Go to Snopes, and find an urban legend that interests you. Read about the legend, explain it briefly in your comment, and explain why you think this myth or legend or rumor exists. What did people intend to incite (begin) by starting the rumor?
The Salem Witch Trials have had a lasting legacy. References to the trials have shown up in pop culture as well as in plays, movies, and music. Part of this has to do with the nature of humans. We are quick to judge and quick to believe without demanding real proof. This becomes especially true when we look at urban legends.
Go to Snopes, and find an urban legend that interests you. Read about the legend, explain it briefly in your comment, and explain why you think this myth or legend or rumor exists. What did people intend to incite (begin) by starting the rumor?
40 Comments
lovin
9/24/2015 09:43:36 am
i read about the Easter island head and find out that underneath the heads the figures actually have body's i never knew this and i really wanna know how the body's got so far underground its super interesting
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Ingalls
9/24/2015 10:02:59 am
Explain why you think this myth or legend or rumor exists. What did people intend to incite (begin) by starting the rumor?
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Gavitron
9/24/2015 09:53:20 am
Transformation Tuesday, the rumor that child actor Stuart Minkus became adult celebrity Chanel West Coast. This rumor was based on the facial features that the two individuals possessed, being very similar to each other. This rumor was squashed when adult Stuart Minkus showed up on the show Girl Meets World.
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Logan
9/24/2015 03:00:18 pm
'Blind leading the blind' is a great example for this story. It's funny how long we can let a fake story go without anyone researching it.
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William
9/27/2015 03:48:48 pm
I agree.
Ice Cream Cone
9/24/2015 10:02:00 am
The legend that interests me the most is the Gunman Gambit because Senator Dianne Feinstein said "when the gunman realizes that nobody else is armed, he will lay down his weapons and turn himself in, that's human nature." I dont think that is true because Senator Dianne Feinstein said "when the gunman realizes that nobody else is armed, he will lay down his weapons and turn himself in, that's human nature." I dont think that is true because it didnt stop the gunman that killed everyone in the church, it didnt stop the gunman that shot the recruiting center, and it didnt stop James Holmes from killing twelve unarmed people in the theater in Colorado. So if she thinks that gunman will drop their guns and go turn themselves, she is not very smart because those three examples that i gave show that gunman will only stop when they feel like it and run because they dont want to go to prison or even death row. Our Government people think that if they outlaw things that all the problems will go away, when in reality they wont go away because you will have all the dealers that stockpile or make illegal things.
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Ingalls
9/24/2015 10:07:13 am
But she never actually said this--that's the point. Why would someone put those words in her mouth or attribute the quote to her when she never said it?
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Layne
9/25/2015 08:49:32 pm
Most likely, this rumor was started to make the Senator look ignorant, maybe in hopes of ruining her career.
Chris Loo
9/24/2015 10:09:11 am
I read about senator Feinstein's gun control plans, and I personally think it wont work. She says " when the gunman sees that nobody else is armed, he will lay down his weapon, that's just human nature". This statement is however false; humans are a opportunity seeking species. When a gunman sees that nobody is armed, he will possibly kill everybody or seriously injure some. Gun control just takes guns from law abiding citizens, leaving them defenseless against a crazed gunman. If a gunman targets a mall, and starts shooting people, a good person with a gun can disarm the gunman. In some areas it could be 15-20 minutes before police can respond to a situation. The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun, is a good guy with a gun.
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Ingalls
9/24/2015 10:57:45 am
The whole point of the article is that she never actually said this. Why would someone say she said this? What is their motive to making her sound stupid?
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Chris Loo
9/24/2015 11:38:53 am
some one would post this to try to get the public to dislike her, and vote her out of senate. probably someone like a senator that doesnt like her would post it.
Mason
9/24/2015 10:09:55 am
Mutant Daisies, a photograph displays mutated daisies in Japan after the Fukushima nuclear power plant meltdown. In the photo, you can see that the daisies are in fact mutated, and the photo was taken in Japan, but they were not mutated due to the radiation from the nuclear power plant. Just more than likely a random mutation. Also, where the photo was taken the radiation levels were tested and it appeared to be just above normal levels. Many of the similar mutations have been found in areas far from the power plant. So no, the radiation did not mutate the daisies
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Ingalls
9/24/2015 10:58:44 am
Explain why you think this myth or legend or rumor exists. What did people intend to incite (begin) by starting the rumor?
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Mason
9/24/2015 01:56:45 pm
I believe that there are many probable reasons this picture was taken and that this rumor started. For instance, they could be trying to display how much of a tragedy Fukushima was, or maybe just trying to fool people, there's even a possibility that they wanted to get a lot of likes or shares on their photograph.
