My new CFI media literacy article examines the demographics of American mass shooters. Many people believe that most mass shooters are white males, but in fact it varies by type of shooting; there is no single representative or predictive demographic, other than being...
Media Literacy
Squaring the Strange: Episode 87: Momo & Part 2 of Enter the Warren-verse!
This week we take a quick look at the Momo challenge's resurgence and surprisingly mainstream fall; then for our main segment we dive back into the strange, sketchy world of Ed & Lorraine Warren. These opportunistic and not-exactly-truthful storytellers are a big...
Art Project Unknowingly Promotes Urban Legend
I saw this meme recently, it’s a Cuban art project about exploited children. However one of the photos, bottom left, is based on an urban legend. The artist is trying to raise awareness of child organ trafficking, but it doesn’t actually happen. I’ve researched,...
Squaring the Strange Archives: The Terrifying Kuchisake-onna!
In the latest in a series highlighting past episodes and archives of Squaring the Strange, here's a look back at a show you might have missed... This week, Ben and Pascual dig into the legend of Kuchisake-Onna, aka the Slit-mouthed Woman. From the origins of her...
Do 60% Of People Misgender Trans People To Insult Them?
Recent news reports claimed that most people intentionally disrespect transgendered individuals by calling them by something other than their preferred gender pronoun. For example one piece began: “Three in five people internationally report that they would...
‘Why Aren’t ‘They’ Calling it ‘Terrorism’?
I'm seeing a lot of confusion on social media about definitions of "terrorism" and why certain people/groups are/are not labeled "terrorists." Simplistic memes aside, the topic is a bit nuanced but worth understanding. I wrote about it last year, for those who'd like...
The ‘Catnip Cocktail’ Panic
There’s a new drug panic in town, and it’s not crack or opioids. It’s catnip. Well, it’s called “Catnip Cocktail,” and it actually contains no catnip. It contains a non-FDA-approved blend of a variety of chemicals including caffeine and something called 1,4-BD,...
Quoted in ‘Rolling Stone’ on… ‘Catnip Cocktail’ Drug Panic!
There's a new drug craze going around, called Catnip Cocktail, allegedly the latest thing since jenkem and "bath salts." In fact I was recently interviewed by "Rolling Stone" magazine about it; you can read it HERE. You can find more on me and my work with a search...
‘Hyman’s Proper Criticism’- Squaring the Strange #84
This week on our show Squaring the Strange, we start by looking at a Newsweek headline that's been circulating again recently, implying that one-third of Americans doubt the death toll of the Holocaust. Then we devote our main segment to an important essay that has...
New Skeptical Inquiree Column: ‘Bailing In the Mummies’
In the new issue of Skeptical Inquirer magazine I investigate the legend that Egyptian mummies were used as fuel in locomotives, with an illustration by Celestia Ward! Q: Today I heard a speaker repeat the story that mummies were used as fuel in British trains. I...