The Mystique: Our World
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Are you a victim of Subliminal Advertising?

                Before you go "Whoa! What the hell is this article talking about?" Take a deep breath and very patiently read the paragraph below.

"Subliminal Messages can be described as messages that are below normal levels of perception. They can be either audio or visual signals scattered across a wide range of media".

               In simple words your conscious brain finds it very hard to perceive or recognize these images. This makes them really hard to spot. But the subconscious brain, being the miraculous organ it is, catches them and analyses them. What it does next is precisely the reason why Subliminal advertising is subject to widespread debate.

The text would appear for less than a second.

                  Today there are claims from thousands of people who say subliminal messaging works. And quite surprisingly there is a ton of evidence that suggests it's being used in a lot of places.


Take for example this highly suggestive ad by Burger king,
Every tenth grader in the world knows what the woman is doing!
And this one by Coca Cola.

Or this one. 


This one by Disney is really clever.


                 These are all simple examples of how subliminals are spread through out the marketing world. These days, technology has made it possible to produce high quality specimens of Subliminal Advertising. Catching these messages has become tougher as they are present every-where from videos to music and even video games.

So how do they work?

                 The working of the human brain can be divided into two parts the conscious and the subconscious. The conscious brain controls stuff like reading, walking, writing playing games etc. Basically, that's the everything which involves your conscious control. The subconscious brain on the other hand is involved in quite a few interesting things. One of which is the generation of thoughts and ideas. Ever wondered how sometimes an idea just seems to strike you out of nowhere? The answer is the subconscious brain. It is the creativity center and produces powerful ideas and thoughts.

                 But, unlike the conscious brain it doesn't have the ability to filter messages; it takes in whatever it is subjected to. All thanks to its super human processing power it can identify information the conscious mind would generally overlook. This is how Subliminal advertising gets inside your head,

                 It could be anything from a simple picture to a song or a single frame in a video, the range is very wide. Once inside your head, your brain produces thoughts that are connected to the products these messages endorse.

                Suppose you're thirsty and are staring at a vending machine with almost 8-10 varieties of soda and cola. And you're trying to decide which one to buy. Chances are that if you were exposed to Subliminal Advertising by Coca Cola, your decision would be more inclined towards buying coke over the other drinks!

                 The same logic can be extended to virtually any product that is sold in everyday markets, online and offline.

                 So think again, why did you buy that HP laptop? Or those Levi's Jeans?  Or maybe that Bosch washing machine? Was it because you felt it was the best option among all the available choices? Or are you a victim of Subliminal Advertising?
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10 Monstrous Serial Killers this World has Ever Seen


                 The word 'Serial Killer' is not at all aloof to the television world; there had been an innumerable movies and shows on them like American Psycho and Silence of the Lambs. What motivates a serial killer to kill people is unknown but for sure, they were successful in inducing horror in the world. Here is the list of 10 monstrous, blood-thirsty serial killers from Jack the Ripper to the present.

1. Jack the Ripper:

Name: Jack the Ripper (true name unknown)
Born : London, UK
Victim count: 5 (Possible victims - 11)

                 In the year 1888, for nearly 3 months, White chapel street (London) has lived in a state of extreme horror and distress. An unknown man nick-named Jack the Ripper killed 5 prostitutes in a ruthless, savage manner (However, it is said that the count may reach upto 11). All of them were sexually mutilated and some of them had internal organs missing. The purpose and the murderer still remain as an unsolved conundrum of this world, though it has completed 125 years.  

2. Ted Bundy

Name : Theodore Robert Cowell
Born : Burlington, Vermont, US
Victim count: 30 (Possible victims - 36)

                 Being an expert in Psychology, he had a way of gaining trust from the victims. During 1970-78, he had committed many murders along with rape and torture. He used to lure his victims (everyone women), rape them and then strangling them to death. He threw the bodies near the Taylor mountain which he used to visit frequently. In interrogation, he left some shocking truths saying that he used to have sex with the decomposed dead bodies and also " I feel like a vampire", he said. 

                 Interestingly, on the other side of the coin, Ted was an astute person. He assisted police in solving the Green river murder case. Finally, he was given the punishment of death in Railford electric chair in Florida prison on 24th January, 1989.


