Things you learned in school that were just plain wrong or could have been incorrect.

[Tortuga]

Many biology (life science) students are still being told how to differentiate between frogs and toads. Here's the truth from allaboutfrogs.com One of the most common questions is, "What is the difference between Frogs and Toads?"

Most are surprised to hear that all Toads actually are Frogs! 

What did the frog say to the toad?

"Time's fun when you're having flies"

[kejedo]

Frogs have prehensile tongue.

Edited June 19, 2015 by kejedo

[Tortuga]

Frogs have prehensile tongue.

The first time I heard frogs croaking I thought it was mass suicide.

[carlos]

The first time I heard frogs croaking I thought it was mass suicide.

 

Now that you mention mass suicide, I studied at school that lemmings voluntarily jump from the cliffs to the sea by the millions when there is suprapopulation. I remember it was in my textbooks. But it's just another myth, in this case originated by a Disney movie, Wild Wilderness, from 1958. Lemmings don't jump to drown in the water unless they are forced to.

[RaymondG]

I'm pretty sure I heard that at school before 1958, Carlos...

So maybe Disney was just following a common myth?

[Tortuga]

I've done more homework on this forum than I did while in school...

 

The myth of mass lemming suicide began when the Walt Disney movie, Wild Wilderness was released in 1958. It was filmed in Alberta, Canada, far from the sea and not a native home to lemmings. So the filmmakers imported lemmings, by buying them from Inuit children. The migration sequence was filmed by placing the lemmings on a spinning turntable that was covered with snow, and then shooting it from many different angles. The cliff-death-plunge sequence was done by herding the lemmings over a small cliff into a river. It's easy to understand why the filmmakers did this - wild animals are notoriously uncooperative, and a migration-of-doom followed by a cliff-of-death sequence is far more dramatic to show than the lemmings' self-implemented population-density management plan.

So lemmings do not commit mass suicide. Indeed, animals live to thrive and survive. Consider a company like Disney, where one rodent, namely Mickey Mouse, was Royalty. It's rather odd to think that Disney could be so unkind to another rodent, the lemming...

[kejedo]

'Swan song' is also a myth based on a baseless belief that swans sing a beautiful song before dying. Figuratively, swan song has come to mean final act. 

[kejedo]

I've done more homework on this forum than I did while in school...

 

The myth of mass lemming suicide began when the Walt Disney movie, Wild Wilderness was released in 1958. It was filmed in Alberta, Canada, far from the sea and not a native home to lemmings. So the filmmakers imported lemmings, by buying them from Inuit children. The migration sequence was filmed by placing the lemmings on a spinning turntable that was covered with snow, and then shooting it from many different angles. The cliff-death-plunge sequence was done by herding the lemmings over a small cliff into a river. It's easy to understand why the filmmakers did this - wild animals are notoriously uncooperative, and a migration-of-doom followed by a cliff-of-death sequence is far more dramatic to show than the lemmings' self-implemented population-density management plan.

So lemmings do not commit mass suicide. Indeed, animals live to thrive and survive. Consider a company like Disney, where one rodent, namely Mickey Mouse, was Royalty. It's rather odd to think that Disney could be so unkind to another rodent, the lemming...

However, it is true that locusts will give their lives for each other. 

[Tortuga]

However, it is true that locusts will give their lives for each other. 

Willingly?

[kejedo]

Willingly?

Yes, to cross a body of water, they form a barge with the lowest layer losing their lives, while the upper layers survive. 

[kejedo]

"Listen my children and you shall hear of the midnight ride of Paul Revere." Longfellow had it wrong. Paul Revere was arrested and didn't complete the ride. Dawes was the man, joined by Prescott. Revisionist History by a poet.

[bagwell1987]

Reports of a lone hero makes for a romantic tale but are rarely true.

 

http://www.historynet.com/paul-reveres-true-account-of-the-midnight-ride.htm

 

War had begun, and, as usual, truth was the first casualty. Without his consent or connivance, Revere was cast in the role of the solitary hero by the press, propagandists, and poets. By his own account, his actions that night were far less romantic than was popularly reported. He wrote about receiving much help, being rarely alone, and, due to a sound plan, Patriots alerting the countryside before he ever rose to the saddle. Paul Revere acted as a team member, an essential role if the goal of defeating the world’s greatest military power was to be realized.

[bagwell1987]

Jefferson was equally praised and adored in school but the reality was far different.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/01/opinion/the-real-thomas-jefferson.html?_r=0

 

Now don't get me started on the womanizing Ben Franklin....

 

I remember reading in an encyclopedia something contradictory to what was being taught in my last year of public school, I was told to not believe everything I read.....just because it's opposite of what the school taught? Even at 15 I shook my head, sounded fishy to me.

[Tortuga]

Thomas Edison was well known for stealing ideas and patenting them and then hiring thugs to 'persuade' anyone that violated his new patent rights.

[kejedo]

Was it Edison? Was it Bell? Uh, no. Lewis H. Latimer was an inventor and draftsman best known for his contributions to the patenting of the light bulb and the telephone. You remember reading about him in school? Uh, no.

Edited June 20, 2015 by kejedo

[Tortuga]

Was it Edison? Was it Bell? Uh, no. Lewis H. Latimer was an inventor and draftsman best known for his contributions to the patenting of the light bulb and the telephone. You remember reading about him in school? Uh, no.

 

I read that Edison ran a sweat shop for inventors and would steal their ideas. Movie makers would sleep with a gun next to the bed in case Edison thought they were violating his patent and would send his thugs.

[bagwell1987]

Cannot wait till the resurrection, all will be revealed. Going to be an eye opener.

[Tortuga]

Yes, to cross a body of water, they form a barge with the lowest layer losing their lives, while the upper layers survive. 

Ahhh..just like the business world..

[Tortuga]

Cannot wait till the resurrection, all will be revealed. Going to be an eye opener.

I need to make a list of questions..

[RaymondG]

Surely 'contributions to patenting' could refer to filling out the forms, researching authenticity and uniqueness?

Is there anything more on what he did?

[kejedo]

Lewis Latimore’s parents were runaway salves. Lewis lied about his age and joined the Navy at age 16. After his honorable discharge, he went to work as an office boy at a drafting house and learned drafting by watching others. He was promoted to head draftsman. He also worked at filing patents. He, himself, patented 6 inventions,3 alone and 3 with co-inventors. He improved railroad car bathrooms, invented an air conditioning unit, and created an improved filament that made light bulbs last longer.  Working with Alexander Graham Bell, Latimore helped draft the patent for Bell's design of the telephone and got the patent filed, beating out Elias Howe by just a few hours.

[bobby]

this is an interesting thread 

 never took  biology (life science)

or a lot of other class 

when i finely good help 

it was late in my child hood 

math 

reading 

wright 

is what they work on or i worked on

[kejedo]

A new study shows sloths in the wild sleep about 9 1/2 hours out of 24,and are more active than previously believed. 

[Tortuga]

A new study shows sloths in the wild sleep about 9 1/2 hours out of 24,and are more active than previously believed.

[carlos]

We were always taught that during the eight centuries of Muslim domain in Spain, the three cultures in the country (Christians, Jews and Muslims) lived in peace, tolerance and harmony. Many still repeat this tale, and the medieval city of Toledo, dubbed the city of the three cultures, is often considered the paradigm of that.

 

Of course, that is just a myth. Since most of the population were "Christian" peasants and their work was necessary, they were more or less tolerated by the Muslim minority in power. But other than that "Christians" and Muslims hated each other, and everybody hated Jews. As long as they stayed in their separated areas in the city there was relative peace, but whenever they mixed there were revolts and turmoil.