7 Strange Scientific Mysteries

[@XtomJamesExtra]

Morning Glory Clouds Australia: we actually know why they're so common there. The stretch of area over Australia is virtually devoid of surface features that would interrupt or disrupt the interaction between moist air pushed inland off the ocean, and the hot dry air that forms over the interior of Australia. The two mix creating a strong mesocyclonic boundary which cools the moisture in the air creating the cloud along the boundary of the mesocyclone. A mesocyclone can be as long as the frontal boundary between a high and low pressure zone. These boundaries tend to cross the southern half of Australia along the southern jet stream.

[@JohnVKaravitis]

Says you!

[@marvinglenn]

For the "spontaneous human combustion" mystery, the theory of a slow burn was tested. A (dead) pig wrapped in cloth (to simulate clothing) was burned in a mock room. The cloth acted as a wick and the pig burned quite completely. It was also found that a lower heat long time burn on bones would cause them to disintegrate; something that was previously thought to require high heat. The mock room this experiment was done in had limited damage, just like the deceased lady's room.

[@TheScoon3]

Her bones were powder high heat

[@ClickClack_Bam]

I don't believe this sorry. Bones require high heat to burn. Forensic Files disagrees with you too. There's been countless murders solved because they couldn't burn the bones up using a normal fire after many hours burning them.

[@puzzledninja]

The up-sweeping sound woke my cat up from his nap lol

[@MentalFloss]

This video has now annoyed at least two cats. It will take approximately 50,000,000 (human) views to justify this.

[@KingXOreo]

Guess we've got some work to do

[@withintheshyness]

@@MentalFloss make that 3

[@WenzelSays]

The only things my brain injuries ever gave me were; ptsd, trouble reading and a third thing I can't remember...

[@SpookyFan]

I guess I expected it to be more Sci-Show than Mental Floss when I saw the word "scientific" in the title. For the first "mystery", I'll trust Brian Dunning of Skeptoid when he did an episode on the topic: "One theory for why these patients are always described as speaking "fluently" in their second language - a language they had not yet developed fluency in - is that the brain's loss of the first language eliminated a slow process that had existed before. Previously, when they had just been learning the second language, they would need to think of the sentence first in their first language then deliberately look up the translation for each word. With the first language gone, this slow process was no longer possible, so the second language would flow more easily than before. However it's important to note that no new words or grammar rules would have materialized out of nowhere; the patients were simply able to speak somewhat faster than they could before." "The important detail of Foreign Language Syndrome, at least for our purposes today, is that reports of someone spontaneously learning a new language as the result of a coma - or suddenly knowing more of a language they'd just begun to study or only overheard a little being spoken - are false. The clinical literature is devoid of any verified cases, and none are known to science, despite numerous such claims on the Internet or in the pop media." For the full episode in audio and written form with references: skeptoid.com/episodes/4716

[@Scud422]

Thank you for posting this. I only just now saw this video so you beat me to it. As a fellow Skeptoid fan, her starting with this myth really ground my gears.

[@amye1642]

Ways to learn a new language: 1. Immersion 2. Classes 3. Rosetta Stone 4. Coma?

[@tisjester]

4. Glitch in the simulation.

[@rafaelcisneros562]

I speak swear words in 10 different languages.

[@jemima438]

8:57 KITTY 🙀🙀🙀 so cute 😻😻😻

[@TheOfficialTarynTots]

I feel like U could have done 100 strange scientific mysteries but probably already covered half of them in your other videos.

[@JohnDlugosz]

The so-called Spontaneous Human Combustion effects have been reproduced in staged scenarios. Furthermore, there is always an ignition source present, so there's nothing spontaneous about it. Rooms have been instrumented and filmed in infrared and show the characteristic pattern of local low-lying intense heat. The fact that it's not what you would intuitively expect does not make it "not understood". Yes, crematoriums use very intense blast heat to reduce a body to ashes quickly. That doesn't mean that it doesn't also work to bake slowly at ordinary combustion temperatures. Again, practical experiments show that bone turns to powder after a sufficient baking time.

[@TeslaMaster2]

The answer to the last question is obvious. Cats merely tolerate humans in their house, so they have steady food supply, and to be admired when the cats allow us to do so. Other than that, us humans are nothing to them.

[@MurrayInman]

Clicked like for the smoke monster reference. Well done.

