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On this topic, David Blaine's TED talk about holding his breath for 17 minutes is probably the most interesting TED talk there is.

https://www.ted.com/talks/david_blaine_how_i_held_my_breath_...

⬐ catbird

Thanks for sharing - that was an incredible story. I find David Blaine fascinating because many of his magic tricks aren't tricks per se, he just does things that would be unthinkable for the average person. For instance he often takes a bite out of a wine glass and chews it up, and it seems like there must be some trick to it, except in one of his TV specials he goes to a dentist and reveals that his teeth are all worn down and messed up from eating so much glass.

⬐ laurieg

Much more of it is a trick than David Blaine says so. I think Penn Jillette put it quite well: "Do you really believe a magician who last week was doing car tricks but this week is doing 'real' magic?"(paraphrased).

Remember: Magicians are allowed to lie. Sometimes it's just a simple thing like "I never touched the deck of cards" when actually they were holding them at the start of the trick. Other times it is fake explanation. "I am reading you using psychology" is a popular one with mentalists. Other people on a magicians TV show may lie too.

I don't know the particular David Blaine trick you are talking about, but I wouldn't be surprised if he does not actually chew on real glass.

⬐ tzs

> Remember: Magicians are allowed to lie

There was a magician on "Penn & Teller: Fool Us" recently who told an interesting lie. His lie was that he was doing a trick.

His "trick" involved snatching the right card out of a fast falling stream of cards, with the stream going fast enough that it seems impossible beyond the ability of a human to use counting or timing to pinpoint the right card and reach in and grab it.

In fact, he had developed the speed and skill to do just that.

Here's a page from the magician showing how he does it: https://www.kostyakimlat.com/blog/fool-us-magic-trick-reveal...

⬐ Tomminn

This one is great: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLAs11gkqKE.

Ricky Gevais: "Sorry sorry David seriously, this isn't a trick. You're just sticking a needle through your fucking arm. What are you doing? That's fucking horrible. You're a maniac. That's the worst thing I've ever seen in my life."

⬐ chrischen

Why was there no blood?

⬐ laurieg

Likely because it's a magic trick and he didn't really poke it through his arm?

⬐ tuesdayrain

You're just guessing. He really did poke it through.

⬐ laurieg

I had a look around at David Blaine poking various things into himself. I think I was probably wrong. It looks like poking a needle into a bicep is a somewhat common trick[1]. I assume he just takes the pain.

Still, I would tell everyone to be cautious believing a magician's explanation for any trick. Lying to mould people's memory of the trick is a really common technique. In one version of David Blaine's icepick through the hand[2] he says "This is the first time I let someone else choose the place" When he clearly chooses where to push the icepick through.

[1] https://vimeo.com/33462933

[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sw-l5SW5hik

⬐ chrischen

I'm thinking the healed piercing thing is what it is. Basically he has something akin to a fistula (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fistula) from repeatedly poking the same spot, but the outside heals over so you can't see the hole.

⬐ Tomminn

I think the way the trick is done is he essentially has a healed piercing all the way through his arm. So he only had to go through the pain once and can now do the trick whenever he likes so long as he keeps the piercing open.

David Blaine: How I held my breath for 17 minutes - https://www.ted.com/talks/david_blaine_how_i_held_my_breath_...

⬐ junto

I don't know why, but reading that video transcript makes me feel a bit physically sick. The thought of deliberately holding ones breath for so long goes against every basic natural instinct I have. An extraordinary achievement.

⬐ soci

The catalan Aleix Segura is the current static apnea World Champion. He won the title last June in a competition in Belgrad with an astonishing apnea time of 10min 07sec

A month ago he went for the pure show and broke the Guiness Record by using pure oxygen. Breathold time: 24min 03sec.

A video of that perfomance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L89kY5ewgqU

For an apnea aficionado like me it's a pleasure listening Aleix talk about trainings, chemistry, physics or dietetics. A shame he has not made any talks for the great public because this guy has a lot information to share. Is quite strange that no general media has ever approached him yet. At least not as far as I know.

⬐ agumonkey

Not a good place to die suddenly.

I max out at 1min20. (edit: 2min00 woo)

⬐ YeGoblynQueenne

Indeed extraordinary, especially considering that the static apnea world record is 11 min 35 sec.

To clarify: I'm totally calling bullshit on his claim.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freediving#AIDA_recognized_wor...

⬐ jimothyhalpert7

I'm very glad someone brought this up. The whole talk is kind of weird. David is extremely nervous, drinking all the time, and then (spontaneously) bursts into tears in the end. One comment read that he was 'high', and, while there's no way (or point) to verify this, it describes his abnormal nervousness pretty well.

Adding to this the fact that this achievement hasn't been verified, leads to a very strange TED Talk.

So, I started wondering, whether a deliberately bad TED talk can be considered a good magic trick...?

⬐ underbluewaters

That's the record for static apnea on regular air. After breathing up with pure o2, you can push the limits quite a bit more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Static_apnea

⬐ YeGoblynQueenne

The accreditation for _most_ of the records with the pure oxygen is from Guinness. I'm really not at all convinced by that.

The highest record with pure oxygen that's recognised by AIDA is at 16:32. That's half a minute under what Blaine claims. So, still, not convinced.

Linky: http://www.ted.com/talks/david_blaine_how_i_held_my_breath_f...

This talk at TED http://www.ted.com/talks/david_blaine_how_i_held_my_breath_f... is interesting. Like the moment when he talk that his ex-gf used time that he spent underwater to read SMSes on his phone.

⬐ baby

wow. This talk was intense. Definitely one of the best talk from TED

⬐ cmod

Just a note: if you do watch this, watch it until the very last second.

⬐ StavrosK

Why? I don't see anything.

⬐ mcantor

He tears up at the end, just barely losing composure, as he explains what magic--and, I imagine, life--means to him. I was certainly touched.

⬐ louislouis

Really? It seemed like poor acting to me? I duno, just didnt seem real.

⬐ StavrosK

Oh, I took your comment literally and thought the guy on the stage was someone to note. I did see the end of the speech, yes.

⬐ riledhel

I think the TED video is a lot better than the original submission. Thank you very much.

⬐ ramleela

How to transfer 90 gb data laptop to desktop.

⬐ orblivion

I don't understand why people aren't more concerned with the fact that he's conflating being a magician (illusions) with pulling off medical feats? I think we should be raising the question of whether this stuff is real.

EDIT: Funny, I paused to make this comment immediately before his story about the doctor suggesting the illusion of not breathing.