Squaring the Strange

We start with a recap of SkeptiCamp New Mexico, then move on to a laundry list of creepy, crawly creatures: Alex Jones, flying Joro spiders, bug zappers, opposite snakes and Sasquatch Sunset. Our main topic is an update to one of the cases in Ben's "Bad Clowns" book. The West Palm Beach Killer Clown case involves a love triangle, a clown costume, and a pile of circumstantial evidence. It sat with no arrests for nearly 30 years, until Sheila Keen-Warren was arrested in 2017. Among the developments as prosecutors and defense lawyers prepared for trial was a so-called "clown sighting file," with some 25 pages of clowns that came to the attention of law enforcement -- no doubt many such sightings took place during the infamous "clown panic" that occurred around the time of Keen-Warren's arrest. Whether the choice to don a clown suit and makeup to commit murder stemmed from practical advice from a lawyer, or malicious ostension, the sensational news coverage and public's continual interest in this "killer clown" case likely is the reason Keen-Warren was finally brought to justice.

Celestia and Ben have a lengthy A-segment, between discussing the almost-here SkeptiCamp, Ben's recent folklore convention, and what mischief TV psychic Allison DuBois has been up to. We have thoughts on the recently deceased Morgan Spurlock's legacy, and then talk about two interesting developments from the Catholic Church this week. Professor Chris French joins us to discuss his new book, "The Science of Weird Sh!t: Why Our Minds Conjure the Paranormal." Chris has a vast background in, well, weird sh!t, and shares his thoughts on how it has gained legitimacy in the academic world -- as well as the nature of skepticism today.

Ben and Celestia roll out an abbreviated history of book bans and the psychology behind them. What sorts of fears manifest into the desire to keep information away from people? And which people? Is the current rash of book challenges a panic, or is the fear of such bans a panic? We start this episode with a solid opinion, then find ways to knock that opinion around a bit. Calls for book bans have come from the right and left, for different reasons. The freedom of speech gets complicated in matters of obscenity, "dangerous knowledge" or children's books containing racial slurs. From "The Anarchist Cookbook" to critical race theory, we look at some individual cases as well as how effective book banning attempts are today.

Can a human being be killed with one well-timed blow? Without question, yes. But is the secret to this fighting style held by ancient Chinese monks, or a flamboyant guy named Count Dante who advertises in the back of comic books? We look at real situations where one punch (or slap, or chiropractic adjustment) can kill a person, either immediately or after a delay. Then we bring in author, EMT and martial artist Peter Huston to discuss the legend of Dim Mak and how propaganda, marketing, Chinese culture, the allure of the ancient, Kung Fu movies and suburban American kids fit into the creation of this idea.

We have a surprise visit from Scooby fan Kenny Biddle, then speak with Mark Norman, folklorist and author of the upcoming "Zoinks!: The Spooky Folklore of Scooby Doo." The show is beloved by skeptics, and for good reason. But did you know the show owes its existence to a panic in the 1960s about violence in kids' shows? Between guest stars like the Harlem Globetrotters and Vincent Price, Scooby Doo also introduced kids to a wide array of cryptids, ghosts, witches and folkloric concepts like curses, mysterious mirrors, and of course haunted houses. The show itself has also become the subject of a few urban legends and modern myths, from Shaggy's alleged drug use to the characters representing Massachusetts colleges.

This freebie bonus is us shooting the breeze, thanking folks who deserve kudos, asking some questions about skepticism today, and generally having a good time.

We chat about several topics in the news recently, from a bright streak of burning space junk over Los Angeles to a very realistic crucifixion reenactment in the Philippines. Ben unravels a weeping Madonna story in the tabloids that also casts some shade on a prominent Italian skeptic, then he gives us his review of "Late Night with the Devil," set in the 1970s and complete with a nod to the late Amazing Randi. Pascual and Celestia talk about DEI's increasing role as a boogeyman, and try to figure out how some legislators seem to believe it brought down the Francis Scott Key Bridge. And we can't ignore the skeptical holiday of April Fools' Day, a day everyone practices more skepticism and when some creative people unveil some clever hoaxes.

After some current events involving Brazilian ex-president Bolsonaro, a new study on Havana Syndrome, and migrants with measles in Chicago, we are joined by Curt Anderson. A career magician turned academic researcher, Curt tells us about his pivot to deception studies. Piggybacking on our recent episode about Truth Default Theory, we explore more about how well humans (think we can) detect lies. What can a scientific approach to deception tell us about human communication, and what practical applications does the field have? We hit on many topics, from creating better magic shows to dissecting poker strategies, as well as -- of course -- what it all means for skepticism.

