The Genii Forum

While getting ready to perform Harry Lorayne's Magic Square from "The Magic Book" today, I was looking for a particular image on the internet, and came across a reference, that then sent me to a hidden gem in a past issue of Genii Magazine.

In the April 2005 issue (Anna Eva Fay on the cover), Harry Lorayne released an idea for creating a magic square from ANY numbers given to you. I read the article, and was amazed how easy it is to assemble the square, WITH NO MEMORY WORK. It is titled, "4x4 Magic Square Breakthrough??"

I practiced it 4 or 5 times, and then experimented my first run-through on the high school math teacher. He just stood there, mouth open, watching me assemble the square, number by number, and when it was completed, he said nothing. He just sat there with his mouth open, scratching his head.

I suggest that anyone that likes, or performs, a magic square routine, that you take a serious look at the article in the April, 2005, Genii. It is worth my yearly subscription.

DonB!

Coincidentally today I found out that Franz Polgar used to perform in the early fifties more or less the same routine that Harry Lorayne described in "Reputation Makers" which was a slightly more complex version of the magic square involving a memory test too. It seemed as near as dammit.

You might enjoy the work of Chuck Hickok and Werner Miller as well, if you like the idea of constructing a magic square from four random numbers (or five by five, in the case of some of Werner's stuff).

Ian,

Chuck Hickok is a good friend here in Minnesota, and I've always enjoyed his ideas and routines.

Werner Miller also has some great mathematically based routines with ESP cards that I've enjoyed. Most of his books are ab=vailable through www.lybrary.com

Thanks all.

DonB