light on medical conditions that can affect a person’s perception and attention.
For example, brain damage due to stroke can sometimes mean the individual will completely ignore one side of their body.
Scientists say don’t always believe what you see
Also, researchers at Ohio State University say that People can easily be swayed into believing that they have seen something they never actually did see.
According to a study, Participants looked at a series of slides portraying geometric shapes. They were later shown a second set of test slides – two of the test slides contained images from the original group of slides, two contained images that were obviously not part of the original set, and one slide contained the lure image – a shape very similar to all of those shown in the original slide set, but one that wasn’t actually part of the original set.
“False memories can be created using visual stimuli with minimal language input,” Beversdorf said. “The question now is whether this can be done entirely without the use of semantics.”
David Beversdorf professor of neurology at Ohio State
Participants correctly identified the shapes they had seen in the original slides 80 percent of the time. But more often than not – nearly 60 percent of the time – the subjects said that they had indeed seen the lure image in the original group of shapes, even though it hadn’t been there.
“This suggests that visual false memories can be induced pretty easily,” said David Beversdorf, the study’s lead author and an assistant professor of neurology at Ohio State University. “While using context helps us to remember things, it can also throw us off.”
Researchers know a good deal about the false memory effect as it applies to language.
“People are susceptible to verbal false memories, whether it’s something that was actually said or an object they have a mental description of,” Beversdorf said. “We wanted to know if the ability to induce false memories extends beyond the language system – if it also affects the visual system, even when the images aren’t easily verbalized. It appears that the ability to create false memories does extend beyond language.”
Scientists use the Functional magnetic resonance imaging device to observe the activities of the cerebral cortex during false memory activity as they discovered that some areas in brain became out of order when we concentrate on a specific image so that we can see unreal things and some events may happen while we don’t see. Here we can make a scientific explanation of how magic occurs.
The study included 23 young adults with no history of mental impairment. Participants were shown 24 sets of 12 slides. Each set of slides portrayed different geometric shapes, which varied in number, size, position, shape and color. After studying each group of slides, the participants were shown an additional five slides and asked if they had seen any of the shapes on these additional slides in the original set.
For example, participants were shown a set of 12 slides each showing yellow triangles. Each slide showed one, two or three large or small triangles; multiple triangles were arranged either vertically or horizontally. In this case, the lure slide – part of the five additional test slides – showed two small yellow triangles lined up horizontally below a large yellow triangle. But while it looked similar to slides in the original group, it wasn’t part of the initial set.
Participants accurately identified the images they had seen in the original set 80 percent of the time. They also correctly identified the images that obviously weren’t part of the original set of shapes more than 98 percent of the time. But they incorrectly said they had seen the lure images 60 percent of the time.
“False memories can be created using visual stimuli with minimal language input,” Beversdorf said. “The question now is whether this can be done entirely without the use of semantics.”
Brain’s electromagnetic waves affect computers
A team of US researchers has shown that controlling devices with the brain is a step closer. Four people, two of them partly paralyzed wheelchair users, successfully moved a computer cursor while wearing a cap with 64 electrodes.
The research has shown that monkeys can control a computer with electrodes implanted into their brain.
“The results show that people can learn to use scalp-recorded electroencephalogram rhythms to control rapid and accurate movement of a cursor in two directions,” said Jonathan Wolpaw and Dennis McFarlane.
The cursor movements were recorded: blue is slowest and red fastest
The research team, from New York State Department of Health and State University of New York in Albany, said the research was another step towards people controlling wheelchairs or other electronic devices by thought.
The four people faced a large video screen wearing a special cap which meant no surgery or implantation was needed.
During the experiment, Brain activity produces electrical signals that can be read by electrodes. Complex algorithms then translate those signals into instructions to direct the computer.
Researchers say that such brain activity does not require the use of any nerves or muscles, so people with stroke or spinal cord injuries could use the cap effectively.
“The impressive non-invasive multidimensional control achieved in the present study suggests that a non-invasive brain control interface could support clinically useful operation of a robotic arm, a motorized wheelchair or a neuro prosthesis,” said the researchers.
Scientific measures proved that human’s brain disseminate electromagnetic waves continually and it differs from time to time and from person to another and these waves affects other people (their brains and hearts)
This phenomenon can explain how the envy occurs.
The four volunteers also showed that they could get better at controlling the cursor the more times they tried.
Although the two partially-paralyzed people performed better overall, the researchers said this could be because their brains were more used to adapting or that they were simply more motivated.
Magic between Qur’an and science
When we read these studies we can see that brain can be swayed and also the eye can see things that didn’t happen and don’t see things happened which is exactly what is magic.