Wyatt
9/24/2015 11:31:32 am
Mutant Daisies: I read the article on the Mutant Daisies. The article shows a picture of a a group of mutated daisies in Japan. At first I was thinking that this made so much sense, and was totally probable because of the Fukushima meltdown, after Japan suffered a catastrophic tsunami. After reading a little further I quickly found out that the picture was true, they were mutated daisies. The location was also true, the picture was taken in Japan, but the daisies's mutation did not result from the Fukashuima meltdown.
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Ingalls
9/24/2015 11:33:07 am
Explain why you think this myth or legend or rumor exists. What did people intend to incite (begin) by starting the rumor? :)
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Wyatt
9/24/2015 11:34:01 am
This rumor exists because it absolutely sounds like a possible situation. But I'm sure somebody created this for the fame they would receive through Social Media.
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Logan
9/25/2015 07:45:45 pm
I think that you're right as to why the rumor started. I believe that in today's society, the number of "likes" and "shares" you can get on social media, even if they what you shared isn't real, is seen to be more important than stating facts. People become self-centered and feel that creating a fake story is the easiest way to get their name out to the public. USS Obama, a fake Fox News source stated that the USS Ronald Reagan was to be renamed the USS Obama. At very first it seems real because of the photo but if you look closely you can see the photoshopping. It has a picture that shows tweets from people and the fake Fox News getting supposedly angry over the fake renaming of the naval ship. The USS Ronald Reagan is not being renamed and is still in active duty by Japan. I think they started this rumor just to ruffle some feathers with some Obama haters and to get some attention along with it.
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william hickey
9/24/2015 02:46:49 pm
rumors of sam adams making a beer infused with helium to improve flavor and aroma. i dont have any idea why that rumor came up.
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BCANDO
9/24/2015 02:53:34 pm
The myth of the Easter island head is very interesting because the only thing you see is the head or the head and shoulders. I never knew that there was a entire "body" that went clear down in the ground. Whenever you hear or see an Easter island head you only think of the head, not the entire body. I think this legend exists to make people think that they are ancient grave yards because they only have the head exposed so it makes it look like it is a head stone for somebody. I have no clue why people began to put these huge body and head stones into the ground nut i do know that they are a very interesting and mysterious piece of history. The people that started to do this probably wanted to make the landscape look different.
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Logan
9/24/2015 02:58:24 pm
Butt of the Joke is based on a women's butt implants exploding after she had been doing squats for an Instagram video. The information given to us was that when she was performing squats, she heard a "pop," felt intense pain, and immediately fell to the ground. It was said that when the EMS took her out of the gym, her butt was gone. In the end, it turned out to be fake, leaving anyone who believed that this was true looking like a fool.
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Layne H
9/25/2015 08:43:57 pm
I feel like publicity stunt's are the reason for 99% of rumors like this. Exactly like the 'iPhone microwave charging' rumor that was started by 4chan last year.
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Harley
9/28/2015 11:39:17 am
I think it was definitely used as a publicity stunt, and you would have to be pretty gullible to believe it (considering that I didn't believe it and I once believed that a flashlight was a taser).
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Wyatt
9/28/2015 02:07:38 pm
Most definitely a publicity stunt.
Hunter
9/24/2015 03:22:47 pm
Bloody mary, bloody mary, bloody mary. As I read up on this common urban legend is a hoax that I believe consists more of psychological belief more than anything. I say this because the lights come on and you have the image of bloody mary herself in your mind.
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hunter
9/24/2015 03:23:16 pm
not done
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Hayden
9/24/2015 03:56:55 pm
The Easter Island heads really caught my attention. When you look at them you would think"oh well I wonder why there's heads all over in the grass". Recently it was discovered that they aren't just heads, in fact they have a whole body.The giant statues were just buried in the ground. I think this urban legend exists to make the statues look as if they are buried people in a cemetery.It doesn't make sense as to why they would get an idea saying "hey lets build some statues and bury them to their shoulders". This urban legend interests me because its so cool that there was so much more than just a statue of a face.
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Layne
9/25/2015 08:41:02 pm
I read the article on 'Selfies of Death' The idea behind this article is that more people have died trying to take a selfie than have died from shark attacks. The article cites 3 selfie related deaths, including falling down stairs after "the popular app snapchat was used to take a 'selfie'" in the Taj Mahal.
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Harley
9/28/2015 11:41:24 am
The rumor didn't even have to be started due to the strong hatred of selfies, it very well could have just been a story to get ignorant peoples' attention.
