Extraordinary ClaimsAnswer
What does research say about people who report memories of past lives?
What past-life memory research investigates, what reported matches can show, and why case studies do not by themselves establish reincarnation.
THE QUESTION LIBRARY EXTRAORDINARY CLAIMS
Has anyone ever found solid evidence of Bigfoot or the Loch Ness monster?
What evidence exists for Bigfoot and the Loch Ness monster? Examine tested hairs, the Loch Ness DNA survey, detection limits and what a verified discovery would require.
THE SHORT ANSWER
The evidence examined here does not establish either Bigfoot or the Loch Ness monster as a real, unidentified species. Tested North American “Bigfoot” hairs matched known mammals; a Loch Ness water-DNA survey did not establish a monster. Those findings do not prove every imaginable creature impossible. A convincing discovery would need identifiable evidence that independent researchers can examine and verify.
- A submitted sample’s label is not its verified biological identity.
- Eel DNA does not establish a giant eel.
- A possible missed detection is not positive evidence of a monster.
WHAT WE DON’T KNOW YET
The cause of individual unresolved sightings and the detection limits for particular hypothetical animals. An unresolved encounter does not identify an unknown species.
WHAT WOULD CHANGE THIS ANSWER
Well-documented biological evidence with independently replicated analyses establishing an unidentified animal, supported by verifiable observations and contamination controls, would change this assessment.
A reported encounter is evidence that someone reported an experience. A footprint or photograph is evidence that a mark or image exists. The harder question is what produced it.
For an unidentified animal, solid evidence must distinguish that explanation from alternatives. “I cannot identify this” and “this identifies a new species” are different conclusions. We can examine claims seriously without assuming either that witnesses are dishonest or that their interpretation is correct.
THE LONG ANSWER
THE LONG ANSWER · ABOUT 3 MINUTES
You’ve read your 3 free long answers this month.
The short answer, how sure we are, what we don’t know, what would change our mind and every source stay free on every page, for everyone.
All Access members read the long answer: the evidence piece by piece, the strongest objections, and how to check it yourself.
Join All Access · $1 a week Or $6 a month
Billed $52 once a year. Cancel anytime in your account.
Until December 4, 11:59 pm Pacific: the Founding rate is $39 a year, and it stays $39 while you stay a member.
Create a free account: 6 long answers a month, email only.
Paying never buys a different answer. Our Paywall Promise
Keep asking
What does research say about people who report memories of past lives?
People really do report experiences they interpret as memories of past lives, and researchers have investigated such reports.
New here?
God Plays Dice answers big questions in plain words, with sources and one of six honest labels.
Words worth knowing (3)
- Environmental DNA
- Genetic material recovered from an environment, such as a water sample.
- False negative
- A test failing to detect something that is actually present.
- Independent verification
- Checking evidence through researchers or methods beyond the original claimant’s analysis.
Sources & further reading
(3) · Checked Oct 5, 2026
- Genetic analysis of hair samples attributed to yeti, bigfoot and other anomalous primates ↗Proceedings of the Royal Society B; PubMed Central primary full text2014 North American Bigfoot-attributed samples matched known mammals; this finding concerns tested samples, not every possible encounter.
- First eDNA Study Of Loch Ness Points To Something Fishy ↗University of OtagoSeptember 5, 2019 institutional results announcement: eel DNA was found, but the data did not measure eel size.
- Replication levels, false presences and the estimation of the presence/absence from eDNA metabarcoding data ↗Molecular Ecology Resources; primary abstract in U.S. National Library of Medicine2014 online/2015 issue methodological research examines false detections and repeated sampling; it is not a Loch Ness survey.
See a mistake? Report a problem. Corrections are made openly.