You may have previously thought that you had the ins and outs of life pinned down by this point. Well, after reading this, you might have a few more things to consider...
The Great Wall of China is Not the Only Manmade Structure That You Can See From Space
This long-debated myth has never even been remotely true. You can see many manmade structures from the International Space Station. However, from the moon, you can only see dim city lights.
The Sahara is Not the Biggest Desert on Earth
Technically, the term "desert" isn't unique to hot, sandy environments. All a place needs to do to be considered a desert is to be dry and inhospitable. Coincidentally, Antarctica is both of those things, thus making the entire continent the world's largest desert.
Eating Ice Cream Doesn't Make Your Illnesses Worse
For some reason, people have perpetuated the myth that ice cream will worsen respiratory illnesses like colds and cases of flu. Ice cream doesn't just help sore throats, but the protein and sugar in the ice cream will replace lost calories from lack of appetite. Also, dairy doesn't increase mucous production, contrary to popular belief.
Sugar is Not as Addictive as Opiates
In 2009, a book called "Fat Chance" was released by a man named Dr. Robert Lustig. In this book, Lustig compares the pleasure derived from eating sugary treats to experiencing a dopamine response from consuming heroin. This was theorized through the use of neuroimagery, which has proven to be wildly inaccurate when it comes to determining brain activity spikes caused by substances. No, sugar is not as addictive as heroin, and that assumption is a tone-deaf one.
Lightning Doesn't Cause Thunder
Ok, this one is a bit of a scientific discrepancy. Lightning is a stream of electrons building in size by zapping from cloud to cloud until it strikes the ground. Thunder is the air's response to the superheated electrons traveling through it, not from the lightning itself.
Milk Doesn't Make Your Bones Stronger
The US Department of Agriculture advises that adults should drink three cups of milk a day to maintain healthy levels of vitamin D and calcium. However, there have been multiple studies that show that there is no association between drinking milk and having fewer bone fractures. In fact, some studies actually show that milk drinkers have a higher overall mortality rate than non-milk drinkers. So, that's something to think about.
Chocolate Doesn't Cause Acne
Scientists have been able to prove that chocolate does not directly cause acne. In fact, cacao has actually proven itself to be a powerful antioxidant and it stops inflammation in the body. The chocolate isn't the problem, it's the sugar and genetics that cause acne.
Organic Food Doesn't Have Pesticides and It's Not Necessarily Healthier
The "organic" label is more of a sales tactic than an actual categorization of food quality. Although your understanding of organic food may be that it's "pesticide-free" and more "ethically grown," farmers just use chemicals that are naturally derived. In a lot of cases, this is actually worse for the environment, and most of the time, not actually better for your body.
Natural Sugar is Not Better For You Than Processed Sugar
Just because your granola bar is made with honey doesn't necessarily mean it is healthier than if it was made with high fructose corn syrup. Any type of sugar metabolizes the same. The problem with sugar truly lays in inflated portion sizes. Make sure you pay attention to how much you eat overall as opposed to how much sugar is in one thing.
An Apple a Day Doesn't Keep the Doctor Away
Hey, we all know that apples are healthy. They're jam-packed with vitamin C, fiber, and beneficial nutrients that help your long term health, but they aren't enough to keep you alive forever. If you get sick, go to the doctor, even if you eat a lot of apples.
Tryptophan in Turkey Doesn't Make You Sleepy
Do you feel exhausted after eating on thanksgiving (or any other turkey consumption day)? Well, you may have heard that the notorious sleep-inducing chemical tryptophan may be to blame. However, there is not a high enough concentration of tryptophan in turkey to put a human being to sleep. Chances are, you're just tired because you overate, and your body is relocating all of its energy for digestion.
Sharks Can Get Cancer
Doctors formerly believed that sharks were the only creatures on earth that were not susceptible to getting cancer. However, in 2013, two sharks were found with massive cancerous tumors growing on them. As it turns out, the myth that sharks don't get cancer was created by a man trying to sell shark cartilage as a cancer treatment.