First, Pascual and Celestia hit recent science news -- a sideways lunar landing, some male-on-male humpback whale action, and recent cell outages. Then Ben and Celestia look at weather modification, from prayer and superstition to very real cloud-seeding efforts. Though in practice almost everywhere for generations, this technology still surprises and confuses people, who lump it in with conspiracies about precise weather control by some all-powerful cabal . . . using a decommissioned array of antennas in Alaska?

First, Ben and Celestia have several tidbits to discuss, from Micheal Mann's court win to chemtrails popping up in social media. Ben is watching another cult docuseries, and we get into the unfortunate trend of obituary pirating. For our main segment, we are joined by the delightful Daniel Loxton, illustrator, author, editor and longtime skeptic luminary. He takes us on a tour of the long-debunked story about a 15-foot penguin in Florida. But a simple debunking is only the surface of this tale, which has much to teach us about modern popular paranormal culture, the mixing of sci-comm with mystery-mongering, and the different levels of investigation. This leads us into a conversation on the nature of skepticism itself, and where our future lies.

After some chit-chat about vaccine misinfo on X and "phrogging" on Netflix, the gang tackles truth default theory. Coined by researcher Timothy Levine, truth default theory explains that human beings generally believe what we're told. Why? This seemingly simple concept plays a part in anchoring bias, first impressions, stereotypes, confirmation bias, and why it's so difficult to change one's beliefs. The "truth bias" is a blind spot that we need to be aware of, especially as skeptics, because although people aren't great at figuring out when they're being lied to, people THINK they can spot a lie a mile away.

We've had this scheduled for a while, but this week AI popped up in the news twice, impersonating George Carlin and Joe Biden, so what better time for a skeptical look at artificial intelligence! Kyle Polich of the long-running Data Skeptic Podcast joins Ben, Celestia and Pascual to talk about different sorts of AI. From generative AI threatening writers and artists to the kind of AI that can help scammers manipulate people -- or even put human lives in peril if it goes wrong. How much of an AI panic are we witnessing right now, and what sort of impact will it really have on our society, our economy . . . and our skepticism?

Quite a few news topics hit our skeptical radar this week, from Disney's copyright expiration on Mickey to an industrious Welsh mouse (no relation), to a 10-foot-tall alien in Miami and Ben's bittersweet discovery in a Barnes and Noble. Then our main topic is an overview of Bigfoot -- the biggest, footiest member of the cryptid family. Ben gives a summary of first appearances, evidence from the Patterson-Gimlin film to supposed DNA, ret-conning of native legends, and Bigfoot's role in democratizing science over the decades. What's our furry friend been up to in the 21st century though? We go over arguments that Bigfoot proponents have put forth as to why the creature has remained hidden so long. And, finally, can a legend ever truly die?

For our last episode of the year, after Ben lists his upcoming appearances and a nice book accolade, and after Celestia discusses "Skibidi Toilet Syndrome," we speak with Prof. Libby Tucker about dark play. Existing in the liminal spaces of childhood, forbidden yet alluring, dark play takes many forms. Rituals, tests of bravery or belief, chants and rhymes, breathing control games -- all exist as a means for children to test boundaries and take control of otherwise overwhelming concepts. Mortality is a common theme, as only recently have children come to be relatively shielded from death. It was quite common for Victorian children to see siblings, playmates and others their age succumb to illness or injuries, with bodies kept in the family home for funeral rites. From "Light as a Feather" signifying resurrection to Bloody Mary foreshadowing menstruation, old tales and games have both stayed ever-present and evolved to new online pranks and TikTok challenges. Whether it's divination by means of an origami "cootie-catcher" or a vandalism dare, chances are you, too, have dabbled in dark play.

After some discussion on a recent shooting in Las Vegas, Alex Jones being let back onto Twitter/X, and Napoleon's height, we dive into a look back at Absinthe. This exotic liquor has a surprisingly rich history filled with danger, exaggeration, fraud and propaganda. From it's supposed creativity-enhancing powers to its effect of bringing about madness and hallucinations, we go for a strange little journey into the evolution of the green fairy.

