1
00:00:00,865 --> 00:00:03,898
Do you think it's possible
to control someone's attention?

2
00:00:05,664 --> 00:00:08,665
Even more than that,
what about predicting human behavior?

3
00:00:10,157 --> 00:00:12,012
I think those are interesting ideas.

4
00:00:12,036 --> 00:00:14,235
For me, that would be
the perfect superpower,

5
00:00:14,259 --> 00:00:16,592
actually kind of an evil
way of approaching it.

6
00:00:16,616 --> 00:00:19,719
But for myself, in the past,
I've spent the last 20 years

7
00:00:19,743 --> 00:00:23,221
studying human behavior
from a rather unorthodox way:

8
00:00:23,245 --> 00:00:24,541
picking pockets.

9
00:00:25,201 --> 00:00:26,717
When we think of misdirection,

10
00:00:26,741 --> 00:00:29,082
we think of something
as looking off to the side,

11
00:00:29,106 --> 00:00:31,331
when actually the things
right in front of us

12
00:00:31,355 --> 00:00:32,954
are often the hardest to see,

13
00:00:32,978 --> 00:00:35,917
the things that you look at every day
that you're blinded to.

14
00:00:35,941 --> 00:00:39,692
For example, how many of you still have
your cell phones on you right now?

15
00:00:40,671 --> 00:00:41,888
Great. Double-check.

16
00:00:41,912 --> 00:00:43,465
Make sure you still have them.

17
00:00:43,489 --> 00:00:45,171
I was doing some shopping before.

18
00:00:45,195 --> 00:00:46,250
(Laughter)

19
00:00:46,274 --> 00:00:48,192
You've looked at them a few times today,

20
00:00:48,216 --> 00:00:49,566
but I'll ask you a question.

21
00:00:49,590 --> 00:00:51,443
Without looking at it directly yet,

22
00:00:51,467 --> 00:00:54,617
can you remember the icon
in the bottom right corner?

23
00:00:55,950 --> 00:00:58,615
Bring them out, check, and see
how accurate you were.

24
00:01:02,382 --> 00:01:03,421
How'd you do?

25
00:01:03,445 --> 00:01:04,944
Show of hands. Did we get it?

26
00:01:06,140 --> 00:01:08,097
Now that you're done, close them down.

27
00:01:08,121 --> 00:01:09,854
Every phone has something in common.

28
00:01:09,878 --> 00:01:11,919
No matter how you organize the icons,

29
00:01:11,943 --> 00:01:13,679
you still have a clock on the front.

30
00:01:13,703 --> 00:01:16,735
So, without looking at your phone,
what time was it?

31
00:01:17,449 --> 00:01:19,449
You just looked at your clock, right?

32
00:01:19,473 --> 00:01:20,539
Interesting idea.

33
00:01:20,563 --> 00:01:23,023
Let's take that a step further
with a game of trust.

34
00:01:23,047 --> 00:01:24,060
Close your eyes.

35
00:01:24,966 --> 00:01:27,608
I realize I'm asking you to do
that while you just heard

36
00:01:27,632 --> 00:01:30,164
there's a pickpocket in the room,
but close your eyes.

37
00:01:30,655 --> 00:01:33,715
Now, you've been watching me
for about 30 seconds.

38
00:01:34,303 --> 00:01:36,644
With your eyes closed, what am I wearing?

39
00:01:37,742 --> 00:01:39,139
Make your best guess.

40
00:01:39,163 --> 00:01:41,919
What color is my shirt?
What color is my tie?

41
00:01:42,671 --> 00:01:44,022
Now open your eyes.

42
00:01:44,046 --> 00:01:45,628
Show of hands, were you right?

43
00:01:46,666 --> 00:01:47,815
Interesting, isn't it?

44
00:01:47,839 --> 00:01:50,943
Some of us are a little bit
more perceptive than others, it seems.

45
00:01:50,967 --> 00:01:54,031
But I have a different theory
about that model of attention.

