List of common misconceptions From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia This incomplete list is not intended to be exhaustive. This list corrects erroneous beliefs that are currently widely held about notable topics. Arts and culture Food and cooking Roll-style Western sushi. Searing meat does not "seal in" moisture, and in fact may actually cause meat to lose moisture. Legislation and crime Literature The Harry Potter books, though they have broken children's book publishing records, have not led to an increase in reading among children or adults, nor slowed the ongoing overall decline in book purchases by Americans, and children who did read the Harry Potter books were not more likely to go on to read more outside of the fantasy and mystery genres.[21][22][23][24] Music Religion Hebrew Bible The forbidden fruit mentioned in the Book of Genesis is commonly assumed to be an apple,[27] and is widely depicted as such in Western art. Buddhism The historical Buddha was not obese. Christianity Islam Sports Words and phrases History Biology
mental_floss Blog » 22 Fictional Characters Whose Names You Don’t Know You know the characters, but you might not know their full names. Store these away for future trivia nights. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. "It was a dreadfully long name to weigh down a poor innocent child, and one of the hardest lessons I ever learned was to remember my own name. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21 & 22. Thing in a Jar Thing in a Jar 7 inches by 4 inches, mason jar Pictured above is the Thing in a Jar that's usually sitting in my office at work. The coolest thing about the Thing is that everyone responds to seeing it by asking questions. Where did I find it? Is it an internal organ? The Thing in a Jar is made out of Sculpey, acryllic paint and rubber cement. This is the third Thing in a Jar I've made. Here's a conceptual sketch I made of this Thing before I sculpted it. 1.5 by 2.5 inches, ballpoint pen Usually when I make a Thing in a Jar, I try to keep the shape ambiguous enough so that the viewer cannot really pin down exactly what they're looking at. The glass jar acts as a physical barrier, preventing the viewer from directly accessing its contents. I think this is much cooler than, for example, a painting, which basically has this big implicit sign hanging off of it that says, "I am just a painting of an object, not the object itself. Viewers of The Thing in a Jar do not have this preconception.
List of inventors killed by their own inventions Franz Reichelt (d. 1912) attempted to use this contraption as a parachute. Reichelt died after he jumped off the Eiffel Tower wearing his invention, which failed to operate properly as a parachute. This is a list of inventors whose deaths were in some manner caused by or related to a product, process, procedure, or other innovation that they invented or designed. Direct casualties Automotive Fred Duesenberg, killed in high speed road accident in Duesenberg automobile.William Nelson (ca. 1879−1903), a General Electric employee, invented a new way to motorize bicycles. Aviation Industrial Maritime Hunley Submarine Medical Thomas Midgley, Jr. (1889–1944) was an American engineer and chemist who contracted polio at age 51, leaving him severely disabled. Physics Publicity and entertainment Karel Soucek (19 April 1947 – 20 January 1985) was a Canadian professional stuntman who developed a shock-absorbent barrel. Punishment Railways Rocketry Popular myths and related stories See also References E.
