Who doesn't love a good mystery?
The inherent unknown of a mystery is the alluring part, never quite sure of the answers but able to make up a dozen possible responses in our minds. Maybe that's why murder mystery shows have taken off like they have, with podcasts and YouTube channels completely devoted to the world's unknowable puzzles.
Still, it's nice to have the internet around to push the craziest mysteries to the top first.
Reddit user, u/RevanReborn47, wanted to hear about:
What is one of the biggest unsolved mysteries to this day?
People Strangely Vanishing
Turns out a lot of people can up and evaporate much more easily than we believe. If you're out for a walk on the wrong side of a farm, or if you get involved in a famous pseudo-religion, then you can just disappear anywhere, anytime.
Who You Going To Trust? Scientology?
Where the hell is Shelly Miscavige??
One theory is that she very obviously suffers from a disease like epilepsy or MS, which Scientology apparently claims does not exist.
She is either kept hidden, or voluntarily hides herself, so that the faithful don't start asking awkward questions.
14-Years Old...
Bung Siraboon.
She was a 14 year old Asian Australian schoolgirl who literally vanished off the face of the earth ten years ago. Not a trace has been found of the poor girl in over a decade.
Once You Learn This In Grade School You Can Never Forget
Roanoke island.
What really happened to the settlers?
Never Seen Nor Heard From Again
Not sure if Brandon Swanson's disappearance was ever solved, but if not, vvvv bizarre.
There are so many theories that all sound plausible. He might have fallen into a river or a ditch and died somehow, but that doesn't explain why after extensive searches his body was never found. It's also possible that he was wandering through a farm or private property and someone shot or attacked him because they thought he was an intruder. They found out later that he was just a lost kid, felt too guilty to come forward, and got rid of the body somehow. But that also doesn't explain why there was no gunshot or struggle heard on the phone call. Some people also think he got hit by a car and the driver got rid of the body, but again, no crash was heard on the call.
The whole thing is just insane. It's like he just disappeared off the face of the earth.
Mysteries Fit For A Film
Some mysteries are too good to only be shared with the people who read about them online. These are the mysteries that could easily fill out a feature-length film. Maybe starring Nicholas Cage stealing a rare artifact from a hidden cave?
Just spitballing some plot points here.
A Real-World "Riddler" Must Be Responsible
The Cicada 3301 puzzle. Not the puzzle itself (as there were people smart enough to solve it ofc) but the organization behind it, and most importantly what did the people who solved it earn/achieve?
Someone who solved the 1st series of puzzles gave an interview about what happened. Long story short, he got invited into a private chat room of about 20 members who said their goal was cyber security and creating a free society of secure information or something along those lines. They were told they would be contacted soon for the next phase, but it's been years and so far the "winners" have yet to be contacted since.
The theory goes that it started just as a small group of international friends looking to create a cyber security startup company and they created a series of tests to recruit more people worldwide. It's basically the equivalent of you and your friends who live overseas on social media getting together online and creating puzzles for the world to solve.
Nothing But Traps And Snakes And Death, For Sure
"Vault B" in Padmanabhaswamy Temple.
It has remained sealed for quite some time. Who knows what's in there.
Just had a read - absolutely fascinating! Like something out of an Indiana Jones film!
Add This On To "Amelia Earhart Level" Mysteries
The [MH371]...no one knows what happened to that plane or where it is now
Get Cage On The Line! He's Going In!
What's in the underground bunkers at Camp Hero, on Long Island NY?
Big enough to fit an 18 wheeler through the concrete bunker entries.. involvement of Nikolai Tesla, alien experiments, and still guarded by the military to this day.
I need answers.
Don't Think About It Too Much
How the Universe began... I remember Stephen Hawking saying something like it didn't begin because it always was, since time started when the university started, there was never a time when the universe didn't exist. This enraged a lot of people since he knows what we are trying to ask. Everything we know about space is based on very educated but loose guesses. It is not a mystery we, the general public, battle with every day, but it is the longest mystery and one we'll likely never find the answer to.
Real Life Consequences. Real Life Crimes.
And then there's those mysteries that impact the world in a meaningful, mostly traumatizing, way, usually leading to the murder of an individual or the deaths of many. However, those who survive can tragically be left with no answers.
No Clues. No Leads. Nothing Good.
Jane Doe - Berkeley Springs - 1950.
Dead woman found strangled and nude on hillside. Police drove all around for years chasing leads but never found the killer or who she was.
We May Not Know For Another Hundred Years
Zodiac Killer.
The guy could be dead by now and we're still thinking he's out there.
Very likely he's dead given how much time has passed. I think Arthur Leigh Allen was the most likely suspect.
Untraceable. Unidentifiable.
I'd say the biggest mystery I think about is the unknown of the ocean.
However, two missing persons' cases have stood out in my mind for years now:
Asha Degree: when Asha was 9 years old, she left her house early in the morning for unknown reasons and is still missing to this day. There were possible sightings of her along the highway the morning she left. Her backpack was found buried/covered (mixed reports) miles away from her home over a year later. There are so many theories/questions: why did she leave her house? Was she meeting someone? Was she groomed? Did she run away? Did possible carbon monoxide poisoning cause her to become disoriented and leave her house? Was she going on an adventure and found by a predator at random? Did someone manage to kidnap or kill her before she left her house? Is she still alive?
Fulton County Jane Doe: a woman was found beaten but alive on the side of the road. She died a few days later in the hospital. She had a tattoo (the name "Jesus") and other unique features, so how has she not been identified after all these years? Why hasn't anyone claimed her yet?
...What?
Gloria Ramirez, the "Toxic Lady"
Admitted to the hospital due to complications from late-stage cervical cancer—heart palpitations, trouble breathing, and delirium. However, every doctor and nurse who came in contact with her almost immediately began to experience strange symptoms of their own—fainting, nausea and vomiting, and even temporary paralysis.
She died soon after, and they had to a send a haz-mat team to deal with the body.
There have been multiple theories—from mass hysteria of the doctors and nurses, to an accidental chemical reaction from medicine—but nothing ever 100% conclusive.
Is there a lesson to be learned here? That sometimes it's okay to never know? If you find out the truth behind a mystery, odds are the revelation will be something you can never come back from?
If you have to ask the reason why that person went missing the obvious answer is there's no good reason
Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
u/Duskymoonlight/Reddit
u/Duskymoonlight/Reddit