Beyond NC!

Conspiracy Theories

By: Mya Bradford


A Conspiracy Theory is an attempt to try to debunk the truth of an event. We will never be able to test if these theories are right or wrong, that’s the fun about them. There are many theories out there from a faked moon landing to Marilyn Monroe’s death to Adolf Hitler escaping Germany. It is stated in an article from www.npr.org that at least 50 percent of Americans believe in at least one conspiracy theory.

There are many conspiracy theories out there, starting with many claiming that the moon landing by Neil Armstrong was fake. Some say it was staged on a Hollywood backlot and directed by Stanley Kubrick. Many people believe it was fake because of the flag moving in the wind, no stars in the sky, and the misaligned shadows. These are all points many individuals made when stating that Neil Armstrong didn’t actually take the first steps on the moon. Conspiracists have claimed for years that NASA staged the landing and their secret has been protected by the CIA ever since. I personally believe that this conspiracy theory is false.

One of the conspiracy theories I believe in is that Bobby Kennedy killed Marilyn Monroe. It is said that she was found in her bedroom of a drug overdose and possible sucide but many others (including me) think her death fell in the hands of someone else. Her dying from a drug overdose is easy to believe considering that she had a known history of mental health struggles. It was rumored that Monroe had a love affair with Bobby Kennedy. On August 4, 1962 (the day she died) Bobby Kennedy was in town that day. According to utdailybeacon.com, twenty years after her death, Monroe’s housekeeper, Eunice Murray, announced that Bobby Kennedy visited Monroe on the day of her death.

The last conspiracy theory that I never heard of until now, is that the U.S. helped Adolf Hilter escape Germany to Argentina. It is said that Hitler killed himself in his bunker in Berlin. Many people believe that he escaped by plane and submarine to Argentina, and lived there with his partner Eva Braun for many years. Fuzzy photographs have even appeared in the press purporting to be images of Hilter in old age. Even the U.S. National Press has reported the discovery of newly released secret service files reporting sightings of Hitler. According to newstateman.com, an elderly Argentinian woman, Catalina Gomero, says she had worked in a house where she had to leave meals for a mysterious German visitor outside his room, and was not allowed to see him. I believe that this could have been true.

There are conspiracy theories about almost every historical event out there. Conspiracy theories keep us thinking about whether or not we received the truth from the government. Even though we don’t know if they are true, they are fun to look into and expand your thinking about an event that happened.

The Disapearance of Madeleine McCann

By Emily Yuhas

The disappearance of Madeleine McCann is considered one of the most famous missing child's cases in the world.

In 2007, 3 year old Madeleine McCann and her family - consisting of Madeleine, her parents, and her brother and twin sisters- went to Praia da Luz, Portugal on May 3rd, 2007 on a vacation with some friends. The McCanns' stayed in the Ocean Club apartment complex, on the left of the building. This is also the place Madeleine vanished.

The evening of their arrival, Kate and Gerry McCann went to a restaurant with some friends, leaving Madeleine and her sislbings alone in the apartment, only 100 yards away. The adults then created a system so that every hour or two they would take turns to go check on the children. At 10 pm, it was Kate McCann's turn to go and check on the kids. When she walked in, she found the twins sleeping - and Madeleine was nowhere in sight. In tears and calling her name, she ran back to her friends and said,"They've taken her, they've taken her."

Police are called and staff and guests searched for her around the complex until daybreak. Nearly two weeks later,

  • May 12th, The McCanns' say they "cannot descipbe the anguish and despair" they are feeling.

  • May 26th, police issue a description of a man seen on the night of Madeleines disappearance, possibly carrying a child.

  • In November, Gerry McCann released a video saying he believes his family was being watched by a "predator" in the days before his daughters dissapearance.

  • By October, they made a sketch based on a descritpion of a "creepy man" near the resort. They had 41 suspects by the end of October.

Portugese police say they believe Madeleine was abducted but is still alive in Portugal. They also say it is possible she was kidnapped after her father checked on her last at 9:05 pm.

In June 2020, police reveal that a 43 year old German prisoner has been identified as a suspect. German investigators assume Madeleine is dead, and classed it as a murder inquiry. British police with sniffer dogs went to the McCanns apartment and found specks of blood on a wall. The blood is now being analyzed for who it belongs to. People are beginning to speculate Madeleine was killed where she slept and then carried off to a beach or bundled into a car boot.

Today, new information about her case is being published everyday on new suspects in connection to her murder. But, nobody still knows the real reason she vanished.


Hawaii's Volcanoes

By Emily Yuhas

Kilauea, 4,091 ft

Mauna Loa, 13,679 ft

Hulalai, 8,721 ft

Mauna Kea, 13,803 ft

Kohala, 5,480 ft

Mahukona, -3,700 feet

Hawaii is a world-known vacation spot known for its sizzling volcanoes, world-class beaches, and pristine rain forests, but what makes up The Big Island?

