Remember when you were a child and believed everything your parents, grandparents, and teachers told you? We often trust that adults, especially older and wiser ones, possess all the knowledge, and if they say something is true, we naturally accept it as fact.
However, it turns out that even the most well-meaning adults sometimes pass on information that isn’t entirely accurate. Over the years, we’ve absorbed many common beliefs and historical stories that we later discovered weren’t true at all! Exploring these widely held “facts” and uncovering the truth is truly fascinating.
1.Myth 1: Dogs only see in black and white. For years, we’ve all been led to believe that our canine companions perceive the world in shades of gray, missing out on the vibrant colors we see, which significantly limits their visual experience.
But here’s an interesting fact: it’s simply not true! While dogs cannot perceive the full color spectrum like humans can, their world is not limited to just black and white. They can actually see colors, specifically shades of yellow, blue, and gray. So while a red toy may look different to them than it does to you, they can still distinguish it from a green toy (which may appear grayish).
2. **You can see the Great Wall of China from space**: This is an impressive and seemingly obvious enduring myth. Given the sheer scale of the Great Wall, it is natural to assume that it should be visible from space. The idea that this enormous man-made structure is so vast that it can be seen from the highest vantage points on Earth has sparked the imagination of many. It is often regarded as the only man-made object visible from space.
Even from low Earth orbit, while the Great Wall can sometimes be seen, many other artificial structures are also visible from that altitude. From the moon, the only thing visible is a beautiful sphere, primarily white with some blue and yellow patches, and occasional green vegetation. Therefore, despite its immense scale, the Great Wall is not the iconic skyline landmark described in legend.
3.Myth 3: You only use 10% of your brain. This popular myth suggests we have vast untapped potential, implying that most of our brain lies dormant and could unlock extraordinary intelligence or abilities if activated.
While it’s true that not all brain synapses fire simultaneously, it’s a misconception to think the rest are completely inactive. Your brain is a complex, continuously working organ, with almost every part active at all times, each responsible for vital functions like breathing, heart rate, sensory processing, thinking, and memory.
These essential functions operate without interruption, sustaining life and allowing you to engage with the world around you. As neurologist Barry Gordon of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine stated years ago, ‘In fact, we use nearly every part of the brain, and [most of] the brain is almost constantly active.’
4.Myth 4: You swallow seven spiders a year. This unsettling rumor, often told to creep us out, suggests spiders find their way into our mouths while we sleep, with the specific number ‘seven’ adding an oddly convincing detail.
Spiders are searching for prey, and your warm bed offers no prey whatsoever, unless you happen to have bed bugs. Spiders certainly do not intentionally crawl into human mouths, as there is no food source there and it poses a clear danger to them.
5. **Sugar will make you hyperactive**: This is a common explanation for why children become excited after attending parties or celebrations filled with sweets. Parents and caregivers have long viewed sugar as the culprit behind children’s sudden bursts of energy and difficulty calming down. It seems like common sense—give children sugar, and they’ll bounce around like springs, right?
It turns out, our parents might have been mistaken about this one! Studies have shown that parents’ perception of their children’s behavior can be influenced by expectations. For instance, when told their children had consumed sugar, parents were more likely to report hyperactivity, even if the children had a sugar-free placebo.
6.Myth 6: You can’t swim for an hour after eating. This age-old warning, passed down through generations with dire tales of cramps and drowning, is based on the idea that digestion diverts blood from your limbs, causing fatigue and increasing the risk of cramps while swimming.
Good news for swimmers! This widely believed notion has been thoroughly debunked. The idea that digestion significantly reduces blood flow to muscles to a dangerous degree during moderate swimming is simply not true. While digestion does use blood, it doesn’t compromise your ability to swim safely.
7. **Your tongue has different sections for different tastes**: You may have seen that diagram—the one showing a map of the tongue, with different areas labeled for perceiving sweet, sour, salty, and bitter tastes. Sweetness is at the tip of the tongue, bitterness at the back, and so on. This is often taught in schools and seems like a neat and orderly way for taste buds to work.
However, get ready for the truth about another common misconception—this tongue map is completely fictional! While we can indeed perceive different taste characteristics, they are not limited to specific areas on the tongue. All areas of the mouth containing taste buds can detect all taste characteristics.
We’ve now debunked some enduring myths about our bodies, pets, and everyday habits, revealing how certain ideas become ingrained in our minds through stories and media, even when the reality is quite different.
