Weekly Weird News for 30 June 2023

Welcome to the end of the week! It’s time to check in on some of the latest information regarding natural anomalies and some strange current events. The news isn’t good but I’m going to sneak in some more fun stuff to lighten the mood.

Simpsons scooped the submersible accident

There is a strange game that can be played with The Simpsons tv show. After 34 seasons, the animated show has coincidentally hit upon themes that eventually manifested in real life. The latest is the Titan tragedy that fans noted was very similar to a 2006 episode (season 17, # 10) where Homer joins in on a deep-sea submarine adventure to find a sunken ship and gets into trouble. It turns out that Simpsons writer Mike Reiss had been on the OceanGate submersibles, once to see the Titanic. But he didn’t write this particular episode that aired 3 years prior to OceanGate even being in existence. So it really is a coincidence. Probably the most famous Simpsons prediction was the Donald Trump presidency. But here are 16 more. https://knowyourmeme.com/news/oceangate-becomes-latest-trending-news-story-to-get-hit-with-simpsons-did-it

Malaria moves into the US

It’s been 20 years since malaria has spread in the US but it’s back. Texas and Florida have reported cases this week as tropical mosquitos invade areas now hospitable to them due to climate change. Typically people in the US catch malaria from traveling abroad but officials know the mosquito carriers are now local. There have been outbreaks in Florida before. That’s expected to become more prevalent along with trouble from other tropical invaders. https://apnews.com/article/malaria-florida-texas-cdc-mosquitoes-a7ea0cbe37bc8df093ce35e836cd717e

Jet stream goes bonkers

The current map of the jet stream over the US is like nothing climate scientists have seen. The flow of air is fragmented to the degree that one professor called it “insane”. The unusual disjointed pattern is fueling a heat dome plaguing the south-central US and Mexico causing extreme temperatures and deaths. Top climate scientist Michael Mann said the planet-wide wacky jetstream is not only likely affected by global warming but the El Nino event is playing a role. Record low sea ice also messes up the flow. It’s not expected that the extreme temperatures will end soon but continue through the next month. This type of scary instability will be the new norm as the planet warms. https://www.sciencealert.com/earths-jet-streams-look-as-chaotic-as-a-van-gogh-right-now-and-thats-a-big-problem

A mass death of birds in Mexico has been blamed on El Nino effects. The fish that would be the birds’ food have moved to colder waters out of reach. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/mexico-says-mass-bird-deaths-likely-caused-by-el-nios-hotter-waters-2023-06-15/

Finally, a reminder that burning fossil fuels helped get us to this hellish place. But green energy is key to helping Texas weather the deadly heatwave by supplying 20% of their power grid. And that is growing. https://www.texastribune.org/2023/06/28/texas-solar-power-grid-heat-wave/\

Italy's giant volcano is restless

Volcano researchers published a study that suggests the caldera volcano Campi Flegrei in Italy is continuing a cycle of crustal weakening. The last eruption was in 1538 but that was not a caldera collapse level of eruption. The ground has continued to inflate. If an earthquake causes a crustal failure, pressurized gas can be released from the subsurface. Then, like a soda bottle that’s been shaken and then the seal cracked, the gases expand and erupt. Campi Flegrei has over 300,000 people living near it and it is the closest active volcano to London. However, in order to get through your day, remember that we are dealing with geologic time here. It could be centuries before we see dangerous activity. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2023/jun/crust-campi-flegrei-volcano-weakening

Bots spread earthquake conspiracies

A new study looking at how earthquake information travels on social media has revealed that a large percentage of content is made by bots - automated accounts that post via algorithm. Additionally, the bots will amplify misinformation by spreading it. Then actual humans see the information repeated and think it has value. The researchers wrote that "In 2020, bots made up 40.8 percent of internet traffic, with almost two-thirds being bots of malicious intent. They assert that bots play a significant role in spreading conspiracy theories, particularly about earthquakes. This is easy to spot. Any world event these days will be connected to a strange cause shortly after it becomes news. The fringe causes proposed for earthquake news include aliens (of course), military activities such as a "super-weapon", fracking or other extraction activities, particle collider experiments gone wrong, deliberate acts to upset world order, and (another of course) divine punishment to those affected. We know why earthquakes happen and can pinpoint the location and even the depth of the movement. There is no mystery here to solve but the social scene is so dynamic and feeds on sensationalism and drama, that the most outrageous ideas get unwarranted attention. The danger of this scenario continues to threaten the fabric of society. https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidbressan/2023/06/27/study-shows-how-bots-help-spread-earthquake-conspiracies-online/?sh=3c7056b4d290

Blood Falls nanospheres of iron

Bright red discharge of water from an Antarctic glacier has always prompted a startling reaction. It looks like blood on the white surface. The cause of the coloration has been guessed at since its discovery in 1911. The source of the water was traced to an isolated hypersaline lake under the glacier with no light or oxygen. A recent test of the water showed the presence of mostly carbonate minerals but also iron- and chlorine-rich nanospheres, an unusual form. The iron provides the red color when it mixes with oxygen. An additional implication of the find is that probes to Mars, which is a similar setting to the isolated subglacial lake, aren’t equipt to look for nanospheres but there is a good chance they are there. https://newatlas.com/science/antarctica-blood-falls-iron-red-water/ and the full paper at https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fspas.2022.843174/full

Junk in the trunk

Someone called the police after spotting hair hanging out of the trunk of a car. It turned out to be a haphazardly thrown in wig. The caller was afraid it was a person. The police responded calmly to the call and the situation was quickly resolved by an embarrassed woman who had been rushing to her hair appointment. https://news.yahoo.com/hair-popping-trunk-prompts-911-133429273.html

Pregnant with a tumor

A 42 yr old man in Jordan got the shock of his life when undergoing tests for abdominal pain, the pregnancy test was positive. It’s not clear why a pregnancy test was run or if it was just part of a general testing panel that revealed pregnancy hormones. The man had developed a tumor that was secreting the hormone that caused the positive result. The man is receiving cancer treatment for the tumor. https://www.jpost.com/omg/article-747855

Thanks for reading.

---

Join the Fediverse!
The Fediverse has also set up an alternative to Reddit called Kbin. I started a “magazine” (like a subreddit) that serves as a post board for Strange Times stories. https://kbin.social/m/StrangeTimes

If you wish to participate, you’ll need a Kbin account. Or, if you have a Mastodon account, you can follow https://kbin.social/u/idoubtit