The Occult Section

Wanted: Bigfoot Hair Samples

Jason Stroming — Wed, 30 May 2012 23:30:38 +0000

Part of me is really digging this story and its possibilities, and the other part of me is pretty sure this will turn out to be a circus. On the one hand, better, faster, more accurate DNA studies could hugely benefit the world of cryptozoology. On the other hand, every yahoo and yokel who’s ever found a strange strand of hair or oddly shaped poop is going to submit it for analysis.

It's amazing the products we've discovered here on our little blog...

LONDON (AP) — European researchers are planning to use new techniques to analyze DNA that could help crack the mystery of whether Bigfoot exists.

In a project announced this week, Oxford University and Lausanne Museum of Zoology scientists appealed to museums, scientists and Yeti aficionados to share hair samples thought to be from the mythical ape-like creature.

New genetic tests will be done on just a few strands of hair and should be completed within weeks. Even if the sample is judged to come from an unknown species, scientists should be able to tell how closely it is related to other species, including apes or humans.

Bryan Sykes of Oxford University said the group had already received many offers of samples to test, including blood, hair, and items supposedly chewed by Bigfoot. Sykes and colleagues plan to sift through the samples for the next few months before deciding which specimens to test. They will then publish their results in a peer-reviewed journal.

Other experts agreed recent advances made in DNA testing could theoretically solve the Bigfoot question.

“If the Yeti is real and somebody has found bits of their hair, you should be able to tell from the DNA in the hair if this is actually a Yeti,” said Mark Thomas, a professor of evolutionary genetics at University College London. He is not connected to the Bigfoot project.

But Thomas was unsure how likely it was anyone might have actual Yeti hairs. Some scientists theorize Yetis are either a distinct hominid species, or a mix between homo sapiens and Neanderthals or other species. There is already evidence of interbreeding between homo sapiens and Neanderthals.

“If Yetis have survived for the last 30,000 years, they have probably had a pretty miserable existence and are a small population vulnerable to extinction,” Thomas said. “It’s not as insane an idea as many might think, but the chances are pretty small.”

Sykes said he has always been intrigued by stories of Yeti sightings, but would rely on science rather than such tales to prove if the stories are credible. “It’s not really possible to fabricate DNA evidence,” he said.

He acknowledged that the chances of proving the existence of a new Yeti species are low, but said that the study was still worthwhile. “If we don’t look, we’ll never find out,” he said.

Bigfoot is a legendary giant, hairy, ape-like beast that is variously known as Sasquatch, the Abominable Snowman, Yeti and other names. It supposedly lives in heavily forested or snowy mountains. Although most scientists don’t believe in the beast’s existence, decades of eyewitness reports, suggestive photos and stories have kept the legend alive.

David Frayer, a professor of biological anthropology at Kansas University, told The Associated Press in an email that “No serious scientist (would) treat Yeti as a worthy research project.”

He said previous tests on supposed Yeti hairs have already been done – “and they turned out to be from a bison.”

I, as always, have to take exception to something in this post. For David Frayer, or anyone, to say that researching something like the Yeti or Bigfoot should not even be considered by a serious scientist is a bit irresponsible. So once upon a time, some hairs were tested and were found to be bison hairs. Does that automatically mean all research should stop? I really am not a fan of the fundamental believers out there who feel that every broken tree branch is a Bigfoot nest. But I’m also ashamed of skeptics who turn their nose up at things they don’t believe in simply because they refuse to accept that something is going on. People are seeing something in the woods, and to me that is worth researching, whether you believe in Bigfoot or not.

Technorati Tags: abominable snowman, bigfoot, cryptozoology, debunking, dna, hair sample, hoax, media, News, paranormal, people, sasquatch, thoughts, yeti

You Sure That’s a Good Idea?

Laura Pennace — Fri, 25 May 2012 00:23:45 +0000

‘Cuz I don’t.

He'll make a doll for you! In exchange for your soul, natch.

Here’s the full text:

I am looking to experiment with haunted dolls and creating them. I have tapped into the paranormal realms and believe that I can have spirits enter dolls that choose to live and exist as them. I am looking for someone that is open minded enough to let me do this with a doll of theirs.
You can keep it. I’ll I ask for is a donation of a porcelain doll. Maybe it’s brother or sister that is cool.
Might sound a bit weird but I am a completely sane person.
I’m just into shamanism and spiritual things and I figured this would be an interesting venture. Hope to hear from you soon.

