40 Times People Tried To Argue With Years Of Science But Got Ridiculed Instead, As Shared On This Group (New Pics)
It's likely that none of us are new to scientifically wrong takes on social media. You know, your "the Earth is flat - prove me wrong" kind of posts that simply come with the digital Wild West we call Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
Few know this better than the r/FacebookScience community, then, which has made publicly displaying facepalm-worthy "scientific" takes into a sport since 2017. With almost 62,000 followers, it welcomes the science-denying pseudo-intellectuals as a barkeep does with regular drunkards. Anyway, a whole round of painfully ridiculous statements that have been approved by 4chan mods or Fox News (accurate only 10% of the time™) is on the house!
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Why are all the angels white men?? Oh, Heaven, like the gay club in London. I get it now. Bet the Christian right wing are furious when they get to Heaven and it is a big gay club...
The start of the decade was big for Twitter. As we were in the midst of the pandemic, doom-scrolling like our lives depended on it, the social media giant was flooded with false facts about Covid-19. Then, there were Trump's hectic attempts to sway the public to his side by claiming that the mail-in ballot "voting system is rigged." Having no other choice, Twitter stepped in, rolling in the fact-checking labels, helping users to navigate the realm of fake news.
Of course, spotting some "science-proofed" claims are more challenging than others. For example, have you heard that people swallow eight spiders a year while they sleep? Most of us did and for a while, it sounded credible because there was no way to fact-check it. Only around 2016 was this nightmare-inducing science fact debunked, showing how easily well-disguised bogus facts can creep through our defenses.
A 2019 Ipsos survey, conducted on behalf of the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), shed light on this issue. The survey findings indicated that individuals often overestimate their ability to identify inaccurate information, underestimating the prevalence of misinformation.
According to the report, approximately 86% of respondents admitted to having initially believed news stories - most of them appearing on Facebook - that turned out to be false on at least one occasion. This highlights the alarming extent to which people can be susceptible to misleading information encountered online.
Yes, all the sick religious people should go to their churches so they can be cured by lots of 'Thoughts & Prayers'. But they don't of course. I wonder why ..... (lol)
In order to understand how our brains intercept scientifically inaccurate information and why some of us are keen to ignore scientifically "bulletproof" facts, we reached out to Andrew Shtulman, an associate professor of psychology and cognitive science at Occidental. Although we don't discuss what happens to us when one of the longstanding scientific facts suddenly evaporates into thin air (imagine being a Pluto enthusiast when it was downgraded to a “dwarf planet"), Shtulman says that we can trace how our sponge-like brains develop an understanding of the world around us - life and death, heat and motion - at our formative years.
I don't think they've met any atheists. Why would we get angry at the mention of something that we don't believe exists? If you tell some believers that the Bible is just fairytales and fiction on the other hand......
"These theories are adequate, but they're not perfectly accurate," Shtulman told Bored Panda in a Zoom call. "In fact, they conflict with scientific theories in many ways. And a lot of work has been done looking at how our intuitive theories shape our ability to learn science. However, there wasn't consensus in the field as to what happens to intuitive theories when you do learn a scientific theory of the same phenomenon."
Probably for the same reason that no-one thinks it''d be a good idea to put a big cork in the muzzle of a cannon, and then try to fire it.
This, then, led Shtulman to pursue this question further, resulting in a study which found that 1-in-4 Americans think the Sun goes around the Earth, and not vice versa. In the same survey, just 39% answered correctly (true) that "The universe began with a huge explosion" and less than half of participants agreed with the notion that "Human beings, as we know them today, developed from earlier species of animals." Meanwhile, just over half understood that antibiotics are not effective against viruses.
As we came to learn in recent decades, one of the most powerful, and perhaps the most worrying, causes of the rejection of scientifically sound facts lies in America's rejection of scientists. For example, a 2011 poll found that 69% of Americans think that scientists have falsified climate change research. And although this has slightly improved since then, at least when it comes to climate change, the growing distrust in science came into the spotlight during the pandemic, with only a portion of adults in the United States agreeing that scientists are on their side.
If people came on here to mock and deny the jibbydidoo then we have nothing more to say, BP.
"There's always going to be a certain group of people who are just generally skeptical of institutions and authorities. That being said, there is a reason why certain conspiracies have gained traction, as opposed to any of all possible conspiracies. It's not a far stretch that the earth is flat because when we're children, we think the earth is flat," Shtulman explained. "We don't have any sign that we are actually being pulled to the center of a rotating sphere. And the same is with climate change. We get a sense that the weather's changing, but we can't sense global climate systems and large-scale climate patterns."
I don't know. It's awfully beautiful. Is art a waste?
