Sunday, May 19, 2013
Navy dolphins discover rare old torpedo off Coronado
In the ocean off Coronado, a Navy team has discovered a relic worthy of display in a military museum: a torpedo of the kind deployed in the late 19th century, considered a technological marvel in its day.
posted by Prof. Hex at 3:20 PM
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Danish teen finds rare Norse coins with metal detector
I once found a quarter.
posted by Prof. Hex at 4:30 PM
Ruins of Lost City May Lurk Deep in Honduras Rain Forest
New images of a possible lost city hidden by Honduran rainforests show what might be the building foundations and mounds of Ciudad Blanca, a never-confirmed legendary metropolis.
posted by Prof. Hex at 12:41 PM
Thursday, May 09, 2013
Blood, Sweat, and Steel: My Afternoon with the Ace of Swords
“This particular sword,” Boyd continues, oblivious to my neurotic inner monologue, “belonged to the first emperor of the Han Dynasty, around 200 BC. His name was Liu Bang. But the reason I’m dragging it out is not because of who owned it. It’s what inside that counts.”
Fascinating stuff.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:56 AM
Wednesday, May 08, 2013
Shanghai Blood Fountain
I've have been unable to find out any more information about this short but strange story but here it is anyway.
Great excitement prevails in the Chinese city of Shanghae, consequent upon the supposed discovery of a miraculous fountain of blood, which spouts out from the wall upon the persons of all who come near it.
It's from the
The Troy Herald ., Troy Missouri, October 1, 1873. Also from that same issue:
For knocking out the last tooth his mother-in-law had, a California man has had to pay $100.
A Glasgow manufacturer has turned out a palanquin umbrella thirty-two feet in circumference. It is designed to keep the sun off an African chief.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:34 AM
Monday, May 06, 2013
Found at Auction: The Unseen Photographs of a Legend that Never Was
Picture this: quite possibly the most important street photographer of the 20th century was a 1950s children’s nanny who kept herself to herself and never showed a single one of her photographs to anyone.
Thanks, Andrea!
posted by Prof. Hex at 7:57 PM
It's Science: Women Find Guitars Sexy
Recent studies indicate that women find a man holding a guitar sexier than the same man without the guitar. As a guy who has played guitar in public for years
I have my doubts about this.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:09 PM
John Titor: Time Traveler?
A civil war? WWIII? A capital in Omaha?
Is this what our future holds? Will we still have question marks in 2036?
posted by Prof. Hex at 5:55 PM
Opening the mystery of 250 WWII letters found in old hat box
Purchased for just $1 at an Oklahoma estate sale 15 years ago, an old hatbox contained a mystery decades in the making: an estimated 250 letters from two brothers during their time as soldiers in WWII.
posted by Prof. Hex at 5:19 PM
Lions, tigers, and meth, oh my!
A northeast Kansas man is in custody after a menagerie of wild cats was seized from private property in northeast Kansas.
posted by Prof. Hex at 4:27 PM
‘The Great Gatsby’ Still Gets Flappers Wrong
But if you think the flappers were only about drop-waist dresses, fox furs, cloche hats, and excessive celebration, you’re missing the point.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:40 AM
Sunday, May 05, 2013
Lost for years, drawings and artist find acceptance
As a young man on a south Missouri farm in the 1920s, he angrily chased his younger brother with a hatchet. Already an unruly, odd sort — prone to laugh for no reason — and a profound annoyance to his strict father, Deeds would eventually be diagnosed insane and committed for life to State Lunatic Asylum No. 3 in Nevada, Mo.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:54 PM
The Methodical Murderer
"Mr. Peter Coleman, of Gallapin, Texas, is the most methodical murderer we have read about for many a day. Peter recently went to an undertaker's and ordered a coffin for a neighbor named Smead, hired a grave-digger and four carriages, and then hunted up Smead and shot him."
-
The Red Cloud Chief , October 9, 1873 (Red Cloud, Webster County, Nebraska)
Shades of
A Fistful of Dollars .
VIDEO
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:35 PM
Saturday, May 04, 2013
Meanderings of Memory: An Oxford English Dictionary Mystery
Did 49 words in the English language first appear in a book that doesn't exist? A perfectly cromulent mystery.
posted by Prof. Hex at 10:10 PM
Science Finds Fountain of Youth Brain Region That Slows Down Aging
Scientists have for the first time found a region of the brain—a signaling pathway in the hypothalamus—that can slow down or speed up the aging process in mice.
posted by Prof. Hex at 10:07 PM
Encounters with Gnomes
Part One and
Part Two.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:46 PM
My Very Own Hyper Dimensional Resonator
I own a time machine. This isn’t something you hear every day, but it’s true.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:41 PM
Are all telephone calls recorded and accessible to the US government?