3. Zodiac killer 

Name: Zodiac killer (true name unknown)
Born : California or Nevada, US
Victim Count: 28 (Possible victims - 37)


                 Zodiac killer, whose identity remains still dark killed 28 people in late 1960's and the early 1970's. On August 1, 1969, he sent three almost identical letters to Vallejo Times Herald, San Francisco times and San Francisco Examiner which took credit for his killings at Lake Herman road and Blue Rock springs. Some of the warning letters sent by him remain undeciphered. 
Here is a letter of his which was deciphered by Graysmith in 1976. (Source :Wikipedia)

                 "I like killing people because it is so much fun it is more fun than killing wild game in the forrest because man is the most dangeroue anamal of all to kill something gives me the most thrilling experience it is even better than getting your rocks off with a girl the best part of it is thae when I die I will be reborn in paradise and thei have killed will become my slaves I will not give you my name because you will try to sloi down or atop my collecting of slaves for my afterlife ebeorietemethhpiti". 

                The last 18 letters of the cipher remains mysterious. Some of his letters were unsolved as his identity.

4 Charles Manson:

Name : Charles Milles Maddox
Born :  Ohio, U.S.
Victim count : 7 


                 Notorious as the Mansion Family, he gained followers from different parts of California and he led a quasi-commune movement by manipulating the religion. He attracted many women and brain-washed them that all the Afro-Americans would gain power, would kill all the white families and Manson family would be the only one which would survive. Some of the Family's women believed him so blindly that they used to call him "Jesus Christ" and do anything for him. He committed many crimes along with 'Mansion family' including the murder of actress Sharon Tate and 6 others. Being proficient in writing and composing music, he used a term Helter Skelter for impending race war apocalypse. Finally, he was sentenced to death and later, it was reduced to a life imprisonment.

5. Gary  Ridgway

Name : Gary Leon Ridgway
Born : Utah, U.S.
Victim count : 71 (Possible count - 92)


                 Famous as the Green river killer or the River Man, he murdered many women and children in the 1980's and 90's and is one of the most prolific and brutal killers of American history. His major target was the women in the age group of 15-40 and most of them are run away teens. He was sentenced to death initially but later on providing complete details of his murders, his punishment was reduced to 48 life imprisonments without parole.
  

6.Robert Pickton :

Name:  Robert William Pickton
Born : Port Coquitlam, Columbia
Victim Count : 49


                 A multi-millionaire and a serial killer he is. He was convicted of killing 6 women with a high degree of torture in his pig farm in Vancouver. Though it is highly suspected that he killed 49 women, there was no strong evidence on him for that. When arrested, he boasted how he killed 49 women and due to his sloppiness, he could not make it to 50. In 2007, he was apprehended and given a imprisonment of life without a possible parole in 25 years.

7.Andrei Chikatilo :

Name : Andrei Romanovich Chitkalo
Born : Yablochneye, Ukraine
Victim Count : 53 (Confessed - 56)


                 Also known as the Red Ripper, the Butcher of Rostov and the Rostov Ripper, he committed serious crimes of sexual assault, mutilation and murder of atleast 53 women and children in the period of l978-1980. His primary target was children; he raped them, killed them and also ate some of their internal organs. In 1980, he was arrested and was sent out of this world in 1994 February by shooting a bullet into his head. 

8. Javed Iqbal : 

Name: Javed Iqbal Mughal
Born : Lahore, Pakistan
Victim count :100


                 Also known as Mukri, during a stint of 2 years, this serial killer killed 100 runaway boys from the streets of Lahore. He drugged, raped, killed them and disposed them in vats of hydrochloric acid and then dumped the liquified remains into Ravi river nearby. Police found all the details of his murders in his diary along with 2 vats of hydrochloric acid with partial human remains. Iqbal was sentenced to death by hanging but before execution, his body was found dead strangled by the bed sheets in prison.

9. Dr. Harold Shipman

Name: Harold Frederick Shipman
Born : Nottingham, U.K.
Victim count : 250+


                 Perhaps, he is not at all eligible to be called as a doctor. Nick-named as Dr. death or the angel of death, he is a blight in the medical history of the world killing more than 250 patients of him, most of them elderly women. Unlike other serial killers, he did not go for torture or sexual assaults and even more, his motive for his killings remain untold. He was arrested in 1998 and was given 15 life sentences and later, during his trial, he committed suicide by hanging on 13th January, 2004.