Another popular explanation for why some of us are more likely to brush off scientifically accurate information comes down to confirmation bias, which leads people to subconsciously cherry-pick information that aligns with their existing beliefs.
Or in the "don't throw it away, it might come in handy " drawer.
Additionally, people tend to unintentionally cherry-pick information because it is mentally easier and more appealing than processing a vast amount of available data. Instead of thoroughly analyzing all the evidence, individuals may opt to focus on a few standout points, forming their understanding of the matter based on these select pieces of information.
"It's rare for people to do their 'homework' and fact-check because so much of what we know about the world just comes from accepting the testimony of other people," told Shtulman. "Some people are naturally skeptical when they encounter information that contradicts what they've been learning in school and what the other members of their community seem to believe, but other people are more inclined to just accept that information at face value."
For those who are interested, a day on the moon lasts about a month because it's tidally locked to the Earth - which means one axial rotation takes the same time as its orbit around the Earth. This is also why we only ever see one side of the moon from Earth.
I've been watching The Universe, and in one of the episodes, they were talking about how ancient people believed that the sun burnt wood. Apparently someone did the math, and if the sun did burn wood (at the size it is now) it would run out of fuel in several thousand years.
When a car drives around your house and you can't see it, it basically disappears. Car is not solid object.
Nor is this person's brain. I can't see it.
Load More Replies...Are you still amused when someone puts their hands over their face and disappears, only to come back again a few seconds later shouting "peepie"!
Object permanence. this is like peek-a-boo...even babies learn that when they can't see you, you still exist 🤦♀️
"If I can't see it, then it's not real "
Before I read this post I didn’t realize there were noon-deniers (or is it specifically round-moon deniers?) Why?????
I'm assuming this person has a mental disorder having to do with object permanence.
The entire world disappears briefly when I blink. I'm terrified that one day it won't come back...
If you throw a blanket over that person's head, they'll think they're all alone, won't they.
Next thing you know some wacko is going to proclaim herself Queen of Canada...oh, nevermind.
They appear to still be developmentally toddlers, as they clearly have no object permanency.
So my daughter's pediatrician was wrong... there IS a chance they won't grow out of the whole "no object permanence" phase. Peek-a-boo forever!
So when my cats is halfway under the bed and I still see his tail, that means he is gone?! MIND BLOWN??!!
How to make anything vanish. Shine a light on it, then turn off the light. Admittedly it comes straight back when you turn the light back on but still ... Also you will fall over the vanished thing if you walk into it. But it has definitely vanished!
Hey, if you take a photo of the crescent moon and jack the brightness, you can see the dark part is definitely still there.
Right-wingers who howl about helping nonbinary children remind me of Nietzsche's observation: "In truth there was only one Christian, and he died on the cross."
My personal belief is that God created everything. He just happened to use the laws of physics to do so. He made a big bang, and there's the universe! I expect He probably wonders now and again what He was thinking at the time.
Sure, because if I want to cover up a top secret evil conspiracy I would leave traces all over the place too for Facebook "scientists" to find them...
What?! I've heard of people denying basic science, but denying that math(s) exists is a new one on me!
"I don't understand *anything* and I want to protect my children from understanding *anything* as well" Hence why some kids are growing up dumber than their dumb parents :(
Atheism has higher morals than religion on the basis that atheists don't need an invisible father figure telling them what the right thing to do is before forcing the 1st and 2nd person in the world to perform incest in his garden, so he can watch, scramble everyone's language to stop them making progress, killing the entire population with a flood, getting a married woman pregnant, tricking a man into killing his kid but stopping at the last minute (or so he says)... there's a lot more, but you get this idea
This is true. All of us here in the southern hemisphere are sworn to secrecy, to keep this knowledge from all of you in the northern hemisphere. So far, none of us has blabbed. Now, we have to track down this flat-earther, and then...well...
I am a fish. I release the egg once a month. I have to stop reading because the quality of my comments goes down with stupid stuff like this.
That picture of Albert Einstein on the front. You know how Einstein is always claimed to be Jewish by Jewish and Christian people, he said himself that he was an atheist.
A more serious version of that question is: if the universe expanded from a single point as the Big Bang says, then how could uniform expansion have developed the density waves that later became galactic clusters, galaxies, stars and planets? It did, but it requires some serious mathematics to explain how.
Where do these mini-minds get their ideas - from interpreting the smears on the inside of their diapers?
Imagine living in a world where politicians are this ignorant... No, wait...
Seems to me the Shroud of Turin has been debunked many times. 1) There is no mention of it till the 14th century, 2) The way the images appear on the shroud suggest a body wrapped head to toe the long way - which doesn't make a jot of sense, 3) Carbon dating places the origin of the cloth in the 13th or 14th century.
