Understand the List of Common Misconceptions on Wikipedia
Replace your annoying “Did You Know?” factoids with even more annoying fixes like “This is actually a fake.” Wikipedia has a huge list of common misconceptions about history, science, and more. I check once a year to refresh my complacency.
The most corrected facts are:
- Twinkies don’t last forever; they have a shelf life of about 45 days.
- An undercover cop is allowed to lie when you ask if he is a cop.
- The virgin birth is about the birth of Mary, not Jesus, and about the original sin, not the virgin birth.
- The black belt is not always the highest rank in the martial arts.
- The abbreviation “Christmas” was coined by medieval monks.
- The Roman vomit hall was not a place to vomit; it was the entrance to the stadium.
- Napoleon was 5’7 ” tall, slightly above the French average in the 1800s.
- You can swim immediately after eating.
- The glass doesn’t actually flow. This is how the old deformed windows did.
- Hair does not get thicker after shaving.
- Redheads don’t die out.
Of course, this is still Wikipedia, so before relying on fact for anything more than conversation, go to the source.
List of Common Misconceptions | Wikipedia