Technorati Tags: craig's list, craigslist, debunking, ghost, ghost hunters, ghost hunting, ghosts, haunted, haunted doll, haunted house, haunted houses, haunting, hoax, humor, paranormal, people, supernatural, thoughts

UFO Nearly Causes Mid-Air Collision in Denver?

Jason Stroming — Mon, 21 May 2012 23:30:54 +0000

Birds seem to be getting a bad rap lately when it comes to airplanes and potential (or actual) crashes. It seems as though the pilot of a small airliner spotted something in the sky that he could not identify. The pilot says it looked like a large remote-controlled aircraft, but birds are being thrown into the explanation mix as well.

How odd. When I was younger, I too had a remote-controlled airplane that looked just like a dodgeball with a question mark on it...

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a mystery in the sky.

A unidentified object flying over Denver nearly caused a mid-air collision Monday evening.

As far as investigators know the object did not show up on radar.

Investigators believe the object, whatever it is, could pose a serious safety hazard to planes.

Radio transmissions from LiveATC.net confirm a nervous-sounding pilot reported a strange object at 5:17 p.m. Monday.

The pilot is heard telling air traffic control: “A remote controlled aircraft, or what? Something just went by the other way … About 20 to 30 seconds ago. It was like a large remote-controlled aircraft.”

The corporate jet, a Cessna Citation 525 CJ1, was flying at 8,000 feet above sea level over Cherry Creek when the mystery object came close enough to make any pilot nervous.

“That’s an issue because now we have something in controlled airspace that poses a danger,” former NTSB Investigator and aviation analyst Greg Feith said.

Feith listened to the air traffic recordings and believes the object could be one of three things:

- A military or law enforcement drone.
- A remote controlled aircraft.
- A large bird.

“Was this an unmanned vehicle that was part of some sort of law enforcement operation? Was this somebody that had flown a large model aircraft inadvertently into the airspace? Or was it just a bird that caught the pilot’s eye so he believed it was an aircraft but could have been a very large wing span bird,” Feith said.

Any one of those things can be catastrophic if it collides with an airplane.

Three years ago, a bird strike took down a commercial airliner that managed to land safely in the Hudson River. All the passengers survived.

FAA spokesman Mike Fergus says investigators will talk to the pilot and look at other clues.

“The threat is there from a collision standpoint. We’ll do as much as we can here to try to track back what time it was. Probably talk with some remote-control clubs, that type of thing,” Fergus said.

The mission of investigators now is to identify that mystery object before another close call, or worse.

Not sure why this was reported as a UFO story. Oh wait, yes I do. the media loves to sensationalize things. the pilot’s guess is that it’s a remote-controlled aircraft of some sort, and his panic is probably more about the fact that he almost collided with it than it being an extraterrestrial vehicle. I know here in New York City, the police supposedly now have airborne drones for surveillance ~~and other things~~. It’s quite possible that this pilot saw something like that. Or perhaps some model airplane enthusiast is terrorizing Denver?

Technorati Tags: cessna, colorado, debunking, denver, extraterrestrial, faa, flying saucer, News, paranormal, people, ufo, ufos

Director Katie Carman and the Paranormal

Katie Carman — Tue, 08 May 2012 23:29:43 +0000

Katie Carman, director of "Eat Me!" and "Off Season"

Well first, I suppose I should introduce myself to you fine readers. My name is Katie Carman, and I’m a film director with a huge interest in all things supernatural.

My first film “Eat Me!” was a comedy with zombies (mostly funny, and a tiny bit gory), and I’m just finishing up my 2nd film, “Off Season,” a psychological thriller (more serious, with lots of spooks and scares.) Really, all my films have been informed by my love of things horror and ghostly, and naturally that interest came from some real life supernatural experiences I’ve had.

I grew up in a house plagued by a poltergeist who, while benevolent, loved to take things and hide them from us constantly. And in my younger years I spent a great deal of time at my aunt’s house in upstate New York, an old house on a farm, where I got to witness more than a few unexplainable things.

I was a bit too young to understand much of what was going on around me (though I knew for sure at that young age that my cousin’s bedroom, decked out entirely in clowns, was possibly the scariest place in the house). My mother very thankfully has a great memory and was able to relay one of the spookier experiences she had first-hand at my aunt’s house in upstate Schoharie County (or as I used to call it “Scary County”). I did a brief interview with her about experience, and here is what she had to say:

I know you’ve had a supernatural experience or two happen to you personally — can you explain the circumstances of the most memorable thing you’ve seen?

