Eric Mead: The magic of the placebo

Prevodilac: Vanja Cakić Lektor: Elizabeta Petrovic

For some time I have been interested in

Već neko vreme zainteresovan sam za

the placebo effect,

placebo efekat,

which might seem like an odd thing

što može da izgleda kao neobična stvar

for a magician to be interested in,

za koju bi se mađioničar interesovao,

unless you think of it in the terms that I do,

osim ako mislite o tome na način kao ja,

which is, "Something fake

a to je "nešto lažno

is believed in enough by somebody

u šta neko veruje dovoljno jako

that it becomes something real."

da postaje nešto stvarno."

In other words, sugar pills

Drugim rečima, šećerne pilule

have a measurable effect in certain kinds of studies,

imaju merljiv efekat u nekim vrstama istraživanja,

the placebo effect,

placebo efekat,

just because the person thinks

samo zato što osoba misli

that what's happening to them is a pharmaceutical

da to što se im dešava je farmatceutsko

or some sort of a --

ili neka vrsta....

for pain management, for example,

Za kontrolu bola, na primer,

if they believe it enough there is a measurable effect in the body

ako dovoljno veruju da postoji merljiv efekat u telu

called the placebo effect.

nazvan placebo efekat.

Something fake becomes

Nešto lažno postaje

something real

nešto stvarno

because of someone's perception of it.

zbog nečije percepcije toga.

In order for us to understand each other,

Da bismo razumeli jedni druge

I want to start by showing you a rudimentary,

želim da počnem pokazujući vam osnovni,

very simple magic trick.

veoma jednostavni mađioničarski trik.

And I'm going to show you how it works. This is a trick

Pokazaću vam kako radi. Ovo je trik

that's been in every children's magic book since at least the 1950s.

koji se nalazi u svakoj dečijoj mađioničarskoj knjizi od, sigurno, 1950-ih.

I learned it myself from Cub Scout Magic in the 1970s.

Ja sam ga naučio od Cub Scout Magic-a u 1970-im.

I'll do it for you, and then I'll explain it.

Uradiću ga, a onda ću ga objasniti.

And then I'll explain why I explained it.

A onda ću vam objasniti zašto sam ga objasnio.

So, here's what happens.

Dakle, evo šta se dešava.

The knife, which you can examine; my hand, which you could examine.

Nož, koji možete proveriti, moja ruka, koju možete proveriti.

I'm just going to hold the knife in my fist like this.

Samo ću držati nož u mojoj ruci ovako.

I'll get my sleeve back.

Zavrnuću rukav.

And to make sure nothing goes up or down my sleeve

I da budete sigurni da ništa ne ide uz ili niz moj rukav,

I'm just going to squeeze my wrist right here.

samo ću stegnuti svoj zglob tačno ovde.

That way you can see that at no time

Na taj način možete videti da ni u kom trenutku

can anything travel, as long as I'm squeezing there

ništa ne može da prođe. Dokle god strežem ovde

nothing can go up or down my sleeve.

ništa ne može da ide uz ili niz moj rukav.

And the object of this is quite simple.

Svrha ovoga je prilično jednostavna.

I'm going to open my hand,

Otvoriću svoju ruku

and hopefully, if all is well,

i nadam se, ako je sve dobro,

my pure animal magnetism will hold the knife.

da će moj čisto životinjski magnetizam držati nož.

In fact it's held so tightly in place

U stvari, toliko se čvrsto drži na mestu

that I can shake it,

da mogu da ga tresem

and the knife does not come off.

a nož neće da padne.

Nothing goes up or down my sleeve,

Ništa ne ide gore ili dole niz moj rukav,

no trickery. And you can examine everything.

nema prevare. I možete proveriti sve.

Ta-da!

Ta-da!

(Applause)

(Aplauz)

So, this is a trick that I often teach to young children

Ovo je trik kojim često učim malu decu

that are interested in magic, because you can learn

koja su zainteresovana za magiju, zato što možete naučiti

a great deal about deception by studying

mnogo o obmanjivanju proučavajući

this very -- even though it's a very simple trick methodologically.

ovaj veoma -- čak iako je metodološki veoma jednostavan trik.

