#OutdatedKnowledge #CommonMisconceptions #FactsVsMyths
š¤ Have you ever come across outdated knowledge that many people still believe in? It’s surprising how some misconceptions persist despite advancements in science and technology. In this article, we’ll debunk some of these myths and provide you with accurate information to help you stay informed.
## Common Misconceptions
### 1. The Great Wall of China is visible from space
– **False:** Contrary to popular belief, the Great Wall of China is not visible from space with the naked eye. The wall is only a few meters wide, making it difficult to see from such a distance.
### 2. You should drink 8 glasses of water a day
– **Debunked:** The 8×8 rule is a common misconception. The amount of water each person needs varies depending on factors like age, weight, and activity level. It’s important to listen to your body’s signals for hydration.
### 3. Bats are blind
– **Myth:** While some species of bats have poor vision, most bats can see just fine. Their echolocation abilities help them navigate in the dark, but they are not completely blind.
## Outdated Health Beliefs
### 1. Eating fat makes you fat
– **Incorrect:** Not all fats are created equal. Healthy fats like avocados and nuts are essential for a balanced diet. It’s excess calories, not fat, that lead to weight gain.
### 2. The “low-fat” craze is healthy
– **Debunked:** Many low-fat products are loaded with sugar and other unhealthy additives to make up for the lack of fat. Opt for whole, natural foods instead.
### 3. Stretching before exercise prevents injury
– **False:** Static stretching before a workout can actually decrease muscle strength and performance. Dynamic warm-ups are more effective in preventing injuries.
## Historical Misconceptions
### 1. Vikings wore horned helmets
– **Myth:** Despite popular depictions in movies and cartoons, there is no evidence that Vikings wore horned helmets into battle. It was a costume choice made by opera designers.
### 2. Columbus discovered America
– **False:** Indigenous peoples had been living in the Americas for thousands of years before Columbus’s arrival. He landed in the Caribbean, not North America.
### 3. Napoleon was short
– **Misconception:** Napoleon Bonaparte was actually of average height for his time, around 5’6″. The myth of his short stature likely stemmed from a mistranslation of French measurement units.
## Technology Myths
### 1. Leaving your phone plugged in overnight damages the battery
– **Debunked:** Most modern smartphones are equipped with technology to prevent overcharging. It’s safe to leave your phone plugged in overnight.
### 2. Incognito mode makes you completely anonymous online
– **Myth:** While incognito mode doesn’t save your browsing history, it doesn’t make you invisible to websites or your internet service provider. Use a VPN for added privacy.
### 3. Closing apps on your phone saves battery life
– **False:** Closing apps in the background can actually slow down your phone and use more battery power when you reopen them. Let the operating system manage background processes.
By busting these common misconceptions, we hope to provide you with accurate information that can help you make informed decisions in your everyday life. Remember, staying curious and questioning what you think you know can lead to a deeper understanding of the world around you. Stay informed, stay curious! š
Fish can’t remember after 3 seconds. Anyone that owns fish will tell you that is not true.
Carrots are good for your eye sight
That circumcision is healthy (barring medical necessity but thatās rare).
The Earth is flat.
My mother still believes that being cold or being in a drafty room will make you sick.
Getting a job is easy, just go into a place of business, meet the owner, shake his hand and you’re immediately hired.
Vitamin C – the mineral, not the singer – was touted as this great way to combat illness when I was growing up.
The Mayo Clinic now says that it has barely any effect at even preventing a common cold.
If you get cold and damp it increases your chance of catching a cold.
Eating fats makes you fat.
“you lose heat twice as fast from your head”
That there are canals on Mars.
Your tongue isn’t divided into five different types of flavors/different taste buds.
Spanking and beating your kids is not good parenting.Ā
There’s no such thing as “photographic memory”. Even people who have sharp memory retention and can visualize where they saw the information can recall things incorrectly.
That we only have five senses often comes up during these questions.
A sense of balance, proprioception, and sense of temperature are all outside of the standard five senses.
Bet some folks still think cracking knuckles leads to arthritis.
That cracking your knuckles leads to arthritis
Shaving your beard makes it grow thicker and faster
That washing chicken helps anything. It increases the chances of getting sick.