Morbid Home Decor Over a year ago, I posted Killer Home Decor and found out how many of you have a subversive, or even a morbid sense of humor in furnishing your homes. This is the long overdue continuation of that post, with more ways for you to impress visitors to your home. These products will give them either smiles on their faces or chills down their backs! Roadkill Carpet Ew, what's that on your rug? Mr. The Mr. Dead Fred Penholder Dead Fred is a penholder. Hanged Man Lamp Shine a little light in the darkness with the Hanged Man Lamp by enPieza. Nuclear Waste Containers Nothing says "hands off" like a nuclear symbol. Coffin Table The Memento Coffee Table Casket is designed to be both a coffee table and a coffin! Made from an intentional choice of materials, this "pine box" puts design in context of the user at different stages of life, and death. Coffin Couch Coffin Couches are made from 18 gauge steel coffins collected from Southern California funeral homes. Knife Hooks Crime Scene Scarf
The Art of Influence Secrets to complaining effectively, motivating loved ones, and getting what you want without being a jerk. Illustrations by Lou Brooks Babies and psychopaths have one thing in common: They're excellent at getting what they want. Many of us could learn a thing or two from these creatures, tantrums and dirty tactics notwithstanding. That's not to say that, like these ingrates, we should feel entitled to everything we want. But for some, grabbing the brass ring is a constant source of stress and confusion. Were it uniformly advantageous to be aggressive, timid, positive, or negative in pursuit of one's goal, evolution would have selected for only such types. Complain to Win —Not to Feel Worse Kvetch, Bitcher, Debbie Downer: No one likes a chronic complainer, and we've got multiple derogatory terms to prove it. The first step to effective complaining, then, is deciding if you truly want a concrete result or if you just need emotional validation. Figure Out What Others Want
30 of the World's Greatest Wedding Cakes Few things are more important on a wedding day (apart from both partners turning up; the ring being secure; and nobody objecting during the ceremony) than the cake. Very few weddings are without such a centrepiece. It's just a shame that so many couples opt for the same traditional, boring designs when there is so much opportunity to impress and surprise the guests. Here are 30 brilliant examples, to be used as inspiration for your own big day. Above: A wedding cake fit for an action hero. Above: An illustration of things to come? Above: There's nothing like brutal honesty wrapped in a Portal nod to begin a marriage. Above: A wedding massacre. Above: A show of vanity so incredible as to be impressive. Above: A wedding cake fit for geeks. Above: The most unappetising wedding cake I've ever wanted. Above: A work of baked art. Above: For Stargate fans only. Above: Good news everyone! Above: A cake for the Lego lovers amongst us. Above: Binary deliciousness. Above: Nothing is safe from Steampunk.
9 Odd and Unusual Soaps When you need to buy a gift for a person who doesn't want anything specific, items that can be used up are always welcome. Sweets, art supplies, wine, and soap will be used and won't clutter up the house for years to come. Here are some odd and unusual soaps for the odd and unusual people in your life. 1. This gift is like giving someone a lottery ticket. 2. Clean up with the Dark Side! 3. Archie McPhee offers Absinthe Soap as an alternative for those who can't afford to fill a bathtub with absinthe. 4. Here's another liquor-based soap that comes in shot glass form! 5. Two Etsy vendors make soap in Tetris shapes. 6. iPhone Soap Get someone you love an iPhone. 7. The original Fuzzy Wuzzy Bath Soap from the 1960s made bath time fun because it would start "growing hair"! 8. Hideaki Matsui designed soap bars that resemble landmines . For every soap purchased, $2 is donated to The Cambodia Landmine Museum. 9. Razor Blade Soap comes with the disclaimer "for decorative purposes only".
How to Persuade People with Subconscious Techniques Edit Article Edited by DumbLittleMan.com, Zoe Volt, Krystle, Teresa and 71 others Persuasiveness is an important skill everyone should learn because it is useful in countless situations. At work, home, and in your social life, the ability to be persuasive and influence others can be instrumental for achieving goals and being happy. Learning about the tricks of persuasion can also give you insight into when they're being used on you. Ad Steps 1Use framing to influence thought. Tips Use the same techniques you fear on the sales person to turn the table and intimidate him/her. Warnings Don't speak too fast.