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Alison Renee'
9/25/2015 08:49:27 pm
I read the article 'In Visiible Ink' I understood that this women wanted to show everyone that she was beautiful with makeup but needed that before and after. Knowing that she co,owed her whole face with black Sharpie and the fact that it never faded or washed off. The article states that the mother of the girl said that she would have to get a skin graft surgery to make it somewhat back to normal. I don't think that this article is a myth, it's interesting how people feel the need to do the same things that others do on the internet, no challenge is worth making your face permently black.
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Emily
9/25/2015 10:47:57 pm
The link that I clicked on was about a girl that supposedly permanently sharpied her face completely black for the Don't Judge challenge. The rumor was not true and was created by TMZToday, a fake news source. These fake news sources seem to be trending, and I feel that the reason for this is that people feel the need to make real life similar to a reality TV show with fake drama. People are interested in gossip, but there's no real gossip going around, so they make it up. The truth is, you don't need fake drama for entertainment. Sure, that might be all that television is, but television isn't necessary for entertainment either. Rumors are not the only way to keep things interesting. Facts are pretty interesting too-- the tailless whip scorpion is an arachnid that definitely exists, and if you're not afraid of spiders with pincers, I recommend that you look it up because it's INTERESTING. Rant over.
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Harley
9/25/2015 11:17:39 pm
The urban legend that I chose to research were the full body statues on Easter Island. Contrary to popular belief, the famous heads of the island actually have bodies as well (they are just buried beneath the ground). Why someone would do that, I'm not sure. . . Maybe to represent the image of death with tombstone-like statues. I definitely think that the legend exists to add an element of mystery to the tale of the heads and the island itself. Giant head statues are strange enough, but when you discover that they contain a complete body that is underground, it is taken to a whole new level of unusual.
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BLAKE
9/25/2015 11:21:52 pm
i read about the helium being put in sam adams beer. i peersonally dont see why this would raise interest as well as a urban myth.it is said that Sam Adams have put helium in there brew to make it taste better as well as smell better. the only reasonable explanation i can see for this is simply another brewing companies was jealous because their beer was not as good of a product. therefor they made a rumor and it sounded so crazy that it stuck and gullible people believed it.
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peter
9/25/2015 11:48:17 pm
In the article despicable meme its stated that the lovable yellow creatures from despicable me are based off of Nazi gas victims. I can see how people made the connection between the two. the suits that the kids were forced to were bear a shocking resemblance to the animated characters. The rumor was probably started by somebody who noticed the resemblance ,and went viral after people realized how similar the two look. the first time I saw this on social media I even believed it. I didn't look into it because it was so believable. this just proves that people without knowing the whole story will just jump on the wagon, and not question anything.
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Abbigail Scheline
9/26/2015 01:27:13 pm
The Sex Trafficking legend is one that everyone could believe. The way the economy and our world is turning today I could understand where these people are coming from. Although the two people did get arrested there was an underlying problem. The girl assaulted was willing to go with these people. to sneak out and defy her parents spend time with a person who she had only known for a couple of days. I am not saying it was her fault she was assaulted, but this harassment could have been prevented.
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Dakota
9/26/2015 05:55:10 pm
On 1 April 2014, the Boston Beer Company’s Samuel Adams brand had apparently released a video displaying their creation of a beer that was infused with the noble gas, hydrogen. This new creation of theirs contains certain properties. They say it, "creates brilliant clarity while providing an incredibly light mouth feel. Since Helium is an odorless gas, it doesn’t compete with the natural aromas of the ingredients. From a freshness perspective, helium doesn’t oxidize which allows for a much longer shelf life." They soon revealed that this was just an April Fools Day Joke. A little while later, two guys named Alex and Ralf also created a video revealing their discovery of the HeliYUM beer that was "created" in the previous situation. This was also an April Fools Day Joke. This legend was obviously created through humorous actions. Somebody was trying to get a good laugh out of mimicking something similar that had happened in the year of 1994 in Japan.
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Dylon
9/28/2015 02:04:15 pm
The "myth" that I read was on exploding butt implants. The article said that she was squatting for an Instagram video and she heard a loud pop then fell to the ground in pain because her implant had exploded.
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Seth Swag
9/30/2015 11:41:17 am
The myth that I read was about daisies mutating after the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant exploded. It show images of white daisies having twice as many pedals and stigma. Researching other things that were affected such as, monkeys, people and even insects, It wasn't a surprise that plants were one of the first things to be affected. Plants don't have immune systems as strong as that of the human body, therefor they will be affected quicker or if not quicker then with more side effects. I think the person or people that posted this on the internet was either trying to inform of the disaster of Fukushima, or may have experimented on flowers and found that daisies were the most susceptible to deformation.
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