I guess it was inevitable that a tragedy such as the loss of Air France 447 under mysterious circumstances would spark an interest in other stories of planes and vessels that have also been lost or disappeared without explanation.

It came as no surprise, then, that a quick Google search this morning for "Air France 447 Bermuda Triangle" turned up a number of hits, including some from reputable news sources.

Of course, many of these posts and articles are simply drawing a comparison between the mystery of Air France 447′s crash and other famous aircraft losses, including those that happened within the region of the Atlantic Ocean known to us today as the Bermuda Triangle [1].

But there are other sites drawing more than a casual connection between the tragedy of Air France 447 and the shadowy forces some believe to be behind the Triangle’s history of loss and disaster.

Which left me wondering — is there anything really to the mystery of the Bermuda Triangle?

Footnotes:

1.	Or, even more chillingly, as the Devil’s Triangle!
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Psychology Today has an interesting blog post describing how one of its contributors fell for a classic con many years ago.

Paul J Zak, the hapless victim of a con known as “The Pigeon Drop”, explains what was at work in his mind when he fell for the confidence trick.


From the article:

The key to a con is not that you trust the conman, but that he shows he trusts you. Conmen ply their trade by appearing fragile or needing help, by seeming vulnerable. Because of THOMAS [1], the human brain makes us feel good when we help others–this is the basis for attachment to family and friends and cooperation with strangers. "I need your help" is a potent stimulus for action.

Hopefully you won’t use this information to run your own cons, but it’s always helpful to know how and why you might be more vulnerable than you realise when someone isn’t telling you the truth.

To read the post, visit: How to run a con.

Photo courtesy of daveblume

Footnotes:

1.	The Human Oxytocin Mediated Attachment System – this is explained in greater depth in the article.
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