Ostriches Don't Hide Their Heads in the Sand
Ostriches do not put their heads in the sand when they're threatened. In fact, they don't bury their heads at any point whatsoever. When threatened, ostriches tend to flop over and play dead.
Mount Everest is Not the Tallest Mountain on Earth
Technically, Mount Everest is the tallest mountain above sea level. However, the tallest mountain on earth is the Mauna Kea peak in Hawaii. In fact, the total height of Mauna Kea is nearly a mile taller than Mount Everest.
There Was Never a Pause in Global Warming
Fake scientists have been trying to pass this off for decades. The Earth's surface has not risen in temperature since the beginning of the 21st century. However, the root cause of global warming comes from the increase of atmospheric temperature which is then stored in the ocean. The oceans warming is the problem, not the land.
Lightning Can Strike the Same Place Twice
Lightning can absolutely strike the same place twice. This myth was likely created when scientists were able to calculate the extremely low likelihood of a person getting struck by lightning. However, some structures, like The Empire State Building, get struck by lightning up to 100 times a year.
Goldfish Actually Have Pretty Good Memories
Some people say that goldfish can't remember anything for one second, some people say three. However, real science shows that goldfish can remember things for several months. Just because they don't have the most developed brains, doesn't mean that their brains don't work.
Poinsettias Are All Poisonous
Poinsettias will not kill you or your pets. Yes, they're not particularly edible, but that's only because of their harsh fibrous nature and the "milk" that's inside of them. Worst case scenario, these flowers will make you a little sick to your stomach.
Giraffes Sleep Longer Than 30 Minutes A Day
Giraffes actually have fairly normal sleeping patterns. Similar to human beings, giraffes usually sleep at night and take brief naps in the afternoon. A study conducted recently concludes that the average giraffe sleeps roughly 4.6 hours a day.
Sharks Don't Die if They Stop Swimming
Although there are a few species of shark that need to continuously move to push water through their gills, not all sharks share this same evolutionary problem. Bottom feeding sharks, like lemon and nurse sharks, can pump oxygen-rich water through their gills without swimming. In fact, all sharks can survive for long periods of time without moving, simply because their bodies store oxygen differently from ours.
Dropping a Penny Off of The Empire State Building Will Not Kill Anyone
A penny weighs roughly 1/11th of one ounce. This means that the terminal velocity of a penny caps out around 50 MPH. If you factor in any wind conditions on the day, that number shrinks. Getting hit by a penny traveling 50 MPH will not kill you, but it might sting a bit.
Light Speed Isn't The Fastest Speed an Object Can Travel
Light speed travels unbelievably fast through the vacuum of space, but when it strikes an object like water, it will slow down significantly. Scientists have been able to speed neutrons and electrons up faster than the speed of light within nuclear reactors and particle accelerators. Scientists also theorize that the universe's expansion moved faster than the speed of light when the big bang happened.
Blood Doesn't Turn Blue When You Run Out of Oxygen
Human blood can never be blue. When your body runs out of oxygen, it actually turns a much darker red because of the concentration of halted red blood cells. The reason you see blue in your veins is actually because of the many layers of pigment in your skin.
The Moon is Not Close to the Earth
Even though the moon can sometimes seem like it's close enough to reach up and grab, it is actually very far away. The moon is roughly 239,000 miles from the Earth. Theoretically, if a standard airplane was to try and fly to the moon at full speed, it would take 17 days to reach its destination.
Water Doesn't Necessarily Conduct Electricity
Water itself is not conducive. It's the minerals and salts that become electrified if they are still present in the water at the time of electrocution. Pure or distilled water will not conduct electricity, no matter how hard you try.
You Can Balance an Egg Any Day of the Year
There are a lot of old folks that think you can only balance an egg on its bottom during the Spring Equinox. This is simply untrue. If you grab an egg from your fridge and take a little time to learn how to do it, you can balance an egg on any flat surface whenever you want.
