21ST CENTURY MYTHS21ST CENTURY MYTHS

Alex KenanAlex Kenan

Myth• A common misconception, an error.

Common Myth• An erroneous belief pertaining to every

person, either created to deter someone from doing an action, or to encourage this person to do an action.

20. Cold weather gives you a cold

• THE MYTH: If you stay outdoors on cold, rainy days, you will contract sicknesses ranging from colds to pneumonia.

20. Cold weather gives you a cold

•THE TRUTH: Germs are spread by touching the eyes, nose, and mouth, when germs are on your fingers, or by inhaling droplets of germs expelled by a sneeze. Cold weather does allow germs to survive longer, but cold weather and viruses are not connected. Another explanation is that people are in closer contact (inside with each other for longer periods of time) than they would be in the winter.

19. Most of your body heat is lost from your head

• THE MYTH: Your body loses most of the heat through your head.

19. Most of your body heat is lost from your head

• THE TRUTH: The military study that concluded this myth had their soldiers’ heads uncovered, so naturally their head lost the most heat. In reality, your head loses approximately 10% of your total body heat.

18. Scratching poison ivy will spread it

• THE MYTH: If you scratch poison ivy, you get the urushiol, the poison ivy oil, on your fingers, and the next body part you touch will contract poison ivy.

18. Scratching poison ivy will spread it

• THE TRUTH: By the time the rash appears, the urushiol has more than likely rubbed off, and the rash that appears later had a delayed reaction. Rubbing merely irritates the rash, but does not spread it.

17. PENSIVE ABOUT CENTS?

• THE MYTH: Dropping a penny from a tall building will kill a pedestrian.

17. PENSIVE ABOUT CENTS?

• A penny is not aerodynamic enough to accelerate to a “killing” speed, and there are winds that hit the building and are directed upwards, further slowing down the penny

16. 5 SECONDS, ANYONE?

• THE MYTH: If you drop a mouthful of food, five seconds may pass without germs “finding” the food.

16. 5 SECONDS, ANYONE?

• THE TRUTH: Germs have already infested your piece of food, even if it has only been on the ground for a second.

15. Never wake a sleepwalker

• THE MYTH: Doctors advise parents to never wake a sleepwalker, lest they die of a heart attack from the shock of waking up.

15. Never wake a sleepwalker

• THE TRUTH: There have been no reported cases of death by awakening, but there is not concrete evidence disproving this myth.

14. WHAT’S THAT UNDER YAWNDER AWNING?

• THE MYTH: Yawning is contagious.

14. WHAT’S THAT UNDER YAWNDER AWNING?

• THE TRUTH: Yawning is physiological, so this myth can be deemed true.

13. THE GREAT WALL

• THE MYTH: The Great Wall of China is the only manmade object that can be seen from space.

13. THE GREAT WALL

• THE TRUTH: Nothing detailed can be seen from space. To be able to see the Great Wall, other objects, such as Mount Rushmore, The Sphinx, and other monuments would be seen, as well.

12. SPIDERS GALORE

• THE MYTH: You swallow eight spiders a year.

12. SPIDERS GALORE

• THE TRUTH: Even in your sleep, you move enough to scare, or at the very least, deter, most spiders.

11. GOLDEN LIARS

• THE MYTH: Goldfish have a three-second memory.

11. GOLDEN LIARS

• THE TRUTH: Goldfish have been taught to navigate mazes and associate items with food. (Mythbusters)

10. AIRCRAFTED TALES

• THE MYTH: A rapid decompression in an airplane (a window breaks opens at 35,000 feet, for example) will cause a black hole scenario, sucking every passenger out of the aircraft.

10. AIRCRAFTED TALES

• THE TRUTH: The space allotted for windows is small enough that a pilot would have enough time to descend below 10,000 feet, where this decompression would not be possible. (Mythbusters)

9. READ FOR THOUGHT?

• THE MYTH: Reading in poor light ruins your eyesight.

9. READ FOR THOUGHT?

• THE TRUTH: Eyes are designed to be used, so they may be strained, but not permanently damaged.

8. It takes gum seven years to be digested

• THE MYTH: It takes gum seven years to pass through your digestive system.

8. It takes gum seven years to be digested

• THE TRUTH: Your intestines siphon any and all nutrients from the food you eat, so any waste is merely passed through your body as a solid, and exits your body roughly two days later.

7. EYE WON’T WEAR THOSE

• THE MYTH: Wearing someone else’s glasses will damage your own eyesight.

7. EYE WON’T WEAR THOSE

• THE TRUTH: Duration is key here. For a few minutes, or days, nothing will happen. But after a few years, eyesight may be affected.

6. You must wait one hour to swim after eating

• THE MYTH: You must wait at least thirty minutes, preferably one hour, after eating to swim. Because your body diverts blood to aid digestion, swimming too soon can give you life-threatening cramps.

6. You must wait one hour to swim after eating

• THE TRUTH: Blood is diverted for digesting, and the fear is that too much blood is diverted. Not enough blood is rerouted to cause a life-threatening cramp.

5. Dehydrationing

• THE MYTH: In a normal diet, you should drink eight glasses of water a day, at minimum.

5. Dehydrationing

• THE TRUTH: About seven of these cups are consumed by eating regular food.

4. Water You Waiting For?

• THE MYTH: If you are thirsty it is too late.

4. Water You Waiting For?

• THE TRUTH: The body’s mechanism for indicating thirst is to be thirsty, so being thirsty is not a sign of severe dehydration.

3. EYE SPY

• THE MYTH: Crossing your eyes will make them stuck.

3. EYE SPY

• THE TRUTH: This action uses and often-idle muscle, so it will feel weird, but this muscle will not seize up and keep your eyes crossed.

2. POP

• THE MYTH: Cracking your knuckles causes arthritis.

2. POP

• THE TRUTH: The popping sound is caused by bubbles in the cartilage moving and popping. This does not cause arthritis, but it does erode the cartilage over time.

1. More Aircrafted TAles

• THE MYTH: When electronics are turned on below 10,000 ft, it will interfere with the airplane’s navigation equipment.

1. More Aircrafted TAles

• THE TRUTH: The fear is that there is electromagnetic interference, and it will render standard navigation equipment useless. However, aircraft have triple- and quadruple redundant systems designed to combat this. There are reports that this has happened.