Baaad news? Since evolution favors the development of large sheep, which can more easily survive harsh winters, researchers at Imperial College in London became curious about the five percent overall decline in the size of the animals on Hirta in Scotland since 1985. The researchers speculate that "The decrease in body size was due to a reduction in growth rates caused, in part, by the changing climate," just like the wool sweater that emerges from the dryer a size too small.

A review of Outbreak! The Encyclopedia of Extraordinary Social Behavior has appeared in this monthly newsmagazine published by a division of the American Library Association. The reviewer, George M. Eberhart, a senior editor of American Libraries, calls the book "a fascinating and authoritative successor to Charles Mackay’s Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds, first published in 1841... Sociologist Bartholomew and historian Evans...describe and analyze hundreds of events, both familiar...and obscure. Each event is exquisitely referenced and placed in historical and scientific context...a boon to researchers."

On June 30th, a woman in Connecticut called police to report she “almost hit Sasquatch” standing in the middle of the road. When police searched the area, they found an obviously not-too-bright, 16-year-old male dressed in a gorilla-like costume. See Loren Coleman give a talk at Fort Knox on the 4th in Maine, or ponder this question: What Color Are Living Dinosaurs?

Since the appearance of a jellyfish-shaped crop circle this past June in England, crop circle analysts have vigorously attempted to decipher what the enigmatic symbol might mean. Although the experts detail their arguments with supporting material, it seems there is more than one general interpretation amongst them. Is the sun about to show off it's solar glory in a few short days? Depends on who you ask. Better keep an eye on the sky July 7th just in case. Elsewhere, Nancy Talbott contends that National Geographic TV Misleads Public About Crop Circles, and Mac Tonnies asks: Any cryptographers in the house?

In a wide spanning audio podcast posted on BOA, part two of a conversation with Bruce Rex, author of Hollywood vs. The Aliens, explores the alien themes and motifs of popular science fiction, as well as other genres, of the last few decades. This installment, labeled The Program, touches extensively on many popular films and television programs, produced here in America as well as in the UK, from the 1950s on up. Rex speculates on the influence of clandestine government contact, as well as shadowy groups, with the creators of many shows and the suspected agendas that may have found their way into their programing. Included are discussions of Star Trek, Dr. Who, V, Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and a slew of other popular titles. Have various alien themes, and those privy to their existence, been peppered into popular culture through TV and film without us being aware? To what purpose?

NorCal Paranormal Investigators check out Willy's smokehouse for some good ribs... oh, and some ghosthunting too. On the heels of the NorCal Paranormal Conference coming up there, the group's co-founder relays his personal brush with the unknown and how it led him to form the organization. Willy's employees in the meantime have had their share of their own experiences and the Executive Chef has offered the restaurant again to be studied again during the conference. The festivities begin July 17-19. Also, strange events accompany pub goers as the Rosewood pub is scouted for ghosts. And back here in America, The Constantine Theater, a former Hotel in the late 1800s, in downtown Pawhuska, Okalhoma has a reputation for unexplained. Now a Paranormal investigation at Constantine Theater reveals findings.

The interesting thing about this program is that it pretty much details the procedures that MUFON goes through in order to debunk a UFO. James Carrion goes to Mexico and MUFON ends up debunking all three sightings in Mexico that were reported to them and used for the show. The program is quite an eye-opener. Elsewhere, Part Two of Bipedal Cetaceans: Abduction By Synaptic Resonance.

Loren Coleman reviews the Eric Olsen-Lake Champlain phonecam footage and recounts his visit to the lake for an episode of "American Monsters." Loren interviewed park rangers, divers, and other locals about Champ, Eric Oslen, and his footage, and came out of it with... a broken foot. So what's on the footage? "The mystery remains," says Loren, "but the answer may be a mundane one." Elsewhere on Cryptomundo, Thermal Baby Blobsquatch, Comoros Crash, and Blue House Sparrow of Oz.

