Weekly Weird News for December 3, 2021
It looks the same upside down
Welcome to the first December edition of Weekly Weird News!
If you are reading this, the Internet didn’t end on 12-02-2021 as one dramatic rumor claimed it would. I mean, what would the “end of the Internet” even look like? The Internet was designed with the idea that paths for data can flow around a portion of the web that is down - there isn’t a single point that controls all data flow. So, the thought of “killing the internet” makes sense only to people who don’t understand how it works. There were several “signs” that declared the end of the Internet (both literal and digital) including a site named 12022021endofinternet.com which was simply a countdown clock to 5PM eastern time, Thursday, when a new and odd cyber-punk novel was released. So, this warning was very much a nothing-burger. https://www.cnet.com/news/seattle-signs-claim-the-internet-is-ending-thursday-so-get-ready/
But Thursday’s date was a nifty palindrome - a number that reads the same backward as forwards. And, if you write it with a certain font, it appears the same upside down (knowns as strobogrammatic or an ambigram).
Blue light special
People have been reporting strange blue lights in the night sky in the UK. The latest report, this week, was in Hemel Hempstead, England. These have an interesting explanation - a special train runs along a track that identifies faults on lines with lasers beams. The blue light is from that test train. Now you know. https://www.hemeltoday.co.uk/news/people/mysterious-blue-light-spotted-over-hemel-hempstead-3478753
Self replicating Xenobots
A xenobot is a simple, “programmable” organism that is created by assembling stem cells in a Petri dish. Researchers who just published a paper in PNAS described how they created xenobots from African frog cells and discovered that the “synthetic multicellular assemblies” will replicate themselves by “moving and compressing” other loose cells in their environment into a ball that then developed the same movement as their “parents” who made them. This spontaneous perpetuation has not been seen before and took only days to evolve. I can’t really grasp the very technical details of this work but the researchers were quick to assure the public that these xenobots are completely contained and are harmless. However, the ability to self replicate could prove very useful in all sorts of future technological development. Yep, that’s a bit scary but I’d suggest learning more before freaking out or listening to the doomsayers who are already freaking out. There seems to be quite a bit of mischaracterization of this research being passed around. https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/xenobot-living-robots-can-reproduce-69477 See also https://www.npr.org/2021/12/01/1060027395/robots-xenobots-living-self-replicating-copy
Suspicious “needle” found in Chicago
In October, the UK was in the midst of a needle attack panic. See this WWNletter. The fear quickly moved to the US and became a main thread in the Astroworld concert tragedy (which turned out to be a false rumor) Now, a man in Chicago claimed he was pricked by a suspcious needle attached to a gas pump. The police have collected the object. The man was not hurt and does not exhibit any signs of illness. The police say this is a unique event. The “needle” is not able to inject anything including the “white powder” behind it. It’s just a sharp point. So this could be many things including a form of terrorism using a faked object. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-needle-gas-station-20211201-gjl463uqjjavtj4nk4l5apdree-story.html
Magic mud appeals to anti-science consumers
Black Oxygen Organics (known as BOO) is dirt from a peat bog. It’s also known as fulvic or humic acid because those are the products of microbial action in decaying environments like bogs. Through a multi-level marketing scheme, people are ingesting and applying this muck in the hope that it cures a myriad of conditions, including “toxins” from vaccines - a meaningless claim of jumbled misinformation. Selling the material is not new. I recall posting about bogus “Blk water” probably 10 years ago. The backlash against science-based health advice and the pandemic has created a rejuvenated market for magic dirt with people paying thousands for it. But the mud money is drying up as the pyramid business scheme has been exposed and many have wised up to the fact that BOO doesn’t work and could make you sick if you eat it. As with all unregulated health supplements, not only are the claims dubious but there are no checks on the active ingredients in the product. You don’t know what you are getting. In the case of BOO, you were getting shafted. A sample of BOO showed high levels of lead and arsenic. Black Oxygen Organics has now shut down due to pressure from regulators, lawsuits, and bad PR. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/magic-dirt-internet-fueled-defeated-pandemics-weirdest-mlm-rcna6950
Crypidcore goes mainstream
Those of you that follow me on Twitter might know that I think the historic field of cryptozoology is dead. What was envisioned as a prospective scientific field of study of large, unique, mysterious animals that are rumored to exist never took off. But cryptids - those special creatures - were pop media gold and are even more so today. As an example of the popularity of pop culture cryptids, this week I found a story on the Bigfoot Bae, a woman producing social media content as a flirty, dancing Bigfoot. https://www.king5.com/article/entertainment/television/programs/evening/bigfoot-bae/281-e3c0e42b-0a3e-48b3-92ed-467210e88b0f
Last weekend, The Sunday Times of London had a blurb in their style section on “cryptidcore” - an aesthetic that incorporates cryptids, fantasy, dark mystery, monstrous romance, and often LGBTQ symbolism into a lifestyle trend. So, you know this stuff is REAL.
