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“I Didn’t Know This And Now I Feel Stupid”: 48 Pieces Of Knowledge That Were Supposed To Be Common
We grow up in different circumstances, and it's impossible for everyone to develop the same worldview. Still, for society to function, we expect certain stuff to be universally understood — fundamental facts that people can agree on and rely on. But that isn't always the case.
Reddit user JustBeingElara recently asked the platform what common knowledge they realized wasn't so common.
Thousands replied, sharing etiquette rules, marketing tricks, basic biology, and much more, teaching each other all sorts of useful things. So we decided to collect the most interesting ones for those who love to learn!
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
You don’t need religion to have morality.
Chich the witch 2 weeks ago
I think the best quote I saw was that if the only thing keeping you a good person is a fear of divine punishment then you are really only a psycho on a leash.
RELATED:
#2
Don't watch videos on speakerphone when you're in public.
Don't talk on speakerphone in public.
Don't FaceTime on speakerphone in public.
#3
That "natural" doesn't mean "healthy".
anamorphic_cat:
Dozens of poisonous plants and lethal gases illustrate your point.
allthecats:
And "chemicals" doesn't mean "bad."
#4
That tariffs are paid by the end user. They are initially paid by the importer but are passed along to the consumer.
Auntriarch 2 weeks ago
I sent a small parcel to my friend in Illinois last week, apparently gifts over $100 are now liable.
#5
That disabilities don’t check for proof of age before affecting someone - you can be any age and disabled, and that not all disabilities are immediately externally visible.
Also affect vs effect.
Geoffrey Scott 2 weeks ago
Wife is disabled, she's fine being a custodian...for a couple days. Beyond that she can barely get out of the car when she gets home.
#6
DON'T DRIVE FAST IN BAD WEATHER. I CAN'T BELIEVE PEOPLE NEED THIS EXPLAINED TO THEM.
Multa Nocte 2 weeks ago
When you move from a place that has regular snow and ice winters to a place where snow is rare, your first snowstorm is always an adventure. I had never seen more 4-wheel drives sliding through intersections, unable to stop, having cockily assumed that they could drive the regular speed and then stop at a light just because they had 4-wheel drive. Similarly, the hysteria of people buying up all the bread and milk in stores was a sight to see.
#7
There's a stick on the steering column of your car that indicates in which direction you want to turn.
GenericElder 2 weeks ago
. . . but apparently it only works if you've topped off the blinker fluid? ; p
#8
That you do not have to talk. Sometimes it's possible for you to shut up.
GenericElder 2 weeks ago
Was going to comment, but realized you made a good point . . . oops, sorry. Time for me to get off Bored Panda and go to bed!
#9
As a kid, I once argued with someone about penguins. They didn’t know penguins are birds so we placed a bet, googled to confirm that they are in fact birds, and then I took the money to buy lunch in the canteen the next day. I told the canteen lady that I won my lunch money by placing a bet on penguins being birds. To my surprise she also denied them being birds. So I made another bet - if google says they are birds, I get my lunch for free.
At that time I’ve only discussed penguins being birds with two people. So what I thought was common knowledge appeared not to be.
Sometimes I wonder how many people out there doesn’t know that penguins are birds. And if I can meet them to place bets or get free food.
#10
Wait for the people to get off the elevator before trying to enter.
Giving_Cat:
Or Subway or bus or…
Marlsfarp:
Generalize to: people exiting the more confined space have the right of way.
Anonymouse 2 weeks ago
Corollary - person carrying a burden has the right of way over empty handed. Step aside, people.
#11
That you give your seat up on the bus/subway etc for the elderly, humans with small children, humans with crutches/walkers/canes and humans with a lot of heavy looking bags (to name a few).
Be greatfull that you can stand. One day you may wish someone would be kinder to you than you have others in the past.
#12
The President doesn't have unlimited authority and cannot rule by decree.
I've met so many people on all sides of the political spectrum that don't know civics.
They keep saying "why doesn't the president just ban/enact X?"
They are all surprised when i point out the president doesn't have such authority.
#13
It’s genuinely not a judgement, but I find it alarming how many adults I know have poor grammar or spelling capabilities.
#14
Europe is a continent, not a country.
#15
When you're in a touristy part of a city, overly friendly strangers that come up and talk to you unprovoked are not looking for new friends.
#16
That the seasons are reversed in the northern and southern hemispheres.
As an Australian, this is a fact we all know from a very young age. When I first went overseas at age 16, I quickly learnt that many, many people (including full grown adults) in the northern hemisphere have no idea about this.
#17
Tax brackets! No, Bob, taxes won’t wipe out the raise you just turned down. You’re just an idiot.
