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Science & Nature Fact-Checks

Science and nature fact-checks for claims about space, biology, animals, memory, senses, and physics. These pages focus on the exact wording of popular myths, explain the evidence burden, and distinguish a useful shortcut from a factual claim.

Home › Fact-Checks › Science & Nature
57 fact-checks
33 debunked
24 verified true
FALSE
Humans have exactly five senses
97% confidence 491 views
→ TRUE
Honey never spoils and has been found edible in ancient Egyptian tombs
97% confidence 462 views
→ TRUE
Australia is wider than the moon
99% confidence 425 views
→ TRUE
Octopuses have three hearts and blue blood
99% confidence 418 views
→ TRUE
Honey never expires or spoils
95% confidence 404 views
→ FALSE
Bats are completely blind
99% confidence 403 views
→ FALSE
Goldfish have a 3-second memory
97% confidence 400 views
→ FALSE
Lightning never strikes the same place twice
99% confidence 394 views
→ FALSE
Antibiotics are effective against viral infections
99% confidence 383 views
→ FALSE
Bulls are enraged by the color red
98% confidence 369 views
→ FALSE
Diamonds are formed from compressed coal
94% confidence 351 views
→ FALSE
The Great Wall of China is visible from space
98% confidence 269 views
→ TRUE
The Eiffel Tower gets taller in the summer
98% confidence 114 views
→ TRUE
Bananas are berries but strawberries are not
97% confidence 110 views
→ FALSE
The tongue has different zones for different tastes
97% confidence 107 views
→ TRUE
Sharks existed before trees
96% confidence 104 views
→ FALSE
Adults grow a completely new skeleton every ten years through cell replacement
90% confidence 98 views
→ TRUE
Octopuses have three hearts
99% confidence 96 views
→ TRUE
Honey never spoils if stored properly
95% confidence 94 views
→ FALSE
Bulls get angry when they see the color red
97% confidence 90 views
→ FALSE
Goldfish have a three-second memory
97% confidence 89 views
→ FALSE
A penny dropped from the Empire State Building can kill a person
96% confidence 83 views
→ FALSE
Bats are blind
99% confidence 81 views
→ FALSE
Glass is a liquid that flows slowly over time, which is why old windows are thicker at the bottom
97% confidence 80 views
→ FALSE
Toilets flush in the opposite direction in the Southern Hemisphere due to the Coriolis effect
92% confidence 78 views
→ FALSE
Ostriches bury their heads in the sand to hide from predators
98% confidence 77 views
→ FALSE
Chameleons change color primarily to camouflage with their surroundings
90% confidence 73 views
→ FALSE
Different areas of your tongue detect different tastes exclusively
98% confidence 69 views
→ FALSE
Cats always land on their feet no matter what
95% confidence 64 views
→ FALSE
The Coriolis effect determines which way water drains in your sink
92% confidence 62 views
→ FALSE
You can see individual stars' true colors with the naked eye the same as in telescope photos
92% confidence 60 views
→ FALSE
Einstein developed the theory of relativity entirely alone with no outside input
95% confidence 57 views
→ FALSE
Genetically modified foods currently sold are unsafe to eat
90% confidence 55 views
→ TRUE
The Sahara Desert was once a lush green landscape
92% confidence 55 views
→ FALSE
Glass windows in old cathedrals are thick at the bottom because glass flows over centuries
95% confidence 48 views
→ TRUE
Lightning is hotter than the surface of the sun
90% confidence 44 views
→ FALSE
Evolution is 'just a theory' meaning scientists aren't sure it's true
98% confidence 43 views
→ TRUE
A group of crows can remember individual human faces for years
88% confidence 40 views
→ FALSE
Lemmings commit mass suicide by jumping off cliffs
97% confidence 22 views
→ TRUE
The human body contains enough iron to make a small nail
85% confidence 20 views
→ FALSE
Humans are born with a natural instinct to swim
85% confidence 20 views
→ FALSE
Seasons are caused by the Earth being closer to the Sun in summer
99% confidence 19 views
→ TRUE
Cats are unable to taste sweetness
90% confidence 15 views
→ FALSE
Water always boils at 100 degrees Celsius no matter where you are
98% confidence 15 views
→ FALSE
Cracking open a glow stick releases toxic radioactive material
95% confidence 14 views
→ TRUE
Chameleons can see two different things in two directions at once
88% confidence 14 views
→ TRUE
Peanuts are actually legumes, not nuts
98% confidence 14 views
→ TRUE
Astronauts age slightly slower than people on Earth due to time dilation
85% confidence 13 views
→ TRUE
Neanderthals interbred with early modern humans
97% confidence 10 views
→ TRUE
The universe is expanding at an accelerating rate
95% confidence 10 views
→ FALSE
Only humans use tools among all animal species
99% confidence 9 views
→ TRUE
Venus is the hottest planet in the solar system, hotter than Mercury
95% confidence 9 views
→ TRUE
The human brain feels no pain because it lacks pain receptors
85% confidence 9 views
→ FALSE
The Boiling Frog myth is true: a frog placed in slowly heated water will not jump out and will boil to death
92% confidence 2 views
→ TRUE
The universe's background temperature is a few degrees above absolute zero, a relic of the Big Bang
97% confidence 1 views
→ TRUE
Water can be superheated past its boiling point in a microwave without visibly boiling
95% confidence 1 views
→ TRUE
Chewing willow bark inspired the active ingredient in modern aspirin
90% confidence 1 views
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