Probably many of you in the room know this trick.

Verovatno većina vas u prostoriji zna ovaj trik.

What happens is this.

Šta se dešava je sledeće.

I hold the knife in my hand.

Držim nož u mojoj ruci.

I say I'm going to grab hold of my wrist

Kažem da ću držati svoj zglob

to make sure nothing goes up or down my sleeve,

da bi bili sigurni da nište ne ide uz ili niz moj rukav,

that is a lie.

to je laž.

The reason I'm holding onto my wrist

Razlog zbog koga držim svoj zglob

is because that's actually the secret

je taj što je baš to tajna

of the illusion.

ove iluzije.

In a moment when my hand moves from facing you

U momentu kada se moja ruka pomera od položaja gde je okrenuta vama

to being away from you,

da bi se okrenula od vas,

this finger right here, my index finger is just going to shift

ovaj prst ovde, moj kažiprst će se pomeriti

from where it is, to a position

sa mesta gde je, u poziciju

pointing out like this.

da pokazuje ovako.

Nice one.

Dobar štos.

Someone who didn't have a childhood is out there.

Neko ko nije imao detinjstvo je tamo.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

So, it goes like this, from here, right.

Znači, ide ovako, odavde, tačno.

And as I move around my finger shifts.

I dok se pomeram moj prst menja poziciju.

And we could talk about why this is deceptive,

Možemo da pričamo zašto je ovo obmanjujuće,

why you don't notice there are only three fingers down here,

zašto niste primetili da je tamo dole samo tri prsta,

because the mind, and the way it processes information,

zbog uma i načina na koji prerađuje informacije,

it doesn't count, one, two, three. It groups them.

on ne broji, jedan, dva, tri. On ih grupiše.

But that's not really what this is about. Right? And then I open my hand up.

Ali to nije ono što je važno. Zar ne? I onda otvorim ruku.

Obviously it's clinging there, not by animal magnetism,

Očigledno je priljubljen, ne zbog životinjskog magnetizma,

but by chicanery,

već zbog varke,

my index finger being there.

moj kažiprst je tamo.

And then when I close my finger, same thing,

I onda kad zatvaram prste, ista stvar,

as I move back, this motion

kako se pomeram nazad, ovaj pokret

kind of covers the moving back of my finger.

nekako maskira vraćanje mog prsta nazad.

I take this hand away. You give the knife out.

Sklanjam ovu ruku. Nož se više ne drži.

There is a trick you can do for your friends and neighbors. Thanks.

Ovo je trik koji možete pokazati svojim prijateljima i susedima. Hvala

Now, (Laughter)

Sada, (smeh)

what does that have to do with the placebo effect?

kakve to veze ima sa placebo efektom?

I read a study a year or so ago

Pročitao sam istraživanje, pre godinu i nešto

that really blew my mind wide open.

koje je me je stvarno zaprepastilo.

I'm not a doctor or a researcher, so this, to me,

Ja nisam doktor ili istraživač, tako da, za mene

was an astonishing thing.

je ovo bila zapanjujuća stvar.

It turns out that if you administer

Ispada da, ako dajete

a placebo in the form of a white pill,

placebo u obliku bele pilule,

that's like aspirin shaped --

koja je oblika kao aspirin,

it's just a round white pill -- it has some certain measurable effect.

to je samo okrugla bela pilula, to ima neki određeni merljivi efekat.

But if you change the form that you give the placebo in,

Ali ako promenite oblik u kome dajete placebo,

like you make a smaller pill,

napravite manju pilulu,

and color it blue, and stamp a letter into it,

obojite je u plavo i utisnete slovo na nju,

it is actually measurably more effective.

to daje stvarno veće merljive efekte.

Even though neither one of these things

Iako ni jedna od ovih stvari

has any pharmaceutical -- they're sugar pills.

nema ništa farmaceutsko -- to su šećerne pilule.

