Cryptozoological creatures like Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster and the Chupacabra have fascinated and inspired monster hunters for generations, providing endless reports of sightings, unverified film footage and blurry photographs to feed the public imagination. Thankfully, this kind of speculation and storytelling has also given rise to a new generation of skeptical investigators who use the tools of science to dig into monster claims. This week on Skepticality, Derek & Swoopy talk with Benjamin Radford, Dr. Karen Stollznow, and Blake Smith — the team from the podcast MonsterTalk.

This week on Skepticality, Swoopy catches up with biologist-turned-filmmaker Dr. Randy Olson, whose latest book, Don't Be Such A Scientist: Talking Substance in an Age of Style deals with the image and communication issues facing scientists in the new media era. Some of the book's key messages (don’t be so cerebral; don’t be so literal-minded; don’t be such a poor story teller; don’t be so unlikable) are also on display in Dr. Olson's newest feature film, Sizzle: A Global Warming Comedy.  The new movie, a mockumentary that humorously relates just how hard it is to get a film about science made in style-conscious Hollywood, is the closing film at the Imagine: Science FIlm Festival in New York this week.

One of the refrains of skepticism is that reality is often more amazing than fiction. This is most assuredly true of the stories reported by investigative journalist, filmmaker and author Jon Ronson, who has delved time and again into the worlds of conspiracy theorists and extremists. This week on Skepticality Swoopy talks with Jon Ronson about his experiences bonding with skeptics at the recent Amazing Meeting London, his bizarre cruise (and rare interview) with psychic Sylvia Browne, and his 2004 auto-biographical book The Men Who Stare at Goats which will be released this November as a feature film starring Ewan McGregor and George Clooney.