46
00:01:54,055 --> 00:01:57,590
They have fancy models of attention,
Posner's trinity model of attention.

47
00:01:57,614 --> 00:02:00,948
For me, I like to think of it very
simple, like a surveillance system.

48
00:02:00,972 --> 00:02:03,739
It's kind of like you have
all these fancy sensors,

49
00:02:03,763 --> 00:02:06,097
and inside your brain
is a little security guard.

50
00:02:06,121 --> 00:02:07,895
For me, I like to call him Frank.

51
00:02:08,532 --> 00:02:10,488
So Frank is sitting at a desk.

52
00:02:10,512 --> 00:02:12,851
He's got lots of cool
information in front of him,

53
00:02:12,875 --> 00:02:14,725
high-tech equipment, he's got cameras,

54
00:02:14,749 --> 00:02:17,855
he's got a little phone
that he can pick up, listen to the ears,

55
00:02:17,879 --> 00:02:20,020
all these senses, all these perceptions.

56
00:02:20,354 --> 00:02:22,899
But attention is what steers
your perceptions,

57
00:02:22,923 --> 00:02:24,693
it's what controls your reality.

58
00:02:24,717 --> 00:02:26,552
It's the gateway to the mind.

59
00:02:26,576 --> 00:02:29,387
If you don't attend to something,
you can't be aware of it.

60
00:02:29,411 --> 00:02:32,898
But ironically, you can attend
to something without being aware of it.

61
00:02:32,922 --> 00:02:34,564
For example, the cocktail effect:

62
00:02:34,588 --> 00:02:37,068
You're in a party, having
conversations with someone,

63
00:02:37,092 --> 00:02:38,775
and yet you can recognize your name

64
00:02:38,799 --> 00:02:40,952
without realizing
you were listening to that.

65
00:02:40,976 --> 00:02:44,026
Now, for my job, I have to play
with techniques to exploit this,

66
00:02:44,050 --> 00:02:46,895
to play with your attention
as a limited resource.

67
00:02:46,919 --> 00:02:50,030
So if I could control
how you spend your attention,

68
00:02:50,054 --> 00:02:53,063
if I could maybe steal your attention
through a distraction.

69
00:02:53,087 --> 00:02:55,847
Now, instead of doing it like misdirection

70
00:02:55,871 --> 00:02:57,395
and throwing it off to the side,

71
00:02:57,419 --> 00:02:59,879
instead, what I choose
to focus on is Frank,

72
00:02:59,903 --> 00:03:02,450
to be able to play
with the Frank inside your head,

73
00:03:02,474 --> 00:03:03,507
your security guard,

74
00:03:03,531 --> 00:03:06,456
and get you, instead of focusing
on your external senses,

75
00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:09,341
just to go internal for a second.

76
00:03:09,365 --> 00:03:12,551
So if I ask you to access
a memory, like, what is that?

77
00:03:12,575 --> 00:03:14,528
What just happened? Do you have a wallet?

78
00:03:14,552 --> 00:03:16,791
Do you have an American Express
in your wallet?

79
00:03:16,815 --> 00:03:18,983
And when I do that,
your Frank turns around.

80
00:03:19,850 --> 00:03:22,136
He accesses the file.
He has to rewind the tape.

81
00:03:22,160 --> 00:03:24,359
What's interesting is,
he can't rewind the tape

82
00:03:24,383 --> 00:03:26,913
at the same time that he's trying
to process new data.

83
00:03:27,263 --> 00:03:28,765
This sounds like a good theory,

84
00:03:28,789 --> 00:03:31,540
but I could talk for a long time,
tell you lots of things,

85
00:03:31,564 --> 00:03:33,270
and a portion of them may be true,

86
00:03:33,294 --> 00:03:36,354
but I think it's better if I tried
to show that to you here live.

87
00:03:36,378 --> 00:03:38,917
If I come down, I'm going
to do a bit of shopping.

88
00:03:38,941 --> 00:03:40,455
Just hold still where you are.

89
00:03:43,503 --> 00:03:46,187
Hello, how are you?
It's lovely to see you.