6 Insane Discoveries That Science Can't Explain We like to feel superior to the people who lived centuries ago, what with their shitty mud huts and curing colds by drilling a hole in their skulls. But we have to give them credit: They left behind some artifacts that have left the smartest of modern scientists scratching their heads. For instance, you have the following enigmas that we believe were created for no other purpose than to fuck with future generations. The Voynich Manuscript The Mystery: The Voynich manuscript is an ancient book that has thwarted all attempts at deciphering its contents. It appears to be a real language--just one that nobody has seen before. Translation: "...and when you get her to put the tennis racket in her mouth, have her stand in a fountain for a while. There is not even a consensus on who wrote it, or even when it was written. Why Can't They Solve It? Could you? Don't even try. As you can imagine, proposed solutions have been all over the board, from reasonable to completely clownshit. Our Guess:
8 Attention-Grabbing Soaps At one time, soap was soap. You had your choice of deodorant soap or moisturizing soap, and maybe a few different scents. Today, there is no limit to the creativity put into a simple bar of soap. 1. They look good, they smell good, but don't eat these Soapsicles! 2. You can now wash with your favorite internet aggregator site, as long as it's Reddit. 3. A little soap pig, embedded in a mud bath of soap. 4. Your natural grip comes into play even in the shower with the Xbox controller bar of soap. 5. This hand-milled tomato soap contains tomato powder, with natural acid to help exfoliate the skin. 6. Dawnella Sutton makes and sells Mothers Moon Breastmilk Soap, which contains her own milk along with olive oil, glycerin, and honey. 7. Coal Face is a black bar of soap. 8. Wash your hands with Hand Soap.
How to find true friends (and love) in 45 minutes David Rowan Editor of Wired magazine This article was featured in Times Magazine, 5 November. There's a shorter version in the Ideas Bank section on the current Wired magazine. Thanks to WPP's Stream for making my little experiment possible... Can you make someone become intimately close to you -- even fall in love with you -- in less than an hour? Dr Aron -- known to friends as Art -- runs the Interpersonal Relationships Lab at Stony Brook University on the north shore of Long Island, east of New York City, and he has love on his mind. Back in 1997, Aron and colleagues published a paper in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin on "The Experimental Generation of Interpersonal Closeness". They arranged volunteers in pairs, and gave them a list of 36 questions that, one by one, they were both asked to answer openly over an hour "in a kind of sharing game". But would the "fast friends" experiment also work with more worldly senior executives and entrepreneurs?
Top 10 Bizarre & Controversial Archeological Discoveries Many strange archeological discoveries have been made in modern history. Hundreds of artifacts have been unearthed that have baffled scientists and challenged modern man’s view of history. Many of these objects have been labeled out of place artifacts or anachronisms. These archeological discoveries are always controversial and the scientific community is extremely selective in what they accept as fact. Every object on this list has been accused of being an elaborate hoax. In many cases, a conspiracy is the only explanation, without an extensive rewriting of the world’s history books. 10. Discovered: 1944 Attempts have been made to date these figures using Thermoluminescence, or TL dating, and the results suggested a date around 2500 BCE. 9. Discovered: 1938 The alleged story of the Dropa Stones is as follows. The disks were labeled the Dropa Stones. Tsum Um Nui claims that an alien spacecraft crashed in the Bayan Har Shan region 12,000 years ago. 8. Discovered: 1880s 7. Discovered: 1999
9 Muppets Kicked Off Sesame Street In 40 seasons, Sesame Street has featured over 1,000 characters. Although we’ll always have mainstays like Big Bird, Elmo, Bert and Ernie, many Muppets have been forgotten or deemed unnecessary. Here are a few Sesame Street residents who were evicted. 1. Perhaps the most famous of the retired Sesame Street Muppets is Roosevelt Franklin. Parents wrote to the Children’s Television Workshop to complain that Roosevelt was a negative stereotype of African-American children, citing his rowdy nature and the fact that his classes closely resembled after-school detention. 2. If a Muppet with a ’70s porn mustache and googly eyes offers to keep an eye on your hat, run the other way. 3. If there’s one thing kids like, it’s boring lectures. 4. One of Richard Hunt’s most beloved characters was Don Music, a pianist and lyricist who penned such hits as “Mary Had a Bicycle,” “Drive, Drive, Drive Your Car,” and “Can You Tell Me How to Get to Yellowstone Park?” 5. 6. 7. 8 & 9. Yes, that Kermit the Frog.