#18
You COULDN'T care less.
This is something I *could* care less about and really should.
CoolhandLW:
Dang that's a huge pet peeve of mine. I don't know why it bothers me so much.
#19
When I became a wheelchair user, I thought “wheelchairs don’t do stairs” was common knowledge. So imagine my shock when I started coming across people who thought 3-5 steps would still be considered “wheelchair accessible.”
This is why we need to be super specific when asking if a place is wheelchair accessible. We need to ask if there is step-free access. “Oh yeah, we are wheelchair accessible, there are just one or two steps” isn’t an acceptable answer.
Lila Allen 2 weeks ago
Fun Fact: in the US the majority of " wheelchair access" in restaurants, cafes, etc is in the alley behind the dumpsters. Nothing says unwelcome like having to go through a garbage filled alley to the kitchen entrance to go in. Also the number of buildings who place a ramp with zero regard for how steep or slick it is ...astonishing.
#20
The size of the Great Lakes. The number of people who just don't believe that you can't see across most of Lake Michigan. Or that the lakes can produce any kind of waves at all, let alone of ship-sinking size. A friend was going to a wedding in the Upper Peninsula and told me they were also going to spend a day kayaking around Lake Superior. I said "Cool! What part?" And they looked at me like I was an idiot and said "All the way around? I've got a whole day." I wish I were kidding.
#21
You are allowed to not have an opinion on a subject.
Vanessa Panerosa 2 weeks ago
Nothing like being educated enough to know that you aren’t educated enough to form an opinion.
#22
This may sound like common sense, but you’d be SHOCKED. Chickens will lay eggs nearly every day regardless of the presence of a rooster. It’s the equivalent of a period not a baby.
#23
How to properly train and own a dog. The amount of people who know nothing about dogs is baffling to me. The belief of alpha hierarchy has been proven false in both dogs and wolves for over 20 years by researchers. Yet, people still use it and recommend it as a form of training. It’s proven harmful. This leads to fearful and aggressive dogs.
There is a TON of ignorant dog owners. Not only do they spread false information, they don’t even bother fact checking themselves.
The reason why dogs end up in shelters is because of BOTH irresponsible breeding and irresponsible/uneducated owners.
#24
That in English, apostrophes are generally used for contractions (cannot=can't) or to show possession (the bone belongs to the dog. The dog's bone). It is NOT SUPPOSED TO BE USED FOR PLURALS. 1 dog, 2 dogs. 1 ex, 2 exes.
The Other Guest 2 weeks ago
Apostrophe + s is possessive for nouns, NOT pronouns. The possessive form of it is "its," not "it's."
#25
Growing up I thought every household had constant yelling, walking on eggshells, and random silent treatments. Took me way too long to realize a lot of people actually grew up in calm, supportive homes and that mine wasn’t “normal conflict,” it was just unhealthy.
#26
As an Aussie: the size of Aus and the distance/travel time between places in Aus. You can start in one state, drive for three days, and still be in the same state.
We’re basically the size of the US with nowhere near the population or inhabitable landscape.
nicholas nolan 2 weeks ago
"It was probably the [insert name of mechanical part that is currently malfunctioning on someone's car]"
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Zig Zag Wanderer 2 weeks ago (edited)
Mate, you can drive for 10 minutes, and not leave a property. We used to have one cattle station larger than Texas.
Multa Nocte 2 weeks ago
Is Illinois the state where they have terrible road signs that are basically nonreflective?
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Rich Black 2 weeks ago
europeans have the same issue when coming to the US. they regularly plan to drive between new york city and disneyworld.
Tom Brincefield 1 week ago
That would be a great drive. Lots of wonderful scenery, history, and fun to be had, especially if you stay off of I95. Make it a week long trip and you'll have time to spend some time in a couple of places. Or if you're in a hurry, you could make it in a day and a half. Assuming you only have one driver.
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Trashy Panda 2 weeks ago
Despite America's huge population, it's still shockingly empty in many places.
Nikki Sevven 2 weeks ago (edited)
Most people make this same mistake about the US. It's a 7-hour drive from where I live in Massachusetts to Washington DC. That's less than one-third the length of the east coast.
#27
That being out in the cold does not give you a cold.
Tomschewies:
Soooo many people believe this. I think it confuses people that cold weather can cause a leaky nose but that doesn’t mean it’s a cold.
#29
An awful lot of people I talk to don’t realize their tax refund is their money anyway.
Jan Rosier 2 weeks ago
And that, until you get the money back, the government has had a cheap and interest-free loan.
#30
The fact that deer do in fact drop their antlers, usually after mating season is over & then grow a new set every year 🤷🏻♀️.
