Investigating Urban Legends
Viral urban legends, David O’Reilly’s Mountain Game, the moon’s two faces and more in our weekly look at the web
A recent paper in the British Journal of Psychology takes
a scientific look at why urban legends are so culturally successful.
In short, findings suggest the stories are so easily perpetuated due
to the way human intelligence and memory has evolved over time—our
brains have grown to learn, remember and transmit valuable
(mis)information that may be useful for survival within a given
environment. Seems reasonable enough.
Via washingtonpost.com link opens in a new window
