|Updated| It'd be a compelling setup for a campy horror movie: 100 or so human brains have been reported missing from the University of Texas at Austin, and one of them reportedly belonged to an infamous mass murderer.
But the real story may be even more of a mystery, with conflicting reports over when and why the brains were taken.
The apparent theft was first reported on Tuesday by the Austin-American-Statesman, which noted that the brains in question were transferred from Austin State Hospital to the university "for educational and research purposes" in 1986. By Wednesday afternoon, two conflicting explanations emerged. A university investigation found that the brains had been disposed of in 2002 because of their poor condition, though a Los Angeles Times report claimed they were in fact discovered at another University of Texas campus in San Antonio this week.
A university spokesman told Newsweek in an email Wednesday morning that "we are investigating the circumstances surrounding the brain collection and we are disheartened to learn some of them may be unaccounted for." The missing brains represented roughly half of the 200 brains preserved in jars of formaldehyde in a research center basement.
On Wednesday afternoon, the university said in a subsequent public statement that a preliminary investigation had revealed "that UT environmental health and safety officials disposed of multiple brain specimens in approximately 2002 in accordance with protocols concerning biological waste."
"We have no evidence that any brain specimens were shared with other universities or health institutions, though we will continue to investigate those reports," the university said.
The Austin-American-Statesman had originally reported that one of the missing brains was said to have belonged to sniper Charles Whitman, who killed 16 people and wounded dozens of others in a 1966 Austin shooting spree. Whitman's massacre is among the deadliest college shootings in American history.
"We can't find that brain," Tim Schallert, a psychology professor and curator of the brains, reportedly confirmed yesterday to the Austin American-Statesman.
Later on Wednesday, however, The Los Angeles Times reported Schallert as saying that the brains had been discovered in San Antonio. "They read a media report of the missing brains and they called to say: 'We got those brains!'" Schallert told the newspaper.
A university spokesperson denied that account and also said there was no evidence that one of the missing brains had belonged to Whitman. Schallert hasn't respond to a request for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Zach Schonfeld is a senior writer for Newsweek, where he covers culture for the print magazine. Previously, he was an ... Read more
