Top 10 Biggest Myths People Still Believe

A myth expresses and confirms society’s religious values and norms. It provides a pattern of behavior to be imitated, testifies to the efficacy of ritual with its practical ends, and establishes the sanctity of cult. Today we are talking about the 10 biggest myths people still believe.

10: Men Think About Sex Every Seven Seconds

When you think about it, there is a whole gender of people that could refute the myth about men thinking about sex every seven seconds if they were so inclined. That they haven’t either shows that men find at least some level of familiarity in the statistics. Or some myths people still believe are just too amusing to bother debunking. Either way, the figure happens to be as false as it is entertaining. Quite simply, there is no factual basis. The closest thing to any scientific backing comes from Alfred Kinsey’s data. He only went so far as to argue that 97% of men thought about sex a few times a day. A few times per month with 54% falling into the daily category.

9: We Only Use 10% Of Our Brain (Myths People Still Believe)

It is only on account of modern science that we can now recognize and identify the specifics of brain activity in humans. However, that hasn’t stopped people from generations past from passing along the mythical 10% figure in describing what percentage of our brain capacity we use. Contemporary testing of the brain’s functioning has come to show that every area of a healthy brain actively does something to contribute towards overall cognition and thought. The 10% figure is believed to have originated from self-help guru-driven statistics. Using one-tenth of our brain’s power is critically different from using 10% of our brain.

8: Cats Always Land on Their Feet

Cats are without question, among nature’s most agile and well-balanced creatures. Leaping around from surface to surface with savvy sure-footedness. That doesn’t mean their four paws can get the job done every time. Without always being able to predict the security and stability for their next destination? Felines are often prone to bumping into things, losing their grip, falling on their side or even breaking a paw or leg. The myth of always landing on their feet probably comes from their tendency to recover quickly from any misstep. Even so, tossing your furry friend out the window to test this theory probably isn’t advisable.

7: Hair and Fingernails Continue to Grow After Death (Myths People Still Believe)

This myth is at least borne out of some degree of reality. Seeing as how corpses can often boast fingernails and hair strands that measure longer than when the poor souls were first buried six feet under. Contrary to appearances, the dead are left with neither fingernails nor hair that has kept on living their own expiration date. What seems like hair and nail growth is actually the recession of skin and muscle. Thereby revealing previously hidden away hair and nail follicles that sit closer to the root.

6: Turkey Makes You Sleepy

This much-beloved holiday meal tradition often gets a bad rap. Not only is turkey a disparaging slur that is synonymous with being foolish. But it has also come to be blamed for causing fatigue in those who consume it. Yes, turkey contains tryptophan a sedative that can leave to drowsiness. Even beef and chicken both contain the same levels. And are rarely blamed for family members who can’t keep their eyes open at the dinner table. Because of its association with holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving? The sleep-causing rep of turkey likely stems from the coincidence of often being tied to big meals during active family gatherings.

5: The Full Moon Affects Behavior (Myths People Still Believe)

Isolated incidents of odd behavior during a full moon have proliferated this theory. Which is supported by the belief that water in the brain is affected by the tidal forces of the moon? It’s a cool theory but people behave weirdly at other times too and it simply isn’t true. While an extremely limited correlation between a spike in erratic behavior and the presence of a full moon has been found in some studies. No evident causation has been discovered. It seems to be more of a fluke than anything else. Certainly not worth police force increasing their staffing. As the British police forces have been known to do in the past.

4: Marie Antoinette’s Famous Last Words

Number 4 on our list of 10 myths people still believe is about Marie Antoinette. “Let them eat cake”. It has become a cruel yet widely popular historical quote that highlights the stark class disparity that helped necessitate the French Revolution. The problem is that 18th century French Queen Marie Antoinette, to whom the quote is attributed, never uttered the phrase. Instead, most historians point to the 18th century French Author Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Who wrote of an arrogant princess with little regard or concern for the poor? Some also believe the words came from Spain’s Maria Theresa.

3: Hair Returns Thicker and Fuller When Cut (Myths People Still Believe)

In one memorable episode of Seinfeld, Jerry was made into a believer of the myth that hair will return thicker after being cut when Kramer horrified him by showing his supposedly hairy chest. Of course, this was just a mostly fictional TV show. The theory of growth is just one of the myths people still believe. Any hair visible outside the skin isn’t actually alive, with live follicles instead living underneath the skin and scalp. The theory has emerged from what is actually little more than a special effect. We’re seeing hair at a different stage of growth than when it was shaved or cut and regrow hair initially starts darker and then lightens due to sun exposure.

2: Walt Disney Was Frozen After Death

Number 2 on our list of 10 myths people still believe is about Walt Disney. While it has come to run rampant in the era of gossip mags, tabloid journalism, and TMZ-style in your face paparazzi, there has always existed a public fascination over celebrities and their lifestyle. For someone like Walt Disney, this fascination was only magnified by his obsessively private nature. When Disney died in December of 1966, cryogenic storage had just entered the public consciousness. Which leads to rumors about the true fate of either his body or his head, depending on which myth you believe. However, his death certificate verifies that he was cremated after passing. This was a fact his family has tried to make clear in the Walt Disney family museum.

1: There’s A Dark Side of The Moon (Myths People Still Believe)

It’s probably fair to blame this one on Pink Floyd. Our vantage point from the earth only reveals a total of 59% of the moon’s surface. This means that 41% remains forever hidden from our sightlines. What it doesn’t mean, however, is that the 41% is shrouded in eternal darkness. The confusion stems from a process known as “tidal locking”. Whereby the moon appears as though it isn’t rotating but it’s actually spiraling very slowly. During this time, the sun is slowly covering portions of the moon that remain invisible to us. What we refer to the sun reflecting off the entirety of our view of the moon as a full moon. Any other phase features sunlight shining off the other side.

So, that’s it for today’s list of the 10 biggest myths people still believe. How many of these myths did you believe? React in the comments section below. Thanks.