It happened back around 1991 at my sister-in-law’s house upstate in Jefferson, NY. We were there for the July 4th holiday as we did most years. It was pretty early in the day and my sister-in-law Leah and I were standing in the laundry room at the back of the house. Her home is in “cow country” so there are fly swatters in every room. At the time, there was one laying on top of the washing machine.

As we were standing there talking, the fly swatter lifted up into the air, flipped over and landed on the floor in front of us. We weren’t anywhere near the machine at the time, and we both looked at each other in disbelief and said “Did you see that???” Of course everyone asked if we had a few cocktails first, but we had not, it was way too early for that. This wasn’t the first time something like that had happened at this house, but it was the first time I had witnessed something. Another time, a ceramic decoration which looked like a strawberry with a face on it came off the wall and broke against the wall directly across from it. We were in the house at the time but no-one was in that room when it happened.

Had you ever experienced anything like that before? Would you have considered yourself a skeptic before this happened?
Yes, over the years certain things had made me a believer. When I was growing up, when a kitchen cabinet would open up without explanation, my mom would say “Hi Bill!” (her first husband who had passed on). We always joked about it.

Since this experience, has your opinion on the supernatural changed at all?
I’m more convinced with every occurance.

Have you had any similar experiences since then?
Yes, at my house, there is someone who always hides things on me. It happens quite often. I will be looking for something I KNOW was in a certain location and not find it, only to find it a few hours (or days) later in that VERY spot.

Do you have any advice for someone who might witness something supernatural?

Grin and bear it! Most things are harmless. You have to keep your sense of humor and remember we are not alone!

Obviously I’m biased towards believing her BECAUSE SHE IS MY MOTHER. Plus, I’ve stayed at that house many times and while I didn’t experience anything this major first hand, I saw a lot of things I couldn’t explain — doors opening by themselves, strange sounds, that unerring feeling of being watched by unseen eyes, etc. I still to this day wish to have my own first hand experience in seeing something supernatural — I mean, in NYC you think you’d be running into ghosts left and right! Until then though, I guess I can live vicariously through others who have had these experiences. And so I collect them and share them so that we may all experience that moment of bewilderment, where your brain is not believing what your eyes are seeing, your hears are hearing. One day I hope to fully feel that moment of confusion too!!

Technorati Tags: ghost, ghost hunters, ghost hunting, ghosts, paranormal, people, poltergeist, supernatural, thoughts

The Loch Ness Monster in Wisconsin’s Chippewa River

Jason Stroming — Sat, 05 May 2012 17:02:11 +0000

Just a silly story for a dreary Saturday (here in New York City, anyways). Not sure if this is supposed to be Nessie or one of her North American cousins like Champ or Ogopogo.

The Nessie sculpture

The Loch Ness Monster has finally surfaced—in Wisconsin’s Chippewa River. And state officials want it to go.

To be clear, the object in question is actually a sculpture meant to resemble “Nessie,” the mythological creature supposedly navigating a deep body of water in Scotland.

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources spokesman Dan Baumann says the sculpture is illegally obstructing the Chippewa and needs to be removed. However, like the origins of the Loch Ness Monster itself, the identity of the sculpture’s creator remains a mystery.

An anonymous reader did contact the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram, saying the sculpture would be removed within 10 days. “As much as I would like to leave it there, I don’t want the DNR finding out it was me and fining me for it,” wrote the anonymous emailer.

In addition, the owner of a local home-improvement store says the sculpture would make a good fit in some water retention sites on the company’s property.

“We have ponds and fountains on many of our properties, and seeing this piece of artwork in the Chippewa River spurred some conversation,” said Menards spokesman Jeff Abbott.

It’s probably for the best that it gets removed. Some overeager paranormal enthusiast might take a blurry photo of it from very far away and claim that it’s proof of a sea monster, without, you know, exploring rational explanations first. Not that that sort of thing ever happens.

Technorati Tags: Chippewa River, cryptozoology, debunking, hoax, humor, loch ness monster, media, News, paranormal, thoughts, wisconsin

Too Funky

Jannika Coons — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 23:32:32 +0000

Gocool(left), Geroge Michael(center), Roche(right)

George Michael, beloved musical icon and philanthropist, may have received a carless whisper from the edge of heaven from an unlikely source near his home in Highgate, Greater London, UK over the weekend. Micky Gocool and Louise Roche of the North London Paranormal Investigators just happened to be passing through on Saturday afternoon while the singer was talking with fans outside. The duo, “sporting black combat boots and [police-style belts] with ghost-nabbing gadgets” then reportedly asked Mr. Michael if he would be interested in assisting them on a case in the highly active Pond Square area.

