Bodysnatchers, werewolves, zombies--oh my! Did you know that many of the Halloween horrors we know and love have scientific roots? It's true--there are real-life syndromes that mimic the themes found in the scariest of films and the spookiest of ghost stories. (Except ghosts, of course. They aren't real!)
So turn down the lights and watch my newest episode of Talk Nerdy To Me, a Halloween special guaranteed to make you scream (with laughter)!
And check out some of my previous videos filled with scary science in the slideshow below. Don't forget to tell us your tales of fright in the comments section at the bottom of the page. Come on, talk nerdy--I mean SPOOOOKY--to me!
Hi everyone, Cara Santa Maria here wishing you a Happy Halloween. This year, don't be spooked by ghosts and goblins. Those things don't actually exist! But sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction.
Have you heard of the invasion of the body snatchers delusion? It's also called Capgras, and people who have it fear they've lost their nearest and dearest loved ones. But this is a special kind of mourning. They think their friends, parents, children, or spouses have been replaced by an identical imposter--much like the pod people in the 1956 film.
Capgras delusion is thought to result from a particular type of brain damage. When we see a face, it's first recognized by a region called the fusiform gyrus of the temporal lobe. Then that signal makes its way to the amygdala, a structure in the limbic system that's responsible for emotional processing. But in people with Capgras, that connection is damaged. So they can see a person and even recognize who they are, but they don't feel an appropriate emotional response. In their minds, the only rational explanation is that they were replaced by an imposter.
And did you know that werewolves exist? Not the ones who transform in the glow of the full moon to feast on the living; I'm talking about real-life werewolves. Clinical lycanthropy is a delusion in which people think they can shapeshift into a wolf or other wild animal.
And if that's not bizarre enough, there's an entirely different syndrome that has nothing to do with acting like a werewolf and everything to do with looking like one. It's called hypertrichosis, and it's incredibly rare. Since the middle ages, only about 50 cases of the congenital form have been documented worldwide. Hypertrichosis has a genetic basis--different genes seem to be involved in different types, including those on chromosomes 8, 17, or the x-chromosome.
And one of the most fascinating psychiatric conditions I've ever studied is sometimes called "walking corpse syndrome"--a real-life zombie disease. It's called Cotard delusion, and it was originally described in Paris more than a century ago. Cotard sufferers believe that they are dead and walking amongst the living. In some cases, they think they never existed at all, or that they're missing some of their internal organs. Psychiatrists call this a delusion of negation. Cotard's Syndrome is neurologically similar to Capgras delusion, as it targets parts of the brain responsible for recognition and emotional processing.
So what are you gonna be for Halloween this year? Why not aim for scientific accuracy with your tricks and treats? Send us your photos to Facebook, Twitter, or leave your comments right here on The Huffington Post. Come on, talk nerdy to me!
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