Things that you believe to be true, but aren’t.
by Tom Furman
- Lemmings Commit Mass Suicide. This can be traced to a Disney film. It is not true. Lemmings DON’T commit mass suicide. That sequence in the film was staged. https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=wildlifenews.view_article&articles_id=56
2. Shooting A Gas Tank To Make It Explode. This is often seen in action films like James Bond or Die Hard and in Jaws. The Mythbusters crew tried it. A 9mm was not enough to pierce the tank. However a shotgun and armor piercing rounds could. However it didn’t blow up the tank. https://mythresults.com/episode95
3. Toilet Seats Are The Dirtiest Area Of A Public Toilet. The floor and in ladies restrooms, the sanitary napkin container were the dirtiest. The toilet sink was the cleanest. https://abcnews.go.com/2020/Health/story?id=1213831&page=1
4. Shaving Hair Makes It Grow Back Thicker And Faster. Well this certainly works for male pattern baldness, doesn’t it? Another myth debunked in 1928. Thoroughly explained in the link. https://www.healthline.com/health/does-shaving-make-hair-thicker
5. Getting Cold Will Give You A Cold. Colds are caused by cold viruses, not by temperature. Point #2 in this link. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321697.php#5
6. Chimpanzees Are Vegetarians. Nonsense. Not only do they eat monkeys, the eat each other. “Although the chimpanzees mostly eat fruit, they also regularly hunt for meat. Their main prey are red colobus monkeys. Between 1995 and 2014, Watts and Mitani observed 556 hunts, 356 of which targeted red colobus. These hunts were very successful: 912 colobus were killed, an average of 3 per hunt.Jul 28, 2015” www.bbc.co.uk › story › 20150728-chimps-nearly-wiped-out-monkeys
“Of all the great apes, chimpanzees resort to cannibalism most often. Typically, males will kill and eat the infant of another female, usually in their own group but occasionally in another. When chimps kill adults from other groups in a fight, they do not eat the body.Feb 1, 2010” www.newscientist.com › article › dn18454-hippy-apes-caught-cannibali…
7. You Can Perform An Emergency Tracheotomy With A Ballpoint Pen. No, please don’t do this. Movie myth. https://www.jems.com/2016/09/23/can-you-really-perform-an-emergency-cricothyrotomy-using-a-ballpoint-pen/
8. Good Brakes Allow You To Tailgate Safely. Speed is the ultimate component of this formula no matter how well your car is cared for. As your speed doubles, your stopping distance quadruples. https://www.aceable.com/safe-driving/how-speed-affects-braking-distance/
9. Hot Wiring A Car Is Easy. Once upon a time, it was easier, but still hard. Now it is much, much, more, difficult. https://www.hotcars.com/car-myths-people-believe-thanks-to-the-movies/
10. Peeing On A Jellyfish Sting. Another myth. “ Although peeing on a jellyfish sting most likely won’t cause you any further harm, there really is no scientific evidence that it helps.” https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/believe-common-television-myths.html/
