Shortly before 9:30 p.m. MST on September 12, 2022, Arizona State University Police received reports of multiple Yik Yak posts claiming bombs had been placed in the Memorial Union and Hassayampa Residence Hall. The posts escalated into a bizarre one-upmanship: one student wrote 'I put the bomb in the MU,' another replied 'No, I put the bomb in the MU,' and a third chimed in 'It's OK guys we all put the bomb in the MU.' The MU, Hassayampa Academic Village, and Barrett Residential Complex were evacuated and swept overnight; no items of concern were found. Three students were arrested and charged with a felony and four misdemeanors each.
2 messages in sequence · 2 verified verbatim
To check this alert, Claude (an AI) read it in full 25 separate times, independently. Each read decided whether the message answers each of the six questions and gave a short reason. A final reviewer then weighed all 25 and wrote the plain-English verdict you see when you open a row. The score (for example 22/25) is how many reads agreed; the 25 individual reads are tucked underneath if you want to check them.
POLICE SITUATION - Tempe campus ASUPD is working a Police Situation at the Memorial Union and Hassayampa Residential Halls. Stay clear of the area until further notice.
Final assessment
All 25 reads agree the element is present: it names ASUPD as working the situation, identifying the authority.
Who is sending the alert and who is responding. People act faster on a message from a clearly identifiable, credible sender, such as a named department, the police, or a branded alert system, than on an anonymous notice. A branded signature counts.
Final assessment
All 25 reads agree the element is absent: it labels a police situation but names no specific hazard.
What the threat actually is. A complete warning names the specific danger, such as a shooter, a fire, a tornado, or a gas leak, rather than a vague emergency, because people decide what to do based on what they are facing.
Final assessment
All 25 reads agree the element is present: it names the Memorial Union and Hassayampa Residential Halls on the Tempe campus.
Where the threat is. Saying whether danger is in a specific building, a part of campus, or area-wide lets people judge their own proximity and choose a safe direction. Without a where, a warning is hard to act on precisely.
Final assessment
All 25 reads agree the element is present: it instructs recipients to stay clear of the area until further notice.
The protective action to take. A clear, specific instruction, such as shelter in place, evacuate, avoid the area, or run-hide-fight, drives faster and more correct protective behavior than describing the threat alone.
Final assessment
All 25 reads agree the element is present: the phrase until further notice conveys a recency timeframe.
When the message applies. A timestamp, the word now or immediately, or a phrase like until further notice tells the reader whether the danger is current and how quickly to act.
Final assessment
Absent by unanimous agreement: a police situation is named with a stay-clear instruction but no stated harm, danger, or consequence.
What the hazard could do to the people in its path. Beyond naming the threat, a complete warning conveys its potential consequences or severity, such as that a tornado can level buildings or that a leak could be explosive, so recipients grasp how much danger they are in. Research on warning message content finds that a concrete impact statement helps people personalize their risk and act sooner.
Systematic AI judgments with visible reasoning, not human-validated codings.
About this analysisCampus Alert Archive. "Arizona State University: Yik Yak bomb claims evacuated three buildings overnight; three students arrested." Incident of September 12, 2022. Added May 2026; last updated July 2026. https://campusalertarchive.com/case/arizona-state-university-yikyak-bomb-threat-2022-09-12/
Alert text quoted on this page remains the work of the issuing institution; the archive is a secondary source.