Kilauea

Kilauea is an active shield volcano, standing at 4,091 ft on the southern side of the island. It's the youngest volcano out of the 6, being about 210,000 and 280,000 years old, and only emerged above sea level about 100,000 years ago. It's the most active volcano on Hawaii out of all 6 of them, last erupting in September of 2021.

Kilauea has killed 400+ people from numerous things. The biggest killing was in 2018 when the Kilauea launched ash 11,000 feet into the air, triggered the largest earthquake on the island in 40 years, and destroyed 700 homes, killing hundreds.

Muana Loa

Muana Loa volcano is recorded to be the biggest volcano on Earth, standing at 13,679 feet. Its last eruption was April 15th, 1984, and since then it has kept quiet for 38 years.

Its biggest eruption was in 1950. Although no lives were lost, it destroyed two dozen buildings and buried more than a mile of highway. In its latest eruption, it killed more than 10,000 people, killing more than Kilauea.

Mauna Loa is approximately 1 million to 600,000 years of age, only being discovered by humans in 1843. It is the second youngest of the 6.

Hualalai

Hualalai is a shield volcano standing at 8,721 feet tall. It's the third youngest out of the 6, and is over 300,000 years old.

Hualalai's last eruption was 1801, and it is considered dormant for now. Hualalai has only erupted 3 times in history. It first erupted approximately 800,000 years ago.

Mauna Kea

The Mauna Kea is a dormant volcano standing at 13,803 feet. The peak is bigger than Mauna Loa, but Muana Loa has 16,400 feet underwater, making it larger.

Mauna Kea is approximately 1 million years old, and was found 1825. Mauna Kea last erupted about 4,500 years ago and is predicted to erupt again in the future.

There is no historical eruption at Mauna Kea! At least 7 separate vents erupted between 6,000 and 4,000 years ago on the mountain.

Kohala

Kohala is the second oldest volcano out of the six. It's considered extinct, last erupting 60,000 years ago. Kohala stands at 5,480 feet. There is no historical records of it erupting in time while we could record. Kohala is about one million years old or older.

There isn't very much recording of Kohala being active, but it is known for its deep cliffs and green rolling hills.

Mahukona

Makuknona is a submerged shield volcano on the northwestern side of the island. It is the oldest out of the 6, being formed about 470,000 years ago and was only found submerged in 1987. It sits at -3,700 feet below sea level.

Its last eruption was between 350,000 and 400,000 years ago. The summit of Mahukona is 9,500 feet. It was once an above ground volcano that topped 800 feet, it now sits 3,700 feet blow sea level.

The History Behind the Bermuda Triangle

By Emily Yuhas

A vague area of water located in the Atlantic Ocean triangulated between Puerto Rico, Bermuda, and Florida is called the Bermuda Triangle. Also called the "Devil's Triangle," it is an urban legend where a number of aircraft and ships have disappeared under mysterious circumstances.

In 1945, five Navy planes took off from their base in Florida on a routine training mission, known as Flight 19. The planes and the crew were never seen again.

Another crew of 13 went out in search of Flight 19 and never returned.

Some argue that sea monsters, giant squid or extra-terrestrials live in the Bermuda Triangle. Alien abductions and mysterious dimensions made by unknown beings are also being argued. Some just say it was Mother Nature's revenge on Earth. Nobody knows the real reason so many planes and ships go missing.

There's also a possibility that Flight 19 just ran out of gas and got lost. If they crashed, the heavy planes probably would have been broken upon impact and sank, and the water would have been too cold for the crew to last very long if they survived the crash. Tropical storms and hurricanes are also another big conspiracy for most of the disappearance causes.

The most recent Bermuda Triangle disappearance was in 2020. A twenty-nine foot Blue and White Mako Cuddy Cabin Vessel with 20 on board went missing in the Bermuda Triangle and was seen last on December 28th, 2020.

Is the Baiji White Dolphin really extinct..?

By Emily Yuhas

The Baiji White Dolphin, also called the Chinese River Dolphin, is only found in the Yangtze River located in China.

These dolphins are capable of growing 8 feet long and weigh up to a quarter of a ton. They rely on echolocation to hunt and navigate for pray, due to their tiny eyes and very poor sight. Echolocation is when an animal emits a sound wave and it bounces off an object, returning an echo that provides information about the objects size and distance away.

Living in the Yangtze River for 20 million years, their numbers went down rapidly from the 1950s and onward. As China became an economic industrial producer, the river was used for fishing, transporting goods, and hydroelectricity which affected the dolphins drastically.

Although not officially recorded as "extinct" no one has seen a Baiji White Dolphin in the Yangtze River since 2002!


https://us.whales.org/whales-dolphins/species-guide/baiji/

https://www.livescience.com/1760-dolphin-species-extinct-due-humans.html