M.J. Rose

A Friday the 13th in October is very witchy indeed…

From National Geographic,

Friday the 13th Is Back. Here’s Why It Scares Us.
Find out how the date got its unlucky reputation and how even nonbelievers may be influenced by our collective triskaidekaphobia.

By Brian Handwerk

“As if October wasn’t spooky enough, this year the creepiest month also features the return of Friday the 13th.
October 13 is the second ill-fated Friday to fall in 2017. And while January the 13th wasn’t especially sinister, it seems that no matter how many such moments pass us by, the dreaded day continues to inspire unease and fears of misfortune.
There’s no logical reason to fear the occasional coincidence of any day and date. But Friday the 13th can still have noticeable impacts. Sometimes we create them in our own minds—for good and ill.

Jane Risen, a behavioral scientist at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, has found that superstitions can influence even nonbelievers. In one study, Risen found that people who identify as superstitious and non-superstitious both believe a bad outcome is more likely when they’ve been jinxed, such as by stating they definitely won’t get into a car accident…”

For the rest, click here.

And from HuffPost, here’s another piece that may interest you today: Friday The 13th – Why Is It Considered So Unlucky?

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From Nerdist,
Calling All Witches: Museum Needs Ancient Spells Translated
by Rosie Knight

“Do you love libraries? Have a penchant for casting spells? Particularly well versed in 17th century archaic Latin and English? Well the Chicago Newberry Library might have the perfect job for you!

Crowdsourcing for spells is probably one of the coolest techno-magic surprises that 2017 has bestowed upon us, and Christopher Fletcher, the project lead, says you don’t even have to be an expert to get involved. “[The initiative] is a great way to allow the general public to engage with these materials in a way that they probably wouldn’t have otherwise,” Fletcher told Smithsonian.com.

The three magical manuscripts are called The Book of Magical Charms, The Commonplace Book, and Cases of Conscience Concerning Witchcraft. You can explore them at the research library’s online  “Transcribing Faith” portal.

Thought to be composed by two anonymous witches in England in the 1600s, The Book of Magical Charms has spells for every occasion, whether it’s to cheat your friends out of some quick cash at a dice game, fix your painful period cramps or speak to your local spirit bud, this book has it all…”

For the rest, click here.

On the heels of the eclipse, here’s a timely piece — the Maya may have known even more than we thought about the machinations of the heavens….

From EOS, Earth and Space Science News,

Ancient Maya May Have Foreseen Meteor Showers
Modern astronomical techniques have uncovered clues to a possible facet of Mayan astronomy from nearly 2 millennia ago not found in surviving records.

“Using state-of-the-art computer models, an amateur historian and a professional astronomer have found evidence that many important societal events recorded in Mayan hieroglyphic inscriptions may coincide with outbursts of meteor showers related to Halley’s Comet.

In newly published research, the two-person research team has found more than a dozen instances of hieroglyphic records from the Mayan Classic Period (250–909 CE) indicating that important events occurred within just a few days of an outburst of Eta Aquariid meteor showers, one of the celestial displays tied to the comet.

No Mayan astronomical records from that period survived the Spanish invasion, and the four surviving Mayan codices from later eras do not mention meteor showers. However, the researchers suspect that many significant historical events that coincided with meteor showers, like a ruler’s assumption of power or a declaration of war recorded in the codices and carved in stone monuments, are not chance overlaps.

Instead, the Maya most likely predicted meteor showers, the researchers argue in a paper, already available online, that will be published in the 15 September issue of Planetary and Space Science. What’s more, the ancient civilization might have purposefully timed significant occasions to coincide with portentous celestial events…”

For the rest, click here.