Da  Vinci Days
Oregonians for Rationality booth
How do our eyes 
fool us?
How do our ears 
fool us?
  How can others 
fool us?
    How does our 
mind fool us?
How can I win? How can we win?
A Bridge to Understanding
(the font is "Da Vinci")
Two cords are tied to two refrigerator magnets.  The two magnets are placed face-to-face so they hold each other.  A slip of paper with two prize stickers are placed between them.  Two contestants engage in a pulling contest somewhat like a tug of war.  They start with the two magnets and two prizes in the big black dot in the center of the bridge.  Winning occurs only when the magnets are pulled apart and drop the prizes on one of the ramps at either end of the bridge.  Whoever's ramp the prizes fall on gets the two prizes.  Otherwise, no one wins.
Why?

Why did so few people win anything on this Bridge to Understanding?

Why did so few pairs of people see themselves as two people united rather than two people isolated and antagonist?

Why does this game have such different outcomes in different cultures?  Who doesn't "see" what?

 

Go to Knowledge for Use to learn about the 'Greeting Cards' that were hanging on the wall of the tent.

Two boxes, one lifted in each hand.  One feels much heavier than the other.
The scales says they are the same weight.

A blue box with something rolling around inside.  It seems to hit things inside.
The task is to determine what we would see if we could look inside.



 

Some are easy. Some are UN-easy. Some are tricky. Some are sneaky...
Mind dancing with puzzles -- Click on the picture.
Why don't I see your reflection in that mirror in the corner?
(above) Six cups, three full ones on the left, three empty ones on the right.  Touching and moving only one cup, make the arrangement:
FULL - EMPTY - FULL - EMPTY - FULL - EMPTY
note the Vampire Mirror in the background

(upper right)  See how far you can extend a bridge of blocks by putting blocks on top of each other.
Far back behind the block buildiers: A Vampire Mirror.

(right) The Vampire Mirror being inspected by some very curious users of the mirror.  Some might be vampires.  Some never thought they were vampires, but now they are not so sure...?? 

 Oh oh! I DIDN'T see my reflection in that mirror!
The Vampire Mirror. 

Vampires are known not to have a reflection in a mirror.  Three people abreast stand in front of the Vampire Mirror.  The one in the middle looks in the mirror and sees the two people standing beside him reflected in the mirror.  He does not see himself.

  
Click on the items in the tray.
One reason that pseudoscience is so common is that "seeing" even the simplest science which  has replaced the misconceptions requires some hard thinking.  We need to concentrate on the puzzles that can lead us to the sciencific principles.  We need to spend some high-quality time at it--the kind we can get at home or in deep discussions with good friends.  Critical friends.

Handouts were available at Da Vinci Days that might help with pointers, puzzles, and resources.  Click on the items in the tray to see what they are.

 
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