10. Alonso López:

Name : Pedro Alonso López
Born : Santa Isabel, Columbia
Victim count : 300+


                 Known notoriously as the monster of the Andes, this man was accused of raping and killing more than 300 women and children in various parts of Ecuador, Peru and Columbia. He enticed his victims to a secluded or unoccupied buildings and preyed on them then. He raped each of them and then killed them using barbaric, cold-blooded ways. He was caught by the market traders when an abduction failed as was arrested by police then. He was imprisoned in Ecuador in 1980 for 18 years and later in 2002, he was arrested again by Colombian government and awarded him life imprisonment. 
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10 Heart Breaking Scenes Terrorism Has Left Us

"How can you have a war on Terrorism when war itself is Terrorism." -Howard Zinn


                 There is a saying "One man's terrorist is another man's Freedom fighter". However, I oppose this strongly. How a Syrian child is stopping the freedom of the terrorists there? How did the innocent victims of 9/11 affected the independence of Al-Queda or what do the sufferers of 26/11 blasts have to do with them? 

                 Terrorism is a symbol of our failure as a civilization, as species. For the benefit of a few fat cats, terrorism still exists. There will come a day when we will have to come clean on our actions, days of terrible, terrible retribution by the powers that are. From Vietnam war to today, this evil has left us with many heart-breaking scenes which depict the butchering of humanity.

Here is the list of 11 heart-breaking scenes left by Terrorism.

1. The 3-year old Syrian child

"I am going to tell God everything" were the
last words of this Syrian boy 
The above photo is the clear depiction of the cruelty of the Terrorism. "I am going to tell God everything" were his last words. Rest in peace, my little brother. The place you reached is far better than this evil world.

2. The Girl in the picture

The Girl in the Picture
                                   
This is the famous picture popularly called as "The Girl in the Picture" which was photographed during Vietnam war.. The girl Kim Phuc is the emblem of human suffering during aerial Napalm bombing during Vietnam war. She was very badly burnt then and tore off her burning clothes. Then, she was saved by the photographer Nick Ut. Now, she is living in Ajax, Ontario and she is a goodwill ambassador of UNESCO.

3. 4- year old Syrian Child
This 4-year old girl surrendered in fear
when she mistook camera for a gun

It is a heart-wrenching moment a 4- year Syrian child frozen in fear with her arms raised and lips tightly puckered when she mistook camera for a gun. Adi Hudea, the child lost her father in Hama bombing in 2012 and till then, she is living as a refugee. In last 5 years of Syrian civil war, nearly 222,000 lives including nearly 12,000 children.

4. 9/11 attacks
This is a scene of 9/11 attacks. The attacks were said
to be done by Al-Queda but the truth remains as a conspiracy
9/11 attacks, which swallowed 2,977 lives and injured 6,000 is marked as the worst terrorist attack in the modern history. Though the world looked at Al-Queda for the cause of attacks, the truth might be different. There are many theories which proves that there was a foreknowledge about these attacks to the higher government officials. Whatsoever, whoever has done this barbaric act, should be penalized for causing this extensive death and destruction.

5. Can you spot the terrorist?

Can you spot the terrorist?
This is the family picture of Osama bin laden along with his 21 siblings in Sweden in 1971. He was 14 year-old then. Did anyone guessed that he would become a violent terrorist then?

6. 26/11 Mumbai attacks
Smoke engulfs out of Taj hotel during Mumbai attacks
On 26th November, 2008, 10 Pakistani members of Lashkar-e-Taiba carried out a series of coodinated shooting and bombing attacks lasting for 4 days. Nearly, 257 people were killed and 713 were injured during the attack. Ajmal Kasab was the only attacker who was captured alive and later, he confiscated that the attacks were conducted with the help of Pakistan's intelligence Agency ISI. David Headly, an American terrorist of Pakistani origin helped ISI in plotting it. Kasab was hanged on 21st November, 2012.

7. The protesting Buddhist monk


The Buddhist monk set himself on fire protesting against
Vietnamese government
The Buddhist monk Quang Duc sets himself in ablaze in protest of atrocities of Vietnam government on Buddhists in 1963. The monk remarkably neither moved nor screamed but died silently to ashes. Malcolm.W.Browne, the photographer, won world press award for this photo. This self-immolation of the monk stood as a scar in human history.

8. The "Kill Team" of NATO 

The brutalities of "The Kill Team" in Afghanistan

This is indeed terrorism. The atrocities of "The kill team" in the name of liberating Afghans cannot be forgotten. In 2010, during a 4-month period, this kill team murdered many Afghan civilians (they killed some terrorists also). The photograph shows Jeremy Murlock, US army corporal, celebrating his first kill (Gul Mudin,15 year old was the victim) in Afghanistan. Later, he was charged for his bloodlust to a sentence of 24 years in prison.

