Twelve commonly believed facts that aren’t actually true

10^th September 2022

The editorial unit

The editorial unit

10 September 2022

The world is full of urban myths, longstanding misconceptions and conspiracy theories, and most people are guilty of believing at least a few of them. Confirmation bias (when people tend to accept references or findings that seem to confirm their existing beliefs as fact) doesn’t help, and neither does the Internet in many cases! Here are few commonly believed fallacies debunked.

Following the stars or moon can help tell the future

There is no scientific evidence that the patterns of stars, planets or any other celestial bodies influences the fate of humans (though, of course, there may be a confirmation bias in human behaviour among those who believe it!). Astrology has repeatedly been shown to have no power in predicting future events, and the phase of the moon does not influence fertility, crime rates, or the stock market. However, there is something to be said for increased illumination during a full moon accounting for more epileptic episodes, motorcycle accidents and sleep disorders.

They said “ye” instead of “the” in the olden days

The word “the” was never pronounced or spelled “ye” in Old or Middle English. The common construction “ye olde”, used nowadays mostly in tea shop names and antique shops, derives from the use of the character thorn (þ), which in Middle English represented the sound “th”. þ and y were difficult to distinguish, so written out, the two were easily confused – and apparently continue to be.

Microwaves can give you cancer

Microwave radiation can’t cause cancer through because it is non-ionising, and therefore not the “bad kind”. Radiation that is associated with cancer risks is ionising radiation, such as X-rays. No studies have found that microwave radiation causes cancer, even with exposure levels way above what might occur in the average kitchen.

“Golf” was not originally an acronym for “Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden”

Despite what the lads might say, the word “golf” does not derive from a misogynist acronym. In fact, it probably originates from the Dutch word kolf or kolve, meaning “club”, or possibly from the Gaelic word goulf or gowf meaning “to strike or cuff”. The Scottish affiliation with the sport goes way back in history, and, contrary to the acronym misnomer, Mary Queen of Scots was a keen golfer.

Chameleons change colour at will to camouflage themselves

Chameleons absolutely do have the ability to change colour, but it’s a myth that they do so to camouflage themselves in the face of danger. Chameleons change colour to regulate their temperature or communicate with other chameleons – not to camouflage themselves.

The Great Wall of China is the only human-made object visible from space

Despite the idiom, bulls are not enraged by the colour red. It’s true that the capes used by professional matadors are usually red or pink, and there’s no surprise that the poor bull might charge in the face of the perceived threat of a waving matador, but cattle are dichromats (similar to humans with red-green colour blindness), so red would not stand out more than any other colour.

Lightning never strikes in the same place twice

This one’s one of the oldest and most commonly believed misconceptions, but in reality it has no basis in evidence. Lightning in a thunderstorm is more likely to strike the most prominent or conductive objects or areas. For example, lightning strikes the Empire State Building in New York City about 100 times per year because it is both high in the skyline and made of metal. So it is actually more than likely that lightning will strike in the same place twice!

Big feet, big…

Neither race, hand size nor foot size correlate with human penis size, but finger length ratio may.

We only use 10% of our brains

People often cite the myth that we only use 10% of the brain. It is accurate to say that a small minority of neurons are actively firing at any one time, but a healthy human will in most cases use most of the brain over the course of a day (and the inactive neurons are no less important). The popularised idea that activating 100% of the brain would allow someone to achieve their maximum potential would actually be disastrous, and would likely result in a deadly seizure.

All living things eventually die