12个常识性谬误
《青年文摘·彩版》2008年第3期“非常知识”
1.蜈蚣真有100只脚吗?
似乎没有确切的数字能表明蜈蚣到底有多少双脚，只能说大概为15双到191双之间。
2.鸵鸟会在危险来临前把头埋进沙子里?
实际上，鸵鸟并不是把头埋进沙子里躲避侵犯，而是用它们的喙挖洞，用来孵蛋。
3.物质只有三种形态?
众所周知，物质有固态、液态和气态，但是在科学家们发现了第四种“等离子态”的时候，这种说法就被打破了。现在，物质又有了第五种形态，即玻色-爱因斯坦凝聚态。但是第四和第五种物质形态只能在比较极端的实验条件下才能表现出来。
4.人类大脑比蚂蚁还小?
蚂蚁大脑重量为0.3毫克，占其全身重量的6％，人类大脑虽然重达2公斤，但约占体重的2％。可蚂蚁大脑中的神经元只有50万个，人类却拥有150亿之众。
5.珠穆朗玛峰是世界最高峰?
如果与美国夏威夷的冒纳凯阿火山相比，珠穆朗玛峰的8848米的高度就不足为奇了。这座伫立于太平洋里的火山海拔高度超过4205米，但是其大部分结构(高6000米)都在海水以下，它的完整高度应为1.0205万米，比珠穆朗玛峰高出大约1500米。
6.一天有24小时?
科学上在计算每天的时长时通常使用“24小时”这个所谓的“平均太阳时”，但宇航员们所说的“真太阳时”在一年当中每天都是不一样的，有时可为24小时零4分钟。
7.斗牛看到红色会兴奋?
斗牛无法分辨什么是红色，因为这种动物是色盲，只能分辨白色、黑色和灰色。斗牛场上真正激怒公牛的是斗牛士挥舞大斗篷的动作。
8.青霉素的发现者是弗莱明?
青霉素的真正发现者是里昂军事医学院的学生埃内斯特·迪谢纳，他的发现比亚历山大·弗莱明早32年，不过当时科学界根本不予理睬。
9.水无色无味?
只有蒸馏水才是完全透明和无味的。无论是饮用水还是海水，因为含有盐离子成分而使其具有了淡淡的蓝色。此外，因为二氧化碳的存在而让水有了清凉和略甜的味道。
10.水的沸点是100摄氏度?
水的沸点因海拔不同而有所变化。海拔越高，沸点越低，在高山地区，水的沸点远低于100摄氏度。在珠穆朗玛峰，沸点只有71摄氏度。
11.酒精会杀死神经细胞?
19世纪末的禁酒运动使这种说法流传开来，酒精破坏大脑组织的说法有一定道理，但是只发生在患病多年的酗酒者身上。其实，适量饮酒不会对神经细胞造成伤害。
12.宇宙是黑色?
虽然当我们仰望夜空时总感觉茫茫宇宙就是黑色，但是2002年两名宇航员卡尔·格莱兹布鲁克和伊万·鲍德里在对20万个星系光谱加以分析后得出结论，宇宙的颜色类似咖啡加牛奶后的混合色。
译文:
12 Commonsensible Falsehood
"Youth Tabloid·Color Edition" about "Extraordinary Knowledge" of the 3rd sheduled time in 2008
1.Centipede really has 100 feet?
Apparently no correct figure can indicate that how many feet does a centipede have.You can only say that the number is about 15 to 191 couples.
2.Ostrich burrys its head into the sand when danger comes?
Actually,ostriches don't bury their head into the sand to evade impinge,they just dig a hole with their beak to incubate.
3.Substance has three forms?
As everyone knows,substance has solid state,liquid state,and gaseity.However,when scientists found the fourth "plasm",this parlance was broken.Now sustance has the fifth form,ie,Bose-Einstein coherence state.But the forth and fifth state can only be put up on more dire experiment condition.
4.Human brain is smaller then ants'?
The weight of ant brain is 0.3mg,which occupys 6% of the weight of whole body.Though the human brain weighs 2kg,it occupys abouot 2% of his avoirdupois.In the ant brain,there is only 500,000 nerve cell,but it has 15 billion in human brain.
5.Everest is the highest mountain in the world?
If compares to Mounaka Volcano of Ameriacan Hawaii,8848m heightof Everest is not strange.This volcano standing in Pacific has the height above sea level exceed 4205m.However,a great mass of its structure (height 6000m) is all under the seawater,its full height should be ten thousand two hundred and five metres,which is 1500m higher than Everest.
6.There are 24 hours in a day?
Scientifially,when calculating everyday hour time,it usually uses "24 hours" which is so-called "Average Sun Hour".But the "Real Sun Hour" said by astronauts is not the same as that of every day in one year,sometimes it can say 24 hours and 4 minutes.
7.Bullfight are excited when seeing red color?
Bullfight can't tell what is red,because this kind of animal is color blindness.They can only tell white,black and grey.The thing that really irritates oxes on the bullring is the action of matadors wielding big cloke.
8.Finder of black mildew is Flamin?
Real finder of black mildew is Lyons Military Affairs Physic collegian Aineista·Disana,whose discover is 32 years earlier than Alexander·Flamin.However,the science world didn't pay attention at all at that time.
9.Water is achromatic and insipid?
Only distilled water is entirely transparent and insipid.No matter drinking water or seawater,because they have salt ion component that bear weak blue color.Furthermore,because of the existence of CO2,the water has the flavour of cool and slight sugary.
10.Boiling point of the water is at 100 centigrade?
Boiling point of the water varies because of different altitudes.The higher altitude,the lower boiling point.In alp areas,boiling point of the water is far lower than 100 centigrade.On Everest,the boiling point is only at 71 centigrade.
11.Alcohol can kill nerve cell?
At the end of the 19th century,pussyfoot campaign made this parlance go around.The parlance of alcohol destroying cerebra tissue has a certain reason.Hower, this only happens on the sot who is sicken for many years.Actually,reasonable potation is not able to hurt nerve cell.
Although we feel vast universe is black when we look up to the night sky,analysing 20 thousand galaxy spectrum,two astronauts Karl·Grazibruk and Yiwan·Bodeli made a conclusion in 2002.The universe color is like the mixed color of coffee adding milk.