Over time, even those facts that we consider to be unshakable truths can change. This is because our knowledge of the world around us is constantly being supplemented. Below are some ideas that have changed significantly since your time at your school desk.
Then: Pluto is a planet
Now: Pluto is not a planet.
Since the late 1800s, scientists have been aware of the potential existence of a ninth planet after Uranus was discovered. In 1906, Percival Lowell, founder of the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, even started a research project to discover the mysterious "Planet X".
But it wasn't until 1930 that a 23-year-old rookie astronomer was able to detect this object. Discoverer Clyde Tombaugh was tasked with systematically comparing photographs of the sky several weeks apart in order to find any moving objects. Eventually, he saw such an object and presented his findings at the Harvard College Observatory. After an 11-year-old Englishwoman named the new planet after the Roman god of the underworld, we began to consider Pluto to be another planet in our solar system.
But in 2003, astronomers found a larger object beyond Pluto's orbit, which was named Eris, according to NASA data. The new information has led to many other questions as to which object should actually be considered a planet. As a result of much controversy, astronomers decided that this should depend on size and location, and Pluto did not fit into these criteria, so it could not be called a planet. As a result, its status was downgraded to a dwarf planet.
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However, not everyone agrees with this decision. Researchers recently debated whether Pluto should be called a planet again.
Then: diamond is the hardest substance on the planet
Now: Superhard cubic boron nitride is the hardest substance.
Since 2009, we have known two substances that are harder than diamond. It is boron nitride wurtzite-like and lonsdaleite, according to Scientific American. The former is 18% harder than diamond and the latter is as much as 58%.
Unfortunately, both substances are rather unusual and unstable. The authors of the study, published in the journal Physical Review Letters, discovered this when they calculated not only the hardness of new substances, but also tested their samples.
Another study was published in the journal Nature in January 2013. Researchers compressed boron nitride particles until superhard cubic boron nitride was formed. Probably, we should expect that in the future all women in the world will start wearing wedding rings with cubic boron nitride, and not diamonds, because such stones will really be eternal.
Then: witches in Salem were burned at the stake
Now: they were actually hanged.
Even if you didn’t read Arthur Miller’s novel "The Cruel Test" in high school, you probably heard somewhere that the townspeople of Salem burned witches at the stake.
But this is actually not true, according to Richard Trask, an urban archivist in the city of Danvers (formerly known as Salem Village). He also chaired Salem Village's three-century witchcraft committee from 1990 to 1992 and wrote a book detailing this period called Salem Village: Witch Hysteria.
In those days, New England followed English law, which made witchcraft a criminal offense, the punishment for which was hanging, not burning at the stake. In Europe, however, the church considered witchcraft to be heresy, and suspects were burned at the stake. This is why the confusion has arisen.
Then: Egyptian pyramids were built by slaves by the Israelites
Now: the pyramids were built by workers from Egypt.
Even movies like The Prince of Egypt support the idea that the pyramids were built by slaves. Although many think the Bible speaks of this, it does not actually mention this particular story.
This popular myth stems from remarks made by former Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin during a 1977 visit to Egypt. Amichai Mazar, professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, states: "The Jews could not participate in the construction of the pyramids simply because at that time such a people did not exist yet."
Recent archaeological finds show that the Egyptians actually built the pyramids themselves. The workers were recruited from poor families in the north and south, but participation in the construction was very honorable. For their work, they even earned crypts near the pyramids. Slaves could not have enjoyed this honor.
Then: a piece of paper of any thickness or size cannot be folded in half more than seven times
Now: new set record - 13 times.
Although this idea is not part of the school curriculum, your teacher probably talked about it in math lessons. Nevertheless, California high school student Britney Gallivano managed to debunk this myth.
She bought giant rolls of toilet paper and was able to fold the pieces 11 times. She understood why all previous attempts were unsuccessful, and even worked out an equation based on the thickness and width of a particular paper, explaining why you had failed before.
Gullivan was the keynote speaker at the 2006 National Council of Educators' math convention. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a degree in environmental science in 2007 and has since started appearing on the then popular Legend Busters show.
In 2012, students at St Mark's School in Southborough, Massachusetts broke Gullivan's record by folding paper in half 13 times.
Then: The Great Wall of China is the only man-made object that can be seen from space
Now: Many man-made objects are visible from space.
Technically, this statement has never been a solid "truth." It was just a fact that teachers loved to repeat in their lessons. In fact, the idea that you can see the Great Wall of China not only from a spaceship, but also from the moon, appeared back in 1938. But it wasn't until 2003 that the first Chinese astronaut finally shattered this myth.
An astronaut named Yang Liwei admitted that he was never able to see the Great Wall of China from space, according to NASA. Then other facts began to appear to support this. As a result, scientists came to a consensus that the Great Wall of China can still be seen from space, but only under certain conditions (when there is snow on it), or using a zoom camera. But from space, you can easily see the lights of large cities, major roads and bridges, airports, dams and reservoirs.
But the assumptions that objects on Earth are visible from the moon turned out to be incorrect. “The only thing you can see from the moon is a beautiful sphere, mostly white, with spots of blue and yellow, and green from vegetation,” says Apollo 12 astronaut Alan Bean. "No man-made object is visible on this scale."
Then: there are five (or three) kingdoms of living organisms
Now: there may be about eight of them.
Depending on when you were in school, your biology teacher probably talked about the three main kingdoms of living organisms - animals, plants, and bacteria, or five, including fungi and protists. In any case, scientists have since expanded the classification of life.
The more species we find and analyze, the more difficult it is to continue to adhere to the classification. In addition to the five kingdoms mentioned above, science is now also identifying archaea, which were previously classified as bacteria. Archaea are similar in appearance to other single-celled organisms called eubacteria, but they have significant differences.
Conclusion
Science develops, and with it our ideas about the world are changing. I wonder what other facts will be refuted in the future?
Anna Pismenna
