And now for something completely different.

Sources

• ​-https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/coverstory/apocalypse-meow-how-a-cult-that-believes-cats-are-divine-beings-ended-up-in-tennessee/article_78fc2367-5596-5a7a-ad8e-edae8c83a594.html
• ​-  https://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/nation-world/national/article101133487.html
• ​“The Curious Case of… The Doomsday Cat Cult” Season 1, Episode 5. Aired February 17, 2025. 

Lorien tells Katharine about when the Queen of Crime became the center of a real-life mystery.

Sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissociative_fugue
• https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/symptoms/22836-dissociative-fugue
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agatha_Christie
• https://psychcentral.com/disorders/dissociative-fugue-symptoms#treatment
• https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/crime/article167733012.html 
• https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/conditions/dissociative-fugue-psychogenic-fugue
• https://www.merckmanuals.com/home/mental-health-disorders/dissociative-disorders/dissociative-identity-disorder 
• https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/dissociative-fugue
• https://www.medicoverhospitals.in/diseases/fugue-state/
• https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hide-and-seek/201203/dissociative-fugue-the-mystery-of-agatha-christie
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pale_Horse#
• https://www.rosecalendars.co.uk/news/the-strange-disappearance-of-agatha-christie/
• https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/11/books/agatha-christie-vanished-11-days-1926.html
• https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/The-Curious-Disappearance-of-Agatha-Christie/
• https://beta.nationalarchives.gov.uk/explore-the-collection/stories/police-report-disappearance-agatha-christie/

The golden retrievers of the open sea!

Sources:

-       https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/facts/orca

-       https://us.whales.org/whales-dolphins/facts-about-orcas/  

-       https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/07/science/orcas-salmon-hat-puget-sound/index.html

-       https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/02/us/mother-orca-tahlequah-calf-dead.html

-       https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/orcas-puget-sound-salmon-hats-killer-whales

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iberian_orca_attacks

-       https://www.cbc.ca/radio/quirks/killer-whale-spain-play-1.7220869

-       https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20230626-why-are-orcas-suddenly-ramming-boats

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orca

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orca_attacks#Captive_orca_attacks

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamu

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tilikum_(orca)

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keiko_(orca)

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moby_Doll

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SeaWorld

Lorien takes Katharine on a deep dive into the deep sea. The temperatures are low; the pressure is high; the creatures are weird!

Source: 

https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/about/news-room/opinion/2025/01/15/the-world-currently-lacks-the-ability-to-govern-deep-sea-mining

Katharine gives Lorien a conversation starter, sure to be the hit of any tailgate parties for the big game this weekend.

Sources:

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronic_traumatic_encephalopathy

-       https://medicine.iu.edu/expertise/traumatic-brain-injury/what-is-chronic-traumatic-encephalopathy#:~:text=Chronic%20Traumatic%20Encephalopathy%2C%20or%20CTE,concussions%20and%20repetitive%20head%20impacts

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFL_concussion_committee

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bennet_Omalu

-       https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/sports/cte-bennet-omalu/#:~:text=But%20across%20the%20brain%20science,about%20the%20disease%2C%20according%20to

-       https://www.npr.org/2024/09/23/nx-s1-5121019/nfl-players-cte-survey

-       https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/former-nfl-players-denied-compensation-for-brain-trauma#:~:text=In%20a%20landmark%202015%20settlement,joined%20Amna%20Nawaz%20for%20more. 

-       https://en.as.com/nfl/what-are-the-most-famous-cte-cases-in-nfl-history-n-3/

-       https://www.npr.org/2021/12/14/1064130612/phillip-adams-nfl-player-killed-6-people-cte#:~:text=An%20ex%2DNFL%20player%20who,himself%20had%20CTE%2C%20doctors%20say&text=Tom%20Gannam%2FAP-,Former%20San%20Francisco%2049ers%20cornerback%20Phillip%20Adams%2C%20pictured%20in%20this,this%20year%20before%20killing%20himself. 

Lorien takes Katharine on a colorful journey that starts in 12th century England.

Sources:

Katharine tells Lorien not to panic. No, really!

Sources:

-       https://www.cdc.gov/bird-flu/situation-summary/index.html

-       https://apple.news/ALclU32DPQdi3sPHqzJwLew

-       https://apple.news/AGOdB_coeQLO4N1Rh1t9RrA

-       https://apple.news/A_Vmb2mUnS7Gd2jPKSG4KyA

-       https://apple.news/AWjCbgbaYSFeyJUXVRSPvrA

-       https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2025/01/03/hhs-awards-306-million-avian-flu-monitoring-and-preparedness-funding.html

-       https://www.cdc.gov/bird-flu/signs-symptoms/index.html

-       https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/362527/bird-flu-100-million-chickens-dead-risk-humans

-       https://www.cdc.gov/bird-flu/avian-timeline/index.html

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avian_influenza#:~:text=Epidemiology-,History,the%20H5%20and%20H7%20subtypes. 

-       https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/10/health/california-child-bird-flu/index.html

-       https://apple.news/AMccHRIRvShq3Q0tllA31cg

Lorien tells Katharine why we should do our best to keep polio outbreaks in the past.

Sources:

Don't lick the walls!

Sources:

-       https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/lead-poisoning/symptoms-causes/syc-20354717

-       https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/how-a-doctor-discovered-us-walls-were-poisonous

-       https://nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/thisleadiskillingus/index.html

-       https://www.epa.gov/archive/epa/aboutepa/lead-poisoning-historical-perspective.html

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_poisoning

-       https://www.cbsnews.com/news/lead-poisoning-hemorrhoid-treatment-california-death/

-       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flint_water_crisis

Happy New Year! Before you decide to better yourself, listen to Lorien tell Katharine all the reasons it might kills you.

Sources: