Conspiracy Theoryology

Episode 39 Haunted houses have a long and storied history. One of the earliest stories which we have originates in Ancient Rome. Pliny the Younger writing in the first century, recounts in a letter the story of the philosopher Athenodorus and his brush with a haunted house. Per the story, Athenodorus arrives in Athens and picks up a villa with a very reasonable rent, largely due to it’s haunted re...

Episode 38 Witchcraft intrigues us and captures our imagination. The concept is steeped in history, and the practice is shrouded in magick and the mystical. Even so, many have no idea how this ancient practice has translated into the modern day. In fact, most don't even realize that it exists in modern day, and that witches are in their midst within everyday life. Witchcraft, through all it's inca...

Episode 37 Spoiler alert. Mass Hallucination is not a real phenomenon. It does not exist. At least not as depicted in popular media. Regardless, it’s a term bantered about by both sides in many skeptical debates. Today we’re going to break down the mass hallucination theory and find out why it often surfaces as the go-to excuse for the unexplained. This time I am joined by guest host, Jason Charbo...

Episode 36 This time Ryan jumps on the microphone for a bit of off-the-cuff discussion regarding the hot UFO topic of US Navy admission that the released "tic-tac" videos, which surfaced in 2017, are legitimate footage of unidentified aerial phenomenon captured between 2004 and 2015. Additionally, they were never meant to be released to the public.  Of course, we cannot just discuss these videos f...

Episode 35: Theoryology Bites Time for a short Bonus Episode! Theoryology Bites is a bit of a side show idea to cover things that simply don't have any theoryology behind them. These are ideas, beliefs, and even conspiracy theories that didn't gain any traction in the public imagination....usually for good reason. Still, they are fun to talk about and this gives y'all a chance to hear about them w...

Episode 34 Welcome back Theoryologists! We are talking about the theory of Peak Oil. The Peak Oil theory has a long history, that, while coined in 1950’s, is rooted in studies and predictions going back to the late 19th century, and in short proposes that oil, as a limited and exhaustible resource, will reach a point of peak discovery, production and availability at some point. In other words, we...

Episode 33 "Honor yourself because you survived." - NK Kranda These words encapsulate a unique and welcomed approach for those that have experienced the unexplained and inexplicable. And, it exemplifies the empathetic and generous nature of our guest today. On this episode of Conspiracy Theoryology, The Story Keepers. Joined by experience preservationist NK Kranda, as well as Travis, a personal ex...

Episode 32 This episode we explore our fascination with the Petrified Forest, located in Arizona. Specifically we will discuss the curse that has been associated with this amazing National Park, and reported by visitors since the 1930s. I say reports, but they are really attempts to lift this curse by returning stolen pieces of petrified wood, often with letters explaining the streak of misfortune...

Episode 31 Welcome back, Theoryologists. We are wrapping up our discussion of Jade Helm 15 and addressing our suspicions that is was, at the very least, used as a convenient opportunity for psychological operations training. Conversely, and more likely, the social manipulation and psychological triggers introduced with the Jade Helm operation were intrinsic of the training exercise itself, intende...

Episode 30 To some, it produces images of government controlled communications/mass media, telling the people only what the government wants them to hear. To others, it raises the horrid specter of Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s Propaganda Minister, practicing the technique of the "big lie" which has incorrectly become synonymous with "propaganda". Still to others, the mere mention of "psychological" o...

Episode 29 Welcome back, Theoryologists. When you hear the term “psyop”, in context of the military, what comes to mind? Does it conjure up thoughts of leaflet air drops? Radio broadcasts behind enemy lines? Loudspeaker announcements? Are you even familiar with the term at all? While for some it may conjure the thought of clandestine psychic warfare and espionage tactics, Psyop is, in fact, an abb...

Episode 28 Welcome back Theoryologists. What happens when your brain hears a question? In fact, the answer is just what happened when you heard my question. Interestingly, you focused in and everything else, at least for a moment, was put to the side while your mind attempted to address the question at hand. Neuroscience research has found that the human brain can only think of one thing at a time...

Episode 27 Continuing the discussion of Ancient Astronaut Theory, this time we explore another approach to understanding history, known as Big History. This educational approach to the exploration of history is much more than a timeline of human history, or even of Earth history. Big History goes all the way back to the Big Bang as a starting point, and presents a timeline, in a narrative form, le...

