History Main / MagicPoweredPseudoScience

* This is the premise of the occult tradition called Chaos Magick. The idea behind it is that mysticism works only because [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve the individual practitioner believes in it]], and thus anything, from a traditional encounter with a demon to ADateWithRosiePalms, given the correct amount of focus and a clear goal it's supposed to accomplish, can achieve a supernaturally-influenced outcome.

* [[CityOfAdventure Academy City]], the setpiece for the ''LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex'' series, boasts a training curriculum that gives its students PsychicPowers through super-science ahead of its time. [[spoiler:The dirty secret, however, is that the curriculum is actually an exercise in applied Thelemic magic, and that the General Superintendent who designed the curriculum (and who still runs the place) is none other than archmagus and Thelema founder Creator/AleisterCrowley.]] In a world where Academy City's "science" is [[MagicVersusScience constantly at odds with]] actual magicians, the implications of this secret are immense.

* In this [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/no-joke Tale]] in the [[{{NegativeContinuity}} Resurrection Canon]] of the {{Wiki/SCP Foundation}}, Doctor Joseph [[{{MeaningfulName}} Greenburg]] turns out to have been making/using this, as it's deduced after the mission that he was just a [[{{RealityWarper}} Type Green]] making up all of his "science." [[spoiler: This also reveals that [[{{JokeCharacter}} Jerry]] was anomalous due to ''[[{{AntiMagic}} not]]'' being anomalous despite Greenburg insisting he was]].

* WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers has the Joy Can, which presents whoever goes in it with their greatest fantasy. There is a debate between Dr. Venture and Dr. Orpheus about whether it is magic or science, but ultiamtely Venture reveals that while he built it scientifically, it's PoweredByAForsakenChild, pretty much pushing it into this category.

* Creator/CSLewis warned against this kind of thing in some of his writings.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': in the episode "Where No One Has Gone Before" a scientist comes on the ''Enterprise'' to test an upgrade on its engines. It looks like the upgrades are working but actually they are (almost) useless. It turns out the scientist's assistant is actually a super-powerful being who was making the engines work better with his mind.

* This is the premise of the occult tradition called Chaos Magick. The idea behind it is that mysticism works only because the individual practitioner believes in it, and thus anything, from a traditional encounter with a demon to Main/ADateWithRosiePalms, given the correct amount of focus and a clear goal it's supposed to accomplish, can achieve a supernaturally-influenced outcome.

* In ''Literature/{{Worm}}'' Tinkers are a class of parahumans able to create technology far beyond the capabilities of modern science. Attempts to reverse-engineer the technology fails outside of Dragon's ability to duplicate Tinker-tech and only the original Tinker can properly maintain the equipment. This is due to a combination of the Entities black-boxing the technology and subtly applying their powers to ensure the tech works even if it shouldn't.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' in the episode "Where No One Has Gone Before" a scientist comes on the ''Enterprise'' to test an upgrade on its engines. It looks like the upgrades are working but actually they are (almost) useless. It turns out the scientist's assistant is actually a super-powerful being who was making the engines work better with his mind.

* There was one episode of ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' where a scientist comes on the ''Enterprise'' to test an upgrade on its engines. It looks like the upgrades are working but actually they are (almost) useless. It turns out the scientist's assistant is actually a super-powerful being who was making the engines work better with his mind.

* Done in ''Film/{{Daybreakers}}'', though not to limit the effects or reproducibility of the AppliedPhlebotinum. Everyone in the vampire world of the future refers to vampirism as a "virus" in their research papers and news reports. What kind of virus could possibly give people all the traditional supernatural vampire traits of undead immortality, needing human blood to survive, extreme vulnerability to sunlight, glowing eyes, no reflection in a mirror, and exploding in fiery chunks when staked but not when beheaded? [[VirusMisnomer None, really]], but since their condition spreads like a virus and the remaining normal humans and their sympathizers are seeking a cure for it like a virus, a "virus" it is by their working definition. In real life medicine, this would fall under the broader term "pathogen" or "infection".

* ''TabletopGame/{{Deadlands}}'' {{Mad Scientist}}s run this in a complete {{Steampunk}} trifecta with ScienceRelatedMemeticDisorder and TheSparkOfGenius: it's implied repeatedly that at least some of their gizmos wouldn't work it at all were it not for [[spoiler:[[TheLegionsOfHell manitou]] contributing supernatural energy to power them]]. Two hundred years later junkers weaponize this, and simply [[spoiler:force the manitous to generate energy AfterTheEnd]].