[@doddjustin]

Welp, guess my new mission in life is to hang glide through a morning glory cloud.

[@Kilo6Charlie]

I don't know any sources for it, but I remember hearing a few instances of young children having vivid memories that corresponded to people recently deceased. One family even took their daughter to the place their memories were of and was able to have detailed conversations with them using facts they had no way of knowing. Ever since hearing those stories I have leaned towards believing Reincarnation is a thing

[@jliller]

I've heard of stuff like this, but it's something that is really hard to verify.

[@schaffy_]

These videos really need to cite sources, saying things like “one source said it was Earth collided with a black hole” is a joke. Be careful to not feed fanciful science and conspiracy theories

[@BrianHartman]

The black hole thing isn't even fanciful science. It's pseudoscience.

[@EXTREMESEAMAN69]

They literally are theories nerd. That’s all science is. Not “conspiracy”. These are unsolved mysteries not “top 10 facts by scientists complete with sources”

[@darkqueenfenrisulfr]

"the source of the sound is in between australia and south america" R'lyeh!?

[@devinhunter6837]

Throwback idea: Era of Movie Rental Businesses. Family Video announced on 01/05/2021 that it was closing its doors.

[@MentalFloss]

We do touch on that in this episode: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pKK2opKHZtZmnLs RIP Family Video (/physical media?!)

[@babsgaudreau5936]

Good episode. I liked it!

[@sfgraves]

Mental Floss, I was with you until the human combustion. This is not a mystery at all and has been scientifically debunked. The majority of people to have succumbed this way are usually heavy drinkers or people taking sedatives, who die in a chair or on the floor (being surrounded by a combustible material, as opposed to laying on a concrete floor), and then are slowly engulfed by a nearby flame (a candle or cigarette). The fat in the human body acts as a fuel source for the fire, and burns like a slow wick - which is why certain portions of the body are left untouched are the fire smolders for hours before finally dying out. Creepy, but not unexplained. You guys can do better!

[@jawi499]

Black hole? Odd jump to the most unlikely solution.

[@rasmusgarbonzo1411]

right??? these scientists are idiots

[@thefluke79]

Yeah, they should have mentioned that the pattern of flattened trees was a mystery until they saw the same patterns of destruction with nuclear bombs many years later, showing that it was from an explosion in the air, and therefore no crater.

[@happyfacefries]

I'm using that as an excuse now. Person: what the hell happened to my car?? Me: black hole

[@aslonz5308]

So what you're saying is that if I get severe brain damage I might pass my German class? Sold.

[@McJethroPovTee]

Since those people have some knowledge about the language I think that when they went into coma, the part of their brain or the neurons related to their native tongue got fried, and only the foreign language remained.

[@Varizen87]

The end of this video felt like some Classic Natalie Tran stuff with Erin saying to her cat "Let me love you..."

[@Dornul]

Liked the video, but there's a big difference between unexplainable and unexplained.

[@jadefalcon001]

SOSUS is an American system, not Soviet. It was used to surveil Soviet naval activity, though.

[@MentalFloss]

Yes, definitely poor wording on our part. I think we were trying to convey what your 2nd sentence says, but it definitely comes across as saying it was Soviet-run.

[@TheOfficialTarynTots]

I find the brain injuries that causes people to speak another languages and how they recover from TBI fascinating. Its amazing what our brains are capable of.

[@scotthendricks5665]

Placebo also includes regression to the mean.

[@JohnDlugosz]

No citations or links in the description? Gee... Can you give more information about the Black Hole paper? You didn't give any authors names or anything! To my knowledge, the black hole idea was just a wild idea advanced by Isaac Asimov, and I've never heard of an earlier scientific paper on that idea. FWIW, I thought the Tunguska event is no longer a mystery, as computational modeling originally meant for studying atomic bombs showed it to be consistent with an airburst. There were also practical models built that recreate the pattern of damage exactly. They know the altitude, speed, and bearing of the object that caused it, and it's perfectly consistent with what you would expect of a space rock.

[@YayComity]

Promising globules truly are the best kind.

[@tynebaker]

Ooo I love a good mysterious sound.

[@rickseiden1]

Serious question here. Did the poor folks who woke up speaking a different language have an accent? Did that little girl speak German like someone who's native language is Croatian?