Wow… that poor kid! Having a parent who makes you sit in the cold with a broken ankle because they’re crazy… When I took my son to the ER at age 5 only one parent was allowed to stay with him. Did we want that? No! We both wanted to be there. But guess what took priority over our wants in that situation? My kid having a medical emergency! (He couldn’t breathe, it was terrifying). So dad left and I stayed. Oh, and we had to wear masks too. How can you possibly put something like that over the welfare of your child?? If the hospital said I had to wear my clothes backwards and hop on one foot through the door to get life saving medical treatment for my son I’d do it in an instant. I don’t have to agree with it or understand it. My son comes first. Now if they wanted me to do that to shop in a store, I’d probably just go to a different store… but the hospital??? (Ps, I always wore my mask anywhere I was asked to. That is not a hardship and does not violate my rights.)
Tinfoil Tuesdays rock! Not a spherical rock, just a flat one.
This person has been reading Time Cube - hands down THE most unhinged web page in the history of the internet. My brother once made me a Time Cube birthday card congratulating me on having 4 simultaneous birthdays. If you know, you know.
Or anywhere in the south, for that matter. Orion is above the horizon during the day in July regardless of which hemisphere you're in.
The Sun does shrink and expand in angular size. Not much, but enough to be noticeable. Going back to Copernicus, Copernicus failed to notice that the angular size of the Sun shrank and expanded, even though he had the tools to measure the change. If he had noticed the change in angular size then his model of the solar system would have been more accurate.
Graphene is a material created by arranging carbon atoms into a 2 dimensional grid. Just another idiot throwing words they heard once around to sound smart
Where's that siren coming from? It isn't a siren? Then what's that woo-woo sound?
Having seen C.C.'s (top left) videos I can confidently say he is nobody's idea of a smart person.
My mother, who is both a devout Christian and a (retired) scientist, has always said "Science explains how. God explains why" and that seems to me a perfect way of looking at it for people who understand that being religious doesn't mean switching off your intelligence. (For the record, I'm an atheist but have every respect for people who believe, as long as they don't just believe in stupidity.)
are we not allowed to have religion /and/ science anymore? like yeah some of these people are genuine idiots for denying fact, but some of it just seemed like uncalled for religion bashing :(
Yes. People seem to forget the two aren't mutually exclusive. Yes, religion has been used by bad people to do terrible things in the name of God but that's not all of what it is. People being rude to others purely for what they believe, whether they are religious or non-believers is disgusting and inhumane. I believe there's a God because science has not yet explained how you get something from nothing. I am not going to bash others for not believing and would hope that other's actions reflect their belief that views and values shouldn't be forced on others, and that people's beliefs and actions shouldn't be shamed for being different from your own. Bashing from either side is wrong.
Load More Replies...I really do not understand how some of these people lived to adulthood. I mean, they're missing so much of their brain.
This thread just made me hurt. I have a headache for trying to reason this stupidity and while it's a good laugh, these people shouldn't be getting any attention
Can we put all these people on an island and just set up a live feed for entertainment and watch them.
No thanks, I never repeat a stupid claim because there are always some people who don't know the difference.
Load More Replies...My mother, who is both a devout Christian and a (retired) scientist, has always said "Science explains how. God explains why" and that seems to me a perfect way of looking at it for people who understand that being religious doesn't mean switching off your intelligence. (For the record, I'm an atheist but have every respect for people who believe, as long as they don't just believe in stupidity.)
are we not allowed to have religion /and/ science anymore? like yeah some of these people are genuine idiots for denying fact, but some of it just seemed like uncalled for religion bashing :(
Yes. People seem to forget the two aren't mutually exclusive. Yes, religion has been used by bad people to do terrible things in the name of God but that's not all of what it is. People being rude to others purely for what they believe, whether they are religious or non-believers is disgusting and inhumane. I believe there's a God because science has not yet explained how you get something from nothing. I am not going to bash others for not believing and would hope that other's actions reflect their belief that views and values shouldn't be forced on others, and that people's beliefs and actions shouldn't be shamed for being different from your own. Bashing from either side is wrong.
Load More Replies...I really do not understand how some of these people lived to adulthood. I mean, they're missing so much of their brain.
This thread just made me hurt. I have a headache for trying to reason this stupidity and while it's a good laugh, these people shouldn't be getting any attention
Can we put all these people on an island and just set up a live feed for entertainment and watch them.
No thanks, I never repeat a stupid claim because there are always some people who don't know the difference.
Load More Replies...