Okay, so pack a bus full of well-educated paleontologists in town for a conference and where would you think they might want to go? Duh. The Creation Museum, of course. The museum, located in northern Kentucky, attempts to mingle in science's circles under the motto of "Same facts, different conclusions". Going toe-to-toe with some concrete beliefs in the evolution of species on the planet, the scientists that took in the attraction were understandably aghast and amused, but suggested a suspension of belief to enjoy it. After all, they were unaware that the dinosaurs went extinct around 2348 B.C. "I'm speechless," said one of the scientists in attendance.

Guess who's coming to the Roswell Festival on Friday? Retired Lt. Gen. Billy Boykin, the former Deputy Assistant Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence. Will he feel out of place at a “Christian Symposium on Aliens”? Not at all! Find out why in this latest post by Billy Cox.

The tale of a picture that invoked a feeling of sadness when held. Does the photo, an autographed picture of King George V, hold a special significance? Meanwhile, over at Ghost Theory, the Shadow People may be up to some bed time pranks in Be careful what you talk about? And when it comes to being Haunted by the Hag, better known as sleep paralysis, afflicting those that would rather be slumbering peacefully, science has had a good handle on the causes it and how to help avoid it. But when compared to that of alien visitation do the lines start to blur?

In taking a look back to a 1963 report by a Dr. Lionel A. Walford of a "transparent sea monster" not far from the heavy traffic of New York City's shipping lanes, Micah A. Hanks recalls another similar sighting that occurred almost thirty years prior by another scientist, Anton Bruun. Bruun, however, was able to examine his monster, which he described as "translucent and fish-like, with a long thin body" and considered it an unknown species at the time. Many sailors over the centuries have described many an unknown creature near the surface during voyages. Many are left unexplained but does a reasonable explanation lie in comparison of a very well known ocean inhabitant?

Lighthouses have often been tied to ghostly keepers that stay beyond their time here on Earth. Connecticut's historical Penfield Lighthouse is no exception. Ever since a tragic Christmas Eve accident of one of its keepers, many boaters have told tales of odd sightings near the lighthouse. Some have claimed to see the hazy apparition of one its long gone caretakers as he helps guide the safe return of vessels in bad weather, while others have seen the light itself behave strangely. Even visiting the lighthouse, which sits on small island foundation surrounded by water, has proven to have held sightings of a hazy sentinel. Did we mention it was automated in the early 1970s?

Perhaps you've heard about the "sewer monster" from North Carolina, or seen the video of the throbbing creature. After initial reports that it was a hoax, it now turns out that it's not. But the question is: What is it? Slime mold? Thousands of bryozoans? Or annelid worms? Or...

Greg Bishop has finally posted his audio interviews with Peter Robbins regarding the underpinnings of the Roswell Festival, James Carrion of MUFON on the organization itself, Ray Sanford's second installment interview regarding Project Starlight, Excluded Middle co-founder Robert Larson on Philip K. Dick film adaptations, and Richard Sarradet on the government UFO coverup. Also, don't miss the latest dense but thoughtful posts by Bruce Duensing: Bipedal Cetaceans and The Biology of Sound and The Universal Signet of Sentient Materiality.

A member of the BFRO describes his run-in with the legendary hominoid of Northwest and beyond. An avid investigator of the elusive wood ape, Bart Cutino was convinced of its existence the night he saw a large, humanoid shape acknowledge his presence as seen through a thermal imaging camera a mere few feet away. Although several Monterey residents have reported sightings over the years, Cutino was skeptical until that fateful night: "I just couldn't believe it was happening." And neither does most of science. But that won't deter him from spending another 200 nights out in the forest looking for a sign... and even better, irrefutable proof of the shy species.

An Aurigny Airlines pilot, along with his crew and passengers, spotted an large unidentified illuminated oval object hovering in the skies over the Channel Islands recently. "It could have been as much as a mile wide," said the pilot. Seems it may not have be alone as well. Also, Another sphere-triangle UFO witness comes forward. The witness describes the early morning sighting in Illinois as "composed of several individual elements of various sizes arranged in a "double-cross" or diamond-like pattern". Is this the emergence of a new type of craft?

