During the recent trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin in the death of George Floyd, an interesting—and easily overlooked—aspect related to psychology and critical thinking arose. As MSN reported, “Derek Chauvin defense attorney Eric Nelson on...
News
Quoted in ‘Rolling Stone’ about Viral TikTok Abduction Rumors
I'm quoted in a recent Rolling Stone article about abduction rumors going viral on TikTok. It's an interesting social media twist on an old urban legend... you can read it HERE. You can also check out the Squaring the Strange shows we did on faked...
Monster Freed After Lawyer Offers Ridiculous Defense!’: Post Hoc Fallacies In Legal Outcomes
With the recent trials of Derek Chauvin and others, I'm seeing a common fallacy: Seemingly outrageous legal defenses are held up as evidence of how horrible American social values are. But the outrage is evidence of nothing more than a misunderstanding of the justice...
My Forgotten ‘Coast to Coast AM’ Appearance
I've been asked a few times if I've ever appeared on "Coast To Coast AM," and always said no. So I was surprised to discover I had, back in 2018. I'd totally forgotten about it. I never talked to Art Bell but if I had I'd have reminded him about his role in the...
Celestia Ward Interviews Richard Wiseman on ‘Hocus Pocus’
My friend and Squaring the Strange co-host Celestia Ward recently interviewed the great Richard Wiseman about his new skeptical comic Hocus Pocus for the Adventures in Poor Taste site... check it out HERE!
Quoted in ‘Cracked’ on… the Chupacabra!
I'm quoted in a new Cracked article about the chupacabra, and it gives a slightly snarky (but generally good) summary of the monster's cinematic origins: "How A '90s Erotic Thriller Created the 'Chupacabra' Myth." Check it out HERE!
‘Big–If True: Adventures in Oddity’ reviewed!
There's a lovely review of my new book Big-If True: Adventures in Oddity at AIPTComics: "The perfect book for anyone that loves diving into mysteries or enjoys a good investigation. It’s a very quick read, easily broken up into chapters, or even chunks at a time....
Skeptical Inquirer article: Psychic Detectives And The Tragedy Of Harley Dilly
I often investigate claims about psychic detectives, and last year I researched claims made by psychics in the tragic case of a missing Ohio boy in late 2020. He went missing without a trace, and several psychics gave information about where he was; what did they say...
Squaring the Strange #144: SLAP Testing Online Rumors
The new episode of Squaring the Strange is out, with folklorist Prof. Jeannie Banks Thomas on how folklore can help people judge questionable online claims. Seemingly legit warnings might just be a rumor or legend, and even folklorists can be fooled about what's what....
Shriekback Crowdfunding!
The ever-delightful band Shriekback is crowdfunding their next album; if anyone's interested you can help make it happen and get some quirky perks (including a commissioned song, one of which we use as the theme music for my podcast Squaring the Strange). Check it...