Would it surprise you?
posted by Prof. Hex at 1:49 PM
Van Meter remembers 1903 visit from winged monster
Over a series of nights in the fall of 1903, several respected and prominent men of Van Meter reported a half human, half animal with enormous, smooth bat wings flying about. It let off a powerful stench and scared the daylights out of them because it moved at speeds never seen before. And it shot a blinding light from its horned head.
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:07 AM
Friday, May 03, 2013
Possible Meteorite Fragments from 1908 Tunguska Explosion Found
Zlobin says that initially, the evidence seems "excellent confirmation of cometary origin of the Tunguska impact."
posted by Prof. Hex at 1:23 PM
Thursday, May 02, 2013
Good morning! Stunning model commutes to 'work' in the buff
"Radical nudity becomes the defense shield against the stereotypes and makes the artist invisible," says Swiss artist
Milo Moire.
Do I need to say probably not safe for work?
posted by Prof. Hex at 11:51 AM
Wednesday, May 01, 2013
101 Crazy Facts About Justin Timberlake
Free this week if you have a Kindle or Kindle App on your iPad or home computer! This is how I entertain myself during long winter nights.
Did you know Justin Timberlake has a brother named Fonzie? That he weighed 27 pounds at birth? That he once made a pass at Ruth Bader Ginsburg? All this and more in Archie Biggs' 101 Crazy Facts About Justin Timberlake. Click the pic to find out more.
posted by Prof. Hex at 1:05 PM
Cannibalism At Jamestown: Scholars Find Evidence That Early Settlers Resorted To Eating Humans
Scientists said Wednesday that they have found the first solid archaeological evidence that some of the earliest American colonists at Jamestown, Va., survived harsh conditions by turning to cannibalism.
With video.
posted by Prof. Hex at 12:59 PM
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
What is the most mysterious/paranormal thing you've witnessed?
A thread at Reddit that will pretty much kill your afternoon.
posted by Prof. Hex at 2:30 PM
Wallaby spotted on the lam in Lanchashire - snap of mystery marsupial sparks police hunt
The mysterious marsupial was snapped by a motorist in Winmarleigh near Garstang over the weekend.
with pic!
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:41 AM
Heracleion Photos: Lost Egyptian City Revealed After 1,200 Years Under Sea
Fantastic photo with links to more. Cool stuff.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:53 AM
Robots Uncover the Secrets of an Ancient Pyramid in Mexico
Mexican archeologists discovered three previously unknown chambers under a pyramid in Teotihuacan, an ancient city 31 miles northeast of Mexico City, thanks to a remote-controlled robot that crawled into the pyramid's underbelly.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:50 AM
Gold-Bedecked Skeleton May Have Been Ancient Queen
Analyses showed that the gold likely came from Ireland or southern England and the amber pieces may have originated eastern England or as far away as the Baltic, researchers say.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:49 AM
And the Carny of the Year Award goes to....
Henry Gribbohm says he lost his life savings, $2,600, on a carnival game and all he has to show for it is a stuffed banana with dreadlocks.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:44 AM
Bizarre dinosaur ancestors followed mass extinction
Bizarre four-legged creatures that resembled demonic dogs and predated dinosaurs branched out shortly after an extinction that wiped out most of life on land, according to a new study.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:42 AM
Deep Beneath Manhattan's Streets: The Construction of NYC's New Subway
Cool pics!
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:39 AM
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Mysterious Hudson River giant head found by Marist crew
Marist crew coach Matt Lavin was on the Hudson River with his team a few minutes after sunrise Tuesday when he saw an indistinct shape bobbing on the surface of the water.
posted by Prof. Hex at 3:57 PM
Contradancing: An 1817 tip sheet for dancers
This 1817 lithograph was a cheat sheet for young dancers, meant to remind them of the etiquette called for in various situations on and around the dance floor.
posted by Prof. Hex at 3:56 PM
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Meet David R. Chan: The Man Who Has Eaten at Over 6,000 Chinese Restaurants
It's a goal that he has consistently kept up with. He keeps a stack of several thousand business cards, menus and credit card receipts. His spreadsheets are organized by name, street and year visited. He has personally witnessed the introduction and spread of Chinese restaurants in Los Angeles from the beginning.
posted by Prof. Hex at 12:30 AM
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
"Man of Steel" trailer confims it - Superman is a Jayhawk
I've long suspected it but the latest trailer for
Man of Steel makes it plain - Superman is a University of Kansas Jayhawks fan. It makes a lot of sense. Clark Kent is from Smallville, Kansas, and look at his costume - crimson and blue, anyone? Not to mention his fine upstanding character. I'm not sure if the film will allude to Superman actually attending KU - he looks too busy saving the world to have spent much time on campus - but I'm pretty confident I know who he roots for when March Madness rolls around. I wonder if Ma or Pa Kent are alumni.