A profile of Loren Coleman, Portland's "hidden animal" researcher, with an emphasis on Maine's mystery animals, including big cats (lots of reports) and Bigfoot (few reports, they're probably migrants from Quebec). Elsewhere, news of a Texas Bigfoot Conference Announced for September 26th in Tyler, Texas.

Video segment from CNN documents the recent sighting of ominous clouds that hung over New York City this week leaving many a New Yorker to come up with their own impressions of the strange formations. In a classic case of pareidolia, those who witnessed the clouds first-hand claim to have seen everything from an impending E.T. invasion to the 'King of Pop' bidding farewell. Science, of course, has a different take on them.

Do we conjure our own monsters? Neil Arnold examines the world of "zooform" creatures and the astral world as it pertains to a story of his friend who once was a frequent visitor to his own "Mole Kingdom" as a young boy. Past historical witnessed accounts have claimed that mediums have been able to conjure and manifest physical forms during séances. Does that ability somehow apply to children who create imaginative play worlds that seem all to real to them? What to make of it when others can see it too?

More reports of what appears to be the same object seen in three other states earlier this year--a cluster of three spheres that seem to be attached. Elsewhere, Larry W. Bryant sends a Letter to Sen. James Webb re the CIA I.G.'s Nonfeasance, and in Lawrence Livermore Labs UFO Hunt the question is raised: Are UFOs conducting surveillance on the labs?

A team of Italian scientists claim they may have found the crater left by the Tunguska event of 1908, a crater that people have searched for and not found for a century. The reason? The crater is actually a shallow lake. Lake Cheko fits the proportions of a small, bowl-shaped impact crater. Not only does the lake bottom's geology reveal a funnel-like shape not seen in neighbouring lakes, but the lake bed has turned up an unusual feature about 30 feet down which could either be compacted lake sediments or a buried fragment of space rock.

A Kansas resident relates her tale of two mysterious teenagers that paid her a visit one day upon returning home from work. Explaining they needed to use a phone and complaining of thirst, the two strange teenage boys were determined to follow her into her house... but only if she invited them in. Not a problem, right? Things turned creepy when she notices the boys' eyes, like other reports as of late, held nothing but blackness glaring back.

In England, retired school teacher snapped a daytime pict of a cylindrical object in the sky. He's posting it in hopes others can help him identify it. “It came so quickly then within five minutes it was gone." His image joins other recent captured sightings in the Black County area. And in Argentina, there's a UFO Photographed Over La Pampa and a report of A Cattle Mutilation in Puelches

The red-capped manakin's "dance" suggests that the observed odd behavior in other birds could link to some strange sightings by frightened witnesses of unexplained creatures in the past. Here the Symmonds gnome sighting in Florida, as well as other notable reports, is compared to another bird with amazing abilities. Who, who, do you think it is? And speaking of tricksters, George Hansen has posted links to a couple of Articles on Magicians and the Paranormal. Hansen notes that "For over 400 years magicians have confirmed and disputed the reality of paranormal phenomena."

Denver's Jeff Peckman is championing his ballot initiative for an Extraterrestrial Affairs Commission. Recently Peckman, during an appearance on a local Denver public affairs show, turned his attention to NASA and its 'solar ambassador' Larry Sessions, after the initiative was called a "insult to human intelligence, an indictment of the Denver citizenry, and a blatant waster of taxpayer money". Ouch. Peckman's retort charges NASA's behemoth taxpayer burden, ongoing UFO cover-up. and useless space exploration as agendas costing much more than a grant based committee.

Brad Smith of Sacramento-based American Paranormal Investigations tells of a recent unexplained encounter he investigated, while cautioning he's a debunker by trade. One must look for air conditioners and electrical fields before claiming any phenomena is ghostly. Dave Bender, API's founder, thinks that most unexplained experiences people encounter aren't brushes with apparitions, a name API prefers to ghosts. Elsewhere, in Espiritismo Real Answers From the Dead, we have a story about the séances that are carried out as a part of the regular practice of Spiritism.

