Big-If True: Adventures in Oddity

by Benjamin Radford

This collection of Skeptical Inquirer magazine columns by investigator and folklorist Benjamin Radford guides readers on a science-based (yet open-minded) examination of 70 fascinating and mysterious topics. Drawing on two decades of first-hand research, Big-If True separates fact from fiction using forensics, science, psychology, folklore, and more. Big-If True examines these and dozens more mysteries including Bigfoot, reincarnation, chupacabras, Icelandic elves, conspiracy theories, UFOs, miracles, the terrifying Goat-Man, crop circles, subliminal advertising, sea serpents, wandering trees, medical mysteries, and hypnotist thieves-plus a 1990 Elvis sighting. For mystery lovers and armchair investigators alike, this book offers a look behind the scenes at investigating oddities and curiosities, both ancient and modern.


Chapter One LEGENDS 5

A Skeptic's Guide to Ethical and Effective Curse Removal - Egging the

Equator - Elves Ahead - Mysteries of the Coral Castle - Is Elvis

Presley in Home Alone? - Searching to Noah Vale - The Bell Witch Mystery

- The Myth of the Walking Tree - Bailing in the Mummies - Might Fright

Cause White? - (and more)




Chapter Two MONSTERS 51

Cryptozoology and Global Warming - The Mystery of the Texas

Chupacabra - Texas Goat-Men and the Chupacabra - A Wakey Water

'Monster' - Globsters Ahoy! - Investigating Mothman's Red Eyeshine




Chapter Three GHOSTS 83

Do Einstein's Laws Endorse Ghosts? - 'M' is for Mysterious Marks -

Have I Ever Seen a Ghost? - Soul Scales - The Cockington Church Ghost

Photo - Can Electromagnetic Fields Create Ghosts? - Infrared Cameras

and Ghost Hunting - A Closer Look at Orbs - The Sweet Spirit Sounds

of Rosemary Brown - (and more)




Chapter Four MYSTERIOUS POWERS AND PLACES 121

A Time to Die? - Crop Circle Origins - The GIGO Crop Circle

Research Edition - Channeling Ancient African Wisdom-Or Not - Mystery

of the Paulding Light - Dubious and Discredited - Fatima

Miracle Claims All Wet - Uri Geller Revisited - Did Psychic Visions

Locate Missing California Boy? - Beware Mesmer Thieves! - Secrets of

Spectacularly Skewered Skin




Chapter Five UFOs 165

The Phantom Menace of UFO Revelation - The Mysterious Phoenix

Lights - The Mysterious, Invisible 'Rods'




Chapter Six HEALTH AND MEDICINE 175

Boon or Bogus? - Exercising the Brain Gym - Kinoki Foot Pads

- Diving HeadOn Into Pseudoscience - Subliminal Advertising, Trumpian

and Otherwise - Freaky Feldenkrais - Measuring Near-Death Experience

- A 100C Grain of Truth to Homeopathy? - Battle Over the BMI - The

Mysterious Morgellons Malady - Childbirth-Natural or 'Unnatural'? -

Vegetable Oil or Snake Oil?: The Pseudoscience of Oil Pulling - The

Pseudoscience of Personalysis - Left Brain or Right Brain? - (and more)




Chapter Seven CONSPIRACIES 229

Sandy Hook School The Adam Lanza Death Certificate Conspiracy

- Curious Death From the Sky? - The Truth About the 9/11

Truthers - Is America a Sheeple Factory?




Chapter Eight SKEPTICISM 243

Legitimizing Woo - Just Asking Questions - Caught Between the Possible

and the Paranormal - Dealing With Believers in Skeptical Investigation -

Anomaly Hunting - Mystery Solved-According to Whom? - Paranormal

Qualifications

340 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 1, 2020

About the author

Benjamin Radford is deputy editor of Skeptical Inquirer science magazine and a Research Fellow with the non-profit educational organization the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. He has written thousands of articles on a wide variety of topics, including urban legends, the paranormal, critical thinking, and media literacy. He is author of nine books: Hoaxes, Myths, and Manias: Why We Need Critical Thinking (with sociologist Robert E. Bartholomew); Media Mythmakers: How Journalists, Activists, and Advertisers Mislead Us, examining the ways in which deception is used in various media to influence decision making and public policy; Lake Monster Mysteries: Investigating the World’s Most Elusive Creatures (with Joe Nickell), a scientific examination of lake monsters around the world; Scientific Paranormal Investigation: How to Solve Unexplained Mysteries; and Chupacabra: The Vampire Beast in Fact, Fiction, and Folklore; The Martians Have Landed! A History of Media-Driven Panics and Hoaxes (with Bob Bartholomew); Mysterious New Mexico: Miracles, Magic, and Monsters in the Land of Enchantment (Winner of the 2015 Southwest Book Award); and Bad Clowns, as well as a novel titled The Merchant of Dust. His newest book is "Investigating Ghosts: The Scientific Search for Spirits." It is the first book to examine the history, culture, methods, and folklore of ghost investigation, from Victorian-era Spiritualists to modern-day TV ghost hunters.

Radford has an undergraduate degree in psychology and a graduate degree in education. He is a regular columnist for LiveScience.com, Discovery News, Skeptical Inquirer magazine, and the Skeptical Briefs newsletter. Radford regularly speaks at universities, colleges, and conferences across the country and has appeared on the Discovery Channel, the History Channel, the National Geographic Channel, the Learning Channel, CBC, BBC, CNN, and other networks with three letters. He also served as a consultant for the MTV series The Big Urban Myth Show and an episode of the CBS crime drama CSI.

Reviews

[Rhiannon Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have had an interest in cryptozoology and the paranormal since I was a young teen. I read everything I could find of accounts and incidents of the unexplained and think “how cool would it be if this were real?” and “What if it is real?”

I thoroughly enjoyed how Benjamin Radford took each of these incidents he discussed and applied logic, common sense, research, and the scientific method to show where each of these are currently unsupported in their claims.

There are still mysteries to explore and if we are willing to put in the work, we can solve many of them. You can’t stop at the question and call it the answer. And this book gives a good starting point for how to find those answers.

This is an absolute must read for anyone interested in the “unexplained”.