How Do They Do It? Learning from the Great Magicians

Just what is this thing we call "magic"? Let's consider the definition that comes to us from Webster's dictionary:
"The art of persons who claim to be able to do things by the help of supernatural creatures or by their own knowledge of nature's secrets...
Something that charms; any seemingly hidden or secret power; as, the magic of a voice; the magic of a great name...
Sleight of hand...
Seemingly requiring more than human power; startling in performance; producing effects which seem supernatural..."
Pretty interesting stuff, right?! In this definition we get a whole bunch of different ideas, all of them working together and yet somehow contradicting each other.
On the one hand, we have the idea that there's something supernatural at work. Something superhuman, or "out of this world."
But at the same time we are meant to understand that it's only "seemingly" so. Magicians "claim" to have special powers, but whether they actually do is up for debate.
Nevertheless, Webster's definition of magic helps to give us a starting point for our journey through this ancient art form.

How Do They Do It? Learning from the Great Magicians