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Out-of-body experience: Master of illusion

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A Correction to this article was published on 21 December 2011

This article has been updated

Henrik Ehrsson uses mannequins, rubber arms and virtual reality to create body illusions, all in the name of neuroscience.

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  • 14 December 2011

    This Feature inadvertently attributed thie idea that “if there’s something you can be certain of in this world, it’s that your hand is your hand” to Descartes instead of G. E. Moore. This error has now been corrected.

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Yong, E. Out-of-body experience: Master of illusion. Nature 480, 168–170 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/480168a

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