90
00:03:46,211 --> 00:03:47,282
Wonderful job onstage.

91
00:03:47,306 --> 00:03:49,369
Lovely watch, it doesn't
come off very well.

92
00:03:49,393 --> 00:03:50,694
Do you have a ring as well?

93
00:03:50,718 --> 00:03:53,060
Good. Just taking inventory.
You're like a buffet.

94
00:03:53,084 --> 00:03:55,741
Hard to tell where to start,
so many great things.

95
00:03:55,765 --> 00:03:57,425
Hi, how are you? Good to see you.

96
00:03:57,449 --> 00:04:00,362
Hi, sir, could you stand up, please?
Just right where you are.

97
00:04:00,386 --> 00:04:02,406
You're married,
you follow directions well.

98
00:04:02,430 --> 00:04:03,492
Nice to meet you, sir.

99
00:04:03,516 --> 00:04:06,204
You don't have a lot in your pockets.
Anything down here?

100
00:04:07,288 --> 00:04:10,256
Hopefully so. Have a seat. There you go.
You're doing well.

101
00:04:10,280 --> 00:04:11,470
Hi, sir, how are you?

102
00:04:11,494 --> 00:04:13,715
Good to see you, sir.
You have a ring, a watch.

103
00:04:13,739 --> 00:04:15,815
Do you have a wallet on you? Joe: I don't.

104
00:04:15,839 --> 00:04:17,143
AR: We'll find one for you.

105
00:04:17,167 --> 00:04:18,384
Come on up this way, Joe.

106
00:04:18,408 --> 00:04:19,789
Give Joe a round of applause.

107
00:04:19,813 --> 00:04:21,469
Come on up Joe. Let's play a game.

108
00:04:21,493 --> 00:04:24,561
(Applause)

109
00:04:26,437 --> 00:04:27,917
AR: Pardon me.

110
00:04:28,535 --> 00:04:30,627
I don't think I need this clicker anymore.

111
00:04:30,651 --> 00:04:32,579
Thank you very much. I appreciate that.

112
00:04:32,603 --> 00:04:35,413
Come on up to the stage, Joe.
Let's play a little game now.

113
00:04:35,437 --> 00:04:37,226
Anything in your front pockets?

114
00:04:37,250 --> 00:04:38,251
J: Money.

115
00:04:38,275 --> 00:04:40,321
AR: Money! All right, let's try that.

116
00:04:40,345 --> 00:04:42,702
Can you stand right over this way for me?

117
00:04:43,130 --> 00:04:44,433
Turn around and, let's see,

118
00:04:44,457 --> 00:04:46,505
if I give you something
that belongs to me,

119
00:04:46,529 --> 00:04:48,927
this is just something I have,

120
00:04:48,951 --> 00:04:49,952
a poker chip.

121
00:04:49,976 --> 00:04:51,267
Hold out your hand for me.

122
00:04:51,926 --> 00:04:53,060
Watch it closely.

123
00:04:53,084 --> 00:04:54,901
This is a task for you to focus on.

124
00:04:55,320 --> 00:04:57,574
You have your money in your front pocket?

125
00:04:57,598 --> 00:04:58,599
J: Yup.
AR: Good.

126
00:04:58,623 --> 00:05:00,320
I won't put my hand in your pocket.

127
00:05:00,344 --> 00:05:02,355
I'm not ready for that kind of commitment.

128
00:05:02,379 --> 00:05:04,172
Once a guy had a hole in his pocket,

129
00:05:04,196 --> 00:05:06,131
and that was rather traumatizing for me.

130
00:05:06,155 --> 00:05:08,196
I wanted his wallet,
he gave me his number.

131
00:05:08,220 --> 00:05:09,396
Big miscommunication.

132
00:05:09,420 --> 00:05:10,448
(Laughter)

133
00:05:10,472 --> 00:05:12,654
Let's do this simply.
Squeeze your hand tight.

134
00:05:12,678 --> 00:05:14,642
Do you feel the poker chip in your hand?

