The 1950s
102 entries on file
Things people believed and taught during the 1950s.
The biggest single decade in this database. Atomic optimism, Suburbia, the rise of paediatricians who confidently recommended cigarettes to nervous mothers. Lobotomies remained mainstream until 1954. Thalidomide was prescribed for morning sickness from 1957 (Australia kept prescribing it longer than most). DDT was sprayed on children at school assemblies to kill nits. Sugar-funded studies put dietary fat in the dock. The 1950s look like the most confident era of bad medical advice in the modern record because they were. Most of what your mum was told as a teenager was wrong, and a lot of it was actively dangerous.
If You Shave, Your Hair Grows Back Thicker and Darker
Shaving creates the appearance of thicker hair, but doesn't change growth
Goldfish Have a Three-Second Memory
Goldfish can remember for months and can be trained
The Hook Man Murdered Lovers
A classic campfire story with no documented victims
Swallowed Gum Stays in Your Stomach for Seven Years
Gum passes through your digestive system normally
Your Blood is Blue Until It Hits Oxygen
Blood is always red, but veins appear blue through your skin
Swimming After Eating Causes Cramps and You'll Drown
Digestion doesn't prevent swimming; immediate swimming might cause mild discomfort
Shaving Makes Hair Grow Back Thicker
Shaving doesn't affect hair thickness, just creates blunt edges
Elephants Have Perfect Memory
Elephants have good memory but not perfect; they forget like all animals
Chameleons Change Colour to Match Their Surroundings
Chameleons change colour primarily for communication, not camouflage
Cold Weather Causes the Common Cold
Cold viruses spread year-round; winter cold doesn't cause illness
A Penny Dropped from a Skyscraper Can Kill Someone
Terminal velocity of a penny is too low to cause fatal injury
Porcupines Shoot Their Quills
Porcupines don't shoot; quills detach easily on contact
Lemmings Commit Mass Suicide by Jumping Off Cliffs
Lemmings die when migrating due to over population; not suicide behaviour
Cut Earthworms Regenerate into Two Worms
Only the head end regrows; tail end dies
Uranus Was Named for Its Pronunciation
Named after Greek mythology, not pronunciation of a body part
Dogs See Only in Black and White
Dogs see in colour, just with different colour sensitivity
Sitting Too Close to the TV Damages Your Eyes
Proximity to screens causes strain, not permanent damage
A Tree Will Grow in Your Stomach If You Swallow a Seed
Seeds need soil and light to germinate
Michael Jackson Bleached His Skin to Appear White
Jackson had vitiligo; he used cosmetics and skin treatments for this condition
Margarine is a healthier choice than butter
Butter contains more natural fats; early margarines had harmful trans fats
Thalidomide is a safe and effective morning sickness treatment for pregnant women
Thalidomide causes severe birth defects; its approval is considered a major pharmaceutical tragedy
BMI is a definitive measure of health status
BMI ignores muscle mass, bone density, and overall fitness; it's one of many health indicators
Area 51 houses captured alien spacecraft and beings
Area 51 is military test facility; alien presence unconfirmed and unlikely
Sitting too close to TV ruins your eyesight
Causes temporary eye strain; no permanent damage occurs
Quicksand is a Major Real-World Danger You'll Encounter
Quicksand is rare, survivable, and much less dramatic than movies suggest
If You Swallow Your Tongue You'll Die
You can't swallow your tongue; it's anchored in place
Lightning Never Strikes the Same Place Twice
Lightning can and does strike the same location repeatedly
If You Touch a Baby Bird the Mother Will Reject It
Most bird parents won't reject chicks due to human touch
If You Swallow Gum It Gets Stuck in Your Throat
Gum passes through safely; it doesn't lodge in your throat
Going Outside with Wet Hair Makes You Sick or Catch a Cold