9. The Falling Man


This is the photo of a man falling from WTC during 9/11 attack
The photograph is taken by Richard Drew, an Associated Press photographer when a man was falling fro North tower of the World Trade Center during 9/11 attack. The identity of this person is not yet officially confirmed but it is believed that he was one of the trapped crew who tried to escape from the fire and billowing smoke. Nearly, 200 people lost their lives while trying to jump to safety. "This photograph is perhaps the most powerful image of despair in the beginning of 21st century" says D. Thompson of Moore Theological College.

 10. Peshawar school attack


A shoe of a child who was killed in the Peshawar attack
On December 16, 2014, seven terrorists belonging to Tehrik-i-Taliban conducted an inhuman, bloodthirsty act of killing 145 innocents including 132 children from the age ranging from 8 to 18. Pakistan army responded quickly and killed all the monsters saving 960 people. 




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25 Phobias You Will Be Glad You Don't Have them





      An overwhelming and unreasonable fear for a situation, activity, person or an object that do not actually poses a real danger can be called a phobia. In the event of exposure to such events, the person imagines an exaggerating danger and develops an irrational anxiety trying to compel the subject of fear completely. Most of the phobias do not greatly affect the people, some of them are inane, weird, surprising but some are really terrifying. Cutting to the chase, here is the list of 25 most bizarre and unbearable phobias in the world. You will be glad you don't have them!


25. Venustraphobia- the fear of beautiful women:
Bah! Are they crazy? Who does't want a pretty woman? Indeed. It is weird, but this kinda phobia exist. Men with this phobia literally freaks out when they see a beautiful woman and avoid women walking their way. Low self image and confidence or taking much pressure on appearances stems up this phobia.



24. Optophobia-the fear of opening one's eyes:
Optophobia is intense fear of opening their eyes thinking of something that actually do not possess danger. This fear usually is caused by visualizing traumatic incidents, facing them or even thinking of facing them. In the event, Optophobics develop severe stress and apprehension that can even lead to a full blown panic attack.


23. Philophobia-fear of falling in love:
Philophobia is abnormal, persistent fear of being in or falling in love. This phobia is more persistent in women than in men. People with Philophobia tend to avoid emotional involvements and pushes away all the romantic relationships. Oftentimes, this fear is due to the acrimonious events of past or tragic love experiences which greatly affects the quality of life. Moreover, the most worst part of trying to escape love is stop loving themselves and incline to live in solitude. It is believed that Queen Elizabeth-I was a Philophobic.


22. Geliophobia- fear of laughter:
This is another bizarre and rare phobia. There exists some people in this world who are afraid of laughter which is treated as a panacea for all mental ills. This is likely caused because of past bad experiences where person was humiliated, or laughing at inappropriate times or even may be due to genetic predisposition. 


21. Spectrophobia-fear of one's own reflection:
Spectrophobia often referred as Eisoptrophobia is the grisly fear of seeing one's own reflection especially in mirrors. It may arise due to the fear of losing one's perception of beauty, or fear of accepting anomalies like scars which are mnemonics of their bitter past or even due to the fear of seeing someone behind them in the mirror. Pamela Anderson once referred that she freaks out seeing her own refection in the mirror.





20. Epistemophobia- fear of knowledge:
What? This kind of phobia really exists? Unfortunately, yes. People with this phobia chose to remain ignorant and stay in denial of learning new things. They limit their cognitive learning and will do anything to stay away from school, books, newspapers, television and even social engagements. This phobia surely ranks high in the most unbearable phobias of the world.


19. Aichmophobia- fear of sharp objects:
As weird as it sounds, this phobia is the extreme, irrational fear of sharp objects like needles, injections, knives, a pointing finger or even the sharp handle of an umbrella. 



18. Euphobia-fear of good news:
Yeah! You read it correctly, that is good news, not bad news. We know most of us dread bad news, but this is not the case for Euphobics. They instead shuns the good news of any kind! This may be due to their previous disappointing experiences or hence and often try to live in environment that displays negativity. 



17. Neophobia- fear of newness:
It is definitely one of the most bizarre phobias in the world. The people with this phobia act skeptical towards accepting new things or experiences and do not prefer to deal with rest of world in this subject. They do not try new things or break them from routine. This is more common in elderly people than youth and children.



16. Heliophobia- fear of Sun:
The fear of Sun rays can be called Heliophobia. The Heliophobics tend to live shrouded with darkness and would mostly be thought of as vampires or night owls. They have an uncanny fear for sunlight and hence they mostly restrict themselves to their houses during day times behind blackout curtains. 


