Amazing Danny intuits the answer.

Photograph: Veronica Rafael

This is a basic "mind-reading" trick. It relies on mathematical truths (the first ten multiples of 9 all have digits adding up to 9) and basic category associations (most people who name an animal that starts with e will say elephant and not emu) to make you look powerfully clairvoyant. You may have experienced this in e-mail forwards that ask you to calculate a bunch of stuff and then think of a vegetable. (The answer is carrot.)

Step one Tell the subject to pick a number between 2 and 10, but not to tell anyone.
Step two Ask them to multiply that number by 9.
Step three Ask them to add the digits of the number together.
Step four Ask them to subtract 5 from the total.
Step five Ask them to take the current number and convert it to the corresponding letter of the alphabet (A=1, B=2, C=3, etc).
Step six Tell them to think of a country in Europe that begins with this letter.
Step seven Tell them to take the second letter of the country and think of an animal that begins with that letter.
Step eight Say that you need for them to visualize this animal within the chosen country. Tell them it's also very important that they focus on that animal's color, so that you see a clear picture in their minds. (Note: This is where you really need to sell the trick and ask like you're reading their mind. Furrow your brow, make hand motions, play it up.)
Step nine Say you've divined their thoughts, and on a sheet of paper where the subject can't see, write down "gray elephant in Denmark."
Step ten Ask what the subject what colored animal and country they picked.
Step eleven Open the sheet of paper, which amazingly (if it goes well) says exactly what they just did.

Note that the number calculations will always equal 4, which translates to the letter d. Since Denmark is the only European country that begins with d, your guess should always be half right. If the subject does choose emu instead of elephant, you can always play it off and say, "I guess you weren't concentrating hard enough on the animal."

This trick was provided by Amazing Danny, a clown and magician who has performed in and around the New York area for 13 years. He can be reached at 212-481-4116.