Here's the screen shot from the trailer that proves it, from around the 2:20 - 2:21 mark. Don't blink or you'll miss it. The film from director Zack Snyder (
300 ) and producer Christopher Nolan (
The Dark Knight ) opens June 14, 2013.
Here's the trailer:
VIDEO
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:20 PM
Saturday, April 13, 2013
‘Shadow Biosphere’ theory gaining scientific support
Never mind aliens in outer space. Some scientists believe we may be sharing the planet with ‘weird’ lifeforms that are so different from our own they’re invisible to us.
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:20 PM
Friday, April 12, 2013
Brown University Students Crack 300-Year-Old Code Attributed To Rhode Island Founder Roger Williams
For more than 300 years, since late in the 17th Century, the shorthand attributed to Roger Williams in the margins of a library book befuddled code crackers.
posted by Prof. Hex at 4:01 PM
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Olympia Beer offers $1,000,000 for the safe capture of Bigfoot
Olympia Beer (leaving footprints with Bigfoot in the Pacific Northwest since 1896) has offered $1,000,000 for the safe capture of the Big Guy.
Go get 'em, boys!
See also:
Elk Hunters Film Bigfoot in Montana Today in Bigfoot History | APR 08, 1891 | Bigfoot Impersonates Man in a Tree
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:24 PM
Was RFK's Confessed Assassin the Subject of a Govt. Program to Create Hypnotized Killers?
Recent legal filings on behalf of Sirhan Sirhan, jailed 45 years ago in the death of Robert F. Kennedy, reveal new evidence suggestive of a larger conspiracy. The filings also enumerate examples of obstructive tactics by a government representative—contortions reminiscent of the Warren Commission’s incredible, acrobatic magic bullet that was essential in creating consensus for a lone wolf assassin in the death of RFK’s elder brother, John.
posted by Prof. Hex at 5:21 PM
Odd, Unexplained Disappearances Around Mount Shasta That Have Never Been Solved: Is There A Subterranean Connection? Part 1
Mount Shasta, located in northern California, is one of the "cluster sites" identified in the Missing 411 books, where people disappear under unusual circumstances.
posted by Prof. Hex at 3:59 AM
Google Earth User Finds “Something Large” in Loch Ness; Giant Eel?
Hmmmmm.
posted by Prof. Hex at 1:18 AM
Mysterious Airships and Phantom Flying Machines
What was roaming the skies between 1896 and 1915? Were they airships created by some mad and secretive inventor? Mysteriously technologically-advanced airplanes? Ghost blimps from past conflicts?
posted by Prof. Hex at 1:17 AM
Nazi-Looted Books Spell Decades of Labor for Libraries
The Nazis not only burned books, they stole countless volumes. There is no official estimate for how many Nazi-looted books remain in German libraries. Tracing their owners and returning them is a task that librarians say will take decades.
posted by Prof. Hex at 12:08 AM
Mysterious Stone Cairn Discovered Beneath Sea of Galilee
The mysterious structure is cone shaped, made of "unhewn basalt cobbles and boulders," and weighs an estimated 60,000 tons the researchers said. That makes it heavier than most modern-day warships.
posted by Prof. Hex at 12:05 AM
Friday, April 05, 2013
Ancient Complex Discovered Near Biblical Birthplace Of Abraham In Southern Iraq
A huge complex uncovered near what some believe to be the Biblical birthplace of Abraham is exciting researchers who for years were unable to investigate the region.
posted by Prof. Hex at 12:37 PM
Thursday, April 04, 2013
The Black Monk
Spy, kangaroo dancer, chamberlain to Pope Pious XI and the man Aleister Crowley called the "Adept of Adepts" - the incredible life of Lord Tredegar Evan Morgan.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:42 PM
The science behind meditation, and why it makes you feel better
Meditation yields a surprising number of health benefits, including stress reduction, improved attention, better memory, and even increased creativity and feelings of compassion.
posted by Prof. Hex at 2:10 PM
Wednesday, April 03, 2013
Strange Creature Photographed In Dorchester
There is no shortage when it comes to Bigfoot or associated creature sightings.
posted by Prof. Hex at 11:43 AM
Poll: Top Conspiracy Theories, Revealed -- Oswald, Roswell, WMDs
PPP’s conspiracies poll released Tuesday includes looks at long-held theories, as well as contemporary items that play a role in political debates today.
posted by Prof. Hex at 11:23 AM
Mystery emails and calls could have led to scientist's suicide
Isabelle Mareuge had been bombarded with messages for ten months, her sister told the hearing into her death.
posted by Prof. Hex at 11:17 AM
Tuesday, April 02, 2013
Want to eat less? Take a sniff of olive oil
That's right, folks, just the smell of olive oil may help you slim down. Is there anything it can't do?
