: derren brown :

i've been watching Derren Brown's russian roulette again on tv, which is beyond outrageous.

more with 100 fans of him who wants to take part in this game, he did a very good job in eliminating 99 of them by dissecting their character in a clear and organized manner, and at the end, stayed focused on observing the possible candidates to play the game with him (risking his own life).

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people get overly excited and amazed by Derren Brown's ability to "know" what you are having in mind (even the subconscious mind). don't get me wrong. i admire him too but after you read his book "Tricks of Mind", you will know a lot better how he's made very good use of his memory (see how he can remember 100 strangers' names in his russian roulette game) and observation skills.

i assume anyone of us can do it if we can be so focused and determined in this area of explaining human psychology and subconscious behavīors. just like anything else - the majority of people would just admire the successors for their achievements without actually thinking how they've done it or taking action on trying to do it themselves. probably it's the problem of procrastinating and laziness.