But a white pill is not as good as a blue pill.

Ali bela pilula nije toliko dobra kao plava pilula.

What? (Laughter) That really flipped me out.

Šta? (Smeh) To me stvarno izbezumilo.

Turns out though, that that's not even where it stops.

Ispada da to čak nije kraj.

If you have capsules,

Ako imate kapsule,

they're more effective than tablets in any form.

one su efektivnije od tableta bilo kog oblika.

A colored capsule, that's yellow on one end and red on the other

Obojena kapsula, koja je žuta na jednom, a crvena na drugom kraju

is better than a white capsule.

je bolja od bele kapsule.

Dosage has something to do with this.

I doziranje ima veze sa ovim.

One pill twice a day

Jedna pilula dvaput dvenvo

is not as good at three pills --

nije tako dobra kao tri pilule --

I don't remember the statistic now. Sorry.

Ne sećam se statistike sada. Izvinite.

But the point is ...

Ali poenta je...

(Laughter) ... these dosages have something to do with it.

(Smeh) ... ove doze imaju neke veze sa ovim.

And the form has something to do with it.

I oblik ima veze sa ovim.

And if you want the ultimate in placebo,

I ako želite najsnažniji placebo

you've go to the needle.

idete na iglu.

Right? A syringe with some inert --

Jel tako? Špric sa nečim inertnim --

a couple CCs of some inert something,

par kubnih centrimetara nešeg inertnog

and you inject this into a patient ...

i to ubrizgate u pacijenta...

Well this is such a powerful image in their mind,

Ovo je strašno moćna slika u njihovim umovima.

it's so much stronger than the white pill.

Mnogo je snažnija od bele pilule.

It's a really, this graph, well I'll show it to you

Stvarno je, ovaj grafik, pokazaću vam da

some other time when we have slides.

nekom drugom prilikom kad budemo imali slajdove.

The point is

Poenta je da

the white pill is not as good as the blue pill

bela pilula nije tako dobra kao plava pilula,

is not as good as the capsule is not as good as the needle.

nije tako dobra kao kapsula, nije tako dobra kao igla.

And none of it has any real pharmaceutical quality,

A ni jedna od njih nema stvarni farmaceutski kvalitet.

it's only your belief that makes it real

Jedino vaše verovanje ih čini stvarnim

in your body and makes a stronger effect.

za vaše telo i izaziva jači efekat.

I wanted to see if I could take that idea

Želeo sam da vidim da li mogu da uzmem tu ideju

and apply it to a magic trick.

i da je primenim na mađioničarski trik.

And take something that is obviously a fake trick

Da uzmem nešto što je očigledno lažan trik

and make it seem real.

i da ga učinim da izgleda stvarno.

And we know from that study

A znamo iz tog istraživanja

that when you want reality, you go to the needle.

da kada želite stvarnost idete igli.

This is a seven-inch hatpin. It's very, very sharp,

Ovo je igla za šešire od 17,5 cm. Veoma je oštra.

and I'm going to just sterilize it a tiny bit.

Ja ću je samo malo sterilizovati.

This is really my flesh. This is not

Ovo je zaista moje meso. Nije

Damian's special-grown flesh.

specijalno uzgajano Dejmijanovo meso.

That's my skin right there. This is not a Hollywood special effect.

Ovo ovde je moja koža. Ovo nije holivudski specijalni efekat.

I'm going to pierce my skin

Probušiću svoju kožu

and run this needle through to the other side.

i progurati iglu kroz nju, na drugu stranu.

If you're queasy -- (Laughs)

Ako ste osetljivi -- (Smeh)

if you faint easily -- I was doing this for some friends

ako lako padate u nesvest -- Pokazivao sam ovo nekim prijateljima

in the hotel room last night, and some people that I didn't know,

u hotelskoj sobi sinoć i nekim ljudima koje nisam znao

and one woman almost passed out.

i jedna žena se zamalo onesvestila.