First Ben and Celestia discuss genetically modified potatoes, cougar kitties, and cocaine hippos. Then we are joined by Dr. Kristina Downs of the Texas Folklore Society to talk about a curious case that occurred in January 2023. A series of incidents at the Dallas Zoo escalated from a wandering clouded leopard to a critically endangered vulture turning up dead and a pair of kidnapped monkeys. Along the way we have parody Twitter accounts, cat humor, digs on local nuisances, and rumors of what's REALLY going on at the zoo -- in other words, folklore and conspiracy theories. Then, when the monkeys are found, we see, on a small scale, what happens when crime-solving communities online are faced with a disappointingly mundane answer to their puzzle.

Ben and Celestia discuss conspiracies, real and unreal, the conspiracy-backed arguments from a high-profile defense lawyer, a superconductor article retraction, and Barbra's opinion on the Streisand Effect. Then, gargoyles! How do these imposing gothic carvings differ from grotesques, and what do they do -- both functionally and symbolically? Who can see them so high up, and are hidden messages really carved into some of them? We learn about the guttural (literally) sense of humor on display in medieval times, and the possible connection gargoyles have to an ancient tradition of "gurning," or face-pulling. And yes, we do talk about the 90s cartoon too!

First, Celestia goes over her high points and low points of CSI Con 2023, then we move on to a few tidbits Ben came across. Sharon Hill joins us again, this time for a main segment on Gef the talking mongoose, a celebrity on the Isle of Man back in the 1930s. A new movie delves into (and somewhat mangles) the mystery, featuring Simon Pegg as Nandor Fodor and Christopher Lloyd as Harry Price. The "mystery" of Gef tapdances around so many facets of Forteana... a talking animal, "earth spirit," clairvoyance, poltergeists, psychic manifestations, and a clever young girl with time on her hands. With Sharon's help, we go over what the records say, what British libel law curtailed the records from saying, and what the movie tries to say today.

First we discuss a few skepticism-adjacent current events: the recent Colorado train spotting of Bigfoot, RFK Jr.'s bid for the presidency, and a new lawsuit naming "Sound of Freedom" hero Tim Ballard as a sexual predator who paid a psychic to help groom his victims. Then we dive into Slenderman, or "Slendy" as his friends know him. Professor Andrea Kitta, contributor to "Slender Man Is Coming" (Utah State University Press, 2018), brings her public health and folklore knowledge to bear on this created cryptid, born of photoshop in the pre-AI days and raised on the pent-up rage of cyberbullied adolescent girls. Part revenge fantasy and part rescuer, what is Slendy's game? Does he drive you insane or take you away to his secret mansion? While he was the focus of a tragic 2014 stabbing case in Wisconsin, since then he has faded slowly and may end up where many initially terrifying monsters go -- into the realm of child lore, as a spooky story for very young kids.

First we have a whole lot of current events that are dinging out skeptical radar: Nobels are being announced; a kidnapped girl was found (not by psychics); a yoga class was mistaken for a mass shooting; we survived a rapture AND a 5G-activated virus; Nevada's supreme court allows joint-custody father to vaccinate kids against wishes of antivax mother; Naomi Wolf says being near vaccinated people causes cramps; and Hasan Minhaj walks the line between storytelling and fabrication. Then, thanks fo Mark Ditsler and Calico Cove LLC for the production of content and permission to distribute audio from our appearance at DragonCon's Skeptic Track earlier in September! We have a roundabout discussion on folkloric roots of modern conspiracies and how stories recur and recur and recur, then take some audience questions.

After discussing the more recent alien-related topics like signs of life on an exoplanet and signs of fraud displayed in the Mexican Congress, we meet up with Brian Dunning of Skeptoid fame. His newest feature film, The UFO Movie THEY Don't Want You to See, is out now on streaming services. We discuss the educational approaches Brian took and why, the "Christmas Tree Problem," and our excitement at the very real possibility of life elsewhere -- tempered, alas, with the very real constricts of physics, time, and space.

It's agritainment season, y'all! So get ready to pick apples, walk a corn maze, pet some goats and maybe get spooked at a rural haunted house! Folklorist and haunted house aficionado Betty Aquino joins Ben and Celestia to discuss themes in rural haunts and why the rural spaces have become romanticized by urban dwellers. We explore some themes of gender, power and politics in the haunted houses she sampled in the midwest, and discuss how this type of commodified spookiness differs from other types of theater. For starters, it's all run by amateurs and there's no fourth wall -- so you're part of the show!

From Romulus and Remus to Tarzan and Mowgli, children raised in the wild by animals is a popular tale in folklore. But what about feral kids in real life? There have been sideshow exhibits, hoaxes and recurring instances in literature and television. Do any of the tales reported as true have merit? And could a child raised by wolves walk on all fours or subsist -- even thrive? -- on raw meat? Why are we drawn to these tales? Some tell a romanticized story of the noble savage, raised safely away from the corruption of society, while others are a little closer to the tragedy that really occurs when a neglected child is starved of human contact.