Qur’an gave us a precise explanation of magic as it is just a deception of the eye, Allah Almighty tells us in the story of Moses with the magicians of the pharaoh as He Almighty says: (They said: “O Musa (Moses)! Either you throw (first), or shall we have the (first) throw?”* He [Musa (Moses)] said: “Throw you (first).” So when they threw, they bewitched the eyes of the people, and struck terror into them, and they displayed a great magic.){Sûrat Al-A‘râf – The Heights (or The Walls with Elevations)-verse115-116}.
Also there is another kind of magic when magicians intend to separate between the spouses as He Almighty says: (They followed what the Shayâtîn (devils) gave out (falsely of the magic) in the lifetime of Sulaimân (Solomon). Sulaimân did not disbelieve, but the Shayâtîn (devils) disbelieved, teaching men magic and such things that came down at Babylon to the two angels, Hârût and Mârût, but neither of these two (angels) taught anyone (such things) till they had said, “We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us).” And from these (angels) people learn that by which they cause separation between man and his wife, but they could not thus harm anyone except by Allâh’s Leave. And they learn that which harms them and profits them not. And indeed they knew that the buyers of it (magic) would have no share in the Hereafter. And how bad indeed was that for which they sold their own selves, if they but knew){Sûrat AlBaqarah -The Cow-verse102 ]. This kind of magic is the most powerful kinds as the only successful treatment is to reading Qur’an and continuing prayer. Hence Allah Almighty tells the Satan the following: (Certainly, you shall have no authority over my slaves, except those who follow you of the Ghawin (Mushrikun and those who go astray, criminals, polytheists, and evil-doers, etc.).){Sûrat A-Hijr – The Rocky Tract –verse42}.
In the previous study we found that man can control things by the power of emitted electromagnetic waves. So, we see that it can be a good clarification of what is known by envy which may hurt others.
But the believer can protect himself from harmful waves by reading Qur’an especially the holly verse: ( but they could not thus harm anyone except by Allâh’s Leave){Sûrat Al-Baqarah – The Cow-verse102},when the believer read this verse with understanding its meaning it shall reprogram his brain which may protect him from any harmful waves.
Magic is a reality and many prophets were affected by magic and one of them is Moses, Allah Almighty says 🙁 They said (magicians):”O Musa (Moses)! Either you throw first or we be the first to throw?”* [Musa (Moses)] said: “Nay, throw you (first)!” Then behold, their ropes and their sticks, by their magic, appeared to him as though they moved fast.* So Musa (Moses) conceived a fear in himself.* we (Allah) said: “Fear not! Surely, you will have the upper hand.* “And throw that which is in your right hand! It will swallow up that which they have made. That which they have made is only a magician’s trick, and the magician will never be successful, no matter whatever amount (of skill) he may attain.* so the magicians fell down prostrate. They said: “We believe in the Lord of Harun (Aaron) and Musa (Moses).”){Sûrat Tâ-Hâ -verse65-70}.
Also, we have to remember what happened with prophet Ayub and Allah Almighty tells his story: (And remember our slave Ayub (Job), when he invoked his Lord (saying): “Verily! Shaitan (Satan) has touched me with distress (by losing my health) and torment (by losing my wealth)!){ Sûrat Sâd-verse41}, hence Allah Almighty accepted his supplication and He Almighty said: (And (remember) Ayub (Job), when he cried to his Lord: “Verily, distress has seized me, and You are the Most Merciful of all those who show mercy.”* So we answered his call, and we removed the distress that was on him, and we restored his family to him (that he had lost), and the like thereof along with them, as a mercy from ourselves and a Reminder for all who worship us.)
{ Sûrat Al-Anbiyâ – The Prophets –verse83-84}.
Here we have to understand and believe that disease, magic, envy and decreasing in money are only some kind of afflictions by Allah Almighty for the believer to test the strength of his and her belief. Prophet Mohamed peace be upon him exposed to magic and many other afflictions as Allah Almighty says: (Say (O Muhammad ): “I possess no power of benefit or hurt to myself except as Allah wills. If I had the knowledge of the Ghaib (unseen), I should have secured for myself an abundance of wealth, and no evil should have touched me. I am but a warner, and a bringer of glad tidings unto people who believe) .){Sûrat Al-A‘râf – The Heights- the Walls with Elevations-verse188}.
All of the above is to prove that Qur’an doesn’t contradict with recent science and also to prove that it was descended from Allah Almighty.
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By: Abduldaem Al-Kaheel
References:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4074869.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4176588.stm
http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/sfnmem.htm