** The same follows the newest branch, the Virtual Adepts, who's magic is RewritingReality through magic coding. Originally known as the Difference Engineers, they left the Technocracy after they killed off one of their own (Alan Turing) and joined the Traditions. On the other hand, their style of "hacking reality" is the most like the Technocracy (in terms of structure according to some sources) though they are still RewritingReality in a way that defies the Technocracy's conventional science.

* In ''Litearture/{{Worm}}'' Tinkers are a class of parahumans able to create technology far beyond the capabilities of modern science. Attempts to reverse-engineer the technology fails outside of Dragon's ability to duplicate Tinker-tech and only the original Tinker can properly maintain the equipment. This is due to a combination of the Entities black-boxing the technology and subtly applying their powers to ensure the tech works even if it shouldn't.

* In the ''TabletopGame/NewWorldOfDarkness'' fangame, ''TabletopGame/GeniusTheTransgression'', the Wonders of the titular Geniuses explicitly don't work on actual science, and the moment a Genius starts thinking they do, his slide into the deeper end of the KarmaMeter begins.

* {{Steampunk}} Milton Keynes in ''Survival Geeks'' is initially portrayed as running on steam power. While steam is a significant part of the grid, Clive realises it's not enough to power the entire city, and observes that most of the pipes are just for show. He's right - the city is actually powered by Literature/{{Cthulhu| Mythos}}.

A subtrope of DoingInTheScientist.

** The major difference between the Technocracy (the primary antagonstic faction) and the Sons of Ether (a {{Steampunk}}/{{Diesalpunk}}-themed player faction) is that the former try to lie to themselves about this not being the case, insisting that what they use is "merely [[ClarkesThirdLaw hyper-technology]]", whilst the latter accept that "science" and "magic" are really the same thing through different lenses. In fact, the Etherites originally began as a specific branch of the Technocracy, but left it after decisions amongst the higher-ups struck their particular branch of "science" from the Technocracy's Paradigm -- essentially, they complained that the Technocracy was "killing off all the cool science". The branch in particular was the luminous ether.

* In this [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/no-joke Tale]] in the [[{{NegativeContinuity}} Resurrection Canon]] of the {{Wiki/SCPFoundation}}, Doctor Joseph [[{{MeaningfulName}} Greenburg]] turns out to have been making/using this, as it's deduced after the mission that he was just a [[{{RealityWarper}} Type Green]] making up all of his "science." [[spoiler: This also reveals that [[{{JokeCharacter}} Jerry]] was anomalous due to ''[[{{AntiMagic}} not]]'' being anomalous despite Greenburg insisting he was]].

* In this [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/no-joke Tale]] in the [[{{NegativeContinuity}} Resurrection Canon]] of the {{Wiki/SCPFoundation}}, Doctor Joseph [[{{MeaningfulName}} Greenburg]] turns out to have been making/using this, as it's deduced after the mission that he was just a [[{{RealityWarper}} Type Green]] making up all of his "science." [[spoiler: This then reveals that [[{{JokeCharacter}} Jerry]] was anomalous due to '[[{{AntiMagic}} not]]' being anomalous despite Greenburg insisting he was]].

* In this [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/no-joke Tale]] in the [[{{NegativeContinuity}} Resurrection Canon]] of the {{Wiki/SCPFoundation}}, Doctor Joseph [[{{MeaningfulName}} Greenburg]] turns out to have been making/using this, as it's deduced after the mission that he was just a [[{{RealityWarper}} Type Green]] making up all of his "science." [[spoiler: This then reveals that [[{{JokeCharacter}} Jerry]] was anomalous due to '[[{{AntiMagic}} not]]' being anomalous despite Greenburg insisting he was.

* In this [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/no-joke Tale]] in the [[{{NegativeContinuity}} Resurrection Canon]] of the {{Wiki/SCPFoundation}}, Doctor Joseph [[{{MeaningfulName}} Greenburg]] turns out to have been making/using this, as it's deduced after the mission that he was just a [[{{RealityWarper}} Type Green]] making up all of his "science."

* In this [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/no-joke tale]] in the [[{{NegativeContinuity]]Resurrection Canon]] of the {{SCPFoundation}}, Doctor Joseph [[{{MeaningfulName}} Green]]burg turns out to have been using this, as it's deduced that he was just a [[{{RealityWarper}}Type Green]] making up all of his "science."

** In this [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/no-joke tale]] in the [[{{NegativeContinuity]] Resurrection Canon]] of the {{SCPFoundation}}, Doctor Joseph [[{{MeaningfulName}} Green]]burg turns out to have been using this, as it's deduced that he was just a [[{{RealityWarper}} Type Green]] making up all of his "science."