Episode 271 - What can the Taos Hum teach us?

Episode 271 - What can the Taos Hum teach us?

From Squaring the Strange by Ben Radford, Celestia Ward and Pascual Romero

January 17, 2026 · 1h 35m · Episode 271

About this episode

The episode discusses significant passings, current events, and a deep dive into the mysterious Taos hum experienced by some residents in New Mexico.

First, Ben and Celestia discuss some significant passings -- Erich von Däniken and Scott Adams, each skeptical cautionary tales in their own ways. They also touch on snuff films being in the news, the Trump DoJ admitting the Cartel de los Soles is not a thing, Dan Bongino (and others) giving up on their conspiracy theories once handed authority, the seeming ambiguity in how different groups are processing the shooting of Renee Good, and the spread of "Otohime" in Japan. Then we do a deep dive into the Taos hum. A mysterious and untraceable low-register noise experienced by 2% of the residents in Taos, New Mexico, this "hum" goes back to the early 1990s. Ben breaks down what the hum has to do with priming, conspiracy belief, confirmation bias, pareidolia, Havana syndrome, Marco Polo, mass sociogenic illness, and even djinn!

People in this episode

Hosts: Ben Radford, Celestia Ward

Topics covered

  • Taos Hum
  • conspiracy theories
  • mass sociogenic illness
  • confirmation bias
  • cautionary tales
  • cultural phenomena

Keywords

  • Taos Hum
  • Erich von Däniken
  • Scott Adams
  • Dan Bongino
  • conspiracy belief
  • Havana syndrome
  • mass sociogenic illness

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Otohime

Places: Taos, New Mexico, Japan

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