Dear David and other ghostly horrors coming to the screen
There is no doubt that paranormal tales are propelled by the rocket fuel of the Internet. Back in August 2017, an artist began a Twitter tale about a child ghost that haunted his apartment. “David” had a misshapen head from an accident with a shelf. Writer Adam Ellis continued the tales of David doing things around the house like moving stuff, leaving items behind, and bothering the cats. Eventually, a very photoshopped-looking figure appeared. By that time, many people were skeptical and concluded it was an attention-grabbing hoax. Well, that worked. Ellis sold the film rights to the haunting story of Dear David and a movie has been greenlit. No release date yet, as if I cared. https://collider.com/dear-david-twitter-ghost-story-movie-adaptation/
Here’s more unexciting upcoming media news, the Ghost Hunters TV show is set to return in January. Looks entirely like a retread of the same old goofy stuff. Milk that haunted cash cow! https://www.higgypop.com/news/ghost-hunters-returns-january-2022/
While I was browsing on Collider, I discovered that the Foo Fighters will be shooting a comedy thriller movie about making an album in a haunted mansion in Encino. Grohl has frequently appeared in movies and TV shows, mostly playing himself. But the Foo Fighters were well known for their hilarious videos where they play characters and ham it up. Grohl even played Satan in a most outstanding video by Tenacious D. This is a movie I’m down for, just for laughs. https://collider.com/foo-fighters-horror-movie-dave-grohl-studio-666/
Spontaneous fire breaks out in woman’s pocket
A woman walking around a grocery store in the UK experienced an exploding pocket causing her clothes to catch fire. She was helped by bystanders but still suffered second-degree burns. The cause? A battery she had in her pocket. If the battery comes into contact with a coin or other metal, it can short out and heat up. The hot battery fell from her pocket. Had she been driving when this happened, things might have been much worse. Remember this story the next time someone talks about a recent case of “spontaneous combustion” - it could be an overlooked explanation. https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/aldi-shopper-screams-after-clothes-22339520
Spanish bird fall
On November 19, over 200 starlings fell onto the streets of Ferrol, Spain. Most were dead. The cause is still unclear. Similar incidents across the world are often assumed to be related to environmental issues such as airborne contaminants or poisoning. In this case, eyewitnesses say the birds were in the trees and descended together. The initial cause is suspected to be electrocution as the flock can transmit a shock to each bird in close proximity if one wing contacts live wires. https://www.republicworld.com/world-news/europe/spain-hundreds-of-birds-rain-down-on-ferrol-streets-authorities-probe-mystery-death.html
What’s up with the Polar Cusp?
Scientists are set to probe an unusual gap in the Earth’s magnetic field called the polar cusp. Radio and GPS signals as well as spacecraft are affected when they pass through this area as the air is denser here. But it’s not clear why. The probes to be launched will carry vapor tracers that can be released to model the air flow. https://scitechdaily.com/strange-things-happening-in-earths-atmosphere-nasa-launches-rocket-to-investigate-mysterious-area-above-the-north-pole/
Two of the worst decisions ever for this week
Little detail is available for this story of a person who accidentally burned down a million-dollar home when attempting to eradicate snakes. It’s not unlikely that snakes may enter homes to hibernate over the winter but nothing else makes sense here. https://foxbaltimore.com/news/local/montgomery-co-homeowner-sets-house-ablaze-attempting-to-smoke-out-snake-infestation
If you thought that really bad decision was impressive, here’s one to top it. I’ll link to it without comments except to say that his explanation for how this unfortunate situation occurred is VERY doubtful: Bomb squad called to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital after man gets WWII mortar stuck up his bottom. https://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/news/gloucester-news/bomb-squad-called-gloucestershire-royal-6298076
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