[@bakomusha]

From what I know, it depends on the person, and their expose to it. Most come out speaking "too good" in that langues, like how you are taught foreign langues in public school. Someone who is more exposed to it threw media, or those around them adopt more of the dominate version of that. With the girl in particular, I imagine she spoke with a Croatian accent, as German is a very common 2nd tongue in the region.

[@MissLilyputt]

Love the kitty co-host.

[@cynicalrabbit915]

Last Story: Up sweep sound The sample provided sounds alot like the Red Alert aboard the Enterprise on the 1960 TV Show "Star Trek".

[@NeilDPerry]

Do you think the language phenomenon spoken about first, may have to do with epigenetic memories? That would be amazing.

[@johndemas4491]

At 1:20 you said that the fireball was 100m wide, maybe it was object that was 100m wide and the fireball was slightly larger? Not throwing shade, the numbers didn’t seem to jive together in my brain.

[@OldManMontgomery]

The observed phenomenon of 'change in languages' puts a whole new light on the Biblical (Genesis 11) report of the Tower of Babel and the growth of languages, huh? Not an explanation by any means, but it's not surprising about strange and unexplained happenings in Siberia. It is a big place with a relatively sparse population: few or no witnesses.

[@franciscamoena6666]

Whats upsweep? Nothing, whats up with you

[@ianhowick]

Volcanic Activity? Is that some sort of Seismic Anomaly?

[@rainydaylady6596]

The place in Russia (not Tunguska) seems like an easy place to study. I would think some group would be interested and why does everyone assume that a group of people can't build something similar to a pyramid? It seems patronizing.

[@peterlervik1640]

#BringBackJohn

[@Adman-p4j]

He's too busy writing his next big teen rom-com. ;)

[@peterlervik1640]

@@Adman-p4j 🤣🤣🤣 he should be saving Mental Floss

[@happyfacefries]

John left on his own, dude

[@Adman-p4j]

@@happyfacefries I don't think he was implying that he was fired but simply saying that he wants him to come back.

[@TallTeenTurtle]

do you have your captions done professionally? I noticed several differences between them and what was being said.

[@Romeren]

It's "6 Strange Scientific Mysteries" or did i miss one??

[@wabisabi7755]

The missing one is the 7th mystery.

[@happyfacefries]

It's about her and her cat? Lol

[@l33794m3r]

Cats have to be taught to like getting that sort of affection. To be put in such a vulnerable position is not something that a cat will naturally like to do. Instead you have to retrain your cat to make him crave such attention. It's a multi-year process a vast majority of the time and even then you may not get much more than letting them be kissed. I've only had 2 cats in my life that actively want to be kissed.

[@happyfacefries]

You're such a joy killer. She wasn't serious

[@l33794m3r]

@@happyfacefries How am I a joy killer? I have 5 cats and love when they finally want affection after I handtame them. I love nothing more than to hear a cat purr.

[@jawi499]

I don’t buy that you could know a language without learning it.

[@xyvazkrown8048]

they said that all the brain injury cases where they learned a new languange that they had had some experience of the new language before getting hurt.

[@cynicalrabbit915]

Story: People with head trauma, waking from a coma speaking a different language than their birth language. At one time according to the bible everyone spoke the same language until they started to build the Tower Babel, that was to reach Heaven. God then made everyone speak different languages. What if there is/was a universal/natural language and all languages were part of it, and God or some phenomenon caused a mass event so that people could only access a portion of the universal language.

[@88happiness]

I wonder if those people eventually relearned the language they lpst?

[@NinjaPirateJedi]

How do eels reproduce?

[@masterroshi376]

Well see, When a mommy eel and a daddy eel love each other very much, ummm, errrrr. Ask your parents.

[@scotthendricks5665]

It sounds like an evacuation alarm.

[@invisibleninja86]

The ocean is telling us to Get Out.

[@jliller]

So long and thanks for all the fish.

[@kiatsommart]

I'd enjoy your show a lot more if you speak a little slower and allow me to appreciate the story before you move on to the next one

[@jimmysgameclips]

7:02 Gen Z: "What's she talking about?"

[@masterroshi376]

What, you never heard of the Smoke Monster.

[@godnoble]

KITTY!!

[@jawi499]

Placebo “can often”???? I believe you mean “sometimes”.

[@MissVasques]

Well ”often” sounds like a lot of times which is true, sometimes sounds more rarely which feels wrong to state about such a common thing.

