Questions tagged [cannibalism]

for questions about claims based on cannibalism, the act of individuals eating other individuals of the same species.

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36 votes
1 answer
7k views

Can flatworms learn a maze by digesting other flatworms?

I recently watched the film Phantoms. A scientist in the movie claimed that flatworms were able to "consume" memories from other flatworms. The specific example was that of learning the solution to a ...
MrHen's user avatar
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27 votes
1 answer
8k views

Did the Saudi mufti issue a fatwa saying that men can eat their wives?

According to some news reports, a leading Muslim leader in Saudi Arabia has permitted men to eat their wives (the whole thing, or only part if that's all they need) if they get hungry enough. This is ...
Scimonster's user avatar
15 votes
1 answer
1k views

Do North Koreans resort to cannibalism?

There have been rumors that North Korea is famine-plagued to such an extent that people even resort to cannibalism. Reports from inside the secretive famine-hit pariah state, North Korea, claim a ...
vartec's user avatar
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12 votes
0 answers
724 views

Was cannibalism acceptable amongst the Aztecs?

In 1979, William Arens published The Man-Eating Myth, in which he presented his finding that there is no good evidence that cannibalism was socially accepted by anybody, ever, and an hypothesis that ...
elliot svensson's user avatar
11 votes
1 answer
4k views

Did the Donner party resort to cannibalism while snowbound in 1846-7?

This is a story of cannibalism in a snowed-in mountain pass, from the American western pioneer days. There are a number of websites and much historical lore in California advocating the theory that ...
Paul's user avatar
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8 votes
0 answers
214 views

Did Paul Wirz witness ritual cannibalism in New Guinea as described by Joseph Campbell?

In a few places the writer Joseph Campbell wrote or spoke about a lurid ritual orgy that included human sacrifice and cannibalism, allegedly practiced in New Guinea. This seems to be best known from ...
Brian Z's user avatar
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6 votes
1 answer
2k views

Does this photo depict a human flesh market during the Russian famine?

This distressing photo has circulated around the internet including Daily Mail or The Sun as the depiction of people selling human flesh during The Russian famine of 1921–22. However, the source cited ...
Probably's user avatar
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