Catalyst Conversations: Why We Need Magic

Magic is an ancient practice rooted in rituals, spiritual divinations, and/or cultural lineage—with an intention to invoke, manipulate, or otherwise manifest supernatural forces, beings, or entities in the natural world. I would like to argue that science and magic are not as much at odds with each other as we tend to think. I might even describe the experience of discovering the science behind our myths as magical.
–Science journalist Matt Kaplan, Science of the Magical

We humans have a basic need for wonder; a way to understand what is mysterious, the uncanny; we need magic. The use of the word magic or magical is everywhere, even in scientific discussions. There is a continued interest in conjuring: tricks, sleight of hand, deception, tarot cards, reading the future. This evening Magician Zoe Reiches and MIT Professor of Anthropology Graham Jones will explore the continued fascination with magic, as both practitioners of magic and those who think about it, in all its many forms. They will investigate magic and some of its permutations; expect to be surprised!

This event is a collaboration between the MIT List Visual Arts Center and Catalyst Conversations.