Episode 26 Published in 1968, Chariot of the Gods?, written by Erich Von Daniken, sparked a movement of thought and belief that endeavored to rewrite our understanding of the origins of human civilization and advancement. Von Daniken proposed that the historical record was proof of ancient extraterrestrial visitation and intervention across nearly all of the developing cultures throughout antiquit...

BONUS - Patreon Teaser This week I have a bonus episode for you to enjoy. A heavily abridged version of the conversation I had with my guest host, Mike Nelson, over on Patreon. Mike and I explored the Mandela Effect as a follow up to the Food Pyramid episode which only briefly touched on the topic. Mike brought a fresh perspective and some great research and we had a great time! The entire discuss...

Ep. 25 - Finland Doesn't Exist In the Cold War era, Japan and the Soviet Union supposedly shared a secret about a stretch of the Baltic Sea between the Soviet Union and Sweden. Around the mid-20th century, the two nations collectively spread the idea that there was a landmass known as Finland on that stretch of ocean, to keep the good fishing between themselves. The Japanese were free to fish as m...

Ep. 24 - Sleep Paralysis Why talk about sleep paralysis? Isn’t it usually just an explanation in itself for strange phenomenon? Actually, it’s not a definitive answer to all night time visions and experiences. Blaming sleep paralysis is simply blaming a physiological function as a means of dismissing strange experiences. Yet, it has become the go-to explanation, and we are eager to accept it as th...

Podswap - Burst Your Bubble Podcast A wonderful episode swapping project coordinated by the lovely and talented host and creator Moxie at Your Brain on Facts. Inspired by the days of comic strip artists swapping characters, this operation is meant to introduce new podcasts, not only to you the listener, but us as well, that we think our listeners will find interesting and enjoyable. Today, I have...

Episode 23 - Spontaneous Human Combustion This phenomenon, also known as SHC, probably because it gets old saying the full term pretty quickly in a long conversation, goes back hundreds of years and still befuddles investigators in cases today. This isn’t really a tale of the supernatural, although it certainly gives that vibe. It’s certainly paranormal in the very literal sense of being out-of-th...

Episode 22 - The Food Pyramid Howdy Theoryologists. Let’s talk about the infamous USDA Food Pyramid. Think back to when you first saw it? That pyramid poster on the wall. When do you remember seeing it? Grade school? On TV? When was that? How old is that colorfully pyramid shaped stack of food? Regardless, that now infamous visual was meant to convey, in summary, the recommended dietary guidelines...

Episode 21 - Pseudo-Skepticism Howdy Theoryologists. Today we are discussing the broad brush stroke term “skepticism”, and specifically the misuse and mislabeling of a falsely skeptical approach that hides an objective of debunking. See, underlying any topic we have had, or might have in the future on Conspiracy Theoryology, is the skeptical perspective. That point of view which says “I’m not just...

Episode 20 - Flat Earth Theory (Part 3) Howdy Theoryologists. This time we will really pull together the reason for first exploring the concepts of belief and perception. I knew we would need to have a good context of those idea before we jumped into the evolution of flat earth theory. Our discussions previously have approached Flat Earth as a proposed idea. Really a hypothesis to be tested and pr...

Episode 19 - Flat Earth Theory (Part 2) Howdy Theoryologists. Let’s continue our discussion on Flat Earth Theory. In part 1, we focused on the history of modern flat earth theory, it’s introduction in the mid-nineteenth century, and the contemporary philosophical musings at the time, which were opening up new thought on reality and existence. In our theoryology discussion we explored the beginning...

Episode 18 - Flat Earth Theory (Part 1) This is the theory to end all theories. Flat earth posits that our understanding of earth as a heliocentric globe is, at best, a misguided and faulty understanding of the physical nature of our world. At worst, a concerted effort to propagate a lie, contrary to our observation and perceptions of the world around us. In this first part of our three part serie...

Episode 17 - The War On Christmas   In 2005 a War On Christmas resurfaced, and took the News Media by storm. Seemingly driven by political correctness, or the frustration thereof, many have drawn political lines seeing the omission of the term “Christmas” in holiday greetings as an assault on the conservative Christian aspects of this holiday season, while other observances, such as Hanukkah and K...