15 Biggest Hoaxes That Fooled The World

Clever Hans was a horse that could count - or at lest, that's what his owner claimed.

Hans would solve complex arithmetic, spell, tell the time keep track of calendar dates and even had an understanding of music. His owner Wilhelm von Osten, a mathematics teacher and amateur horse trainer, would exhibit Hans throughout Germany and would never charge the public to see his incredible talents.

Hans would answer questions by stamping his foot. So if he was asked what was three plus four, he would tap his hoof seven times. There were many studies carried out on Hans, including isolating him from Von Osten. Hans was still able to perform his tricks when questioned by a stranger, so the possibility of trickery was eliminated. It was, however, when Hans was questioned by somebody who did not already know the answer that his amazing abilities would fail.

It turns out that Hans was not actually performing complicated mathematics, but was in fact picking up on the subtle, unconscious body language of the humans that were questioning him. He would simply tap his foot until his questioner appeared to relax and then he knew that he would get a round of applause and a handful of oats or something. Sounds like a better life for a horse than pulling a plough, perhaps he really was Clever Hans after all.