Buzz
My original list was criticized for being too centered on American viewpoints. So, here’s a fresh set of 10 debunked myths, and this time you might need your passport to follow along.
10. Russia
The Misconception: The former Soviet Union marked the October Revolution in October.
While the Bolsheviks seized control on October 25-26, 1917, this was according to the Old Style (Julian) calendar. One of the first actions the Communists took was to switch to the Gregorian Calendar, which shifted the date forward by 13 days (into November). This became a significant holiday in the Soviet Union, largely because with religion officially banned, the most prominent holidays were those of a civil nature like May Day and the October Revolution.
9. Germany & Britain
The Misconception: British King George I of Hanover spoke either English or German when addressing his cabinet.
It might seem obvious that a British monarch would speak English, but those familiar with history know that George I was a German prince who didn’t speak English. People might assume that he and his advisors spoke German, but in reality, since his cabinet didn’t understand German, the common language used in meetings was French.
8. Britain & France
The Misconception: The Titanic was the first ship to use the distress signal “SOS”?
While British ships favored the older distress signal “CQD,” most other European countries followed the 1908 International Conference on Wireless Communication at Sea standard, which adopted “SOS.” The French ship Niagara is known to have used “SOS” long before the Titanic. Interestingly, in CQD, the CQ was a general call on a telegraph line, with the D signifying Distress. James Cameron’s film “Titanic” accurately portrayed the radio operator using both CQD and SOS after the latter was suggested.
7. Lebanon
The Misconception: John Kennedy was the first to say “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”
While this myth is American, the story behind it is global. American politicians are infamous for borrowing their best lines from international sources. For example, Abraham Lincoln borrowed the phrase “a government of the people, by the people and for the people” from the preface of John Wycliffe’s 1384 edition of the Bible, and current Vice President Joe Biden lifted a few speeches from Labour Party MP Neil Kinnock. The quote many Americans attribute solely to Kennedy actually originates from Lebanese writer Khalil Gibran, who wrote it in an article urging his Lebanese compatriots to rise against the Ottoman Empire.
6. Australia & Scotland
The Misconception: Alexander Fleming invented the antibiotic 'penicillin'.
While some might argue that this is more about wording than a true misconception, it’s important to clarify that although Alexander Fleming DISCOVERED that the mold Penicillium notatum had antibacterial properties, he was not a chemist and found it difficult to grow and culture the mold. It was Howard Florey, aided by Ernst Chain, who successfully purified the penicillin and made it suitable for human use, thus INVENTING penicillin as a genuine antibiotic.
5. Switzerland and Britain
The Misconception: Watson and Crick discovered DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid).
Once again, people on Mytour may say, 'everyone knows that,' but many are taught the oversimplified version that James Watson and Francis Crick discovered DNA. This is likely because they won the Nobel Prize for unveiling the double-helix structure of DNA. The true pioneer was Friedrich Miescher, who, while analyzing pus cell nuclei in 1868, discovered nuclein. He further investigated this substance and identified an acid component, which he named deoxyribonucleic acid. In 1943, Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty were the first to demonstrate the link between DNA and heredity, while Rosalind Franklin conducted the first X-ray diffraction study of DNA. What Watson and Crick contributed was the development of a model that incorporated all these prior discoveries.
4. France
The Misconception: Mouton-Rothschild is a top-grade Chateau claret.
The classification of Bordeaux’s five red wine growths (or classes) was established in 1855. Four of these were deemed First Class: Lafite-Rothschild, Latour, Margaux, and Haut-Brion. Mouton-Rothschild, however, was displeased with being placed in the second class and adopted the motto, 'Premier ne puis. Second ne daigne. Mouton suis.' ('First I cannot be. Second I do not deign to be. I am Mouton.') All I can say is, I certainly wouldn’t say no to a glass of it.
3. China
The Misconception: Pandas eat only bamboo.
The reason pandas consume so much bamboo is because it doesn’t run away. While they are omnivores that have evolved to eat mostly bamboo, they will eat whatever they can catch, including small animals and carrion. The challenge is that bamboo is low in energy, which makes pandas slow and ill-equipped to catch anything else, creating a frustrating cycle. There are some fascinating articles from National Geographic on pandas from the 1980s that dive deeper into their behavior.
2. Germany
The Misconception: Albert Einstein was a poor student.
The myth that Einstein was a poor student began when an American researcher misinterpreted some of Einstein’s school report cards, failing to account for the grading system of the time. During his schooling, grades ranged from 1 to 6, with 1 being the best, but this system was reversed the year after Einstein graduated. Further investigation revealed a letter from Einstein’s mother to his aunt, praising his grades. However, the image of Einstein as a struggling student who later became a renowned physicist is simply too appealing to be discarded in favor of the truth.
1. Scotland and Italy
The Misconception: The fax machine was invented after the telephone.
Scottish inventor Alexander Bain actually developed the electric clock in 1841. Then in 1843, using his work on the electric clock, he patented a device capable of synchronizing with a twin machine over telegraph lines. Some stories suggest that this device was used to transmit a picture of a newborn calf, though if that were true, it would likely have been a daguerreotype—a curious choice for just a cow. In 1848, Frederick Bakewell patented an improved fax machine, two years before Bain enhanced his own. Finally, in 1861, Italian inventor Giovanni Caselli created the first high-quality fax machine, all of which occurred before Alexander Bell and Elisha Gray independently applied for the telephone patent on February 14, 1876.
+ Not the United States
The Misconception: The United States is the only country that measures things by feet, gallons, pounds, and degrees Fahrenheit.
Scientists and metric experts often point out how outdated the U.S. is compared to the rest of the world, especially since we still use the old English system of measurement. While this is true, we aren't the only ones. Liberia also follows the same system, which makes sense given that the country was founded by former American slaves, and its capital is named after U.S. president James Monroe. Until recently, Liberia’s president was a descendant of those original American settlers. Additionally, Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, also uses the English system. Despite gaining independence and changing its name, the country has kept the British system of measurement intact.