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:20 PM
Strange Sleep Disorder Makes People See 'Demons'
The experience can be quite terrifying, with many people hallucinating a malevolent presence nearby, or even an attacker suffocating them.
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:18 PM
America's Coolest and Most Historic Bars
Man, I feel like a road trip.
posted by Prof. Hex at 2:09 PM
Searching For The Mysterious Maya Blue Formula
Palace walls, sculptures, codices and pieces of pottery produced by the ancient Maya incorporate the enigmatic Maya Blue. This pigment, which was also used by other Mesoamerican cultures, is characterized by its intense blue color but, above all, by the fact that it is highly resistant to chemical and biological deterioration.
posted by Prof. Hex at 1:27 PM
Ring that may have inspired Tolkien goes on show
Could a Roman gold ring linked to a curse have inspired J.R.R. Tolkien to create The One Ring?
posted by Prof. Hex at 12:45 PM
Monday, April 01, 2013
Texas county on edge as police probe assassinations
In the battle against criminals, American prosecutors represent the people. So what is happening in Kaufman County, Texas, is striking the heart of our system of justice
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:41 PM
Mystery 'monster' stalks Vallejo's Lake Chabot - No fooling!
For about an hour Sunday, the lake bounded by Dan Foley Park and Six Flags Discover Kingdom hosted the latest project of Vallejo art car factory Obtanium Works: a foam replica of the so-called Loch Ness Monster.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:38 PM
Pluto's 'Gate to Hell' uncovered in Turkey
Historic sources located the site in the ancient Phrygian city of Hierapolis, now called Pamukkale, and described the opening as filled with lethal mephitic vapors.
Probably not an April Fool's joke. Probably.
posted by Prof. Hex at 3:40 PM
Swedish archaeologists find Thor's Hammer
Archeologists called to the depths of the Citybanan tunnel project in Stockholm were stunned to find what they believe to be Mjölnir, the hammer of Norse lightning god Thor.
Nice.
posted by Prof. Hex at 12:28 PM
Sunday, March 31, 2013
India's first zombie movie: 'Go-Goa-Gone'
I'm rather surprised India hasn't already produced twenty zombie movies (I'm actually surprised they didn't do it last
year ) but
these guys think they're the first. Check out the trailer below. It kind of looks like Harold and Kumar Meet the Zombies and I'm not saying that in a bad way. I would probably watch a zombie movie with Harold and Kumar.
VIDEO
We'll see if they can, ahem, curry favor with international audiences.
posted by Prof. Hex at 3:45 AM
Suspects identified in 2012 gold heist in Siskiyou County
Early one morning in February 2012, thieves crept into the Siskiyou County Courthouse, made off with more than $1.25 million in gold and other items from the lobby's display case and disappeared.
posted by Prof. Hex at 3:30 AM
Friday, March 29, 2013
Study: Archeologists find remains of human-Neanderthal hybrid
The finding comes from northern Italy, where some 40,000 years ago scientists believe Neanderthals and humans lived near each other, but developed separate and distinctly different cultures.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:04 AM
Mysterious animal mauling puzzles Palm Springs BMW owner
When a neighbor told Flood he’d spotted two animals, “bigger than coyotes,” tearing through the neighborhood in the wee hours the night before, he decided it was time to call the police and report the odd event.
posted by Prof. Hex at 5:55 AM
Mysterious African Fairies Might Be Termites
For decades, people have been mystified by thousands of bare, circular soil patches that dot arid western African landscapes with inexplicable geometric precision.
posted by Prof. Hex at 5:55 AM
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Pompeii exhibition at the British Museum captures the day the sky fell in on Sin City
Yes, the Daily Mail sucks but the pics are pretty good.
posted by Prof. Hex at 12:43 AM
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Roy Chapman Andrews: A Real Life Indiana Jones
Though his adventures didn’t involve faces melting or hearts being torn out, they were still perilous and often produced artifacts of great significance.
posted by Prof. Hex at 1:38 AM
Cool Audio: Harry Houdini talks about the "water torture" escape
Recorded in 1914. Neat stuff.
