Skeptoid

Las Vegas mob lore clings thick to human remains found as Lake Mead's water level recedes. But is it truly mob secrets that are being revealed or perhaps something a bit more nuanced? The NamUs.gov profile for the Hemenway Harbor Doe is here . Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Did this mysterious carved beast — the most common object on the Pictish standing stones — ever actually live? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

In honor of Skeptoid's 20th birthday, today we're playing episode #1 from October 2006. Enjoy! Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Is the moral panic surrounding artificial intelligence justified? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Wellness influencers promise to sell you supplements to reduce your cortisol, and thus reduce your weight — even though it doesn't work that way. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Does a huge, hairy, ape-like creature roam the swamps of Louisiana? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Skeptoid Adventures "Mysteries of the Maya" guest expert Kurly Tlapoyawa was invited to speak at the inaugural SkeptiCamp New Mexico, and today we're sharing the lecture he gave, which covered the many ways that conspiracy theories and pseudoarchaeology undermine the goals of ethnic studies programs. Enjoy! And hear more from Kurly on the Tales From Aztlantis podcast: buzzsprout.com/1720405 chimal...

Four men in an Air National Guard helicopter had a terrifying UFO encounter in the skies above Ohio. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The true origin and purpose of Peru's famous Nazca Lines. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

We dive into the Skeptoid mailbag to find your best listener feedback. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

It turns out that having zero fraud in society is not necessarily a goal that would serve the general good. Why not? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Some say you might have repressed memories that you know nothing about — but that might be discovered and recovered therapeutically. Is this a real thing? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

What's really behind CERN's Large Hadron Collider's third planned shutdown? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Once again, we issue your corrections to errors made in previous Skeptoid episodes. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The question of whether torture is ever justified must take a back seat to the more important question: Is it effective at producing useful intelligence? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Is this new technique to move your consciousness into another world anything more than just vivid imagination? Maybe. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Seed oils seem to be the newest food villain. Are they something you truly need to avoid? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Popular tales claim that pirates used the island of Cozumel as a base of operations. History tells us pretty much the exact opposite. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

As a thoughtful primer for our Skeptoid Adventure through the Maya World of the Yucatán coast this December, we're dropping an episode from our good friends at the Tales From Aztlantis podcast that's all about the so-called "Mayan Calender" that was the source of so much hype -- and some real harm -- leading up to December 2012. FUN FACT: Tales From Aztlantis co-host and Indigenous Chicano archaeo...

Are alien spacecraft truly the best explanation for "transient" dots found on old telescope photographs? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The early bird special ends this Monday for BOTH Skeptoid Adventures launching this December! Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

What was the real cause of the drop in English-speaking literacy rates between 1980 and 2020? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Usually, wellness therapies that claim to treat everything actually treat nothing. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The real story behind the CIA spending $20 million on PROJECT STARGATE to study psychics. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Our final Skeptoid Adventure of 2026 takes us to the Yucatán coast to explore the Mysteries of the Maya. So, in anticipation of that, we're playing an episode from the archive that takes us to the heart of Mesoamerica: "Finding the Black Olmec" -- Enjoy! And this Adventure takes place December 6th-13th and links up seamlessly with the New Orleans Escapade for those who are interested! www.skeptoid...