Colds are caused by viruses, not by temperature or wet hair
Redback Spiders Are Australia's Deadliest Spider
Redbacks haven't caused a death since antivenom was introduced in 1956; funnel-webs are far more dangerous
Rosa Parks Refused to Give Up Her Seat Because She Was Tired
Parks' action was a planned act of civil disobedience organised by NAACP activists, not spontaneous exhaustion
There Is a 'Jiffy' Brand Peanut Butter
The brand is 'Jif' peanut butter; 'Jiffy' is a different product (baking mix)
One Dog Year Equals Seven Human Years
Ageing is steep early then slows; the flat times-seven rule is wrong
You Lose Most of Your Body Heat Through Your Head
Your head loses heat in proportion to its size, like any bare patch of skin
Antibiotics Will Cure Your Cold
Colds are viral, and antibiotics do nothing to viruses
A Polygraph 'Lie Detector' Can Tell When You're Lying
It measures nervousness, not honesty, and it is easily fooled
Drowning Always Looks Dramatic with Splashing
Drowning is often silent; victims may not be able to call for help
Brain Cells Cannot Be Regenerated
Neurogenesis occurs throughout life in specific brain regions
Glass Is a Slow-Flowing Liquid
Glass is an amorphous solid, not a liquid
Hair and Fingernails Continue Growing After Death
Skin dehydration makes hair and nails appear to grow
Brown Sugar Is Healthier Than White Sugar
Nutritionally equivalent; brown sugar is white sugar plus molasses
Hummingbirds Migrate by Hitching Rides on Geese
Hummingbirds migrate independently using their own remarkable flight
Eucalyptus Makes Koalas Sleepy
Koalas sleep due to low-nutrition diet; eucalyptus toxins are metabolized
Snakes Unhinge Their Jaws to Swallow Prey
Snakes don't unhinge; their jaw bones are loosely connected allowing extreme stretching
Goosebumps Make You Look Bigger to Scare Predators
Vestigial reflex in humans; maybe useful for hairy ancestors
Chili Peppers Taste Burning Because They Are Hot
Capsaicin triggers pain receptors; no actual heat is involved
Penguins Wear Tuxedos Complete with Knees
Penguin anatomy includes hidden legs
Touching Baby Birds Causes Parental Rejection
Most birds have a poor sense of smell
Waking a Sleepwalker Is Dangerous or Harmful
Waking sleepwalkers is safe and often advisable
Diamonds Are Just Compressed Coal
Diamonds and coal have different origins
Lemmings Commit Mass Suicide in Synchronized Fashion
Disney created fake footage for a 1958 documentary
Fluoride in water is used for mind control by government
Fluoride at water levels prevents tooth decay; no mind control mechanism exists
The Earth is flat and governments hide this fact
Earth's spherical shape confirmed by multiple independent methods
Toilet water swirls opposite directions by hemisphere due to Coriolis
Coriolis effect is too weak at toilet scale; design determines swirl
Marilyn Monroe was unable to control her dress in wind scene
The dress flying was intentional direction; wind was artificially produced
You Have to Hold Your Breath Through a Tunnel for Good Luck
A fun game, but no magical consequences either way
Reading in Dim Light or Darkness Permanently Damages Your Eyes
Low light causes temporary eye strain, not permanent damage
Uluru Is a Surface Monolith
Uluru extends many kilometres underground; what we see is just the exposed portion of a vast geological formation
The Kiwifruit Was Named After the Kiwi Bird (New Zealand)
Actually reversed: the fruit was named after the bird, not the other way around, establishing the naming direction
Medieval People Drank Beer Because the Water Was Unsafe
They drank plenty of water; they just also liked ale, same as us
Owls Can Turn Their Heads All the Way Around
Impressive, but it is about 270 degrees, not a full circle
Giant Pandas Have Opposable Thumbs Like Us
Their 'thumb' is a modified wrist bone, not a real digit
Dogs Don't Sweat, They Only Pant
Panting is their main cooling, but they do sweat through their paws
Brown Eggs Are Healthier Than White Eggs
