Weekly Weird News for Aug 27, 2021
Booms, balloons, and boo-boos
Welcome to another week of Weird News - your temporary escape from real-world horrors via weird-world happenings.
Peabody booms
When I ran the Doubtful News site that examined weird claims every day (Best Of… here), I was fascinated by the news reports of mysterious sounds. There were hundreds of reports over many years across the globe of sounds that disturbed residents by being out of the ordinary and scary. Most of these were traceable to local activity like tannerite explosions, factories, machinery, or trains. Many were manufactured hoaxes for YouTube. But others, I suspected, were natural. They were earthquakes that were too small to register on local seismographs but the energy released from these shallow events was transmitted into the air as sound that people perceived in a limited area. The sound, like thunder, vibrated their homes. I documented the most famous case of shallow earthquake noises from Moodus, Connecticut on my site Spooky Geology. Clusters of small quakes also occurred over a few years in Dillsburg, PA. They are not uncommon in the eastern US where residual stresses are still being released from mountain building and glacial eras. This week, the good people of Peabody, Massachusetts were informed that they were experiencing these shallow earthquake clusters and that was the explanation for the dozen or so booming sounds they have been hearing since July 2021. https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/mysterious-booms-3-earthquakes-prompt-public-forum-in-peabody/2476368/
Super Death coaster causes injuries
Multiple news agencies report out of Japan that an amusement park there had to close their super fast roller coaster due to several riders sustaining bone fractures in the last 8 months. The ride goes from 0 to over 100 mph in just 1.56 seconds. The weird part is that the ride has been operating for two decades. This is a new phenomenon. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-58328336
Experience it safely and virtually for yourself.
Elephant rights
Here is news that would not be all that weird if we were in parts of the world where elephants are kept as pets. Hard to imagine, but it happens. Sri Lanka has passed a law to protect working elephants. The animals must be registered and have their own identification record. Owners must follow new rules for their welfare - including not using elephants for transport if the rider is drunk. The laws were in response to past incidents of elephant cruelty in the country. https://www.rte.ie/news/newslens/2021/0821/1242095-sri-lanka-elephants/
Capybara nuisance
Here is news that is not weird in South America. Capybaras, the world's largest living member of the rodent group, are making pests of themselves near Buenos Aries. I imagine this very similar to our local problem with groundhogs (woodchucks) who dig up our gardens and yards and whose carcasses regularly are strewn across the roads. https://www.republicworld.com/world-news/south-america/giant-rodents-annoy-argentine-upscale-neighbourhood.html
Dolphin wants to play
A dolphin in Cornwall, England likes to play with local swimmers. While this seems kind of neat (people pay to swim with dolphins), animal experts say it's dangerous and people could get hurt. Dolphins who prefer the company of people to their own groups have injured people before by getting too aggressive. Or, they can be injured themselves by encroaching upon equipment or people who will not be so kind. Wild animals are not like those in the movies. https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/friendly-dolphin-cornwall-could-kill-5824231
Bird-eating Tortoise
Researchers in the Seychelles fortuitously filmed a giant tortoise that did something they did not expect. It deliberately approached a baby bird, then killed and ate it. The paper documenting hunting and carnivory in a herbivore seemed to shock a lot of people. I admit I won't watch the disturbing video. But this is not new. The researchers noted that the tortoise's behavior suggested it had previous experience. Many herbivores will partake of fresh meat if it's provided under some circumstances. The Smithsonian magazine previously published an article about a cow killing and consuming a chicken. It feels shocking, but it's because this fact is just not so easily digestible. Twitter reactions to the journal article reveal that some pet turtles will readily consume fresh meat as well. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/giant-tortoise-stuns-scientists-eating-bird-180978511/
You’re your own best friend
A doppelganger is someone who looks eerily like you. This is a great news story about John and Neil who not only discovered that they resembled each other, so much that locals confused the men for each other, but that they had other astounding life similarities. Now the men in Braintree, Essex, UK are friends. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/aug/20/experience-i-made-friends-with-my-doppelganger
Fake abduction story
A woman posted a claim to Facebook that her child was nearly abducted from a Target store in Pennsylvania. As it happens on social media, the warnings to others spread. But, the story was a lie. Luckily, the woman did not file a false police report. Claims about crimes or dangerous encounters are not infrequently faked. There are several reasons for people to do this. In our age of attention via social media, it's ever more critical to check the facts and not just believe the story out of hand and overreact. This was not the first story about this Target location. Tik Tok has become a platform for spreading exaggerated rumors about abduction and human trafficking. https://www.mcall.com/news/police/mc-nws-attempted-abduction-at-target-unfounded-state-police-say-20210810-x3u5eepa2jcafbvkdhvsivjxgy-story.html
WTF was that?
A short bit of weirdness I missed last week - an Australian news station had an unexplained slip up when a news segment suddenly cut to what appeared to be a Satanic ritual. I’d bet it was some devilishly bad editing.
Sheep medicine
Ivermectin is all over the news related to COVID treatment. What's this all about? Ivermectin is most commonly available as a livestock de-wormer. It's been well tested as a treatment for parasites. A few studies have hinted that it slows the replication of the SARS COVID-19 virus. But other studies showed it has no effect on the virus in people? Those who eschew vaccines (a well-tested intervention to stop the virus transmission and serious infections) are trying DIY treatment with an untested and dangerous drug in an off-label use. Dumb. The stories are fueled by this disputed study published in Nature and from dubious stories from India that claim areas where people are taking Ivermectin have lower cases of the virus. We don't gain reliable health information through speculation, bad methods, and small, non-replicated studies. Not only is the benefit currently unconfirmed, but the side effects are unclear. Why people who worry about made-up or exaggerated side effects from vaccination would resort to randomly self-dosing farm animal medication is something I cannot understand. Here's a good rundown of the Ivermectin and COVID link. https://www.cnet.com/news/ivermectin-and-covid-19-why-poison-centers-are-getting-calls-about-this-controversial-drug/
Nutty UFO story
Let's face it folks, there are a lot of things in the sky these days: rockets, satellites, drones, regular aircraft, and balloons of all types. And I mean ALL types. Mystery mongers drummed up interest in a sighting in Mississauga, Ontario on Aug 21 of a strange-looking, but large, floaty thing. Ironically, the shape sort of seems like Jet Pack Jack from LA but it was moving much slower. Put the video to a conspiracy-sounding soundtrack and call it a "UFO" and you have clicks. Commenters noted that the object was a Mr. Peanut balloon. https://www.insauga.com/the-case-of-mississaugas-mysterious-ufo-has-been-cracked/
Not enough weird topics? If you are interested in some casual reading about the geological connections to Hell, check out my new feature post on Spooky Geology. https://spookygeology.com/going-to-hell-geology-of-the-underworld/
My brother has pet tortoises and they eat slugs and snails, many years ago I had a Guinea pig that would eat woodlice. I don't think people realise that not all herbivores stick to a plant based diet.
My mother had a doppelganger moment. She was sleeping in a car when someone knocked on the window. She woke up to see a woman who looked exactly the same as her including the same glasses. She was even wearing a dress my mother had at home. Scared the living daylights out of her.