Human Subcultures

Afrofuturism isn't just about placing a Black person in a futuristic landscape. It takes into account the challenges Black people face and allows them to imagine futures of their own making.

By Yves Jeffcoat

The name Karen has somehow become the universal term for the angry, white woman. But when and how did that happen?

By Kristen Hall-Geisler

Movies often pit dark-robed, masked ninja assassins against elite samurai warriors. But just how accurate is our modern outlook on these two Japanese fighters?

By Mark Mancini

The late Aleister Crowley liked being known as the "wickedest man in the world." But today he's most remembered as a brash cultist who was the father of a strange religion.

By John Donovan

There's a fascinating story behind how punk, both the music and the cultural movement, spanned the globe, becoming way more than just a sound and a mohawk.

By Chris Opfer

Everyone loves a good pirate yarn, but some well-worn stories about them don't align with genuine history. Today, we be quizzin' ye about real pirates, buccaneer fiction, and the scurviest of all holidays. Yarr!

By Mark Mancini

Lobster Boy, Monkey Girl, Emmitt the Alligator-Skinned Man – they all called Gibtown home.

By Stell Simonton

Who is Jim Roberts and the people who fervently follow his doomsday prophecies?

By Diana Brown

They're worshipped by 'cargo cults' on the Pacific Island of Tanna. What can their ideals tell us about our own political and social beliefs?

By John Donovan

A solitary man with a mysterious, but certainly horrific, past goes about his business in the Amazonian jungle. He's the last of his kind.

By Jesslyn Shields

Bentinho Massaro, aka the Tech Bro Guru, has more than 300,000 followers. But is he preaching the truth or are his believers just being duped?

By Diana Brown

How has this Twitter subculture brought about social change?

By Khiry Clements

From claims of secret bank accounts created by the government to exemptions from federal law, sovereign citizen beliefs seem outlandish. But is there any truth to them?

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

Children as young as 10 are being married (or forced into marriage) in the United States. And it's perfectly legal.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

The myth of the ninja has intrigued the world for centuries. A new Japanese research center is out to solve it.

By Dave Roos

How do you keep 75,000 metalheads sufficiently beered? A pipeline, naturally.

By Jesslyn Shields

Cannibalism? Anthropophagy, if you prefer? There's more nuance when it comes to consumption of human flesh than you might imagine.

By Laurie L. Dove

The life of a feral child isn't all swashbuckling Tarzan-and-Jane, but for some children, it's a better alternative than the lives they left behind.

By Oisin Curran

While the headlines usually focus on tales of abuse and scams, the reality is more humdrum — and heartbreaking.

By John Donovan

FanBolt founder Emma Loggins and Farrago Comics co-founder Martin Fleischmann talk about what it means to be a geek.

By Jonathan Strickland

Maybe you thought hobos disappeared along with the Great Depression. But some folks are still living the life — albeit only part-time and without a bindle on a stick.

By Dave Roos

You’ve likely heard plenty of “Star Wars” fans say they hate the prequels, but those films were huge box office successes. It it simply vogue to hate the thing you love?

By Maria Trimarchi

Did the controversial practice of cult deprogramming do more harm than good? Find out.

By Oisin Curran

Star Wars Celebration is a fan convention unlike any other, because it's all Star Wars, all the time. Grab your lightsaber and come along for the ride as we look at the HowStuffWorks team's time in Anaheim, California for the 2015 show.

A convention doesn't just magically happen - a dedicated team has to organize and arrange all of the vendors, panels and logistics. Matt, Rich and Brian from ReedPop talk about the work they put in to create the ultimate fan experience.