A UFO described as an odd-shaped sphere was reported by three independent witnesses in several states. The object was seen in April in near Dallas, Texas; in May in Crockett, Texas; in Kansas City, Kansas, in June; and perhaps in Roswell, New Mexico as well. One witness reported seeing two objects that appeared to be triangular in shape, with a sphere at each of the three points "joined by what looked to be black tube or beam structures that formed the triangle shape." Elsewhere, UFO reports heating up in Kansas City area, UFO photographed over Edgware, and Mexico: Another Airport Sighting

A recently posted night vision video of the Brown Mountain Lights in Burke County. Is this the real thing? These mysterious lights have been seen in the mountains of North Carolina since 1771 and many legends are told to explain their origins. And what, if anything was captures on this photo from a Trail Camera 5/26/09 in the Sierra National Forest?

There is a long history of attempts to communicate with the newly dead. For example, the Old Testament tells the story of the Witch of Endor is said to have raised the spirit of the deceased prophet Samuel to allow the Hebrew king Saul to question his former mentor about an upcoming battle. Now, as fans around the world mourn the 'King of Pop,' some are actually trying to contact Michael Jackson from beyond the grave. Also on Haunted America Tours, The Very Best Paranormal Conference Of The Year 2009 and The Top Ten Best Most Haunted Paranormal Web Sites On The Internet 2009. Thank you for making The Anomalist one of your top ten!

Apparent arson destroys the Wampanoag Indian Cultural Center building in the midst of the Hockomock Swamp in an area called Bridgewater Triangle. Since Colonial times this area has seen a wide range of mysterious phenomena, including UFOs, "black helicopters," poltergeists, Bigfoot, giant snakes, cattle mutilations, and more. And speaking of strange, a security guard at a water treatment plant in Chile reports an encounter with a tall, glowing-eyed presence in Anomalous Beings in Araucania.

An Environmental Protection Agency director quashed a 98-page report that was skeptical of claims about global warming, including whether carbon dioxide must be strictly regulated by the federal government. The author of the report says: "Global temperatures are roughly where they were in the mid-20th century. They're not going up, and if anything they're going down." Are maverick voices being silenced? A related story wonders if the way modern science is conducted stifles radical new ideas: Are we witnessing the end of science?

For more than half a century ETs have left their mark on some of Hollywood's most popular movies, including The Day the Earth Stood Still. E.T: The Extraterrestrial, and Independence Day. Now comes the Transoformers, films, the latest of which is Revenge of the Fallen. The behind the scenes production process of these movies, which are influenced by UFO mythology, is built around the close relationship between Hollywood, the United States military, and a variety of government agencies. The curious tale of government involvement in Hollywood’s UFO movies represents a forgotten chapter in the history of American cinema. Speaking of conspiracies, Greg Bishop posts the audio tape of the Albert K. Bender Speech From 1967. Alfred Bender was one of the first to describe his Men in Black experiences.

Millions were eagerly awaiting for the Ark of the Covenant to the shown on Friday, but it didn't happen, obviously. Now Abuna Pauolos, Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, puts the blame on the Adnkronos journal, which originally posted the news. Some background and photos in 'Ark' revelation: Can they dig it?

An entertaining guest post by Robert Mullin, who recently appeared on the Mokele-mbembe MonsterQuest episode, on this and other past expeditions to the Congo; the difficulties involved; tracking the apparent movement of the Mokele-mbembe; talking to eyewitnesses; the footprint debacle; and much more. Other recent stories at Cryptomundo, include three Bigfoot-related stories: Cronkite Bigfoot Capture Rumor; Igor Bourtsev Defends Carter Claims; Bigfoot Author Links Bigfoot Racism to Michael Jackson; and something completely different: Track of the Cat.