But wait- that’s not all!

Gocool and Roche also warned Michael that his historic, multi-million dollar mansion could very well be haunted. The mansion happens to be located near the famous Highgate Cemetery, where the Highgate Vampire was first spotted. Another alleged ghost is a 17th century woman who murdered 50 children. A third viable candidate is the fearsome frozen chicken. Yes. Chicken. Gocool cautioned that “the ghost of a chicken which was frozen in 1626 haunts the area just by George’s house.” Good call Gocool, after just barely recovering from a nasty case of pneumonia in late 2011, the last thing Mr. Michael needs is severe food poisoning from 100 year old frost bitten chicken.

It is unclear if Michael had faith enough to listen without prejudice, but he did take the time to pose for a picture with the investigators which ran in the local newspaper. What a mensch.

Read the full stories here and here.

Technorati Tags: celebrity, england, George Michael, ghost, ghost hunters, ghost hunting, great britain, haunted, haunting, humor, london, media, News, paranormal, paranormal investigator, UK

Ghostly face seen at Sutton car park

Laura Pennace — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 23:58:08 +0000

Okay, I’ll be honest. I saw this article and thought it not exciting enough to blog – I mean, really, how many photos of things that look like faces/ghosts but really aren’t can we blog about? (Sidenote: holy crap, that took a long time to link.) But this one out of the UK (they LOVE ghosts over there!) had me giggling, mostly because the story itself has these little things that make it seem like the beginning of a Monty Python movie.

Is this spooky face haunting car parks around the borough?

This is, without a doubt, 100% paranormal. Yup.

The picture caught on camera by Colin Pantling, seems to show a face peering from the Times Square multi-storey car park.

The spectral image appears to have captured the attention of the man on the motorbike.

Mr Pantling said: “I was out with my camera looking for roosting birds in the trees and to my surprise I found this ghostly image staring across the road, does anyone know who it might be?”

It is not the first time a multi-storey car park in Sutton has witnessed a strange occurrence over the past couple of years.

There was the mystery of the moving car in the Brighton Road car park in August, 2010, after a women returned from a shopping trip, only to find her car parked in a different spot to where she had left it.

Convinced her car had moved “of its own accord”, the woman rang the council to ask if the car park was haunted, believing she had been the victim of a poltergeist.

CCTV footage showed the car apparently rolling forward unaided.

Councillor Simon Wales, Communities and Transport spokesman at Sutton Council, said: “This isn’t the first time we’ve heard reports of spooky goings on in this area.

“I’m afraid that fans of the supernatural will be disappointed though – our staff checked CCTV footage of the area, which showed her car gently rolling into a different bay, after she forgot to apply her handbrake.”

Technorati Tags: britain, ghost, ghost photo people, ghosts, paranormal, thoughts, UK

Adele Invites Paranormal Enthusiast Robbie Williams and Ayda Field to Haunted Sussex Estate

Laura Pennace — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 23:29:57 +0000

I love me some Adele. I mean, who doesn’t? She’s so hot right now. AND she believes her crazy huge house is haunted. Naturally, when you are rich and famous you invite other people who are rich and (slightly less) famous than you to come find out what’s going on.

Dear Ghosts: I'm watching you. Sincerely, Adele

Adele has invited Robbie Williams to stay at her haunted mansion.

The 23-year-old ‘Someone Like You’ singer reportedly believes her 10-bedroom home is Sussex, England, is being staked out by ghosts, and has invited super-natural enthusiast Robbie and his wife Ayda Field to come and experience the spooky goings-on.

A source said: “Adele’s often said she hates staying at home alone in the mansion because she’s sure it’s haunted and she gets spooked.

“She knows Robbie and Ayda are fascinated by the supernatural and has offered to have them to stay for a haunted weekend any time they like.

“Adele thinks they are both fantastic and would love to spend some time sharing ghost stories and witnessing paranormal activity.”

The Grammy Award-winning star left London and moved to the £7 ($11.1) million house a few months ago after undergoing surgery on her vocal chords. It is thought doctors advised her the clean, country air could aid her recovery.

A source told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “Adele is a London girl through and through, but she’s never been particularly into the showbiz circuit so when it was suggested she move out of the city, she agreed immediately.

“The idea is for her to live in the countryside, away from the capital’s smog and pollution.”

