The Encarta Encyclopedia defines hypnosis as,"altered state of consciousness and heightened responsiveness to suggestion; it may be induced by normal persons by a variety of methods and has been used occasionally in medical and psychiatric treatment. Most frequently brought about through actions of an operator, or "hypnotist", who engages the attention of a subject and assigns certain tasks to him or her while uttering monotonous, repetitive verbal commands; such tasks may include muscle relaxation, …showed first 75 words of 1023 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1023 total…The major use of hypnotism in modern days, is entertainment. Performed as a sort of "Magic Show" it is used to cause some people to laugh, and some people to be amazed. Hypnotism has come a long way since 1734 and who knows what future developments will be made in this field? It may become a commonly used medical tool, or it may come to be thought of as a completely useless "magic trick". ------------------------------------------------------------------------ **Bibliography**