Those times you really agree with someone, then they go off the rails... my new CFI blog: About once or twice a month (though sometimes once or twice a week, depending on how much I'm reading at the time), I come across an article or blog that makes some important...
Psychology
Reading Romance Novels in Jamaica
August 8, 2014: The Shoppes at Rose Hall, Montego Bay, Jamaica I was done. I’d arrived at the gated tourist mini-mall about half an hour earlier, and couldn’t take any more of the servile shopkeepers shilling shelf after shelf of schlocky tchotchke of unrivalled...
Playing Witch Doctor: Hidden Ethics in Skeptical Ghost Investigation
A classic article from the archives, in which I talk about ghost hunting ethics: The drive from my apartment to the haunted house was about twenty minutes, but I found myself wishing it would take longer. I wanted more time to get a handle on what I was going to say,...
The Nature and Appeal of Authenticity
What do Bob Dylan, Shakespeare, Eminem, Donald Trump, Sartre, Eazy-E, Amy Schumer, Roger Waters, and Simone de Beauvoir have in common? They’re all mentioned in my new Unco Junto blog on the subject of authenticity, with contributions by David Koepsell, Eve Siebert,...
BBC Quotes My Chupacabra Research
A new article on BBC-Earth discusses my five-year investigation into the mysterious vampire beast El Chupacabra; if you're interested in how I solved one of the world's best-known monster mysteries, check it out HERE! You can find more on me and my work with a...
Ghost Hunting Book Excerpt: The Psychology of Significance
An excerpt from my upcoming book on ghost hunting: It’s important to realize that apparently odd, peculiar, or strange things happen in our everyday lives—and usually pass unnoticed. The cat or dog acts strangely for no apparent reason; we discover we had more (or...
My Guest Appearance on the SETI ‘Big Picture Science’ Show
In case you missed my recent appearance on the "Big Picture Science" show talking about aliens and UFOs, it's HERE! You can find more on me and my work with a search for "Benjamin Radford" (not "Ben Radford") on Vimeo.
The Nature and Appeal of ‘Authenticity’
In my latest blog I and three guests examine the nature of "authenticity," which played a role in Donald Trump's election. But what is authenticity, and why do we value it? The New York Times noted that "Trump... has polled as one of the most authentic candidates in...
‘Batman’ Vs. Creepy Clowns: What Causes Copycats?
Batman' has vowed to stop the scary clowns! (No, really--kind of.) In my CFI blog I take a closer look at what drives copycats. The rash of scary clown reports that have plagued America over the past two months have recently spread to other continents including...
Errors in AP News Reports on Clown Scares: Correcting the Record
Reporter Mike Balsamo has an error in his Associated Press story about clowns: Aurora Colo. theater shooter James Holmes did not in fact dress up as the Joker during his attack (as I explain in my "Bad Clowns" book, pp. 115-119 and also in this CFI blog). There...