長(zhǎng)見識(shí)了！一些你以為的事實(shí)，其實(shí)不是那樣滴！

　　抽水馬桶沖水時(shí)，水流會(huì)產(chǎn)生一個(gè)旋渦流下排水空。有理論稱，在北半球，水流旋渦是朝順時(shí)針方向的;而在南半球，則是逆時(shí)針旋轉(zhuǎn)的。而之所以出現(xiàn)這種現(xiàn)象，是由于地球自轉(zhuǎn)的緣故。其實(shí)，地球自轉(zhuǎn)的作用很微弱，因此難以影響水流動(dòng)的方向。你可以在一些盥洗室中輕易地驗(yàn)證這一點(diǎn)，無(wú)論是逆時(shí)針還是順時(shí)針，水流旋渦的方向取決于水槽的結(jié)構(gòu)，而非南北半球。

　　Water drains backwards in the Southern Hemisphere due to the Earth's rotation Not only is the Earth's rotation too weak to affect the direction of water flowing in a drain, tests you can easily perform in a few washrooms will show that water whirlpools both ways depending on the sink's structure, not the hemisphere.

　　2、雞沒有腦袋也能存活

　　正確!而且雞在被“斬首”之后絕不只是能“茍延殘喘”幾分鐘而已。事實(shí)證明，曾有一只精力充沛的家伙在被斬首后，居然搖搖擺擺、跌跌撞撞地活了整整18個(gè)月!雞沒有腦袋也能存活的秘密就在于，被砍頭后，雞的腦干通常會(huì)有一部分保存完整，而它可以控制雞的大部分條件反射。

　　Chickens can live without a head

　　True, and not just for a few minutes. A chicken can stagger around without its noggin because the brain stem, often left partially intact after a beheading, controls most of its reflexes. One robust fellow lived a full eighteen months. Likely he was a real birdbrain, however.

　　3、人類的大腦只開發(fā)了十分之一

　　這一被媒體廣泛關(guān)注的理論已至少存在了1個(gè)世紀(jì)。但幸運(yùn)的是，這個(gè)理論并不正確。核磁共振圖象明確地顯示出，即使是在打瞌睡的時(shí)候，人們都很好地利用了其大部分的大腦皮層，人腦并沒有被荒廢。

　　Humans use only 10 percent of their brains

　　This media darling has been around for at least a century. Fortunately, it's just not true. MRI imaging clearly demonstrates—with fancy colors no less—that humans put most of their cerebral cortex to good use, even while dozing.

　　4、太空無(wú)重力

　　這是個(gè)普遍的誤解，事實(shí)上重力無(wú)處不在，即使在太空也是如此。宇航員之所以看起來(lái)無(wú)重力是由于他們處于向地球的持續(xù)下落中，而保持高高在上則是由于他們的水平運(yùn)動(dòng)所致。重力的影響會(huì)隨遠(yuǎn)離而減小，但它絕不會(huì)真正地消失殆盡。

　　There is no gravity in space

　　Blame the term "zero-gravity" for this common misconception. Gravity is everywhere, even in space. Astronauts look weightless because they are in continuous freefall towards the Earth, staying aloft because of their horizontal motion. The effect of gravity diminishes with distance, but it never truly goes away.

　　5、高處落下的一分硬幣可致人死亡

　　從高處落下的一分硬幣并非最能體現(xiàn)空氣動(dòng)力學(xué)的武器。將硬幣的形狀和下落時(shí)的空氣摩擦力結(jié)合起來(lái)考慮，即使從1250英尺(約合375米)高的紐約帝國(guó)大廈上扔下一枚硬幣，它所帶來(lái)的快速?zèng)_擊力僅僅是讓一個(gè)不幸的過(guò)路者感到一陣刺痛而已。

　　A penny dropped from the top of a tall building could kill a pedestrian

　　A penny isn't the most aerodynamic of weapons. A combination of its shape and wind friction means that, tossed even from the 1,250-foot Empire State Building, it would travel fast enough merely to sting an unlucky pedestrian.