After some discussion of suspected sun bear cosplay and UAP fallout, Ben and Celestia are joined by Jeff Debies-Carl, who has just published "If You Should Go at Midnight: Legends and Legend Tripping in America" (Univ. Press of Mississippi, 2023). What is legend tripping, and do we all do it -- even us skeptics? From a psychological and sociological perspective, what are the roots, motivations, and dangers involved? From ghost hunts to escape rooms, how we participate in legends helps shape and perpetuate the legend. Let's look at how.

Adrienne Hill joins us this week, and we discuss some current events: RFJ Jr. has presidential hopes, "The Sound of Freedom" is in theaters, and magical nanotechnology makes an appearance in pro tennis. Then onto the main event: All Things Barbie! We have thoughts on the movie, some Barbie folklore and "oopsies," the Barbenheimer phenomenon, and her enduring reputation as both a heroine and a villain. Ben has a unique perspective, after a ton of research down rabbit holes looking for any solid evidence that girls develop eating disorders because they idolize Barbie's unrealistic figure.

First, Ben discusses his recent excursion to a folklore conference, where he touched a plague box and went spelunking in the Devil's Ass, then Celestia pays tribute to Las Vegas eccentric Lonnie Hammargren. For our main segment we are joined by mentalist Banachek, who (like many skeptics this week) has some thoughts on a recent New York Times piece that gives a bit too much credit to a perpetually discredited spoon-bender in the magic world. This recent writeup brings many topics to the table, such as the role Randi's showmanship and ability to garner publicity played in forming the modern skeptical movement. Banachek also shares some details about his early life and what led him to magic, and to a strange wizard's home -- that is, James Randi's door -- at the age of 17.

Celestia and Pascual infodump about the OceanGate submersible, gallows humor and what public science and engineering lessons have been circulating in the wake of that implosion. Then we take a journey into cybermyths versus real cybersecurity concerns, under the guidance of our resident tech hero, Pascual. From "juice jacking" to phishing to rubber duckies, we go over some hacker history and a few technology-fueled urban legends.

After a short chat about the recent alien sightings in Las Vegas and another faked abduction case, Ben brings us his examination of the Dover Demon. This little fellow (or gal) made a two-day appearance in the 1970s then wasn't seen ever again. We look into the possibilities -- an albino moose calf, a tall tale invented by a few bored teenagers, or a prank pulled on those same teens? While not a marquee cryptid, the Dover Demon can teach us a few things about investigation and eye-witness accounts.

This episode is a deep dive on a slippery subject. Many cultures believe in reincarnation, the recycling of souls into new bodies again and again. Reincarnation is an underlying principle behind the idea of karma, and many non-Buddhists believe in reincarnation to some degree. Why? What signals do we interpret as proof of reincarnation, and what would count as actual evidence? Are there any harms that come with the idea of reincarnation? Ben asks many questions, and we go over some interesting cases.

After some discussion of Ed Sheeran's day in court, and then Celestia's day in Calgary for the WeCanReason conference, Pascual and Ben take us on a nostalgic and investigative journey through Chimayo, a small town in New Mexico. Why do 30,000 penitent pilgrims travel here each year? Can the dirt here heal people? Pascual walks us through the tale of a mysterious buried crucifix and Ben details his effort to investigate one man's story of a miraculous healing that took place over fifty years ago.

For our 200th episode we are joined by Matt "The Tube" Crowley and Tim Cridland, aka Zamora the Torture King, to discuss the new documentary about the rise and fall of the Jim Rose Circus. This rock n' roll version of sideshow oddities reintroduced the art of sideshow to many who had never seen it. As two of the original four marvels of the Jim Rose Circus, Matt and Tim share tales of the road, their philosophy of what sideshow is -- and what it may evolve into -- as well as giving away a few secrets of their acts.

After some news on Mike Lindell and a few points about popular TV shows, we are joined by the inimitable Richard Saunders, who gives us the details on his Herculean undertaking, a 12-year roundup of psychic predictions made in Australia's popular media since the year 2000. While there were no surprises, the sheer amount of data he and his teammates collected and categorized provided some interesting insights. How did the media respond? Will there be similar projects? What is the value of having such a macro-view of purported prognostication?

