Jan 17, 2026
First, Ben and Celestia discuss some significant passings -- Erich von Däniken and Scott Adams, each skeptical cautionary tales in their own ways. They also touch on snuff films being in the news, the Trump DoJ admitting the Cartel de los Soles is not a thing, Dan Bongino (and others) giving up on their conspiracy theories once handed authority, the seeming ambiguity in how different groups are processing the shooting of Renee Good, and the spread of "Otohime" in Japan. Then we do a deep dive into the Taos hum. A mysterious and untraceable low-register noise experienced by 2% of the residents in Taos, New Mexico, this "hum" goes back to the early 1990s. Ben breaks down what the hum has to do with priming, conspiracy belief, confirmation bias, pareidolia, Havana syndrome, Marco Polo, mass sociogenic illness, and even djinn!