About the Museum
The Museum of Hoaxes is dedicated to promoting knowledge about hoaxes. (Click here for opening hours, etc.) On our blog we post about dubious- sounding claims, and whatever else strikes our fancy. The site is also home to the Hoaxipedia (the museum's online encyclopedia of hoaxes), and the Hoax Forum.

The museum was created in 1997 by Alex Boese. He's assisted by a staff of deputy curators and docents. Alex is the author of three books, most recently Elephants on Acid: And Other Bizarre Experiments (which has nothing to do with hoaxes). Check out the list of the Top 20 Most Bizarre Experiments of All Time for a preview.



Web Hoax Museum

Prankplace.com
THE TOILET MONSTER
Your wife will never yell at you about leaving the seat up again! The Toilet Monster attaches to the inside of the toilet bowl by suction cups. As the unsuspecting person goes to use the bathroom, they'll scream as they lift the lid and are greeted by the Toilet Monster! Not recommended for the elderly or those with a weak heart.

COVERT CLICKER
Secretly control the TV, anywhere, any time! This device is so small it is easily concealed in your pocket. It can control volume, change the channel or turn the TV on & off. It works on 90% of all TV's.


#9: Hotheaded Naked Ice Borers
Hotheaded Naked Ice Borer1995: Discover Magazine reported that the highly respected wildlife biologist Dr. Aprile Pazzo had found a new species in Antarctica: the hotheaded naked ice borer. These fascinating creatures had bony plates on their heads that, fed by numerous blood vessels, could become burning hot, allowing the animals to bore through ice at high speeds. They used this ability to hunt penguins, melting the ice beneath the penguins and causing them to sink downwards into the resulting slush where the hotheads consumed them. After much research, Dr. Pazzo theorized that the hotheads might have been responsible for the mysterious disappearance of noted Antarctic explorer Philippe Poisson in 1837. "To the ice borers, he would have looked like a penguin," the article quoted her as saying. Discover received more mail in response to this article than they had received for any other article in their history.
• Read the full article about the Hotheaded Naked Ice Borer.

Comments
Listed in chronological order. Newest comments at the end.
Page 3 of 3 pages  <  1 2 3
 I was suckered by this one too. I went around telling people about it for about a year afterward until I realized it was an april fools' joke. I think it was the story of the Bigon the next year, that made me suspicious about both of them.
Posted by jim collier  in  san francisco  on  Thu Nov 01, 2007  at  11:01 AM
This hoax completely got me when I was in 9th grade. I didn't think about the language. I only wanted to believe that there were naked mole rats living in the Antarctic. It really had me for the entire month until the next issue. I had told a bunch of kids about it, and they were incredulous. A month later I admitted that I was wrong but everyone had forgotten about it.
Posted by justin damm  in  chicago, IL  on  Mon Mar 31, 2008  at  09:01 PM
"Proud and Free, a fierce ice borer bellows a challenge"

That caption with the picture from the original Discover article,
suggesting that the little critters either barked or made whatever rodent-like sounds,
had me and a buddy of mine back in the day nickname these things "Antarctic screaming heat weasels" !
Posted by Danjo Dycle  in  PA  on  Tue Apr 01, 2008  at  03:14 AM
Page 3 of 3 pages  <  1 2 3

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