If one watches paranormal investigation TV shows — and I do to an extent that is likely not healthy — one cannot help but encounter “orbs.” These are typically small balls of light or energy that show up in video, still, and thermal images from investigation scenes. All serious investigators agree that most of the time the orbs are natural...

Ectoplasm used to appear a lot, extruding from the various orifices of spirit mediums during séances in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It’s not something you hear too much about in the 21st century though, so I was startled to read recent claims that a German group photographed this controversial substance just last year. Given its current obscurity, I suppose I...

The little people are big news this summer, and they’re more frightening than you might expect. Forget the romanticized fairies of Victorian paintings and Disney films. I’m not talking about pretty little silver-voiced beings flitting around on butterfly wings and sprinkling magic dust. The current trend draws on older legends of sinister, shape-shifting entities inhabiting a supernatural realm that impinges...

With True Blood back for a fourth season, fans of the hit TV show will know that not every vampire is content with synthetic blood substitute. Some insist on the real deal, freshly decanted from a mortal vessel, and so it’s important to know how to protect yourself. Fortunately centuries of vampire mythology have described plenty of defences you could...