135
00:05:14,666 --> 00:05:15,713
J: I do.

136
00:05:15,737 --> 00:05:18,054
AR: Would you be surprised
if I took it? Say yes.

137
00:05:18,078 --> 00:05:19,085
J: Very.
AR: Good.

138
00:05:19,109 --> 00:05:21,010
Open your hand. Thank you very much.

139
00:05:21,034 --> 00:05:22,701
I'll cheat if you give me a chance.

140
00:05:22,725 --> 00:05:24,822
Make it harder for me. Just use your hand.

141
00:05:24,846 --> 00:05:26,817
Grab my wrist, but squeeze, squeeze firm.

142
00:05:26,841 --> 00:05:28,029
Did you see it go?

143
00:05:28,053 --> 00:05:29,585
Joe: No.
AR: No, it's not here.

144
00:05:29,609 --> 00:05:30,631
Open your hand.

145
00:05:30,655 --> 00:05:32,204
While we're focused on the hand,

146
00:05:32,228 --> 00:05:33,687
it's sitting on your shoulder.

147
00:05:34,933 --> 00:05:36,542
Go ahead and take it off.

148
00:05:36,566 --> 00:05:38,014
Now, let's try that again.

149
00:05:38,038 --> 00:05:39,944
Hold your hand out flat. Open it up.

150
00:05:39,968 --> 00:05:42,785
Put your hand up a little bit higher,
but watch it close.

151
00:05:42,809 --> 00:05:44,934
If I did it slowly,
it'd be on your shoulder.

152
00:05:45,983 --> 00:05:47,399
(Laughter)

153
00:05:47,423 --> 00:05:49,995
Joe, we're going to keep doing
this till you catch it.

154
00:05:50,019 --> 00:05:52,193
You'll get it eventually.
I have faith in you.

155
00:05:52,217 --> 00:05:54,307
Squeeze firm.
You're human, you're not slow.

156
00:05:54,331 --> 00:05:55,629
It's back on your shoulder.

157
00:05:56,241 --> 00:05:58,439
You were focused on your hand, distracted.

158
00:05:58,463 --> 00:06:01,329
While you were watching,
I couldn't get your watch off.

159
00:06:01,353 --> 00:06:03,592
Yet you had something inside your pocket.

160
00:06:03,616 --> 00:06:05,028
Do you remember what it was?

161
00:06:05,269 --> 00:06:06,293
Joe: Money.

162
00:06:06,317 --> 00:06:08,637
AR: Check your pocket. Is it still there?

163
00:06:08,661 --> 00:06:09,662
(Laughter)

164
00:06:09,686 --> 00:06:11,440
Oh, there it was. Put it away.

165
00:06:11,464 --> 00:06:12,496
We're just shopping.

166
00:06:12,520 --> 00:06:14,257
This trick's more about the timing.

167
00:06:14,281 --> 00:06:16,386
I'm going to try to push it
inside your hand.

168
00:06:16,410 --> 00:06:18,362
Put your other hand on top, would you?

169
00:06:18,774 --> 00:06:20,544
It's amazingly obvious now, isn't it?

170
00:06:20,568 --> 00:06:23,201
It looks a lot like the watch
I was wearing, doesn't it?

171
00:06:23,225 --> 00:06:24,526
(Laughter) (Applause)

172
00:06:24,550 --> 00:06:26,916
J: That's pretty good.
AR: Oh, thanks.

173
00:06:26,940 --> 00:06:29,202
(Applause)

174
00:06:29,226 --> 00:06:32,106
But it's only a start.
Let's try it a little bit differently.

175
00:06:32,130 --> 00:06:34,480
Hold your hands together.
Your other hand on top.

176
00:06:34,504 --> 00:06:36,276
If you're watching this little token,

177
00:06:36,300 --> 00:06:39,248
this obviously has become a little target,
like a red herring.

178
00:06:39,272 --> 00:06:42,049
If we watch this kind of close,
it looks like it goes away.

179
00:06:42,073 --> 00:06:43,649
It's not back on your shoulder.

