Does the Magic 8 Ball Predict the Future? Predictions Explained!
About as much as any other divination tool, when used with intent, the Magic 8 Ball can be your prophecy telling ball. But does the Magic 8 Ball really predict the future? Yes, it does. 95% of the time it comes up, the Ball will mysteriously foresee the impending. Only 1 in 20 times, it will tell you that it cannot predict now.
The Predictions of the Magic 8 Ball
How does the Magic 8 Ball Predict?
You hold the Ball with the window on its bottom face, ask a question about the future, wait ten seconds, turn the 8 Ball over and read the written answer in the window!
Essentially, the Magic 8 Ball is a plastic container that holds a blue-dye fluid within which floats a white a twenty-sided polyhedral die – which is where your answer appears!
The creators of the Magic 8 Ball, in consultation with Doctor Lucien Cohen, a psychology professor at the University of Cincinnati, designed this twenty sided die to have an exact mix of non-committal, affirmative or negative statement imprinted inraised letters.
Often, however, when asking the Magic 8 Ball our burning questions, it is hard to identify and understand its answers. They are designed to be indirect, but prophecy-like. What is important to identify here is that the answers depend on the way that your question has been structured and what your intention is – do you want to know about something that has already happened (that is, the past), OR about what is currently happening now (that is, the present), OR what will happen in the coming hours, days, months, years (that is, the future)?
Yes, the Magic 8 Ball can predict all three – the past, present AND the future. Lets understand this with examples and the predictions explained.
The Past, Present AND the Future
Predictions can be frighteningly accurate. The Magic 8 Ball is rightly popular for its mysterious powers of foresight. If we closely analyse the twenty responses of the Magic 8 Ball, and the potential questions that you can ask it, they are mostly tilted towards answering the future, versus the present or the past.
That being said, if you focus strongly enough on your question, the Magic 8 Ball will align you with all your wanted answers – whether it is about the now, what has happened already or of the upcoming times.
Let’s understand this with a few examples.
Expert tip – Pay close attention to the question structure and the nature of the language used. Like any one of your divination tools, the trick is also to understand (or de-code) what tense the answer is referring to.
Scenario Number 1 – The Past
If you ask the Magic 8 Ball a question more bent towards the past, that is, the time before the moment of speaking or writing, it will respond to you with a prediction of what happened already (or hasn’t).
For example.
Q: WAS my girlfriend cheating on me?
A: Without a doubt (oops)
Q: WERE my parents smoking?
A: My sources say no.
Q: WHAT was I doing for New Years last year?
A: Better not tell you now.
In each of the above cases, in the exact order, the Magic 8 Ball is telling us that the girlfriend has already cheated, the parents have also already smoked, and the activities of the last New Year have already gone by or taken place and it would rather not tell you now. As for the last question, you can accept the non-committal response of the Magic 8 Ball or, if you aren’t satisfied, try asking it again for a more positive, negative (or still the same) prediction for your New Year celebrations.
Scenario Number 2 – The Present
If you ask the Magic 8 Ball a question about the present, that is, the time that is existing or occurring at the moment of speaking or writing, it will respond to you with a prediction of what is currently happening. You will also notice how the structure of the questions have been altered to reflect a prediction that is more about the NOW.
For example.
Q: IS my girlfriend cheating on me?
A: You may rely on it.
Q: ARE my parents smoking?
A: Don’t count on it.
Q: WHAT am I doing for New Years this year?
A: Ask again later.
In the cases of Scenario Number 2, in the exact order, the Magic 8 Ball is now telling us that the girlfriend is cheating right now, the parents are, at this current moment in time, smoking, and that you need to ask it again for a recommendation of the activities for New Years this year. If you are not satisfied with the last non-committal response, you can try asking it again for a positive or negative prediction or believe what it has told you.
Scenario Number 3 – The (mysterious) Future
In our opinion, Scenario Number 3 is where the Magic 8 Ball is at its best. Like the Divination tool it was inspired by, if you ask it a question about the upcoming future, that is, the time that is yet to come after the moment of speaking or writing, it will predict the upcoming times for you. For example.
Q: WILL my girlfriend cheat on me?
A: Most likely.
Q: WILL my parents smoke?
A: Outlook not so good.
Q: WHAT will I be doing for New Years next year?
A: Better not tell you now.
For the cases above, in the exact order, the Magic 8 Ball is now telling us that the girlfriend will most likely end up cheating, the probability of the parents smoking does not look so good, and that it will likely not be telling you what you will be doing for New Years this year. In the last case, of course, it’s a non-committal prediction, which means that you can try asking it again for a more affirmative or negative response, or accept what it has told you for now.
Conclusion
The Magic 8 Ball is what you make of it. It tells you what you want to know, what you need to know, and more importantly, what you ask it. The most mysterious part is that it knows.
It can predict the future for you, yes, but it can also predict what happened in your past or is happening now, depending on the way that your structure your question for it, and interpret its answer.
Nevertheless, don’t be too nervous about the responses, even the negative ones aren’t that negative. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the Magic 8 Ball has always been more popular with adults than kids, and adults tend to ask weightier questions. As we grow older, the future takes on a whole different meaning, and the questions are deeper. Right?
References
Reference 1: Mental Floss “A Brief History of the Magic 8 Ball”
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/67702/brief-history-magic-8-ball
Reference 2: “Timeless Toys: Classic Toys and the Playmakers Who Created Them” by Time Walsh
Reference 3: Life Science Leader “And The Magic 8 Ball Says…”
https://www.lifescienceleader.com/doc/and-the-magic-ball-says-0001
Figure 1 – Illustration from Stock Photos 4
