While most of us are naturally curious and suffer from more or less pronounced FOMO, meaning we have to know, see and hear everything others do, it’s not always best for us.
Some things are better left unknown or at least not put in the nightmarishly dim light like the facts shared on the “Creepy.fact” Instagram account. Followed by 231k followers, the page calls itself “the scariest account on Instagram” so we are about to see if that’s true. We wrapped up some of the most interesting posts shared on this page, so pull your seat closer, as you may want to leave your lights on.
The truth is... nothing beats the enduring appeal of things that fall under the categories of horror, grotesque, and mystery. Just look at the recent craze around gothic and horror TV shows (I refuse to believe there exists a person who hasn’t yet watched Tim Burton’s Wednesday) and serial killer documentaries (Netflix’ spin on Dahmer, anyone?!).
So to find out more about what it is that makes us tick when it comes to horror, we spoke with Lauren McMenemy, a south London-based writer of gothic-influenced folk horror who is currently working on a novel set in the world of the Victorian occult. And she was happy to share some very interesting insights into the topic!
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“Humans are inherently morbid, whether they like to admit it or not,” Lauren McMenemy, a professional writer, journalist, and experienced writing mentor and coach told Bored Panda. “We are fascinated by death - by avoiding it, by cheating it, by embracing it, by understanding what comes next.”
“And I think the last bit is really why we love the creepy stuff; ghosts and skeletons and vampires and other creepy things help us to explore what comes after death. As for mysteries, well, who doesn't love a good mystery! As well as being morbid, we are also inherently curious creatures,” McMenemy explained.
Bloody huntsman. Those dinner plate sized ones creeping out from behind a picture on the wall do tend to create stained undies.
McMenemy argues that it's what marks out humans and has helped us to grow and develop over generations and millennia. “We want to figure out the things we don't understand, and when we can't figure them out then some of us become obsessed by them.” McMenemy still remembers her own childhood obsession with the Bermuda Triangle, and who didn’t have one!
When asked whether horror as a genre is becoming more popular lately, McMenemy said that it definitely feels like it. “A large part of that is down to social media and the growth of self-publishing. The 'establishment' publishing houses still don't seem to like much in the way of horror - though serial killer fiction used to be considered horror, once upon a time! - but there is a huge online horror community, and they love to share discoveries,” the writer explained.
Happened in South Africa as well. Two Orcas called Port and Starboard turned up and after they killed and ate the livers of a few Great Whites, the sharks moved out. There were a few years with basically no sightings of the sharks.
If I'm not mistaken it took also a toll on the local economy which was widely focused on providing shark watching trips to tourists. (Edit: Not blaming the Orcas).
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apparently the orcas enjoy their livers. Tththththt with fava beans. https://www.livescience.com/killer-whales-attack-great-whites-video
You don't survive several mass extinctions without a pretty good survival response.
Forget about free W***y. Orcas are actually vile. They will eat the tongues out of humpback whales and play volleyball with seals.
I guess that's why they are called Killer Whales rather than Well Behaved Whales. :)
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The only explanation I can think of is fear. Idk though someone who knows more than me will probably correct me.
There are pods of orcas that specializes in preying on sharks in various parts of the world ( one group in south Australia, where I am..) They use a technique where they tip the shark upside down which disorients the shark making it unable to swim... Local companies that do cage diving tours have noticed the presence of orcas usually means that no great whites will be seen for weeks..... So the sharks definitely know when they're on the menu!!
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Orcas are way scarier than sharks! They’d eat Jaws for a snack
Orcas are the bullies of the ocean though? They're pretty darn mean, sometimes just for fun, same for dolphins. Sharks are usually pretty quiet creatures that mind their own business.
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Does it translate into an effective Great White Shark repellant? Spill a little shark blood and maybe a little Orca hormones into the local water?