Tectonic Plates Do Not Move Because of Volcanism
Tectonic plates do not move because of volcanic activity. It's actually quite the opposite, volcanoes are more active because of tectonic activity. Tectonic plates operate on fault lines, volcanic activity follows.
There is No 'Dark Side of the Moon'
Yes, there is a side of the moon that we don't see every day. But, the moon orbits and rotates on an axis just like the Earth. So, you will be able to see every side of the moon throughout the course of one year.
Cats and Dogs Are Not Colorblind
So, technically dogs and cats cannot see as many colors as human beings. However, it has been proven that dogs and cats can see both greens and blues. They also have more rods in their eyes than humans do, meaning that they can see better than humans in low-light situations.
Space Isn't Exactly 'Cold'
The void of space can actually be a multitude of temperatures all at the same time. For instance, just outside of the Earth's atmosphere, space is roughly 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Whereas, the coldest corner of space sits around -454 degrees Fahrenheit. It all depends on your location in space, which we hope isn't too far away from the Earth.
Lemings Do Not Jump Off of Cliffs in Mass Suicides
For some reason, the internet became infatuated with this little cute creature that supposedly committed mass suicide recently. Well, just so you know, Lemings do not commit mass suicide. Sometimes they fall off of cliffs during migrations, but that's really it.
Chocolate is Not an Aphrodisiac
Sorry ladies and gentlemen, we know this was something that you were really hoping wouldn't change. Nothing about eating chocolate will physically increase the sexuality of an individual, but that placebo effect may. Sometimes it's better to just let sleeping dogs lie.
Sugar Doesn't Cause Hyperactivity in Children
Parents like to think that their children get immediate bursts of crazy energy from eating sugar, but this is not scientifically true. This myth arose in 1974 when a pediatric doctor released the statement, "Only in the past three years have I become aware that sugar ... is a leading cause of hyperactivity," in a letter to the American Academy of Pediatrics. However, now that we have the technology to actually determine children's hyperactivity, it's more likely that they become hyperactive because of the happiness that comes from being given a treat.
The Moon's Gravitational Pull Does Not Necessarily Cause the Tides on Earth
The Moon's gravity, at its strongest point, is roughly 10 million times weaker than the Earth's gravity. What really causes the tides is the gravitational pull in the space between the Earth and the moon. The Earth's surface is 71% water, so any small pull from the gravitational field between the Earth and the moon will ever so slightly change the tides, but that is not what determines them.
People Do Not Get Warts from Frogs and Toads
You cannot get warts from a frog or a toad, but you can get warts from people. Human papillomavirus is what causes wart growth in human beings, and it can be transferred through physical contact. Don't worry, you probably already have it, and it's not dangerous whatsoever.
This Dinosaur is Not a Brontosaurus
Even though Michael Crichton called this dinosaur a Brontosaurus in Jurassic Park, that's not actually the name of this creature. This dinosaur is actually called an Apatosaurus. For some reason, the name Brontosaurus caught on after two paleontologists funded over the name over 130 years ago.
Sharks Cannot Smell a Drop of Blood From Miles Away
Although it's not advised to be in shark-infested waters while bleeding, it's not an immediate death sentence. Sharks do have enhanced odor receptors that can sense as little as one part blood to 10,000,000,000 parts water. But, the ocean is much, much bigger than that and it takes a long time for blood molecules to drift far enough in high enough concentration for sharks to react to it.
Bats Aren't Blind
The term "blind as a bat" doesn't really make much sense if you think about it. All bats have functional eyes. Despite the fact that most bats live in darkness and use echolocation to guide their way, every single bat can see.
The 'Five-Second-Rule' Isn't Real
Food doesn't magically protect itself from bacteria within the five-second period after you've dropped it on the ground. However, science shows that it's actually not that bad to eat food off of the ground, depending on the ground you drop it on. Also, moist food tends to gather more bacteria than dry food, keep that in mind.
