Ways to become invisible

Bodhisattva said:

[h=1]Vanishing point: five ways to become invisible [/h]

Here's how you could become invisible in the middle ages: grind up an owl's eye with a ball of beetle dung and some olive oil, and rub it all over your body. There's no record that this method was ever tried, so I guess we don't actually know if it works. But it's a relief that modern science and technology now supply some choices, even if none are perfect. Here are five of them.


Is this a case of science achieving what magic couldn't? We should be cautious about that sort of claim. Invisibility has been a coveted power since antiquity, but the stories we tell about it are fables of power and corruption, irresponsibility and voyeurism. If we ever seem likely to make Harry Potter's cloak of invisibility or Frodo Baggins's ring for real, we might want to ask who wants it, and why. Remember that when Christopher Marlowe's Dr Faustus says "charm me, that I may be invisible, to do what I please, unseen of any", he's asking Mephistopheles.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/jul/19/vanishing-point-five-ways-to-become-invisible

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longview said:

In very even background environments like the ocean and sky, it could be possible to slightly bend what the viewer sees from you to an empty space near you.
Think of it like the artificial image of water that appears on hot highways (mirage), the hot air has a slightly different index of refraction.
In WWII planes searching for Submarines, used lights on the leading edges of the wings to dim their silhouette in the sky.
this did not make they invisible, but reduced the time they could be spotted by several.minuets.
this was really bad for the submarines, as the spotting time, became less than the dive time.

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Bodhisattva said:

I think it will be cool when we have light bending cloaks that we can wear around town... probably in the next 50 years.

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Henrin said:

Just need one Vampire Dust and one Chaurus Egg and you're good to go.

And wouldn't a cloak move as you walk and give up your location?

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Bodhisattva said:

[h=1]Vanishing point: five ways to become invisible [/h]

Here's how you could become invisible in the middle ages: grind up an owl's eye with a ball of beetle dung and some olive oil, and rub it all over your body. There's no record that this method was ever tried, so I guess we don't actually know if it works. But it's a relief that modern science and technology now supply some choices, even if none are perfect. Here are five of them.


Is this a case of science achieving what magic couldn't? We should be cautious about that sort of claim. Invisibility has been a coveted power since antiquity, but the stories we tell about it are fables of power and corruption, irresponsibility and voyeurism. If we ever seem likely to make Harry Potter's cloak of invisibility or Frodo Baggins's ring for real, we might want to ask who wants it, and why. Remember that when Christopher Marlowe's Dr Faustus says "charm me, that I may be invisible, to do what I please, unseen of any", he's asking Mephistopheles.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/jul/19/vanishing-point-five-ways-to-become-invisible

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Quag said:

I tried it and it didn't work, but I was using a barn owls eye. Tried it again with a snowy owl eye and now I cant figure out how to become visible again

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Bodhisattva said:

Yes, but that is why the best mode would be to sit quietly in the bushes and watch people.

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zyzygy said:

It's possible to do that now without a cloak. Knock yourself out! Have fun!

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