The American journal "Living Science" published the opinion of scientists about the most popular "scientists" myths. The exposure session showed that most of the myths are just myths, i.e. errors. But some turned out to be more tenacious and withstood the test with a scalpel, ruler, thermometer and chronometer
Myth No. 1. There is no gravity in space
A very strange myth that could arise only among the most innocent citizens - by the way, the magazine does not indicate in which countries and societies this myth arose that there is no gravity in space. Why, then, does the Earth not fly away from the Sun, and the Moon from the Earth? Apparently, the myth arose due to observations of weightlessness inside spacecraft, but in fact both astronauts and all objects in these vehicles regularly fall to Earth. But they fly around the planet in a horizontal direction, and this fall is imperceptible.
According to the well-known formula, the force of attraction does noticeably decrease with distance, but it never disappears. Here is an example: some small planets revolve around the Sun and cannot fly anywhere from it, although they are at a distance hundreds of times greater than the Earth.
Myth # 2. Our brain works at 5%
Someone, somewhere, somewhere invented and wrote that we use our brain either by 5, or by 10%. Firstly, it is not clear, by 5% of what? Masses? Or volume? That this is not true has been known since the century before last, when doctors described dozens of cases of catastrophic brain damage, in which, however, our "organ of thought" functioned completely normally. The last case was observed recently in India, when a patient came to the hospital (!), Holding a steel crowbar with his hand, which pierced his head through. The scrap was taken out, the holes were patched up, and the next day our Indian was already regularly standing at the counter selling spices. He was not at all stupid and bargained as before.
Secondly, this myth has been refuted experimentally, by the method of magnetic resonance imaging. The pictures show that at the time of solving the problem (for example, about a wolf, a goat and a cabbage), almost all parts of the brain are involved.
Myth # 3: Chewing gum clogs up the stomach
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Chewing gum, which sticks deadly to clothes and furniture, served as the basis for the myth of its long digestion in the human stomach - already seven years. It is strange that the propagators of the myth did not think about how to measure this strange period of time. Mark that first rubber band with something? With what? And not to chew other gum for these seven years? And although scientists from "Living Science" argue that gum is easy to digest in a few days, we believe that everything is even easier. Why digest? She, being small in size, herself will come out in a known way.
Myth No. 4. Life after death
It's about the posthumous growth of hair and nails, just some kind of horror. Moreover, there are allegedly eyewitness accounts. For example, when the grave of Nikolai Gogol was opened at the Danilovskoye cemetery, the mystic writer found very long nails on his hands and feet, as well as strongly regrown hair. However, the myth immediately arose that Gogol was buried alive, which, by the way, he was very afraid of. However, there was no premature burial or posthumous growth of hair and nails. Everything is explained quite simply - after the physical extinction of the body, it also dries up, so that the hair and nails just seem longer. And in the case of Gogol, moreover, they were quite long during his lifetime.
Myth # 5. You can run away from the rain
There is a myth that if you run in the rain, you will get wet less. Something like that the raindrops will not have time to hit you. Nonsense, of course - it's just that the runner will get to the shelter more quickly and get less wet due to less time in the rain. So this myth is, in a sense, true. It's funny that under certain conditions - the angle of incidence of the drops, their size and flow density - you can get even more wet when running than when walking for the same time!
Myth # 6. Yawning is contagious
And this is not a myth. Homo sapiens retained the imitative effect from its ancient ancestor. And since this ancestor became the ancestor not only of man, but also of great apes, modern apes also begin to yawn in chorus when at least one of the tribe members yawns. Scientists even believe that monkeys mimic each other. And for us the imitative effect is rather triggered.
Myth # 7. Poppy seed buns are a drug
The poppy seeds on the bun do contain opium. This is no longer a myth, but not entirely true - in the sense that a chemical analysis in the blood of a person who has eaten a couple of rolls will undoubtedly detect opiates, but their amount will be such that there will be no narcotic effect in any case. But if you scrape together a dozen buns of poppy seeds … Maybe you will feel something.
Myth # 8. Thoughts about sex
Allegedly, a man thinks about sex every seven seconds. You don't even need to refute, because it is in no way possible to check this nonsense. The author of this article, for example, did not think about this matter for an hour, because at that time he was writing the article.
Myth # 9. Deadly gravity
If you throw a coin from a skyscraper, then it can kill your enemy. Nothing of the kind, the wind will blow the coin, because of the wind, the air will resist it, and in the end it will most likely fall with the wrong force. Zhivaya Nauka magazine recommends using bricks, and a skyscraper is not even needed, three or four floors are enough.
Myth No. 10. What has fallen and what has not
A quickly lifted item (the journal says about five seconds after falling) is not considered to have fallen. But scientists remind that bacteria from the floor attack a sandwich or a piece of cake immediately, in the first split second. And as a result, those who believe in this myth eat up a whole colony of pathogenic microorganisms. But you and I, in Russia, know that all this is nonsense and nothing to worry about, we just need to quickly raise it. And the linguistic charm of the construction “A thing that is quickly lifted is not considered to have fallen” confirms that we are not dealing with a myth, but with truth.
Russian folk tales
Love-space
The most beloved myth in Russia, which can be considered "scientific", is the visit of our country by aliens. "Investigators" of unidentified flying objects (ufologists) have collected thousands of testimonials about these events, paying particular attention to the stories of women who became pregnant from aliens. Most of these cases were recorded in the Perm Territory, which, by analogy with Bermuda, was even given the name Perm Triangle. The ufologists try not to mention the increasing number of beaten wives and divorces in this area due to betrayals of spouses with local foresters. The children born of these abductions are, in a strange way, exclusively like foresters.
Historical and chemical
The periodic table of elements appeared to Mendeleev in a dream. Like the story of Newton's apple and Archimedes' bathtub, it is a legend. There are several handwritten versions of the table, written by the great chemist in different years and gradually approaching the final table. Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev worked on his periodic law not just one night, but for a long time, often rejecting ready-made options. In addition, as he himself admitted, he rarely had dreams, which he also did not remember.
Nobel
Back in Soviet times, there was an opinion that our scientists are not given Nobel Prizes precisely because they are Soviet. In the West, we are disliked, hurt and neglected. In fact, most of the really outstanding discoveries in the USSR were simply classified, and during Stalin's time it was simply forbidden to exhibit for the Nobel Prize and receive it. In modern Russia, organizations and persons entitled to nominate for the prize do not do this out of envy and fear of competition in the distribution of funds and other benefits. Perhaps the only example when our scientist was not given the well-deserved Nobel Prize was the discovery of an electron-paramagnetic resonance by Evgeny Zavoisky. However, for this effect they did not give the Nobel Prize to anyone else.