Children
Mike Grost, Supergenius
This child is Mike Grost, as he appeared in a 1965 article in Life magazine. At the time, he was said to have an IQ of 200+.
Whatever happened to Mike? A 2005 interview from the MSU State News had this to say:
Michael Grost was only 10 when he began at MSU in 1964.
Grost declined comment for this story, but in a 2002 interview with The State News, the Southfield
resident described his life in college as similar to having "40,000 brothers and sisters."
Grost held his first job on campus working with computers his freshman year, which propelled him into
software design after his 13-year college career - five of which were spent at MSU. He also attended
Yale University and U-M, earning a doctorate degree in mathematics at age 23. Grost currently is a
system architect at a computer company in Detroit.
"I really owe (MSU) a lot for the huge chance they took on me as a kid," Grost said in the 2002
interview.
Gee, I don't know. Kinda underwhelming. Shouldn't he be a Silicon Valley zillionaire by now?
Even his home page is kinda lackluster.
Oh, well--maybe as a certified genius he knows that material success is a sham.
Posted By: Paul - Sun Jul 15, 2012 -
Comments (11)
Category: Children, 1960s, Natural Wonders, Brain, Child Prodigies
The 10-year-old Powerlifter
Naomi Kutin can squat 215 pounds, and she's a ten-year-old girl who weighs 99 pounds. Impressive. I wonder what odds the bookmakers would give on her being a record-setting powerlifter when she's an adult?
Posted By: Alex - Thu Jul 12, 2012 -
Comments (5)
Category: Exercise and Fitness, Sports, Children
Long-Term Betting on Your Kids
According to the BBC, it's becoming increasingly popular for parents to place long-term bets with bookmakers on whether their kids will achieve fame and fortune during their lives. For instance, whether their kid will become a famous soccer player or a great golfer:"Parents betting on their children's future successes is as popular as betting on the final of the X Factor," says Jessica Bridge, from the firm.
...it's not all about sporting prowess, he says. Many parents will place bets that their children will pass a particular exam. And then there was the grandmother who thought her granddaughter so beautiful that she wagered she would grace the front cover of a leading fashion magazine.
"People do it for a variety of reasons," says Sharpe. "They are demonstrating that they have real faith in someone - have every confidence in them. They may be using it as an incentive. Or it could just be a bit of fun. Something to talk about, or put on the wall.
If only my parents had placed a bet when I was a child that I would grow up to be a blogger at Weird Universe, they'd be rich! Although the internet didn't exist back then, so it would have been a real longshot bet.
Posted By: Alex - Wed Jul 11, 2012 -
Comments (4)
Category: Family, Children, Games, Gambling, Casinos, Lotteries and Other Games of Chance
The Complete Blacky Pictures!
Thanks to the stellar research powers of Alex B., we now have the complete set of these oddball Freudian prompts.
Click on the image to enlarge.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Jun 28, 2012 -
Comments (9)
Category: Art, Children, Alex, 1950s, Mental Health and Insanity
More Blacky Pictures Test Pix
A little more ingenious searching allowed me to find three additional Blacky images.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Jun 08, 2012 -
Comments (5)
Category: Sexuality, Psychology, Children, Dogs, 1950s
The Blacky Pictures Test
What kind of kids' book is this? A Freudian one, to elicit psychosexual reactions from unsuspecting youngsters. Kids would be asked to interpret these loaded pictures, telling stories that revealed their supposed neuroses. Poor Oedipal Blacky, chewing up "Mama's" collar!
The Blacky Pictures were developed in 1950. They have been described as ‘a technique for the exploration of personality dynamics’ in children. They were developed by G. S. Blum in 1949. Each of the 12 cards making up the test feature a dog named ‘Blacky’. Each cartoon represents a different stage of psychosexual development (the way sexual behaviour develops, according to psychoanalysts). The test also looks at family relationships.
These five images are the only ones I have been able to find on the web, out of the 12 originals.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Jun 08, 2012 -
Comments (8)
Category: Sexuality, Psychology, Children, Dogs, 1950s
Namahage
And you thought clowns were scary! What about Namahage?
Posted By: Paul - Wed Mar 21, 2012 -
Comments (7)
Category: Holidays, Superstition, Children, Asia, Fictional Monsters
Kaylee vs. Candle
Get it, getit, geddit... geddit... geddit....(via Nothing To Do With Arbroath)
Posted By: Alex - Sun Jan 22, 2012 -
Comments (2)
Category: Ceremonies, Children
No Naked
No Naked! from caroline foley on Vimeo.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Dec 16, 2011 -
Comments (3)
Category: Animals, Body, Censorship, Bluenoses, Taboos, Prohibitions and Other Cultural No-No’s, Children, Cartoons
| Who We Are |
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| Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over thirty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. He has recently begun blogging on many curious topics with three fellow writers at The Inferior 4+1. Contact Us |