The hidden science of car crashes
"The other car just came out nowhere!" If you ever been in a car crash, you'll know that "what-the-hell-just-happened" feeling. How did I...
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Scamapalooza 63: The Little Golden Calf with Maya Vinokour
If I told you that “the cafeteria is permanently closed for the schnitzel inventory.” what would you think I was saying? If your Russian,...
Scamapalooza 62: Corporate Bullshit with Ian McCarthy
Have you ever had to deal with corporate bullshit? Had your projects “put on the back burner”? Or had your job “right-sized”? Also,...
Scamapalooza 61 - Card Counting with Steven Bridges
If I had to guess what the cardinal rule for card counters was, “Don’t draw attention to yourself” would be way up there. While card...
Scamapalooza 60 - The Shell Game with Nick Stein
Every other week, I am sent a video of someone playing The Shell Game. Maybe it's a cat finding a single treat under three cups, or maybe...
Scamapalooza 59 - The Music Man with Em Chandler
There is a popular image of a con artist that doesn’t exist in the real world. It’s an image of well-dressed, suave, fast-talking...
Scamapalooza 58: Deepak Chopra's Bullshit with Gordon Pennycook
I have long suspected that Deepak Chopra spouts garbage. Despite being a trained physician, the author and self-help guru’s trademark...
Scamapalooza 57: Cassie Chadwick with Tori Telfer
How does the daughter of a railroad hand become a millionaire in an age when women couldn’t even open a bank account? If you’re Cassie...
Scamapalooza 56 - Performing Deception with Brian Rappert
Have you ever thought about how magicians learn their tricks? Not the methods—the smoke and mirrors behind the illusion—but the actual...
Scamapalooza 55: Science Magic with Dr Matt Pritchard
If you know me then you’ll know that my nemesis is magician and science communicator Dr Matt Pritchard. For the last few years, this evil...
Why you can't teach critical thinking
I'm going to make a confession. I've spent close to twenty years teaching critical thinking to high school students... ...even though...
Deceptology with State Library Victoria
I've teamed up with State Library Victoria to create a series of videos that both teach you how to perform extraordinary magic AND the...
Scamapalooza 54: Hocus Pocus Practice Focus with Amy Kimlat
My kid just performed their first solo magic show. In front of 300 of their peers, they correctly predicted a randomly selected TV show,...
Scamapalooza 53: Card Shark with Nicolaï Troshinsky
Why have there not been more video games about card cheating? I remember playing Freddy Pharkas: Frontier Pharmacist as a kid and...
Scamapalooza 52 - The Life-Changing Science of Detecting Bullshit
Did you know the word “bullshit” might just be an Australian invention? During World War I, Australian troops found themselves arriving...
Don't Be Fooled by ChatGPT: The Dangers of Talking to Machines
Have you heard about ChatGPT? It's a wild new technology that can hold a conversation with you and make it seem like you're talking to a...
Scamapalooza 51 - Harry Potter and The Cursed Child with Lee Cohen
Magicians have a complicated relationship with the Harry Potter franchise. On the one hand, the success of J K Rowling's creation has...
Scamapalooza 50 - Bro-Science and The Liver King with Dr Vyom Sharma
There's been a weird evolution in the wellness industry. What was once a market dominated by new age, holistic, self-care has seen a...
Scamapalooza 9 – An Angry Word About Puzzles with Magician David Kwong
David Kwong not only designs puzzles for the New York Times crossword, he also designs heists and illusions for movies like Now You See...
Scamapalooza 36 – Alien Autopsy Part 1 with Spyros Melaris
In 1995, the world was captivated by the Alien Autopsy video, a grainy 17-minute film supposedly depicting the dissection of an alien...
Here you'll find resources for teaching and promoting critical thinking, scam protection, and deception education. Many are linked to his school incursions while others are just for fun.
Make sure you subscribe to Nicholas's podcast. Scamapalooza. He interviews psychologists, authors, and researchers about why people are so easy to fool.
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