National Geographic had an episode where they tried this. It only worked some of the time, and that was with the bait covered in the scent of a rotting shark. But they posited that an actual rotting shark, which would be much larger, would let off a much stronger smell. But the phenomena has been witnessed in two areas- California and South Africa. If they were able to capture the stench to the extent of a freshly killed fully sized shark, it makes sense that it could be used as some sort of repellent.
Load More Replies... I was gonna say, when gunfire rings out, do you wanna be in the area......but then I remembered when I heard gunshots I ran to a screen door to see what was up.... dumbass
Awww they were scared 😢 reminds me of Bruce from Finding Nemo
You'd run too if a bunch of serial killers showed up in your neighborhood
Mic drop...BOOM! Apparently, Jaws is a horror movie to humans, but Free W***y is one for sharks.
There was documentaries about this. Saw it during one of the Shark Weeks last summer
This was a mother orca and her calf. The orcas in this region* and several others have figured out that if you turn a shark on its back, it sort of hypnotizes them. They go almost completely motionless. She used this technique to tear out the shark's liver and feed it to her calf. It's on YT in its entirety on the National Geographic channel under "Killer Whale vs. Jaws" https://youtu.be/3uBFUumm3Dk
When it happened they played an uncut version on the evening news but by the 11 pm news they'd cut out most of the gruesome bits. (this image is the two orcas eating the floating liver) Screen-Sho...71-png.jpg 
*An argument has been made that this counts as them having a culture.
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So is that the sharks know when one of there owns gets killed or is the smell that drives them away? Another thought is it that they know Orcas are in the area so they avoid that area. Interesting to know.
Nah, they just happened to catch the one with a tag as he was going on vacation.
Ahh Orcas... aka: Big-a$$ dolphins. Shark nom-nom... Is there a DC character that's a humanoid orca? If so... Nanaue and Orca-King should have a throw down...
If they saw the c**p their laughter is used for now they would be turning in their graves.
Moreover, “Self-publishing has made it easier for people to share their own stories, too. And then we have the visual medium, and streaming services making access to horror much easier. I think the appetite has always been there, but it's just easier to get hold of that ‘fix,’” McMenemy explained.
We were also eager to find out what makes a book or a film particularly creepy. The academic answer to what makes things creepy, McMenemy argues, lies in the concept of the "uncanny", or the psychological experience of something as mysterious and creepy in a strangely familiar way.
Come on BP, that's at least the 3rd time in 2 weeks that you put this pic in a list...
“It's the strangeness of the ordinary, the field where we are unable to distinguish between pleasure and displeasure and so we become anxious. Creepiness is about the uncertainty of a threat; you think there's something to worry about, but the signals aren't clear enough to send you into action,” the writer told us.
Meanwhile, “in books and film, this often takes the form of things just outside of our vision, or of familiar signals such as old and dilapidated houses, cobwebs, the unkempt and unloved. It results in that tingling down your spine, the goosebumps on your arms - you can't quite figure out what's going on, but you are intrigued…” McMenemy concluded.
Thanks to all the BP fact checkers ensuring I know when I'm recieving Net Zero Information
They’ve been changing a lot of definitions lately actually.
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is this stuff /trying/ to make me stay inside more than i already do
I really need to remember not to look at lists with headings like these.
This thread needs an update posting this does not mean it will happen.. w[hooo2023
Seriously?!? Why the 🤬 is this listed under "Animals"?!? Only 6 of 21 are animal related!?! And the rest are so 🤬ed up!!! I'm really getting tired of being tricked into going to the non-animal junk!!!
Thanks to all the BP fact checkers ensuring I know when I'm recieving Net Zero Information
They’ve been changing a lot of definitions lately actually.
Load More Replies... is this stuff /trying/ to make me stay inside more than i already do
I really need to remember not to look at lists with headings like these.
This thread needs an update posting this does not mean it will happen.. w[hooo2023
Seriously?!? Why the 🤬 is this listed under "Animals"?!? Only 6 of 21 are animal related!?! And the rest are so 🤬ed up!!! I'm really getting tired of being tricked into going to the non-animal junk!!!