[@chesh1rek1tten]

No, it's really "often". There's so many drugs that have no more effect than a placebo - because the placebo already works

[@happyfacefries]

What's wrong with using can often? Word nazi

[@SECONDQUEST]

👀

[@-10letrungdung98]

Hu hu muốn xem nhưng ko bt tiếng anh :(((

[@FateWorseThanDeath]

Kitty!!

[@ZennExile]

It's your breath.

[@Yui714]

What's the easiest/cheapest way to put myself into a coma?

[@CorpoAgent73]

Tequila

[@stopplay7743]

I have an explanation for the last one. Because it’s a cat

[@jawi499]

“Sounds from space”? I thought space was a vacuum

[@chesh1rek1tten]

Near vacuum =)

[@Curly4000]

Let me be the good Christian that I am and say that all of these can be explained with the greatest history book and the most accurate scientific book ever which is the bible

[@masterroshi376]

Seriously. Religion is based on fables told by people trying to make sense of their world. Over time the oral tradition became a way to impart values to the next generation. The stories were also a way to recognize people like you. Over time religion became corrupted, became a tool for control and a cover for some of the worlds worst atrocities.

[@Curly4000]

@@masterroshi376 unless you have some proof that religion is to control people I call bullshit

[@BrianHartman]

The bible says the Earth (and the rest of the universe) was created in 6 days. That's demonstrably false. As Galileo once said (and I'm paraphrasing): The Bible tells you how to get to Heaven. It doesn't tell you how the heavens go.

[@Curly4000]

@@BrianHartman that’s the devils talk. I will have none of your talk

[@thefluke79]

I think you need someone with a scientific background to check your content. So many things factually wrong with these "mysteries".

[@happyfacefries]

Give examples, I honestly want to know

[@thefluke79]

Tunguska was an airburst explosion from an exploding meteoroid. This is not a mystery anymore and is now well understood thanks to a better understanding of the physics of ballistic re-entry and the same destruction patterns showing up with airburst nuclear weapon testing. For example, there is no crater at Hiroshima because the explosion was in the sky above the city.

[@SquirrelNebula]

Look up comedian Pete Holmes (nsfw). He has a bit about cat and dog people that I think you might like.

[@Poxypriest]

Yikes, lots of misinformation here hiding as science, just because we don't know exactly why something or someone acted in amparticular way doesn't mean you can just fill that unknown with whatever you like, clickbait and all.

[@phosphorus4]

ScienTIFIC doesn't always mean only scientISTs… …and there IS such thing as bad science…

[@monkeythe1st]

Lmao. Pls stop saying “morning glory” the kid in me is giggling like a schoolgirl.

[@jliller]

What's the story?

[@seanbaugh3239]

*#1 Strange Scientific Mystery :* Why do silent farts stink worse than "Bass-heavy" farts? 🤔... 😖💨💩... 😳🤧 *The More You Know🌈🌟©* *"NUFF SAID"™*

[@kevinhorton8617]

silent, however deadly, this needs a study. (sneak attack in the rack: short offensive movie :) )

[@phosphorus4]

Actually…that might be in a misconceptions video……

[@LordBlee]

This is really the worst list I've seen. Just because someone doesn't like the explanation, does not mean the explanation doesn't exist or isn't accurate.

[@snowboarderrx]

you should add : long term safety of covid 19 vaccine lol

[@waynemarvin5661]

So why is this a mystery to you? We've had vaccines for more than two hundred years.

[@snowboarderrx]

@@waynemarvin5661 maybe I’m mistaken. When was the last time an RNA vaccine was used on humans?

[@snowboarderrx]

@onii_tw if vaccines can just be whipped up so easily and quickly, why aren’t there vaccines for other corona virus like the common cold for example?

[@snowboarderrx]

@onii_tw lol maybe you’re illiterate? My original comment states there’s no long term safety data on the Covid 19 vaccine. This vaccine started being developed less than a year ago. That’s not Long term by any means.

[@mikejpounder]

Vaccinations are important.. however I think its reasonable to have reservations to some degree on a brand new, quickly produced medical product. We have learned many lessons from our past mistakes and failures. That being said, let's hope for the best while remaining curious

[@Romeren]

It's "6 Strange Scientific Mysteries" or did i miss one??