In the face of expected ridicule, Michael Cohen, who gained some notoriety when he recently asserted France was about to announce proof that aliens are visiting Earth (that announcement did not come about...yet), says he was contacted by a man using the name "Dave Russo" and claiming to have spotted a green UFO over the former home of now-deceased pop idol Michael Jackson Friday at about 5:00 a.m. Maybe we're not the only ones interested in the bizarre life of the King of Pop.

Cathy Betz, a 46-year-old Florida resident has never seen a Bigfoot. But she serves as a member of the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization (BFRO), collecting reports from the sightings around Florida. Here's one of her investigations, some background on the BFRO, and some of the skepticism surrounding the subject. With photos. Elsewhere, a California BFRO member is highlighted, along with his experiences and some photos, in Monterey's Bart Cutino Sets Sights on Bigfoot. Meanwhile, The New York Times Sunday Book Review highlights a letter to the editor, in support of Bigfoot research, from Howard University biology professor David Schwartzman: Bigfoot, Seriously.

A house with "consistent levels of high strangeness" once stood close to the old Crystal Palace in London, England. The place may be gone, but the memories of the occurrences which led to the place becoming known as "Mystery House" live on. Here are the tales of the Trents, a lady named Cattling and Mrs. Eveley, who moved in with her daughter and two servants. All of these people felt compelled to leave the high strangeness of Mystery House. How do we account for the experiences of the people literally haunted from their home? Meanwhile, something more benign in nature may have been occurring for the past 18 years to Emma de Guzman, who appers to evidence stigmata and other unexplainable physical manifestations, as reported in Ex-OFW Yearly Keeps Date with Mama Mary.

Dr. Karl Shuker continues to try to tie up some loose ends from correspondence he has received through the years referring to mysterious animals. This time, he's following up on an email from Professor Terry Matheson of Saskatchewan University, who commented on a friend's report of "a stuffed specimen of a huge bird that no one has ever been able to identify." The specimen was supposedly on display in the town of Spanish in Ontario Province, Canada. Can you help Dr. Shuker settle the mystery of the giant bird of Ontario?

When the consensus of opinion conflicts with observations, which should endure? That appears to be the question as Stephen Smith wraps up a presentation on the conflicts between methods of testing for the age of exposed granite peaks, sharp as a shark's tooth, yet supposedly exposed to all the atmospheric elements of erosion for thousands of millennia. Were the rock formations brought into being by electrical forces in relatively modern times, as described in the legends of ancient man?

In this article about a BSFO Bigfoot expedition this weekend to Northeastern Utah, new BSFO member John R. Salmond describes his motivation to search for the elusive creature. Utah has been a hot spot for Bigfoot researchers for some time and the BFRO has their eyes on a few remote, and undisclosed, areas they wish to concentrate on. Apparently, "Utah has everything we look for," accoridng to the BFRO. With numerous reports of past sightings in the Utah/Wyoming area.

Is the Ark of the Covenant about to be revealed? Abuna Pauolos, Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, who's church has claimed to have concealed the Ark for centuries, says it is. Since traveling to the Vatican to meet with Pope Benedict XVI concerning the revelation, Pauolos has claimed that now is the time to reveal what they have protected for so long. Rumor has long swirled that one of the resting places is indeed Ethiopia. Will the world finally get to see whats been hidden in Ethiopia for all these ages? Will it turn out to be a fake or a hoax?

Basque legend tells of a supersized creature covered in long hair called the Basajun, a Spanish version of what we called Bigfoot. For generations shepherds of the Pyrenees, as well as the Basque Country, have held that the creature inhabits its vast mountains and navigates the treacherous terrain with deft ability. He is known as the "lord of the forest."

With the deaths of three American icons this week, Pastor Swope decided to take up the many common misconceptions in Western culture and religion on where do you go when you die. And he provides an answer to the question of ghosts from the views of the early church. Elsewhere, a call for participation in the 2009: Survey of Spontaneous Paranormal Experiences conducted by Rosemary Breen; a Review of Outside the Gates of Science and an author replies to an earlier Magonia review of The South Shields Poltergeist in South Shields: The View from the Minefield.

