Mystery Meat, Human Style

I was catching a bus the other day, and this box was awaiting transport. If you enlarge the photo, you can see that the label says: PLEASE RUSH/DONATED HUMAN TISSUE/NOT SUITABLE FOR TRANSPLANT.

What does one do with human tissue, if not transplant it? Perhaps create a cell-culture line? It's all very mysterious.

As I was taking the photo, a bus driver came by and joked with another employee. "What's that for--the barbecue?"

If anyone has a good explanation, please offer it in the comments!

New Montauk Monster Found!!

Montauk Monster web site

Smoke Circles

Residents of Felixstowe are wondering what caused the giant smoke circles that recently were seen floating in the sky. One resident says: "They appeared for a good ten to 15 minutes. No-one had ever seen anything like them - they just rose slowly then melted into the clouds."

Could smoke circles be the new crop circles?
(via Prof. Hex)

Repo Chick

Remember one of the weirdest films ever made, REPO MAN? This month marks the start of filming for a sequel titled REPO CHICK. Let's hope it can live up to its predecessor.

Unsolved Mystery: Lumps from the sea

Mystery lumps are washing ashore in New Zealand. What they are: large, barrel-shaped lumps of grease ("like rancid fat or lard") covered in barnacles. Where they come from: nobody knows. The theory that they could be ambergris from whales was quickly disproven. Some entrepreneurs are carving them up and selling the stuff as moisturizing sunblock. Link: stuff.co.nz.

Wire Woman

A 40-year-old Indonesian woman named Noorsyaidah is growing metal wires out of her stomach. Apparently this is "big news" in Indonesia. The problem has been plaguing her for almost seventeen years. From the Phantoms & Monsters blog:


And we've got video of wire woman:



If these "wires" are more like bony growths, then it might be a real medical condition. But if the wires are actually metal, then it's b.s.

Six Faces of FATE

Please enjoy this imagery from one of the spiritual ancestors of WEIRD UNIVERSE, FATE MAGAZINE.

Pyramid Power

In this confusing postmodern age, when fresh cults come and go with head-spinning rapidity, it's a comfort to see one with staying power--such as Pyramidology. Perhaps you too feel you could benefit from a stay inside the mystic interior of a large pyramid, but don't have one readily accessible. Well, visiting this popular Russian site might involve a little extra travel for most of us, but surely the benefits would outweigh the expense.

13 Things That Don’t Make Sense

I just read this breezy yet well-researched pop-sci book to write it up for THE BARNES & NOBLE REVIEW, and my essay will appear there soon. But for now, I can heartily recommend it to WU readers interested in the many unexplained weirdnesses lurking beneath the tidy coverlets of science.

Unsolved Mystery: The Disappearing Gourmet

Pascal Henry, a Swiss motorcycle courier, had planned the trip of a lifetime. Over the course of 68 days he was going to eat at every three-star Michelin-rated restaurant in the world -- all 68 of them.

By June 12 he had reached #40 on his list, El Bulli in Spain. He had finished his dessert, but had not yet paid his bill, when he excused himself from his table to go outside to his car to get one of his business cards to give to the couple at the next table. He hasn't been seen since.

What happened to him? The most popular theory is that he must have run out of money and decided to go into hiding. But there's also the possibility he may have wandered off a nearby cliff (though no body has been found) or that foul play is involved. Supporting the theory that he went into hiding are "reports that he is divorced and deeply secretive and went missing for several months as a teenager." Links: Times Online, Independent.

All original content in posts is Copyright © 2008 by the author of the post, either Alex Boese ("Alex"), Paul Di Filippo ("Paul"), or Chuck Shepherd ("Chuck"). All rights reserved. The banner illustration at the top of this page is Copyright © 2008 by Rick Altergott.