180
00:06:43,673 --> 00:06:46,245
It falls out of the air,
lands right back in the hand.

181
00:06:46,269 --> 00:06:47,326
Did you see it go?

182
00:06:48,173 --> 00:06:51,570
Yeah, funny. We've got a little guy.
He's union, works up there all day.

183
00:06:51,594 --> 00:06:55,083
Slowly, if it goes straight away,
it lands down by your pocket.

184
00:06:55,107 --> 00:06:56,122
This pocket, sir?

185
00:06:56,146 --> 00:06:58,610
Don't reach in your pocket.
That's a different show.

186
00:06:58,634 --> 00:06:59,693
(Squeaking)

187
00:06:59,717 --> 00:07:02,061
That's rather strange.
They have shots for that.

188
00:07:02,085 --> 00:07:04,576
Can I show them? Rather bizarre.
Is this yours, sir?

189
00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:07,366
I have no idea how that works.
We'll send that over there.

190
00:07:07,390 --> 00:07:09,050
I need help with this one.

191
00:07:09,074 --> 00:07:10,343
Step over this way.

192
00:07:10,367 --> 00:07:13,215
Don't run away. You had something
down by your pants pocket.

193
00:07:13,239 --> 00:07:15,492
I was checking mine.
I couldn't find everything,

194
00:07:15,516 --> 00:07:16,984
but I you have something here.

195
00:07:17,008 --> 00:07:19,188
Can I feel the outside for a moment?

196
00:07:19,212 --> 00:07:21,974
Down here I noticed this.
Is this something of yours, sir?

197
00:07:22,450 --> 00:07:24,010
I have no idea. That's a shrimp.

198
00:07:24,034 --> 00:07:26,136
J: Yeah. I'm saving it for later.

199
00:07:26,160 --> 00:07:29,184
AR: You've entertained
all of these people in a wonderful way,

200
00:07:29,208 --> 00:07:30,349
better than you know.

201
00:07:30,373 --> 00:07:33,401
So we'd love to give you this
lovely watch as a gift.

202
00:07:33,425 --> 00:07:34,426
(Laughter)

203
00:07:34,450 --> 00:07:35,948
Hopefully it matches his taste.

204
00:07:35,972 --> 00:07:37,635
We have a couple of other things,

205
00:07:37,659 --> 00:07:38,775
a little bit of cash.

206
00:07:39,373 --> 00:07:40,464
A few other things.

207
00:07:40,488 --> 00:07:41,897
These all belong to you,

208
00:07:41,921 --> 00:07:44,590
along with a big round of applause
from all your friends.

209
00:07:44,614 --> 00:07:45,615
(Applause)

210
00:07:45,639 --> 00:07:46,944
Joe, thank you very much.

211
00:07:46,968 --> 00:07:49,968
(Applause)

212
00:07:51,913 --> 00:07:53,093
(Applause ends)

213
00:07:53,863 --> 00:07:56,363
So, same question I asked you before,

214
00:07:56,387 --> 00:07:58,715
but this time you don't have
to close your eyes.

215
00:07:59,866 --> 00:08:01,141
What am I wearing?

216
00:08:01,611 --> 00:08:02,612
Audience: Oh!

217
00:08:02,636 --> 00:08:04,715
(Laughter)

218
00:08:04,739 --> 00:08:07,538
(Hesitant applause)

219
00:08:09,522 --> 00:08:10,950
(Applause ends)

220
00:08:10,974 --> 00:08:12,875
Attention is a powerful thing.

221
00:08:12,899 --> 00:08:15,384
Like I said, it shapes your reality.

222
00:08:15,860 --> 00:08:18,295
So, I guess I'd like to pose
that question to you.

223
00:08:18,319 --> 00:08:20,319
If you could control somebody's attention,

224
00:08:20,343 --> 00:08:21,614
what would you do with it?

225
00:08:22,531 --> 00:08:23,595
Thank you.

226
00:08:23,619 --> 00:08:26,622
(Applause)