Shell colour is just the breed of hen; the inside is the same
Frozen Vegetables Are Far Less Nutritious Than Fresh
Frozen is snap-picked and can beat 'fresh' that has aged in transit
Muscle Turns Into Fat When You Stop Exercising
They are different tissues; one shrinks while the other can grow
Doing Sit-Ups Burns the Fat Off Your Belly
You cannot choose where you lose fat; spot reduction does not work
Subliminal Messages Make You Buy Popcorn and Coke
The famous cinema experiment was admitted to be a fraud
Some People Have a Perfect Photographic Memory
No adult has ever been verified to store images like a flawless camera
Schizophrenia Means Having a Split Personality
It is a disorder of perception and thought, not multiple identities
A Silencer Makes a Gun Almost Silent
A suppressed gunshot is still as loud as a jackhammer
Fortune Cookies Are a Chinese Tradition
They were popularised in California and are rare in China
The Fat, Laughing Buddha Statue Is the Buddha
That is Budai, a later folklore monk; the Buddha is depicted as slim
Stomach Acid Can Dissolve Anything
Stomach acid is strong but doesn't dissolve living stomach tissue
Humans Are Diurnal Creatures Only
Humans have flexible circadian rhythms with nocturnal capacity
Wet Dog Smell Is Just Water
Smell comes from bacterial and fungal compounds on skin
Toucan Beaks Are Heavy and Unbalanced
Toucan beaks are lightweight despite their size
Catfish Whiskers Are for Taste
Whiskers (barbels) are sensory organs but not for taste
Ostriches Can Outrun Vehicles
Ostriches reach 45 mph; cars are typically faster
Fire Requires Only Oxygen, Heat, and Fuel
Fire requires a chain reaction; oxygen alone is insufficient
Broken Glass Will Cut Your Stomach If Swallowed
Glass typically passes safely through the digestive system
Electric Eels Generate Electricity Underwater
Electric eels do generate electricity but freshwater complicates it
Eating Peanuts Causes Acne and Pimples
No scientific link between peanuts and acne
Chocolate Causes More Tooth Decay Than Other Candy
Dark chocolate may actually protect teeth
Caffeine Stunts Children's Growth
No scientific evidence for this connection
Stars Twinkle Because They're Moving
Stars twinkle due to Earth's atmosphere
Contagious Yawning Shows Empathy
The mechanism is neurological, not specifically empathic
Oprah Winfrey Is the Only Self-Made Female Billionaire
Oprah is a billionaire but not the only self-made female billionaire; numbers vary by year
Heartburn means your stomach acid is too strong
Heartburn usually results from sphincter weakness or timing, not acid strength
Adding Salt to Water Makes It Boil Faster
Salt raises the boiling point, making water take longer to boil
Only Type 1 Diabetics Need Insulin
Type 2 diabetes often requires insulin therapy
Vaccines Aren't Necessary Because Diseases Were Already Declining
Death rates fell but infection rates didn't; vaccines provided the final, decisive step
The Polio Vaccine Caused More Polio Than It Prevented (Cutter Incident)
The 1955 Cutter Incident was real but contained; it led to safer vaccines, not abandonment of vaccination
Meteorites Are Burning Hot When They Hit the Ground
Many are cold, sometimes frosty, by the time they land
The Alcohol Cooks Off Completely When You Cook With Wine
A surprising amount survives, depending on how and how long you cook
The Saying Is 'The Customer Is Always Right'
It began as a slogan about respecting shoppers, not a literal rule that the customer can never be wrong
You Cannot Taste Colours
Some people experience synesthesia linking taste and colour
Stevie Wonder Is Not Actually Blind
Stevie Wonder has been blind since infancy; documented medical fact
Fat-soluble vitamins are safe in unlimited amounts
Vitamins A, D, E, K can accumulate and cause toxicity at high doses
The Earth Is Continuously Expanding
Expanding earth theory rejected by plate tectonics
Your Nose Points in the Direction You're Naturally Heading
Body orientation doesn't predict navigation direction