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No matter how smart we think we are, no matter how many degrees we might have, everyone (everyone!) has at least one embarrassing knowledge blindspot. You might be like Ted Mosby from the hit TV show How I Met Your Mother who pronounces ‘chameleon’ with the ‘ch’ like in ‘chocolate’ and the ‘leon’ part like the name Leon.

Or you might be like comedy writer Ariane Sherine who used to think that pigs would snuff out chocolate truffles from the ground like they do normal truffles. When Ariane shared this fun fact on the internet and added that one of her friends thought that Colonel Sanders’ bow on the KFC logo was a stickman body (we can’t unsee it now, by the way), she sparked an amusing thread about the most embarrassing misunderstandings that people have had. Scroll down, upvote your faves, and share your own embarrassing blindspots in the comments below! I’ll get the ball rolling by saying that I keep forgetting that New Zealand is to the Southeast of Australia—in my mind, it’s always to the Southwest! Whoops! Sorry, Kiwis.

"I share a lot of the knowledge blindspots other people have confessed to. For example, when I was young, I also thought the word ‘misled’ was pronounced ‘mizzled!’ And I’m sure I’m also guilty of hundreds of misunderstandings I can’t remember now," Ariane told Bored Panda. "I think that’s why the thread was so popular—everyone can identify with the idea of an embarrassing misunderstanding! Can’t help you with Colonel Sanders though—I fear that image is seared into your brain forever..." Scroll down for the rest of our interview with Ariane.

More info: ArianeSherine.co.uk | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

"I think some people think they’ll lose face if they admit to not knowing things. But no one can know everything! Having gaps in your knowledge is just a natural part of being human. And sometimes, as the thread proves, those gaps can be amusing!"

Ariane also revealed to Bored Panda what she's been up to during the Covid-19 quarantine. "I’ve been working on a really fun book for ages 8-12 set during the coronavirus lockdown. Unfortunately though, my agent has stopped work during lockdown, so if any children’s fiction publishers would like to read the manuscript, please hit me up! I’ve also been proofreading my next book, called How to Live to 100. It’s a funny health science book which tells you how to live a long and healthy life, and is out on October 1," she said.

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Peachikeen
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And that mummys had girl babies and the daddys had boy babies. Childhood is a strange time.

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39-year-old Ariane has many talents besides her talent with the quill: she’s also a comedian, campaigner, and a songwriter. But she’s best known for her writing skills. If you’re a fan of British TV, then you’ve probably enjoyed some of her work without even knowing it. She’s written scripts for BBC shows like My Family, Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, The Story of Tracy Beaker, and Space Pirates, ITV1’s The New Worst Witch, and jokes for Channel 4’s Countdown.

She’s incredibly energetic and also a regular on TV and radio programs like BBC Breakfast, Sunday Morning Live, The One Show, Victoria Derbyshire, iPM, Woman’s Hour, Sunday, and Night Waves.

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Shea Briggette
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3 years ago

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Ariane’s a seasoned journalist, too. She has written over 90 columns for The Guardian and The Spectator, a few travel pieces for The Sunday Times, book reviews for The Observer, album reviews for NME, and features for The Independent, Independent on Sunday, and Esquire. That’s the sort of experience that any journalist would be glad to add to their CV.

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So if someone as talented and hard-working as Ariane can talk about her embarrassing misunderstandings openly, there’s no reason for us to hide our own knowledge blindspots. Don’t you think so, dear Pandas?

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Bastette Cat
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

E erroneous thought that! There’s even a band called Youth in Asia.

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Pseudo Puppy
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3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Well, if your parents weren't into retro music when you were a kid, and didn't listen to the Beatles... logically speaking, this is actually a very reasonable assumption to have as a kid.

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earringnut
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You'd be absolutely shocked how many people think that killing the cow is part of the cheese making process.

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Liam Walsh
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I think those of us who grew up on dairy farms might be unlikely to have done! I do remember some inner city troubled kids coming to our farm (I was too young at the time to remember why) and one poor child said that they didn't get their milk from cows - it came from bottles. Always felt so sad for him.

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Palestinian warrior
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How can people think this? Disclaimer: I'm not trying to be rude, but come on!

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Spikey Bunny
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I had a friend who was a nutritionist, she would tell her kids they couldn't have chocolate milk after dark - only strawberry milk after dark. It made absolutely no sense to me then, and it makes no sense to me now.

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Jon S.
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Chocolate its notorious for causing acid reflux by relaxing muscles in the stomach. I don't eat/drink it after 9pm

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Christina Eneroth (Eneroth3)
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Does that mean chocolate bars are made from chocolate milk, or that chocolate milk has no relation to chocolate?

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Shauna Mañana
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Chocolate bars are made from cacao (chocolate). Milk and sugar is added to make it sweeter. The darker the chocolate bar, the less the sugar. In fact, dark chocolate has no milk.

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Tammy Barrett Henson
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I used to believe that cows in the mountains had 2 shorter legs on one side so they wouldn't fall off.

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Flavia Slag
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My parents told me that! : ( Then we visited a dairy farm when I was in elementary school!!! HMMM!

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Ollie the cat
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I believed this until I was 8 and my friend proved me wrong with the power of google

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Bettye McKee
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's what uncles tell their young nieces and nephews. They should be aware that the kids believe it.

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Lynn Morello
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

i convinced my brother of that one, he didn't find our for about 3 years.

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Mariette Ferreira
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Not passed tense. According to a study, 7% of American ADULTS still believe this. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/06/15/seven-percent-of-americans-think-chocolate-milk-comes-from-brown-cows-and-thats-not-even-the-scary-part/ enjoy the other funny facts of things humans believe

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U r lovely and beautiful 🫶️‍
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Team Umizoomi! 😭 that’s what team umizoomi made me think. I loved team umizoomi!

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Sarah Bell
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When I was little, my dad would argue and try his best to convince me of this whenever we would pass cows when driving. He would also claim he painted the lines in the road with a paint brush. He is doing the same thing with my kids now lol.

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Slune
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm still convinced about that! Like gelato stracciatella coms from black and white cows.

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Bill Stade
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Well, brown eggs do come from dark feathered chickens, sy why not chocolate milk from brown cows?

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Alex Bailey
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Although some do not all white chickens lay white eggs. The color of the chickens feathers have little to do with the egg colour. Their earlobes are a better indicator of the colour egg they are supposed to lay but there are still eggceptions.... (sorry about that last bit!)

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Kaisa
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Like white eggs come from white hens and brown from brown hens. I also thought that rocks grow like plants.

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SciFi Vortex
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I thought choc milk came from their asses and vanilla from their tits. (Not really, but some people ... you know ... totally r******d and no sense of humour at all).

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Whatshername
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Please don't take this the wrong way. Things like this honestly always make me wonder if people in the USA (not saying Mr. O'Neill is American) get taught topography of the world in school? Maybe it's just that there's so many Americans and in Europe we hear a lot from you. Maybe that's why things like this get noticed. It is not my inention to be rude, I am honestly wondering. As to me this is unimaginable. We get taught stuff like this when we're about 10-12 years old.

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