Everyday oddities — coincidences, misplaced objects, shared misremembering — that some people interpret as "glitches" in a simulated reality. The idea borrows from philosopher Nick Bostrom’s 2003 simulation argument; the shared misremembering known as the "Mandela Effect" is studied by psychologists as false memory.[1],[2]
By the Project Strange team · Not yet reviewed line by line · 2 sources
On this page
At a glance
- Also known as
- Glitch in the Matrix
- Subject
- Speculative hypothesis
- Sourcing
- 2 sources listed · 2 cited inline. Not yet reviewed line by line.
Background
BackgroundHistory, folklore and cultural context.
In 2003, philosopher Nick Bostrom proposed a "simulation argument": a trilemma suggesting that, unless civilisations never become able or willing to run detailed simulations of their ancestors, we are very likely living in one. Precursors include Zhuangzi’s butterfly dream and Descartes’s "evil demon".[1] Some physicists reject the idea; Sabine Hossenfelder argues it is physically impossible to simulate the universe without producing measurable inconsistencies.[1]
The "Mandela Effect" — specific false memories shared by many people — was named by paranormal researcher Fiona Broome, who vividly remembered news coverage of Nelson Mandela dying in prison in the 1980s. Mandela in fact died in 2013, long after his release and presidency.[2] Psychologists study such memories as false memory: people can confidently recall events that never happened.[2]
Online "glitch" stories — objects vanishing and reappearing, the same stranger seen twice — are anecdotes collected by enthusiasts rather than documented events.
What witnesses describe
Witness claimsFeatures that recur in accounts. These are claims, not established facts.
- Objects disappearing and reappearing in impossible ways
- The same stranger seen simultaneously in two separate locations by two independent observers
- Shared false memories with specific, consistent detail (Mandela Effect)
- Déjà vu of events that cannot have occurred before
- Mathematical or physical laws apparently violated in isolated incidents
- Glitch-like visual anomalies — stuttering perception, doubled objects
- Events that suggest the same sequence is running twice with slight variation
Notable cases
Each case is labelled by the kind of account it rests on.
2010Internet-wideDocumented
Berenstain Bears memory
Many people remember the children’s books as the "Berenstein Bears", although they have always been spelled "Berenstain". It is one of the best-known examples of the Mandela Effect.
Read the story as commonly toldHide the story
Unverified: this is the traditional telling of the case. Its details have not been checked against sources and may be inaccurate.
Thousands of adults independently discovered they remembered the children's book series as "Berenstein Bears" — with an E. All physical copies have always read "Berenstain" with an A. No printing error has been found. The memory is identical and specific across demographics.
Disputed or contrary evidence
Psychologists note that specific false memories can be shared by large groups of people; no change to the books has been found.[2]
2009OnlineDocumented
Mandela Effect naming
Paranormal researcher Fiona Broome coined the term "Mandela Effect" after finding that others shared her detailed but mistaken memory of Nelson Mandela dying in prison in the 1980s. He died in 2013.[2]
Read the story as commonly toldHide the story
Unverified: this is the traditional telling of the case. Its details have not been checked against sources and may be inaccurate.
Blogger Fiona Broome documented the widespread false memory of Nelson Mandela dying in prison. He died in 2013. The discovery of this shared false memory launched investigation into hundreds of similar phenomena.
2019Online documentationDocumented
The "Fruit of the Loom cornucopia" memory
Many people say they remember a cornucopia behind the fruit in the Fruit of the Loom logo; it is one of the most widely cited Mandela Effect examples.
Read the story as commonly toldHide the story
Unverified: this is the traditional telling of the case. Its details have not been checked against sources and may be inaccurate.
Thousands of people remember the Fruit of the Loom logo featuring a cornucopia. No version of the logo has ever included one. The specific, consistent, and universal nature of the false memory defies standard explanations.
Disputed or contrary evidence
Like other Mandela Effect examples, this is consistent with ordinary false memory rather than evidence of a changed reality.[2]
Explanations
InterpretationGrouped by the kind of explanation, not ranked by likelihood.
Conventional explanations
Known animals, natural processes, perception, memory, or hoaxes. These rely on things that are well established; whether one fits a particular case depends on the case.
- Collective false memory formation through common cultural exposure
- Normal memory malleability exploited by consistent cultural reinforcement
Paranormal and speculative ideas
Depend on entities, forces or physics that no evidence has established.
- Simulation error — the computational reality we inhabit periodically updates incorrectly
- Parallel universe bleed — shared memories from a nearly-identical adjacent reality
- Time travel or timeline alteration creating retroactive reality changes
References
Numbered as cited in the text; sources not cited inline are listed afterwards as background reading.
- 1.Simulation hypothesisWikipedia
- 2.False memoryWikipedia
Known gaps
- Earlier versions of this entry said the simulation hypothesis is "taken seriously" by Neil deGrasse Tyson, that physicist James Gates found browser-style error-correcting codes in string theory, and quoted Elon Musk. These claims have been removed until they can be checked against original sources.
- The year Fiona Broome coined the term (2009) and the Berenstain and Fruit of the Loom details come from general reporting; our cited source confirms the coinage and the Mandela example but not those specifics.
Know something we missed?
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Suggest an editCommunity reports
Top-voted reports from Project Strange members in the Phenomena category. These are first-hand accounts, not verified events.
Missing 4 Hours — Woke Up 60 Miles Away With No Memory
I left my flat in Leeds at 7 PM to drive to my parents' in Harrogate. It's a 45-minute drive I've done hundreds of times. I remember joining the A61 and then nothing — absolute…
- Location
- Ripon, North Yorkshire, England
- Date of event
- Happened Feb 21, 2025