June 18 - 24, 2011 ~ Tarot of Physics

Tarot of Physics
Dan Horn, Corrine Kenner
Self Published, 2010

I purchased these in a fit of self-pity in April 2011.  I also bought The Wizards Tarot and The Science Tarot.  What a combo!  I got two out of three right, anyway.

The card stock is different.  I am not sure I dislike it - but it does make me uneasy in some regards.  The decks are on parchment paper that is laminated on only the backs.  The fronts are left unlaminated - allowing one to write on or color the images.  The unlaminated side makes me nervous when there are fluids about.   But the lack of lamination plus the smaller size makes for a deck that is easy to shuffle and handle.

There were some changes made to the suits.  And no LWB or anything to help   In this deck, Wands are Energy, Pentacles are Matter, Swords are Space, and Cups are Time.  Wands/Energy and Pentacles/Matter are pretty obvious.  The other two, not so much. I came to the conclusion just looking at the various cards.  It would be nice if there were something somewhere to help people determine which suit is represented by what! I looked at the threese of Space and Time to see if I could determine which was which.  The 3 of Space is "Position" and this is defined as "three intersecting lines identify a point in three dimensions."  All those lines and divisions? Definitely Swords.  Very intellectual and cerebral.  The 3 of Time is "Speaker" and is defined as "Electromagnetic force pulse's a speaker to the beat of the music."  That is a pretty good depiction of the 3 of Cups.  At least to me!


I listened to Mr. Horn discuss this deck at SF BATS, and did I take notes? No.  I was just too enthralled.  Seriously - Physics AND Tarot?? Together?? What an amazing idea.  Mr. Horn was exactly as I thought him to be - not quite as out-going and flamboyant as the "tarot people." His eyes lit up when talking about the Physics behind the Tarot of Physics.  They were both kind enough to sign the title card of my deck.  :)

As a reading deck,. I found it to be refreshing.  It provided a different point of view and did so in terms which I could understand on both a rational and an intuitive level.  By education, I am a "Computer Science Technologist," which means I have a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering Technology and a Minor in Computer Science.  My career currently revolves around the education of Electronics Technicians.  This deck was like a learning tool that told me stuff!  How can that be wrong?

For those who feel intimidated by the physics aspect of the Tarot of Physics, check out Georgia State University's HyperPhysics site.  I recommend this to all my students.  The terms are explained, often with pictures and links (hence, the Hyper...) to more information.  One can get lost in that website quickly!

Rating: Keeper