9 'Amazing Facts' That Are Totally Untrue
Have you heard the one about vending machines and shark attacks?
The internet loves nothing better than a good mind-blowing fact, but unfortunately, the emphasis tends to go more into the "mind-blowing" part than the "fact".
The real world is pretty amazing on its own, so you have to wonder why anyone would even bother making stuff up in the first place.
Sometimes these come about by an honest misunderstanding, maybe a bit of classic "story embellishment" for those sweet, sweet internet points, but sometimes you've got to wonder whether we're just being trolled.
Everybody likes to have a couple of these amazing facts on hand to make themselves sound smart at parties, but if you can tell the true from the false then you can one-up them by correcting them and sounding even smarter (that's what human interaction is all about, right?).
So, the next time someone wheels out a mind-blowing tidbit in the hope of sounding clever, bat it straight back at them with a slam dunk of deep fried knowledge and steal the glory for yourself. Plus, you know, contribute to the eradication of mindless pseudoscience and the proliferation of misinformation, and promote real science education.
But, let's be honest, it's mainly about sounding clever.
So, have you heard the one about sharks and vending machines?