Thread: Top 10 Ridiculously Common Science Myths

List

I actually didn't even know that one side of the moon always faced Earth. I've always heard the term "Dark Side of the Moon," but I just thought it was referencing whichever side of the moon was facing away from Earth at any specific time.

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I actually didn't even know that one side of the moon always faced Earth.

haha, yeah I recently learned that too when I was reading about the phases of the moon. I still have trouble trying to picture how the earth, moon and sun all rotate and orbit in space. There's got to be some 3D modeled movie clip somewhere online (that's accurate) that depicts this.

How the hell do they consider the 5-second rule "science"?

What about "humans use only 10% of their brains" myth? It seems it's more common in popular culture than myths found in that list.

Yeah that's the one I always think of first.

I actually didn't even know that one side of the moon always faced Earth. I've always heard the term "Dark Side of the Moon," but I just thought it was referencing whichever side of the moon was facing away from Earth at any specific time.

You never noticed how it always looks exactly the same? Lord...

Yeah the lowest energy an orbiting body can have is if it rotates on its axis at the same speed that it orbits the body.

#10 (the one about evolution) is frustrating for me. Living in the Bible Belt, I hear all kinds of misconceptions, uninformed objections, and blatant straw-men regarding evolution. My roommate literally thinks that evolution implies a chimp giving birth to a human baby.

Originally Posted by Xei

Yeah that's the one I always think of first.

You never noticed how it always looks exactly the same? Lord...

No. I've never spent that much time looking at it. I look up and see a white orb with craters. Judging by your "Lord...", I'm guessing you've concluded that I'm, at the least, virtually unobservant. If it's all the same to you, I'll simply assume that you've spent more time looking at the moon than I have

Originally Posted by SnakeCharmer

What about "humans use only 10% of their brains" myth? It seems it's more common in popular culture than myths found in that list.

Actually that myth is horribly untrue. Only 10 percent of the cells in are neurons and the rest are glials. The glials are incapable of performing the same functions as the neurons. Common misconception.

Yeah - I think that's why he referred to is as a "myth," in the thread about science myths.

No one is exactly sure how the ten percent myth originated, but I highly doubt it was based on glial cells. Some have traced it back to a quote by seminal psychologist William James in a 1908 book of his: "We are making use of only a small part of our possible mental and physical resources." How you get the 10% figure from that is not clear, but this appears to be the best guess at the origin of this myth.