It seems as though ghosts enjoy fresh air and the countryside as well as singers.

Technorati Tags: adele, ayda field, britain, celebrity, ghost hunting, ghosts, great britain, haunted, haunted estate, haunted house, london, paranormal, robbie williams, sussex, UK

OMG, an orb!! It’s a ghost!!

Laura Pennace — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 23:29:22 +0000

Ha! Made you look! We’ve said it before: orbs aren’t paranormal. Though judging by this story from the UK, some people haven’t seen the memo yet.

GHOSTLY goings-on have been captured at Huddersfield railway station.

A mysterious glowing white orb has been recorded floating through the station shop on four separate occasions – and it’s now been caught on camera.

The spooky phenomenon has only come to light after a hi-tech CCTV system was installed in the shop.

Shopkeeper Darryl Townend explained: “We’ve just had a new security system installed which detects movement.

“Last week it detected something on three or four occasions – it looks like a white light.

“It’s globe-shaped, like an orb. It’s certainly strange.

“Last Friday was a really good one, it was really vivid.

“It came in front of the camera. It’s like a round white light and it shot across the room and then appeared to go through the wall.

“It’s really eerie.”

He added: “The station’s recently been refurbished and the part of the shop that it’s being spotted in used to be the waiting room area.

“It doesn’t happen in the main shop.

“All the staff have seen it and it’s really strange.”

Mr Townend, who has been running the shop at the station for 10 years, said he first noticed the strange light on Monday last week.

He said they had thought there was something wrong with their motion-activated system but the glowing orb had returned several times.

He added: “We’ve altered the sensitivity settings on the cameras but it’s still being triggered.”

Yet despite the unsettling discovery he said they would not be calling in the Ghostbusters or searching the Yellow Pages for an exorcist.

“It only happens on an evening at the moment,” he said.

“As long as it stays that way it’s not a problem”.

I’m going to reserve my own comment and instead share the comments left by readers on the article itself, which are delightfully funny with a fun twist of Britishness thrown in:

“Its an insect. We get them on our CCTV all the time…
Ive never felt the need to inform the examiner though” - T3

“It is a moth ball.
Not paranormal, more parafocus of cheap camera.” - Mameluke

“Good advertising idea !” – Aliban

“WOW! How scarey is that. I had to close my eyes I was so frightened. The Examiner should be ashamed of putting such horrific things in the paper. What an absolute load of tripe. Get real and put newsworthy stuff in the paper, not this twaddle”- hardupandfedup

Technorati Tags: britain, ghost, ghosts on tv, great britain, Huddersfield, orb, orbs, paranormal, people, supernatural, thoughts, UK

Find Bigfoot and Win a Free House

Laura Pennace — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 23:19:54 +0000

How much is Bigfoot worth? According to one man in Fayetteville, Arkansas, about $80K. He’s offering up his house to anyone who can bring him Bigfoot. And in case you don’t take him seriously enough, he has retained a law firm and has an affidavit that explains, in all seriousness, what his terms are.

An anonymous member of a local online community seems to be serious about the following offer: Deliver me a Bigfoot, receive my house.

If you're lucky, maybe you'll wake up to this on Christmas morning in your new home.

According to a recent message posted to the Fayetteville Freethinkers forum, anyone who can catch Bigfoot and bring him in will receive the title deed to an actual house located here in Fayetteville.

There’s even an attached affidavit signed on April 11 by local attorney Greg Klebanoff of Klebanoff Law Firm which outlines the legal details in an attempt to demonstrate the legitimacy of the offer.

Robert Lipford, managing director at the firm, verified the group’s involvement in their client’s offer Tuesday afternoon by telephone.

The bounty appears to be offered by the same person who left a comment on a local news story regarding a guide who was recently cited for leading a Bigfoot search in the Buffalo National River area without an expedition permit.

“First person to bring me a Bigfoot gets my house,” wrote fayfreethinker late last month.

If you stumble across Bigfoot and are interested in trading him in for a house, you might consider calling the Klebanoff Law Firm at 479-442-7400.

Good luck and happy hunting.

You know who I wouldn’t want to be in this situation? The second person who brings this guy Bigfoot. Womp womp.

(Also, as a random aside, with these types of stories the best stuff’s in the comments below the article!)

Technorati Tags: arkansas, bigfoot, cryptozoology, fayetteville, fayetteville freethinkers forum, greg levanoff, klebanoff law firm, News, paranormal, people, poll, sasquatch, thoughts, yeti