　　6、消化口香糖需要7年時(shí)間

　　或許，我們的腸胃消化口香糖會(huì)比消化有機(jī)食物稍困難一些。但實(shí)際上，口香糖并不會(huì)從我們的消化系統(tǒng)那里得到什么特殊的待遇。醫(yī)生們認(rèn)為，上述這種不正確的說(shuō)法之所以會(huì)出現(xiàn)，可能是因?yàn)槿藗優(yōu)榱瞬蛔尯⒆觽儗⑦@種橡膠性物質(zhì)吞咽到肚子里，所想出來(lái)的辦法。

　　It takes seven years to digest gum

　　While it may prove a bit more difficult to break down than organic foodstuffs, chewing gum gets no special treatment from the digestive system. Doctors figure this old wives' tale was invented to prevent kids from swallowing the rubbery substance.

　　7、打哈欠會(huì)傳染

　　幾乎我們每個(gè)人都遇到過(guò)“打哈欠被傳染”的情況，因此從經(jīng)驗(yàn)上來(lái)講，我們很難否認(rèn)這種說(shuō)法。真正的問(wèn)題在于，這其中究竟有沒有什么生理學(xué)上的依據(jù)在起作用，而答案很可能是肯定的?？茖W(xué)家發(fā)現(xiàn)，就連黑猩猩之間，打哈欠也是會(huì)相互傳染的。

　　Yawning is "contagious"

　　Empirically, this is tough to deny; perhaps you'll yawn while reading this. The real question is whether there's actually something physiological at work here, and the answer is likely yes: even chimpanzees mimic each other's yawns.

　　8、成年人不會(huì)再長(zhǎng)出新的腦細(xì)胞

　　人類腦部許多至關(guān)重要的發(fā)育都集中在孩童時(shí)期。過(guò)去人們?cè)毡檎J(rèn)為腦細(xì)胞在成年后就會(huì)基本保持靜態(tài)，應(yīng)對(duì)新情況時(shí)，結(jié)構(gòu)也不會(huì)發(fā)生改變。但有最新研究結(jié)果顯示，在人們步入成年之后，腦部的神經(jīng)細(xì)胞仍會(huì)繼續(xù)生長(zhǎng)并發(fā)生變化。

　　Adults don't grow new brain cells

　　Much of a human's crucial brain development happens during childhood, but it isn't all downhill from there. Studies have shown that neurons continue to grow and change well into the adult years.

　　9、喝雞湯能治感冒

　　相關(guān)研究已證實(shí)，雞湯中確實(shí)含有某些抗炎成分，能有助于減少因感冒引起的喉嚨充血。因此，世界范圍內(nèi)的媽媽們?cè)诤⒆痈忻安皇娣r(shí)，還是應(yīng)該強(qiáng)迫他們喝下對(duì)身體有益的雞湯。

　　Chicken soup can cure the common cold

　　Cure is a strong word, but science suggests Moms around the world are still right in forcing spoonfuls of chicken soup down their kids' throats. Studies have found that the broth actually contains anti-inflammatory properties that help reduce congestion.

　　10、人死后指甲和頭發(fā)會(huì)繼續(xù)生長(zhǎng)

　　盡管看起來(lái)確實(shí)如此，人死后他們的手指甲和頭發(fā)反而更長(zhǎng)了，但這種恐怖的現(xiàn)象僅僅是種錯(cuò)覺而已。要知道，人死后尸體會(huì)嚴(yán)重脫水，皮膚發(fā)生收縮后，就會(huì)露出更多的指甲和頭發(fā)。

　　Hair and fingernails continue growing after death

　　Though hair and fingernails appear to keep growing after death, this is merely a morbid optical illusion at work. In death the human body dehydrates severely, retracting enough skin to expose more nail and hair.