So, I suggest if you get queasy easy

Prema tome, predlažem da ako lako gubite svest

that you look away for about the next 30 --

gledate u stranu nekih sledećih 30 --

in fact, you know what, I'll do the first bad part behind it.

u stvari, znate šta, uradiću prvi grozni deo iza.

You'll get to see, you can look away too if you'd like to.

Videćete, možeš i ti da gledaš u stranu ako želiš.

So, here is what happens, right here,

Dakle, evo šta se događa, baš ovde

the beginning of my flesh

na početku mog mesa

at the lower part of my arm I just make

na donjem delu moje ruke napraviću

a little pierce.

mali ubod.

I'm sorry, man. Am I freaking you out?

Čoveče izvini. Da li te izluđujem?

OK, and then just through my skin a tiny bit,

Onda jednostavno kroz kožu malo

and then out the other side like this.

i onda na drugu stranu, ovako.

Now, essentially we're in the same position we were in

Sad, u osnovi smo u istoj poziciji u kojoj smo bili

with the knife trick.

kod trika sa nožem.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

Sort of.

Otprilike.

But you can't count my fingers right now can you?

Ali mi ne možete prebrojati prste sada, zar ne?

So, let me show them to you. That's one, two

Onda, pokazaću vam ih. Ovo je jedan, dva,

three, four, five.

tri, četiri, pet.

Yes, well...

Da, pa....

I know what people think when they see this.

Znam šta misle ljudi kada ovo vide.

They go, "Well, he's certainly not dumb enough

Kažu: "Pa, sigurno nije toliko glup

to stab himself through the skin to entertain us for a few minutes.

da probode sebi kožu da bi nas zabavio nekoliko minuta."

So, let me give you a little peek.

Daću vam da malo virnete.

How's that look out there? Pretty good.

Kako vam ovo izgleda tamo? Prilično dobro.

(Laughs)

(Smeh)

Yeah, I know. (Laughs)

Da, znam. (Smeh)

And the people in the back go, "OK, I didn't really see that."

Ljudi odpozadi misle. "Ok. Nismo baš dobro ni videli."

People in the satellite room are starting to move in now.

Ljudi iz sporedne sobe počinju da ulaze sad.

Let me give you good close look at this.

Hajde da vam pokažem izbliza.

That really is my skin. That is not a Hollywood special effect.

Ovo je stvarno moja koža. Ovo nije holivudski specijalni efekat.

That's my flesh, and I can twist that around.

Ovo je moje meso i mogu da okrećem ovo naokolo.

I'm sorry. If you're getting queasy, look away,

Izvinite. Ako gubite svest, skrenite pogled,

don't look at the thing.

ne gledajte ovo.

People in the back or people on video years from now watching this

Ljudi odpozadi ili oni koji će gledati video za nekoliko godina

will go, "Well yeah, that looks kind of neat

će misliti: "Pa dobro, ovo izgleda uredno

in some sort of effect there, but if it were real he would be --

urađen štos, ali kada bi ovo bilo stvarno on bi --

see there's a hole there and a hole there, if it were real he would be bleeding.

vidite, ovde je rupa i ovde isto, i da je stvarno on bi krvario."

Well let me work up some blood for you.

Pa onda dajte da stvorim malo krvi za vas.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

Yes, there it is.

Da, evo je.

(Applause)

(Aplauz)

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

Normally now, I would take the needle out.

Obično bih u ovom trenutku izvadio iglu.

I would clean off my arm, and I would show you that there are no wounds.

Očistio bih svoju ruku i pokazao vam da nema nikakvih rana.

But I think in this context

Ali mislim da ću je, u ovom kontekstu

and with the idea of taking something fake

i sa idejom da uzmem nešto lažno

and making it into something real,

i pretvorim ga da izgleda stvarno,

I'm just going to leave it there,

samo ostaviti da stoji tu

and walk off the stage.

i otići sa scene.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

I will be seeing you several times over the next few days.

Viđaćemo se nekoliko puta u sledećih nekoliko dana.

I hope you're looking forward to that. Thank you very much.

Nadam se da se tome radujete. Hvala vam puno.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

(Applause)

(Aplauz)