That MSG is in some way bad for you, or that they are somehow allergic to it.
As a note, your body produces MSG naturally, non-stop. If you had an allergy (which btw, nobody has ever tested allergic to), you would know it because you would be dead.
My mom wouldnāt let me eat green vegetables or garlic or spicy foods after I had my daughter, because apparently she was told (and believed all these years) that it would make my breast milk hard for my baby to digest, and cause them to be colicky.
I see the biggest outdated piece of knowledge still persists and this comment section is full of it: reading something online, believing it to be true, then regurgitating and repeating said “fact”.
Food pyramid
That you only use 10% of your brain
That blood is actually blue and turns red when it hits oxygen.
Then what’s all that red fluid when you get your blood drawn?
Suicides peaking in winter or holiday seasons. In America the CDC records the highest suicides at the start of spring.
[There’s so much data](https://www.annenbergpublicpolicycenter.org/the-undying-holiday-suicide-myth/) on this myth, we can track how many news articles are promoting or debunking it by year going back to the year 2000.
If you work hard and apply yourself, you can get ahead financially.
One I don’t see often in these posts:
Hydrogen Peroxide being good for cuts and scrapes. No, it’s not. It damages good tissue, can slow healing, and can make scarring worse. Mild soap and water is all you need.
A hospital can perform “virginity testing.” It’s not a thing.
The concept of the Alpha Male has been [disproven](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-the-alpha-wolf-idea-a-myth/) and even the person that coined the phrase has refuted his own theory, yet people still base their entire personality on it.
“Let your anger out in a healthy way so it doesn’t come out in unhealthy ways.”
You’ll see this a lot paired up with analogies of anger building up like pressure in a balloon. Go punch a pillow or smash something in a junk yard or whatever and you’ll let the pressure out safely.
In reality, humans aren’t balloons. That shouldn’t need to be stated out loud…. Anyway, letting anger out in ways like this is FUN. And because it’s fun that actually sets up a feedback loop in our brains. Get really angry = fun stuff happens. It creates a situation where we’re more likely to get angry in the future, not less likely.
The Food Pyramid
Homework in elementary school helps kids learn, increases study skills, or prepares them for doing homework in later grades.
We have known that it does absolutely none of those things for decades, yet this practice refuses to die in a lot of places. Elementary aged kids (and arguably middle school too) should have NO HOMEWORK at all. Even in secondary, the type of homework matters a lot, and it only helps certain groups of students.
the Earth is flat
Earth is flat
That certain areas of the tongue detect certain flavours. It is still believed by many, but my anatomy class said otherwise š
Low fat is the same thing as healthy.
9 times out of 10 if you hear a bald eagle on screen, itās actually not the sound of a bald eagle. Itās a red-tailed hawk.
Somewhere along the line, Hollywood decided real bald eagles didnāt sound majestic enough (they donāt) and replaced it with the high pitched screech of a Red Tail Hawk.
That we only use 10% of our brains….except for the people who believe such a thing, who very may well only use 10% of theirs.
That your blood is blue until it hits oxygen. No itās not, itās always red
If you inject the bleach right into your veins, it kills the covid. Itās science. Some very very smart people have told me this.
ASTROLOGY.
You’re not a jerk cuz you’re a Scorpio. You’re a jerk cuz you’re a jerk.
Bunch if random stars thousands of light years away don’t foretell your life. And put them damn crystals away. ” I bough this jaaaadddeee medallion for a week’s pay. Supposed to bring money my waaaaaayy.”
Sun worshippers. Believing that our sun could influence their lives. I’ve seen this in person and also heard them talk enthusiastically about the sun.
That thereās an alpha wolf in wolf packs. The person who made it up admitted it. Dog trainers still using that as an excuse to assert dominance and be real shit to dogs.
Edit: Apparently it wasnāt a lie but a genuine misunderstanding!
BRAT diet if you have stomach issues or diarrhea was dismissed scientifically years ago as well.
Astrology.Ā Total bunk from top to bottom and beginning to end, but an amazing number of people still believe it means something.
That the position of the stars and planets has any effect on your personality.
Only use 10% of your brain.