posted by Prof. Hex at 1:35 AM
Monday, March 25, 2013
Reincarnated Kids Needed For Reality Show
A Los Angeles production company is currently holding a nationwide casting call for children who claim to have, or have had, past life memories for a new reality series, "Ghost Inside My Child," scheduled to air on the Bio Channel later this year.
posted by Prof. Hex at 10:41 AM
Thursday, March 21, 2013
600 year old coin found proves China was trading with East Africa BEFORE Europeans arrived
Researchers say the copper coin, which has a square hole in the center so it could be worn on a belt, proves trade existed between China and eastern Africa decades before European explorers set sail.
posted by Prof. Hex at 10:20 AM
Creepy Crater Lake: Legends, Lost Gold, and a History of Mystery
Strange things are afoot at Crater Lake.
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:58 AM
11 Crazy Bigfoot Conspiracy Theories
Is Bigfoot really a giant ground sloth? An alien? A caveman?
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:54 AM
Bigfoot believer shares hairs: 'I wouldn't give it up for anything'
Her sasquatch keepsake comes from her parents. Klopp said her parents were driving along in the 1960s, towing a small trailer, when they swerved off the road to avoid hitting what they believed was a man.
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:43 AM
Dreams of the Sonora Aero Club
The amazing story of Charles August Albert Dellschau and the Sonora Aero Club.
Also:
Charles A. A. Dellschau Dreams of Flying: The Amazing Story of an Airship Club That Might Never Have Existed.
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:32 AM
Fishing for Mermaids with Ivan.
Good read. The comments, too.
posted by Prof. Hex at 9:24 AM
4 places of legend in Utah
The Bear Lake Monster. Whales living in the Great Salt Lake. A neighborhood of hobbits in Sugar House.
posted by Prof. Hex at 8:48 AM
Unexplained boom baffles experts, residents
The mystery of the “loud boom” heard in parts of the region over the weekend may go unsolved as efforts to find the source of the boom proved a bust Monday.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:46 AM
New film revives Soviet hikers' death mystery
The film, "The Dyatlov Pass Incident", loosely retells the true story from 1959 when nine students went on an expedition to a peak in the northern Urals known as the Mountain of the Dead - never to return.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:46 AM
Boston art heist: FBI says it has solved mystery of $500m theft
The FBI says it has solved the decades-old mystery of who stole $500m (£330m) worth of art from Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, but it is withholding the identities of the thieves, adding a further twist to the largest property heist in US history.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:43 AM
Mystery masterpiece revealed as Rembrandt self-portrait
A mystery portrait donated to a British heritage charity as part of a mixed lot of paintings has been identified as a work by Dutch master Rembrandt van Rijn -- worth more than $30 million.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:39 AM
Clairvoyant chemistry
A strong contender for the strangest book ever written about chemistry is Occult chemistry by Annie Besant and Charles Leadbeater published in 1909. It offers an element-by-element account of the form and structure of atoms, with astonishingly rich substructure and detail – some like ornate frozen splashes, others resembling the rose windows of Gothic cathedrals.
posted by Prof. Hex at 6:02 AM
Watch: James Franco Directs Kenneth Anger As Occult Priest In Music Video, Delivers "No Talking" PSA For Alamo Drafthouse
Directed by Franco as well, the six-minute clip for "Love in the Old Days (Tim James 1999 Remix)," aims for atmosphere and mystery, but most significantly, it features experimental filmmaker Kenneth Anger as a theremin-playing occult priest. Video NSFW.
posted by Prof. Hex at 5:59 AM
Chinese bowl bought for just $3 sells for $2.2 million at auction
The sellers were a New York family who had purchased the bowl in 2007 at a garage sale for a mere $3, according to reports.
posted by Prof. Hex at 5:53 AM
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Ancient Egyptian text describes a shape-shifting Jesus
"Then the Jews said to Judas: How shall we arrest him (Jesus), for he does not have a single shape but his appearance changes. Sometimes he is ruddy, sometimes he is white, sometimes he is red, sometimes he is wheat coloured, sometimes he is pallid like ascetics, sometimes he is a youth, sometimes an old man ..." Jesus the Magicians!
posted by Prof. Hex at 5:24 PM
Sunday, March 10, 2013
It's like that scene in Jaws, but with a cow
"The stomach of a cow recently killed in Kentucky contained a brass ring, a lot of hair pins, hooks and eyes, pieces of steel hoops, and a high-heeled shoe. "Old Brindle" had probably swallowed the milk maid."
- The Weekly Arizonian, June 30 1859.
posted by Prof. Hex at 3:11 PM
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