15. Ephebiphobia- fear of youth:
You find many people around you who have persistent fear of teenagers or adolescents, mostly referred as a psychological fear for youth. People with this phobia move away, lobby against or try to do anything against youth to keep away.

14. Taphephobia- Fear of being buried alive:
People with this phobia has a very serious fear of premature burial, that is they fear of being buried alive in the grave. It is said that the first president of United States of America had this phobia.


13. Sciophobia- Fear of shadows:
Virtually, most of the horror movies portrays one or the other horrific scene by shifting shadows. When this on screen, anxiety shows in real life, it is Sciophobia. People with Sciophobia are afraid of seeing even their own shadow!!


12. Somniphobia- Fear of falling asleep:
Can't even imagine remaining functional without sleep for even a day; this is certainly a horrific phobia to deal with. Sufferers of this phobia relate sleeping in a bed to dying. They try not spending much of their energy during day times to avoid feeling of tiredness. Recurring nightmares or feeling of losing time can trigger this phobia.


11. Phronemophobia-fear of thinking:
This phobia sounds most unreal. If someone is deathly afraid of thinking about something, then how can he make out his life? They are afraid to be left alone occupied with their thoughts and feel that brain reacts different to their thoughts. Imagine having this kind of phobia, afraid of thinking. Scary isn't it?



10. Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia-fear of long words:
It is quite ironic to have such a long name for a phobia. This fear is often considered fictional,but indeed this phobia does exist. It doesn't affect daily life as we don't much deal with longer words, but those who have this phobia and have to deal with long words, they do not find it supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.


9. Ablutophobia- the fear of bathing, washing, or cleaning:
No offence but it is rather shocking to know that some people fear bathing or even cleaning themselves. This phobia can be traced out easily as long your nose works when you meet people with this phobia. It is common in women and children than in men. The catalyst for this devastating fear would be something related to their past events. This phobia is one of the rarest but can be too extreme. 



8.Ergasiophobia- fear of work:
Looks like a most convenient phobia- Isn't it? The people with phobia shows aversion towards the workplace or doing any sort of manual work. It is one of the most difficult phobias to live in this social world.



7. Chronophobia -fear of passing time:
The irrational and persistent fear of passing time or anything pertaining to the time is called Chronophobia. Sufferers are typically afraid either of how time runs incredibly faster or how time barely passes with every second being an incredible terror.

6. Acousticophobia - fear of sound:
This is scary. Acousticophobes fear the very hearing of sound- it may be buzzing of a bee, rumbling of a thunder, screeching of a vehicle or even the slightest sound and more horribly their own voice. This is actually generated by mind as a protective mechanism as it is linked to the past personal ordeal of their lives. 


5. Haphephobia -Fear of being touched:
There are many debilitating phobias existing in this world and this is not exceptional. People coping with this phobia are afraid of being touched not only by the strangers but also the nearest and dearest. They may even exhibit an overwhelming fear of touching others and this is more when particularly dealing with opposite sex. Many times, this is caused due to the past traumatic experiences or sexual assaults at an early age.


4. Ambulophobia- fear of standing or walking:
Ha! How can they lead their lives without standing or walking? Should they lead their lives in motorized chairs all the time? It is horrible. The very thought of walking or standing would terrorize the sufferers. This phobia is due to the injury in the past or may be a long-term case of vertigo, where he finds himself safer sitting. It affects people from every walks of life, but particularly seen in women than in men. 


3. Cibophobia -fear of food:
If you have a problem with your weight you will definitely envy the  Cibophobics. The thought of food doesn't make their tongues watery, but makes their palms sweaty. They have to live either by avoiding the food and finally dying due to malnutrition or should take bone- chilling tremors for every mouthful. This phobia, if neglected causes severe health problems.


2. Phobophobia- fear of developing a phobia:
Here comes the most ironic phobia, the fear of all fears, and perhaps the fear of this list. This is the inception of fears, a fear within a fear. This is an endless cycle of fear. The risk of developing this phobia is greater in people who already have this phobia. Maybe even the word fear could spark it.


1. Panphobia- fear of everything:
It is arguably, the most bizarre and unbearable phobias in the world. People with this phobia are afraid of something, not sure though, but are scared nonetheless. They tend to be in a trance with delusions of something terrible is going to happen and always try to remain in guard. Wherever he goes, whatever he does, in every walks of his life, his mind is plagued with the sinister thoughts and lives in a trance. The sufferer can eventually end up with hundreds of phobias, thus making him phobic for everything!


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