10. Drowning is not dramatic but a silent affair!
Thanks to countless movies and TV shows drowning is a stereotype action but sadly the exaggeration is far from truth. Actual drowning is quiet and difficult to spot because when drowning the victim’s head is lowered in the water or tilted backwards which makes it impossible to shout for help. The body finds itself in a vertical position making rolling movements and hyperventilating to gasp as much air as possible. A person can at the most struggle in water for 20-60 seconds before they submerge so rescue needs to be fast.
9. There is no need to wait 24 hours to file a missing person’s report
Authorities in most countries rely on common sense where a missing person is concerned. If the concerned person is a child, invalid or any physically or mentally vulnerable you can call authorities immediately. You can also notify authorities if a person is missing under suspicious circumstances.
8. Water towers are for pressure not just for storage
Water towers rely greatly on the hydrostatic pressure that occurs due to the height of the cisterns from the ground. They usually work in conjunction of underground water storage facilities or surface service reservoirs that provide clean Potable water for domestic use. The tanks usually cannot distribute water, they store raw water meant for fire protection or industrial usages but are not meant for general public use.
7. Antibiotics do not cure viral infections!
This is one modern myth that makes people pop antibiotics when they have a cough cold or the flu hoping to be fit the next day. No, not true!! In fact it’s going to make you worse by reducing your body’s immunity against the virus, a common fact even ignored by some doctors. Taking unnecessary antibacterial drugs could cause some serious side effects and reduces the pace of recovery.
6. Factoid also means unreliable information repeated often
The term factoid was coined by writer Norman Mailer in 1973 to mean a piece of information regarded as fact. Factoid simply means gossip or anything of trivial information value repeated so it is accepted as fact! William Safire rightly recoined the word as “factlet” which meant “a brief piece of fact but also a bit of arcana”
5. Never use your barbeque as a room heater!
There are some people in the world who risk their lives and property by using a barbeque machine as a room heater! Even if a barbeque machine is extinguished it gives off deadly carbon monoxide gas which can kill you in hours! In fact no carbon based heater should be used in close proximity for a long period of time without proper ventilation. Our blood tends to bond with the carbon monoxide faster preventing oxygen reaching our hearts and brains which can result in nausea, unconsciousness and eventually Death. There is a reason why a barbeque is an OUTDOORS activity!
4. Exercising your “abs” does not give you one!
May be it’s the fault of the language itself or collective human misunderstanding, which makes so many of us believe that doing hard crunches, sit-ups and hard “abs” workouts is going to give us six pack abs as a gift. The reality though is that we already have abs. Every human body has these sets of muscles and proper workouts, cardio and diet will make them more prominent.
3. Bleach and ammonia should never be used at the same time
In fact, they should not be placed besides each other in your laundry and kept far away from the reach of kids and pets as they are lethally toxic. The logic is simple but deadly. When bleach and ammonia react, the bleach decomposes and forms hydrochloric acid which in turn reacts with ammonia forming a toxic vapor called Chloramine Fumes. Moreover if the mixture has more of ammonia it releases a liquid called hydrazine which is even explosive! If you accidently mix up these two liquids, open up all windows and doors for ventilation and call 911 if you feel overwhelmed by the deadly fumes.
2. Being cold does not give you common cold
Another of common knowledge facts but actually modern myth. Common cold or flu is caused by viral infections, chiefly by the Rhino virus which multiplies and reproduces just below our body temperature. Also they live near our nasal area as they cannot survive higher temperatures than that which is why they cannot cause any serious chest or lung infections. Just cover your nose while venturing outside in cold and you’ll be just fine.
1. Greenland-Iceland anomaly
Yes Greenland is completely covered with white ice and generally uninhabitable and not at all green while Iceland is green, has a number of cities and a huge population. 80% of Greenland is under ice cover whereas Iceland is just 11% under ice. Now to explain the enigma behind these opposite names, this was how the first settlers saw the land. Iceland was discovered by a Viking king Hrafna-Flóki Vilgerðarson who wanted to settle there with his family and livestock but couldn’t due to harsh winters and therefore coined it rather unfairly as “Iceland”. Later another Viking Eric the Red was banished from there for killing three men. He found a remote Island which he named “Greenland” in order to attract more of his compatriots to settle there. Research data showed that The weather during 800-1300AD was way warmer for human settlements but dipped during the 14th century making it virtually uninhabitable.
