IS IT REAL? Ghost Ships

National Geographic Channel - Original Air Date: 2005

The show tackles some common sea myths in this episode, including the haunting of the Queen Mary and the ghost ship Mary Celeste.  Tour guides from the QM talk of their spooky experiences aboard the ship, and then demonstrate how a "spirit" can be detected with dowsing rods.  A skeptic then demonstrates how easily a rod can be subconsciously manipulated.  Much time is spent talking about the perils of the sea and humanity's relative powerlessness in the face of the ocean.  This explains why some superstitions and myths have grown up around the water: to give humanity a sense of control, even though there is no actual control over nature.  Strange sounds heard by divers on a wreck are suggested to be whale song or other natural underwater noises, distorted by the ocean and heard imperfectly by human ears--which are not built to hear under the water.  In examining the Mary Celeste mystery, the show points out that some of the myths believed to be "true" about the story are actually taken from a fictional account of the voyage penned by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.  The show suggests that possibly the ship's occupants left the ship to escape toxic alcohol fumes, but their lifeboat became separated, and the ship sailed on without anyone aboard.  As usual, a scientific and skeptical point of view dominates the show.  And, as usual, it's hard to argue with.

GHOST HUNTERS INTERNATIONAL - General Review

SciFi Channel - Original Air Date: January, 2008

This show has been on for a few weeks now, and it still seems to be struggling to get its legs.  The levels of "proof" for a haunting on GHI seem to be lower than those for the original Ghost Hunters.  Perhaps the producers and investigators are reluctant to completely debunk haunted locales with a history stretching back hundreds or even thousands of years.  (I've noted the increasing tendency to declare places "haunted" in the original show as well.)  The other problem is that the new show lacks the force of Jason and Grant holding it together.  Rob and Andy do a good job, but the chemistry isn't nearly the same.  Also, the show seems to be quickly falling into a recognizable pattern.  Next time you see it, expect to see: Rob and Andy will cleverly debunk things (and then not mention those debunks in the Reveal); Donna and Shannon will have creepy feelings and get scared while in some spooky dark place; Brian and Barry will see shadows and movement and hear something mysterious (this was Brian's job on the original show, too).  And the whole crew will express initial "skepticism" but turn out pleased at how many "genuine" experiences they've had.  I do have hopes this show will improve, but many of the cast members need to be more truly skeptical and less skittish.

UFO Hunters - The UFO Before Roswell

History Channel - Original Air Date: January 30, 2008

This is the first of the UFO Hunter shows (another one, produced by the Ghost Hunters' producer premiers on SciFi soon).  The publishers of UFO Magazine make up the investigative team for this show.  A "new lead" (though what the lead is or how they got it isn't explained) takes the team to Puget Sound in search of "slag" dumped from a UFO in 1947, a couple of weeks before Roswell.  Witnesses claim that the falling slag damaged a boat, killed a dog, and broke a boy's arm.  Team members go diving and prospecting for the slag (after 60 years).  There was also a plane explosion 40 days after the reported incident, which UFOlogists are trying to connect to the UFO sighting.  With all the eyewitnesses to this supposed incident dead, investigating this report seems even more of a stretch than most UFO stories. It struck me very quickly that it would have been useful to have a real geologist on the team, to tell UFO slag from unusual rocks.  They could also use a good skeptic, as everyone involved seems like a true believer.  And all their speculation seems more like fiction than like science.  At the end of the first episode, the leader of the group proclaims that 90% of all UFO reports are bunk.  Lets hope that when the crew encounters one of those cases, they're brave enough to proclaim it.  On this case, they weren't.  Instead, they just added to the mythology that makes actual scientific investigation of UFOs so difficult.

Uncanny Radio Going Live

Uncanny Radio's first live broadcast is on the schedule for February 6, 2008 -- from 8-9 PM (Central Time).

Be sure to tune into WBSD radio -- or listen live via the web.  With luck, Linda and Manwolf (Steve) will even be taking calls.  Watch for more details and phone numbers soon.

Stephenville UFOs - On Larry King Live - Part 2

Original Air Date: January 24, 2008

Larry King and company went at the Stephenville UFO sightings for a second time.  The main difference this time around was that the believers outnumbered the skeptics only 3 to 1 (rather than 12 to 1, previously).  On the skeptical side was Michael Shermer, publisher of Skeptic magazine.  No offense to Larry's last skeptic, but Michael is a much better spokesman for his side.  For their part, the UFO crowd (minus Stanton Freidman this time) was less shrill, though no less passionate.  And like Michale, all of them had books and/or films to promote.  (Or nearly all.)  There weren't a lot of telling points on either side.  How could there be when King keeps interrupting the proceedings with questions like: Michael, why do you insist that these people haven't seen what they claim.  To which Shermer would reply: I don't deny what they've seen, I only dispute their conclusions that what they saw were alien spacecraft.  And so, the sides talk at cross purposes.  Again, CNN played numerous UFO clips of dubious origins -- without any labeling at all.

Kid Monsters - Monster Hunting 2b

Yes, even the kid-oriented channels get into the act.

TRUTH OR SCARE (Discovery Kids - Original Air Date: starting Oct. 25, 2001)
Hosted by Buffy's Michelle Trachtenberg, this show is aimed at the younger set and combines scientific inquiry with pseudoscience believers and mythology.  I'm not sure which episode I saw, as I tuned in late.  It may have been "UFOs Over Phoenix," but the part I saw dealt with Area 51.  They interviewed a believer (who went to the gates of the forbidden zone before backing off) and then a scientist who opined that the reason so many people see UFOs in this area is that the Area 51 base tests top-secret aircraft.  (Both manned and unmanned.)  The show seemed to have a reasonable balance of mythos/story and skepticism.  I'll have to see if I can catch more episodes.

Tunguska - Monster Hunting 2A

Good night for uncanny TV tonight.  Tunguska falls into monster hunting because of its ongoing (spurious) connection to UFO hunters.

SIBERIAN APOCALYPSE (History Channel)
A serious survey of the great Tunguska explosion, its history, and what probably caused it.  Particularly interesting is the footage of Russian scientists and expeditions dating back from the present to the time of the explosion.  My favorite bit is the Russian scientist who replicates the blast pattern of the explosion using a room filled with what looks like matchsticks standing on end.  This experiment reveals the angle of impact and amount of force needed to create the devastation seen in the Siberian forest.  A good show with good science.  The most likely culprit for the explosion: a stony asteroid exploding before it hit the tundra.  (Sorry UFO buffs!)  The show ends with a call to find and intercept future near-earth-objects (NEOs) like the one that flattened Tunguska.