Why Social Isolation Could Breed Conspiracy Theorists

Learn about what it would be like to travel through a wormhole, how the pumpkin became North America’s Halloween mascot, and how social isolation can fuel conspiracy theories. 

What Would It Be Like to Ride Through a Wormhole? By Ashley Hamer
Lindley, D. (2005). The Birth of Wormholes. Physics, 15. https://physics.aps.org/story/v15/st11 
‌Nola Taylor Redd. (2017, October 21). What Is Wormhole Theory? Space.Com. https://www.space.com/20881-wormholes.html 
‌Ceurstemont, S. (2012, March 13). What a trip through a wormhole would look like. New Scientist TV. https://web.archive.org/web/20120415112903/http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/nstv/2012/03/what-a-trip-through-a-wormhole-would-look-like.html
What does a journey through a wormhole actually look like? (2014, November 13). Physicscentral.Com. http://physicsbuzz.physicscentral.com/2014/11/what-does-journey-through-wormhole.html 

How Did Pumpkins Become Halloween’s Go-to Decoration? By Kelsey Donk 
History.com Editors. (2019, October 25). How Jack O’Lanterns Originated in Irish Myth. HISTORY. https://www.history.com/news/history-of-the-jack-o-lantern-irish-origins 
Butler, S. (2013, October 25). The Halloween Pumpkin: An American History. HISTORY. https://www.history.com/news/the-halloween-pumpkin-an-american-history 
Why Do We Carve Pumpkins at Halloween? | Britannica. (2020). In Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/story/why-do-we-carve-pumpkins-at-halloween 

Social Isolation Could Breed Conspiracy Theorists by Anna Todd
Graeupner, D., & Coman, A. (2017). The dark side of meaning-making: How social exclusion leads to superstitious thinking. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 69, 218–222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2016.10.003 
‌Hutson, M. (2017). A Conspiracy of Loneliness. Scientific American Mind, 28(3), 15–15. https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamericanmind0517-15b 
Social Exclusion Leads to Conspiratorial Thinking, Study Finds | Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. (2017). Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. https://spia.princeton.edu/news/social-exclusion-leads-conspiratorial-thinking-study-finds 

Subscribe to Curiosity Daily to learn something new every day with Ashley Hamer and Natalia Reagan (filling in for Cody Gough). You can also listen to our podcast as part of your Alexa Flash Briefing; Amazon smart speakers users, click/tap “enable” here: https://www.amazon.com/Curiosity-com-Curiosity-Daily-from/dp/B07CP17DJY

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Learn about what it would be like to travel through a wormhole, how the pumpkin became North America’s Halloween mascot, and how social isolation can fuel conspiracy theories. 

What Would It Be Like to Ride Through a Wormhole? By Ashley Hamer

Lindley, D. (2005). The Birth of Wormholes. Physics, 15. https://physics.aps.org/story/v15/st11 
‌Nola Taylor Redd. (2017, October 21). What Is Wormhole Theory? Space.Com. https://www.space.com/20881-wormholes.html 
‌Ceurstemont, S. (2012, March 13). What a trip through a wormhole would look like. New Scientist TV. https://web.archive.org/web/20120415112903/http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/nstv/2012/03/what-a-trip-through-a-wormhole-would-look-like.html
What does a journey through a wormhole actually look like? (2014, November 13). Physicscentral.Com. http://physicsbuzz.physicscentral.com/2014/11/what-does-journey-through-wormhole.html 

How Did Pumpkins Become Halloween’s Go-to Decoration? By Kelsey Donk 

History.com Editors. (2019, October 25). How Jack O’Lanterns Originated in Irish Myth. HISTORY. https://www.history.com/news/history-of-the-jack-o-lantern-irish-origins 
Butler, S. (2013, October 25). The Halloween Pumpkin: An American History. HISTORY. https://www.history.com/news/the-halloween-pumpkin-an-american-history 
Why Do We Carve Pumpkins at Halloween? | Britannica. (2020). In Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/story/why-do-we-carve-pumpkins-at-halloween 

Social Isolation Could Breed Conspiracy Theorists by Anna Todd

Graeupner, D., & Coman, A. (2017). The dark side of meaning-making: How social exclusion leads to superstitious thinking. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 69, 218–222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2016.10.003 
‌Hutson, M. (2017). A Conspiracy of Loneliness. Scientific American Mind, 28(3), 15–15. https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamericanmind0517-15b 
Social Exclusion Leads to Conspiratorial Thinking, Study Finds | Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. (2017). Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. https://spia.princeton.edu/news/social-exclusion-leads-conspiratorial-thinking-study-finds 

Subscribe to Curiosity Daily to learn something new every day with Ashley Hamer and Natalia Reagan (filling in for Cody Gough). You can also listen to our podcast as part of your Alexa Flash Briefing; Amazon smart speakers users, click/tap “enable” here: https://www.amazon.com/Curiosity-com-Curiosity-Daily-from/dp/B07CP17DJY

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.