# The Bizarre, the Odd, and the Mysterious! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 4, 2009, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814 "2009-01-04T15:30:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/21 "2009-01-05T02:06:37Z")
I loooove those unexplained tales myself, but my all time favorite has always been the [Money Pit](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oak_Island#The_Money_Pit). Assuming it’s not a gigantic hoax (which it very well may be), not only does it beg the question of how anyone could have dug out such an elaborate trap with 17th century means (and no one babbling about it, either), but also how they planned on retrieving the supposed treasure afterwards. And that’s even without going into “why bury one’s treasure so elaborately in the first place, instead of a simple secret hole or cave ?”. > [@Mangetout](#): > > The Antikythera Mechanism is the one for me. It’s not the complexity of the thing that gives me the shivers - people are clever and have been clever for many millennia. > > It’s the way it so closely resembles, say, Victorian design and construction, even though there appears no connection between the two technologies. I would expect an ancient mechanism to look _a bit less familiar_. I confess the first thought that crossed my mind when I happened upon it was "Woaaa Greek-punk ! "🙂 ---
**Author:** ![movingfinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@movingfinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/movingfinger)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/22 "2009-01-05T02:19:14Z")
I recently learned about The Dyatlov Pass Incident, a creepy story about the mysterious deaths of nine Russian cross-country skiers in 1959. Wikipedia has an interesting article. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/23 "2009-01-05T03:06:53Z")
> [@Oregon\_sunshine](#): > > **Clothahump** , I think they migrated and (eventually) became the Hopi. Hopi oral tradition spells it out, IIRC. It apparently was a “branch” of the civilization that became the Hopi, but the mainstream vanished. An analogy would be if the British ceased to exist after the American Revolution. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/24 "2009-01-05T04:12:36Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > It’s the way it so closely resembles, say, Victorian design and construction, even though there appears no connection between the two technologies. I would expect an ancient mechanism to look _a bit less familiar_. Is this not a simple case of form following function? I also posted to recommend the Fortean Times too. Some articles in it are rubbish but it is usually an entertaining read. ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/25 "2009-01-05T14:56:48Z")
> [@Shirley\_Ujest](#): > > My only beef with Fortean Times, and how I love it so, is the cost of magazine here in the US has gone up considerably since I first found it ten years ago or so. For real. I had been reading it since the early '90s. Then, about 4 years ago, I went into the bookstore to buy it, didn’t look at the price, and when the clerk said “That’ll be $11.50” (or however much), I would’ve done a spit-take if I were drinking. I declined to purchase, and haven’t bought an issue since. Joe ---
**Author:** ![Arglefraster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3bc359/32.png) [@Arglefraster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arglefraster)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/26 "2009-01-05T15:09:58Z")
How about the disappearance of the Roanoke Colony? Wiki link [here](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roanoke_Colony). A whole colony disappeared without a trace, except for the word “Croatoan” carved into the fort. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/27 "2009-01-05T19:17:23Z")
The [Phaistos Disk](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phaistos_Disk). Not supernatural, but it seems to indicate the existence of a complex a culture we know absolutely nothing about save for this one single item. ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Queen\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/28 "2009-01-05T19:23:58Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > The [Phaistos Disk](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phaistos_Disk). > > Not supernatural, but it seems to indicate the existence of a complex a culture we know absolutely nothing about save for this one single item. Eh? I wouldn’t say we know “nothing” about the Minoans. Sure, we don’t know a whole lot. But it’s not nothing, not by a long shot. Those interested in the Bloop et. al. should check out VLF (Very Low Frequency) websites (such as [here](http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2001/ast19jan_1.htm) or [here](http://www-star.stanford.edu/~vlf/)). Our earth is a noisy planet. I like weird noises in general; I wish I could find my old .wav of a recreation of a hadrosaur calling. That one was fun to play with. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/29 "2009-01-05T19:48:35Z")
The double slit experiment always seemed almost like magic to me. I’m still not sure I fully understand it: [Double-slit experiment - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_slit_experiment) And then there was the singular case of the _Mary Celeste_: [Mary Celeste - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Celeste) The Nazca Lines are freaky, even if you don’t buy a _Chariots of the Gods_ explanation: [Nazca Lines - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazca_Lines) ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/30 "2009-01-05T20:42:56Z")
[The stone balls of Costa Rica](http://itotd.com/articles/482/the-stone-balls-of-costa-rica/) are pretty mysterious too. > [@](#): > > The only real mystery, then—and it’s a doozy—is why so many of these extraordinary sculptures were created. Dozens of reasons have been advanced, but in the absence of written records, there’s no way to say for sure. ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/31 "2009-01-05T21:18:33Z")