In the EU world, Stephen Smith calls into question the method and validity of radio carbon dating. Science has depended on several presumed constants to base radio dating on. Given the massive amounts of flora and fauna that has been discovered trapped in sediments of coal and strata viens throughout the world, science seems to be confident in how to date these findings according to their decay. But what if other factors are at play that would alter these findings? Are there mysteries discovered that seem incongruous to previous findings? Also at Thunderbolts, in Solar Electricity, it's been 70 years since a Dr. C. E. R. Bruce proposed his observations of sunspots as electrical arc discharges. Fast forward to 1972 where Ralph Juergens penned many articles about the Sun being an enormous electrical object that hints of an external power source. Does the accepted thermonuclear theory of the sun's power match the observations of its surface phenomena?

Reports of UFOs over Louisville International Airport on June 24 include multiple sightings from various employees. Said one: "it was rotating and was a cylinder, then was a diamond shape.” Also, Military jets spotted searching for sphere UFO over Kansas City, Kansas. In other UFO related news, we have Part 2 of Joe Capp's evaluation of the tale of Stan Romanek: “The Possum People” and has the plaintiff scored A Quasi-victory in Bryant v. CIA?

OOP Riddle: What has two big feet, can kick a man to death and has been seen in the bucolic suburbs of Chicago.. amongst other places? Micah Hanks goes over some the more prominent out-of-place reports of kangaroos, dating back as far back as the 1930s, and the elusive nature of confirming... let alone capturing... the reported marsupials. What's even stranger is anomalous sounds witnesses have claimed the 'roos have produced. How do these enigmatic creatures seem to end up in the strangest of places? Shouldn't a big hoping deer be easy to catch? Also on the Gralien Report, do plants communicate? If so, how? The debate rages if plants have conscious awareness in Spirit Voices of Plants: Surprising Subtleties of our Leafy Kindred. Vegetarians, beware.

Paranormal investigator Gerald Le blanc, wonders if some of the best photographic evidence of apparitions will ever see the light of day. Who possesses these anomalous photos? Any one of us. Seems the best photographers may just be those unaware what they have captured, as opposed to those that claim they can capture the deceased with relative ease as in the case of William H. Mumler. Does your family photo album have glimpses of those long gone? With many pics.

A UFO Festival will be held in n New Hampshire on September 5. Speakers will include Peter Robbins on why we need to take UFOs seriously, Mathleen Marden on the Betty and Barney Hill case, Ted Loder on UFO Disclosure, and many more. Two days later a Conference on Health, Mental Health, and Exceptional Human Experiences in the UK. Elsewhere, Loren Coleman To Speak On July 4th at the annual Psychic/Paranormal Faire in Fort Knox, Maine, along with the Bangor Ghosts Hunters and others.

When a twin sisters took the annual college entrance exams in June and both scored 644 points, villagers in Shaoxing, in Eastern China, started to wonder if the girls read one another's minds. Then a reporter conducted an experiment on them. When they responded in unison, he concluded it was telepathy. Is this conclusion justified? We know what Michael Shermer and his Baloney Detection Kit would conclude.

Greg Bishop turns our attention to the famous crash debris photo taken in the office of General Roger Ramey on July 8th of 1947 in Roswell, NM. Within the last few decades researchers of the Roswell crash have scrutinized the letter held in the hand of the General for proof of a cover-up as well as the existence of "victims" of a "crash." Because the letter is near illegible and has debated for years, a university professor, James Houran, ran a study to see if those that are keen to E.T. see what they want to see within the fuzzy image. Does predisposition alter our interpretation of questionable evidence? What does it say about UFOology as a whole based on his group's findings?

A UK man can't figure out is how 2,500 gallons could have been pumped or drained out of his pond from 9 to 10:30 a.m. while he was walking his dog in the woods nearby. A leak would not work that fast. Even pumping it out would take longer than that. Someone was obviously very thirsty. Elsewhere, the island of Bermeja seems to have disappeared but Mexico vows to keep looking for 'lost' island.