Going to Disney, I feel deeply unnerved by all the "magic" happening behind the scenes, where forces unknown to me are observing by behavior and sculpting parts of the experience to meet me when I arrive somewhere. It's like being hunted by a bizarre and inscrutable predator.
But if I'm aware of the exquisite engineering, and understand how my behavior shapes the experience, then I'm pleased rather than startled when the host at the restaurant greets me by name even though I haven't introduced myself. I can enjoy the care and effort they're putting in, and the vast scope and scale is all the more impressive for understanding it. It starts to feel magical after all.
The loss of magic is real. Though one thing I've found helpful to understand this phenomenon what is called in some circles "quadrant absolutism." That is, reality can be understood from four perspectives, or quadrants: 1st person singular "I"; 1st person plural "we" or 2nd person "you"; 3rd person singular "it"; and 3rd person singular "its".
Quadrant absolutism is taking one or two of these perspectives as more real or true than others. Examples: A religious fundamentalist takes more real or true what his/her community or scripture (1st person plural) believes about reality, leaving out the 3rd person perspectives that would demonstrate, say evolution. Or scientific materialists who only take as ultimately real the "things out there" - chemicals, atoms, quarks, etc, considering 1st person experiences such as love to be somehow less real.
I feel exactly the same whenever I see my son. And he is 5 years old now. So grown up and all.
HN successfully attenuated the magic, by floating out these articles which reduce the magic to chemical factors.
PS - On a lighter note.