Happy Easter everyone! Rabbits are a fluffy bag of contradictions . . . represented as tricksters but also as victims, lucky or unlucky, clever or depressed, harmless or scary, rabbits and hares have a solid place in the folklore pantheon. We go over tales of hares as witches' familiars, stories about how the rabbit lost its tail, pareidolia-inspired legends about a rabbit on the moon, how rabbits figured into pregnancy tests and common vernacular, and also give shout-outs to our favorite rabbit appearances in horror films and cartoons. Let's hop to it!

We are joined by Peter Ash, founder and director of Under the Same Sun, a nonprofit dedicated to the education and empowerment of persons with albinism in Africa. Due to superstition-based persecution, the hardships endured by those born with this condition in rural African communities are staggering to list: from abandonment, discrimination and untreated skin cancers to outright murder by one's own family. Peter felt called to help others with albinism and has dedicated years to growing his efforts in Tanzania. With a systematic, consistent, multi-pronged approach his organization has helped hundreds of youngsters, many survivors of muti violence. Under the Same Sun houses these children and offers them an education, putting them on a path to independence and prosperity.

We were inundated with news this week, so first we cover prehistoric bugs in Arkansas, the Desert Monkey King glyph in Southwest Las Vegas, the folkloric accuracies in Netflix's "Troll" movie, a new report on Havana Syndrome, and alleged gas poisonings of schoolgirls in Iran. Then Ben recounts his time late last year in Malawi, where he was able to spend time with an activist and reporter covering the latest case of witchcraft persecution and lend some moral support to those on the front lines defending people accused of witchcraft.

Ben and Celestia discuss the nostalgic sense of deja vu when hearing about UFOs and cults these past weeks. Then we are joined by David Thomas, who investigated author Michael Drosnin's notions of a code hidden in the text of the Hebrew Bible and how cracking that code could foretell the future. These ideas were popularized in a series of books published over 20 years ago, but the same number games are resurfacing today in the form of gematria, a type of numerology advocated by QAnon conspiracy theorists. Dr. Thomas discusses the data-mining programs he wrote in order to demonstrate how subjective, predictable, and ultimately misguided these ideas of a hidden Bible code were.

First we nosh on some interesting tidbits about a long-dead casino magnate, a mysterious fortune teller with a prophecy about rom-coms, and a prematurely dead Simon Cowell. Then Kyle Polich of the Data Skeptic podcast joins us to talk about the Missing 411, a concept pushed by several books and movies produced by David Paulides. What or who are the Missing 411, and how are Bigfoot and UFOs involved? Is there a coherent theory about what's going on, and is it based on actual happenings or fabrications? And how does misunderstanding (or completely ignoring) data analysis come into play?

It turns out the all-American fizzy sweet cola is also a veritable cornucopia of myths, rumors, urban legends and misinformation. We're not just talking about the explosive properties of Pop Rocks or Mentos. Can a Coca-Cola douche prevent pregnancy? (It can't, please don't even think about it). How many mice ended up sealed into bottles of Coke? Does Santa owe his whole look to Coke's ad agency? We go over these and many, many more tales involving the most popular carbonated beverage in the world.

We discuss a surprise paleoanthropological development from the past week and weigh some falsehoods coming from a new member of Congress. Then for our main topic we do an overview of romance scams, from the Spanish Prisoner Swindle a few centuries ago to the online catfishing scams that are presently fleecing Americans to the tune of $500 million a year. Longtime grassroots skeptic volunteer Wendy Hughes kindly joins us to discuss her courageous and candid article "A Skeptic Trips Over a Romance Scam" and talks about what she learned in hindsight and how her skeptical toolkit helped her turn a humbling experience into something that could benefit others.

As we wrap up another year, we make a few predictions for 2023 and then answer some listener questions on what has fooled us in the past. Then for our main segment we dish on films that were right up our strange and skeptical alley. There was some brilliant folklore-inspired work involving Djinn and a puppet come to life, as well as some fantastic documentaries -- and also some absurd stuff disguised as documentaries, like Netflix's recent "Ancient Apocalypse."

Ben titled this episode. In which we speak of all the reasons why you should think twice about renting a monochrome, windowless van in unfamiliar territory. From cursed vehicles to the average person's psychological priming that led police off the trail of the Beltway Sniper case, we look at the role vehicles have played in urban legends, dangerous rumors and real-life crime. How have the most common vehicles in our environment also become the most feared? Buckle up!

