Freaky Phenomena

For a while, we collected creepy plush creatures. My family and I had everything from a yeti to a werewolf, the Monster High plushies to Egyptian gods and so many other creatures. We've kept a few of these over the years but I have to say, the ones they're coming up with lately are even better than the ones we collected once upon a time.

For starters, there is this Mothman plush. Isn't it adorably freaky? They have a baby one, too! Then there are these adorable "Kreeptures" and I pretty much want all of them. Mysterious also has some really great ones.

What freaky plushies have you found? Which are your favorites? Share them in the chat.

All joking about animal magnetism aside, this news is pretty wild and cool: Venus flytraps product magnetic fields while they consume their prey. It's not a huge reaction, understandably; anyone who's had a Venus flytrap knows that the carnivorous plant doesn't need a lot of live insects to consume, nor does it need them often. You can kill one by giving it too many, in fact! So it makes sense that the magnetism produced is also a small amount.

Experts say the magnetic field isn't made as anything useful to the plant's environment but a probably byproduct of the energy involved in the process. Still, it's a pretty weird and neat new fact.

Have you read any other strange facts this week? Share them in the chat.

Have you seen the Cookie Monster rocks yet? A geologist discovered a surprise when he opened up a volcanic rock in Brazil. When split in half, the rock formed two perfect Cookie Monster faces! He mentioned that there have been some interesting finds in terms of agates that look like a famous person or piece of artwork but this is the first time a Sesame Street character was found.

Apparently people love the idea of a Cookie Monster rock because they're offering up to ten grand to buy it from the California scientist. Look, Cookie is cute, but ten grand for a rock is a bit much, people. You could do so much good with that!

Have you read any weird stories this week? Share them in the chat.

Most of us know what piranhas are, but this new bone-eating species is all new kinds of horrific. A bone-eating worm has been discovered by scientists who dropped alligator carcasses in the ocean. These terrifying "zombie worms" aren't named yet, but they ate almost all of it, leaving only its spine and skull after less than two months of the body's drop.

Pink isopods ate another body, and the third alligator was completely gone when scientists checked on it. What do you think happened to it?

Have you read any other freaky news lately? Share it in the chat.