Coffee Doesn't Stunt Your Growth
Most research that's been conducted in the field shows that caffeine consumption does not halt bone growth in children. In adults, caffeine has been shown to very (very) slightly reduce calcium absorption, but adding as little as a tablespoon of milk alternative to your coffee will offset that effect. False advertising is the reason people suspect that this is a real thing, but it's been proven time and time again that drinking coffee has virtually no negative side effects.
Blonde and Red Hair Colors are Not 'Going Extinct'
Genes rarely die out. Although red and blonde hair come from recessive genes, they can be carried for several generations without showing themselves until the perfect storm happens. In fact, you can practically pinpoint what color hair your child is going to have based on your family history.
Diamonds Aren't All Formed from Coal
Actually, most diamonds don't come from coal. Diamonds are formed by carbon that is compressed and superheated 90 miles below the Earth's surface. Although some diamonds can be formed from coal, it's usually too shallow to provide an environment for diamonds to form.
Your Microwave Will Not Give You Cancer
Microwave radiation cannot cause cancer. The only thing your microwave can do is heat up objects. There are many different types of radiation that cause cancer, but microwave radiation is one of those types that will not.
People in the Middle Ages Didn't Think the Earth Was Flat
During the Middle Ages, there are actually no writings in which people stated that the Earth was flat. Those rumors didn't surface until the 1800's when religious and scientific interest clashed. Make sure you tell this to your crazy uncle who believes anything he reads.
Humans Did Not Evolve From Chimpanzees
Humans and chimps share 98.8% of our DNA, but that's not an indicator of what evolution actually does. Evolution works through incremental genetic changes over the course of many generations. So, while it is likely that humans and chimpanzees shared an ancestor close to 10 million years ago, we did not directly evolve from them.
Summer is Hot, But Not Because We Are Closer to the Sun
Warm weather doesn't come from the Earth being closer to the Sun. Rather, warm weather comes from when the Earth is tilted in a way that allows the Sun's beams to refract and hit an area more directly. If you ever wanted to feel cosmically small, think about this concept.
The Earth is Not a Perfect Sphere
The Earth rotates at roughly 1,040 MPH (roughly 60% of the speed of a standard bullet as it leaves the barrel of a gun). The inertia generated from the sheer speed of the Earth's rotation has flattened the Earth's crust ever so slightly. Due to global warming, scientists believe that the flattening of the Earth is moving a little faster.
There is No Such Thing as a Photographic Memory
People are not born with better visual recall than others. Some people are born with better memories, some are also able to train their memories to be stronger throughout their life, but there is nothing photographic about it. Memories recall details that you catalog and produce images of within your brain, nobody just simply has an ability to remember circumstances perfectly.
Humans Have More than Five Senses
The classic senses that we all know are really just the foundation of the human sensory experience. Humans can also sense balance, temperature, time, spatial awareness, pain, and many more things. Honestly, everything you feel can be considered a "sense."
Eating Carrots Doesn't Help You See Better At Night
Vitamin A is a strong nutrient that does benefit your eyes massively, however, there is no amount of vitamin A that a human being can consume to counter biological evolution. Keep that in mind though, because eating carrots has been proven to assist those who have poor vision.
Your Hair and Nails Don't Keep Growing After You Die
When the human body ceases to function, all of its former duties halt. That includes the growth of hair and fingernails. What people were actually reporting on was the fact that human skin shrinks after a person dies, so their hair and nails look longer than they did when that person was alive.
Humans Can Grow New Brain Cells
You are not born with a finite number of brain cells. Your brain does not stop producing cells when you turn 25. Your brain will continue to produce more cells as your neural pathways morph and change throughout your life.
People Use Way More Than 10% of Their Brain
This has been proven back time and time again to the point that the age-old argument no longer even makes any sense. The human brain is roughly 3% of the body's mass, but it uses 20% of the energy that your body has stored. So technically, your brain uses 120% of its capacity.