First Pascual and Celestia examine a mysterious woman "haunting" AI art, dubbed "Loab." Then we dip into a selection of the less famous lake monsters. There are literally hundreds. We talk about how they've spawned from either high-profile sightings/photos or questionable "news" stories from the period of yellow journalism. And even how some people have claimed copyright over a few of them for merchandising purposes! From Champ's cousin George (who lives, predictably, in Lake George) and Tahoe Tessie to Lake Erie Larry and the Canadian monsters Cressie and Memphre, we'll go over eye-witness reports and what themes emerge--and then submerge!

Ben has returned from adventures, so we hear about some of his travels and then discuss the Twitter blue checkmark brouhaha. In our main segment we look at Ley Lines, a literal game of connect-the-dots played on the surface of the earth. Somehow these evolved from simple common routes noticed by an early 20th-century landscape photographer to a catch-all mysterious network that affects dowsing, psychic energy, nodes, vortices and crop circles. Called holy lines by Nazis and dragon lines by writers inserting them into ancient Chinese culture, these supposed energy lines are slippery to pin down--but boy do they make for a great plot device in pop culture, from Batman to Star Wars.

This week, after we take a moment to tally exactly how many kids were killed by rainbow fentanyl passed off as Halloween candy, we bring Sharon Hill on to speak about the excitement around a decade ago when Dr. Melba Ketchum announced she had tested and confirmed Bigfoot DNA. Ben sets the stage in terms of Bigfoot evidence timeline and the rise of genetic technology. Once a vacuum became apparent, it seemed inevitable that someone would eventually become a self-taught geneticist, open an unaccredited lab, and find some genetic evidence for our big hairy friend.

First, Pascual and Celestia puzzle over Ben's location and discuss a few places in Vegas that skeptics might like to see while they attend CSI Con. Then we celebrate the nearly $1 billion judgment against Alex Jones and look into a minor (non)mystery about a ghost boat from WWII appearing in a California lake. Our main topic this week is a look back at our favorite scary episodes, and why they creep us out.

First we get sucked down a bit of a rabbit hole on all the things we never knew about crystal flutes. Then vampire expert Dr. Stanley Stepanic joins us to talk Slavic folklore, rabies and other diseases, shape-shifting, religious clashes in Eastern Europe during the early centuries of Christianity, and how all monster roads seem to lead back to vampires. Stepanic covers a lot of ground, all the way through movies and present-day vampire ostension (oh yes, Vampire: The Masquerade comes up). Grab yourself a tall bloody Mary and strap in, it's quite a crash course!

First Celestia gushes about "3,000 Years of Longing," starring Idris Elba as a sultry Djinn. Then Ben talks to us about the pirate life, which had a lot more worms than one might expect. What's the difference between a privateer and a buccaneer? Or a sloop and a four-masted mariner? We go into daily activities, reasons people ended up on pirate ships, and of course how pirates typically met their end. Then we spotlight a few female pirates and talk about Blackbeard, who had the greatest PR team on the high seas.

Part roadside attraction -- and apparently also part magnetic marvel, part harmonics and Ley Line energy well, part mystical creation of a stone-singer, part love letter, and part obsession, the Coral Castle in Homestead, Florida, has baffled engineers and scientists for decades. Or so it's been said. What was the real force behind this peculiar non-coral non-castle, exactly? Ben has written about and visited the Coral Castle and pored through the pamphlets of its builder, Latvian-American eccentric Edward Leedskalnin, to peel away the layers of mysterious woo that have been draped over this pretty nifty feat of one-man engineering. Was Leedskalnin a hopeless romantic, a hard-working fellow with just a touch of tuberculosis, a sorcerer, a crank, or an incel? Or a bit of each?

Yes, so our guest this episode is . . . Ben! We take a look at a few strange things in the news first, like "Hunger Stones" and a "Surprise Spanish Stonehenge"! (No one expects the Spanish Stonehenge!). Then we dive into some media literacy themes and lessons in Ben's latest book, "America the Fearful: Media and the Marketing of National Panics." Part primer on what ties folklore of old to the anxiety-riddled news of today, part catalog of biases that influence the news, and part exploration of solutions, our talk goes into some familar territory for longtime listeners.

To our credit, we manage to not giggle like third-graders for most of the episode, as we discuss the strange belief that one's penis has gone missing, become smaller, or been switched out. A peculiar mix of superstition, body dysmorphia, and curse belief, Koro has many traits of a mass sociogenic illness (MSI) and is "contagious" to a degree. When we peel back the layers, it's not such a funny topic after all, and falls into the category of suspicious folklore that results in harm: to victims, to endangered species, and to those suspected of witchcraft.