Patrick Kramer pulled back his sleeves and reached out an empty hand to offer his business card.

His contact details appeared on the smartphone screen as if by magic, but it was a sufficiently advanced technology that made it happen.

For an encore, he opened a locked door without a key. When anyone else touched the handle, it remained locked.

Unlike other magicians, Kramer willingly explained the secret to the trick, which is so simple a dog could perform it: In the flesh between his left thumb and forefinger, he has inserted a tiny glass bead containing an NFC chip.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here