We chose Hakim Beys wonderful phrase "The Universe Wants to Play" as the unifying theme for the articles in this volume, the 12th of The Anomalist journal. Since we began publishing in 1994, this highly praised nonfiction anthology has had as its focus maverick science, unexplained mysteries, unorthodox theories, and strange talents. In this issue.

Philosopher Joseph M. Felser argues that it is utterly pointless to attempt to prove the reality of the paranormal scientifically. It seems that proof is part of the problem, not the solution.

Journalist Jay Walljasper visits and interviews...

Between official facts and public fantasies, there are INTERMEDIATE STATES.

In a mix of the comic and the tragic, John Reppion searches for the truth behind an 1845 bridge collapse said to be caused when spectators rushed to see a clown in a tub drawn by six white geese in the river below.

Cliff Willett wonders why UFO aliens would traverse deep space to borrow salt, sample our pizza, or offer us pancakes in his delightful examination of alien eating habits.

Technology buffs in the afterlife? Mark Macy traces his involvement in our half-century long history of attempts to use technology...