Like scary Slender Man, viral views over a vaccine-autism link spread from a single human’s fiction. After Eric Knudsen created the Slender Man in a photo editing challenge, its myth spread as meme, a malleable open-source horror that inspired a murder attempt. After Andrew Wakefield falsified a vaccine-autism link, it panicked many into campaigning against vaccination.
Category Archives: Psychology Today: Beyond Heroes and Villains
"Captain America: The Winter Soldier"–Who Is Bucky?
In “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” (2014), amnesia-ridden James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes has been brainwashed into carrying out assassinations as the Winter Soldier. Does that make him a villain or a misguided hero? Exactly how might we diagnose an individual suffering his particular set of symptoms, and is there really any hope for one who has wrought so much wrong?
MythBusters’ Kari, Grant, and Tory Leave a Myth Unfinished
MythBusters’ build team leaves the Discovery Channel series after more years than most TV shows last. Kari Byron, Grant Imahara, and Tori Belleci depart, having tested only half of the Yerkes-Dodson arousal/performance curve. Having slapped some sense into understimulated, underaroused team members, they have not also slapped them silly when overstimulated and overaroused.
JL8 Controversy: Is Sharing Phallic Photos Healthy Behavior?
When a children’s webcomic artist sends others sexually explicit photos of his own anatomy, is that simply some sexting as part of 21st century life, or is he engaging in sexual harassment or other aggression? How can outsiders judge whether he is a charitable hero or a predatory villain? Who should speak out about this? Is there ever such a thing as a safe sext?
Doctor Who: Regeneration and a Dilemma of Doctor Identities
The BBC TV series “Doctor Who” has lasted 50 years. Its new season stars Peter Capaldi as the Twelfth Doctor – same Time Lord, different face. When the program’s hero regenerates into a new form (played by a new actor) how does that change affect his personality and self-concept? How do any real world human experiences relate to this science fiction character revision?
Scarlett Johansson Film Lucy Pushes 10 Percent Brain Myth
The plot for Luc Besson’s science fiction action thriller “Lucy” starring Scarlett Johansson with Morgan Freeman hangs on the myth we only use 10% of our brains. As the heroine’s brain usage reaches 90%, she gains skills and psychic superpowers. Not only does that 10% figure come from no confirmable, scientific source, a long line of evidence contradicts it in every way.