How they get those huge ships into those tiny bottles! (I know, I know… just being silly). ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/32 "2009-01-05T22:57:22Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > Is this not a simple case of form following function? Some of it is, but (for example) the large gear is spoked in pretty much Victorian fashion - It didn’t have to be. There’s apparently evidence of a dial engraved with graduated marks ticked off between two engraved concentric circles - just like the outer ring of a clock face (although maybe this detail is a direct descendant through the sundial). Form does indeed follow function - so the gears are circular and toothed. It’s not those details I find disturbing - it’s the style of construction and ornamentation. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/33 "2009-01-05T23:15:38Z")
> [@movingfinger](#): > > I recently learned about The Dyatlov Pass Incident, a creepy story about the mysterious deaths of nine Russian cross-country skiers in 1959. Wikipedia has an interesting article. I think that one has been overplayed quite a bit. They probably just died in a an avalanche or something. Note they weren’t dicoverd for several weeks. I was going to add Oak Isalnd in Nova Scota, but **kobal2** already mentioned it. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2009, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/34 "2009-01-05T23:47:18Z")
There was a book in the late 1970s, by Robert Charroux, about all sorts of ancient mysteries\* centered mostly around the idea of alien visitation in the remote past. Usually I find that stuff to be amusing for its entertainment value, but otherwise a waste of paper and ink. But this book just seemed to be more interesting than the others, and described things I haven’t seen mentioned anywhere else (no doubt for good reason), like a couple of light bulbs in the Amazon forest that have been burning since time immemorial. That’s about all I can remember anymore, since it’s been thirty years or so since I read the book. \*I think the title of the book was, simply, _Ancient Mysteries_, and IIRC was originally written in French. ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/35 "2009-01-06T00:42:26Z")
[Here’s an interesting little bit of reading. Jonathan Gray - Dead Mens Secrets](http://www.scribd.com/doc/6476329/Jonathan-Gray-Dead-Mens-Secrets) ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/36 "2009-01-06T01:48:05Z")
> [@movingfinger](#): > > I recently learned about The Dyatlov Pass Incident, a creepy story about the mysterious deaths of nine Russian cross-country skiers in 1959. Wikipedia has an interesting article. > [@Arglefraster](#): > > How about the disappearance of the Roanoke Colony? Wiki link [here](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roanoke_Colony). > > A whole colony disappeared without a trace, except for the word “Croatoan” carved into the fort. This list (also from Cracked) addresses those two: [6 Famous Unsolved Mysteries with Really Obvious Solutions](http://www.cracked.com/article_16671_6-famous-unsolved-mysteries-with-really-obvious-solutions.html) ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/37 "2009-01-06T02:26:27Z")
My fave was #4 The Hopkinsville Goblin Case. > [@](#): > > \*\*This is a great horned owl. Look at the head of the “creature” then look at the head of the owl. Now, get really, really drunk. We’re talking “mid-1950s rural Kentucky” drunk. \*\* 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/38 "2009-01-06T03:18:39Z")
Holy crud, I had no idea Cracked was so funny these days. Not mysterious, but [this one](http://www.cracked.com/article_16133_5-historical-figures-who-died-weirdest-deaths.html) had me snorting at work–especially the last two entries. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/59ef9b/32.png) [@Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_fight_the_hypothetical)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/39 "2009-01-06T03:20:26Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > I’ve always wondered what exactly caused [the Anasazi](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anasazi) to basically go poof into thin air. After moving to the southwest I developed an interest in this as well. Having hiked in these areas (southern Utah mainly but NM and northern AZ as well) extensively here’s my guess. While some of their civilization reached high order such as Mesa Verde for example, the biggest part of the culture lived in 5 to 10 family groupings. A city the size of Mesa Verde could burn (or cut) up all of the wood in the surrounding area rather rapidly (I’ve heard estimates of 15 years or so). Hiking in the desert wilderness, I’ve come across hundreds of smaller ‘cities’, none larger than 20 or so units. I feel that they were just hanging on in the best of times. It wouldn’t have taken much to tip the scales. It’s not very sexy, but a few years drought could have done it. ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814/40 "2009-01-06T11:25:52Z")
> [@ivan\_astikov](#): > > [Here’s an interesting little bit of reading. Jonathan Gray - Dead Mens Secrets](http://www.scribd.com/doc/6476329/Jonathan-Gray-Dead-Mens-Secrets) Heh, this mentions the (supposed) ‘Black Knight’ satellite in its introduction; I’ve been wondering whether there was something about that, but every story I read about it offers little beyond a ‘radar blip’ and Long Delayed Echoes as objective facts, and then devolves into Philip K. Dick receiving communications from crab-like aliens on Fomalhaut. Still, I’d like to see if there’s actually something beyond somebody seeing something strange on a radar screen and ham operators sometimes receiving echoes of radio transmissions at a delay time not in line with classically known delays (which is probably explainable by ionospheric weirdness of some sort). If there isn’t, this is probably one of the most overblown stories ever. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bizarre-the-odd-and-the-mysterious/479814.md?page=3)