Left-Brain and Right-Brain People Do Not Exist
Even though it is true that the human brain allocates different locations for different things, the human body uses both sides equally. The brain isn't as simple as "one side does this and the other does that." Our brains do thousands of things at once that spans over millions of neurons in a millisecond. Nobody uses one side of their brain more, but people tend to enjoy doing certain things over other things.
'Baby Brain' is Not a Real Thing
For some reason, a pretty popular rumor started flying around in the late 1980's about women who get pregnant would experience a phenomenon called "Baby Brain." This bizarre notion insinuated that women would become less intelligent when they become pregnant. Not only is this terribly sexist, but it's also the opposite of the truth. Women have proven to become more intelligent and organized when they are expecting a baby.
Gum Doesn't Take Seven Years to Digest
Whoever told you this was likely much older than you when they did. This theory has been disproven thousands of times, and has been the cause of a ton of unnecessary hospital bills. The gum isn't your problem, its anxiety and misinformation that's the problem.
Shaving Doesn't Make Your Hair Come Back Thicker
There's actually no science that's been conducted that has ever backed up this theory. When you shave, your hair doesn't get thicker, but it does get more coarse. Traditional methods of shaving are actually bad for the skin and the hair. When you shave with a razor at home, you will notice that your face will feel sharp where the hair is growing back in. Notice that if you use clippers or a straight razor to shave, this will not occur.
Drugs Will Not 'Rot Holes In Your Brain'
This is a common misconception. However, this does not mean that recreational drugs are necessarily good for your mental or physical health. Always consult a doctor about these kinds of concerns, because the problem may not lay within your drug use but in your overall mental health.
You Don't Need to Wait An Hour After Eating to Swim
There has never been a reported case of drowning caused by stomach cramps related to eating. However, cramps do frequently occur while you are swimming. They are usually caused by dehydration and the fact that you are using muscles that you do not regularly use when you are not swimming.
Multivitamins Don't Actually Make You Healthier
There has never been a study that concluded that multivitamins are actually beneficial to one's health. In fact, more studies have concluded that some vitamins lead to an increased risk of cancer. Keep that in mind the next time you go out and spend $200 on supplements.
You Don't Need to Drink Eight Glasses of Water a Day
Don't get us wrong, staying hydrated is extremely important to stay healthy. But, the number of glasses of water that "professionals" recommend people to drink is staggeringly high. In fact, it has been proven that those statistics were created by lobbyists working for major beverage corporations to try and get people to purchase more bottled water. Just drink water when you're thirsty, trust your body, and everything will be alright.
Carbonated Water Is Just as Hydrating as Regular Water
This myth was likely created by old folks who are afraid of the seltzer revolution. It has been proven multiple times that seltzer water is just, well, water! Albeit, these fizzy drinks are charged with carbon dioxide and sugar-free natural extracts, neither of which pose any health risks when consuming them in a can of seltzer.
Yogurt Doesn't Actually Help Your Digestion
Yogurt has been marketed as a slimming, beneficial elixir that can solve any of your tummy troubles easily. However, there has been absolutely no conclusive evidence that suggests that yogurt can help your gut health, help you lose weight, or that it's even healthy. Plenty of market yogurts contain a ton of sugar, which is far worse for you than having "bad bacteria" in your gut, and your indigestion is probably coming from your poor diet.
Most of Your Body Heat Doesn't Escape Through Your Head
Heat rises so it must mostly come out of your head, right? Wrong! Our bodies radiate heat in all directions rather than just one. So, if you're out in the cold and don't have a portion of your body covered up, that's where you will be losing the majority of your body heat.
The Sun Isn't Yellow
Many people believe that the Sun is yellow or orange based on solar imagery. However, the sun is actually white in color. The way cameras and the human eye process the sun's rays cause it to appear to be a different, tangible color.