Multa Nocte 2 weeks ago (edited)
I didn't realise that when deer lose the velvet on their antlers that they get all bloody. I used to take pix of deer from the front of my house in Georgia (we lived on 10 acres and there were LOTS of deer), and when the biggest, fattest boy deer that came to eat the corn we put out ("Pork Chop") showed up all bloody one day, I thought he'd been hit by a car. I'll try to include a photo below, although it will be dutifully blocked by BP's new anti-spam censoring bot.
#31
Ponies are not baby horses, just like how chihuahua and pugs are not baby dogs. Ponies are a type of horse that stay small even as adults.
#32
Pickles are pickled cucumbers.
i was amazed by the amount of people who argued with me when i told them.
GenericElder 2 weeks ago
No one prepares these types of food themselves anymore - it's all store bought. And just like the entry about not knowing meat was dead animal flesh - who was going to teach them? Does anyone even TALK about food sources anymore? My grandmother grew her own cukes and pickled 'em, as well as prepared her own coleslaw and pickled beets. We lived in the suburbs, but could easily reach rural areas with a short drive, so were able to buy meat and vegetables at the farms they were grown on. Not to mention being able to pick wild strawberries and blueberries every summer. None of these experiences are in any way available to most people today (at least in the US).
#33
No, you cant use US $ to pay for things in an European country!
#34
I don't know about most, but a lot of people near me:
That the ACA (Affordable Care Act) and "Obamacare" are the same piece of legislation.
Rosecrucian Roeth 2 weeks ago
And they "both" must be annihilated before they actually help any more poor people live healthily!
#35
The number of people who don't know that water boils faster if you put a lid on the pot is genuinely concerning.
#36
Low(er) in calories does not mean it's healthy or better for you.
Blackmoon The Dragon 2 weeks ago (edited)
So many people don't realize that calories = energy. Yes, you can have too many calories, but if you don't get enough your body starts performing at less capacity. Having a certain amount of calories a day is very good for you, its really the vitamins and sugars and nutrients that are what you need to be putting in your body/monitoring more than the calories.
#38
That green bell peppers are the unripe versions of yellow, orange, red and purple peppers
(ETA I didn't say those colors were stages of ripeness. Orange bell plants will grow orange peppers. Red bell plants will grow red peppers. But they start green and you have to let them ripen).
#39
Common knowledge isn't that common.
#40
That cows have to be kept repeatedly pregnant to continue producing milk- too many people think that cows are just always making milk and it somehow "needs to be relieved" when their udders are full.
Anonymouse 2 weeks ago
I believe the amount of milk produced each day will start to drop off, so the cow will produce more milk if they calve about once a year. However, cows DO produce a lot of milk each day, and without a calf to drink it, will need to be milked. Also, this keeps the volume up. Ask a nursing mother if she feels pain when she is full for confirmation.
#41
That the UK has not left the European continent, just the European Union. The amount of people who genuinely think we’re not part of Europe anymore shocks me.
Jan Rosier 2 weeks ago
yeah, after brexit, the cables should have been cut so you guys could drift off to wherever... ;-) ;-)
#43
I was an anatomy teacher and I had a student that didn’t know the meat we eat is muscle from animals until I was using a steak to demonstrate connective and muscle tissues.
#44
That’s it’s not up for debate whether we landed on the moon. Now you might debate whether the first landing was faked. But we went 5 more times (manned landings). There is a lot of equipment left there that can be seen from earth. Even a mirror you can hit with a laser.
Doctor Strange 2 weeks ago
The moon landing WAS faked. NASA hired Stanly Kubrick to do the filming. Though, being a well known perfectionist, he did insist that they shoot on location.
#45
The only things you should flush down the toilet is TP and human waste. It doesn’t matter if the wipes or the cat litter says it’s flushable. It’s not!
#46
How to spell 'definitely'. There are a finite number of ways to spell de-FINITE-ly.
GenericElder 2 weeks ago
I like your pneumonic and will hear that in my head every time I read or write "definitely" going forward.
#47
Grapes, onions, garlic, chocolate, corn cobs, xylitol are all harmful for dogs to consume. I hate seeing people giving their dog a protein of whatever they cooked for dinner knowing that there’s onion in it. Yeah, a lot of dogs won’t get seriously sick, but I will hurt their stomach. And some do get very sick. Don’t give your pets human food.
#48
That percentages are reciprocal. If someone is struggling to figure out 8% of 25, just tell them it's the same as 25% of 8. It seems to blow people's minds.
#49
Getting an IV does not mean a needle is left inside you while that IV is in place.
While I don't expect everyone to know this, I continue to be surprised that people who actively have IVs in place do not know this.
hotdiggity75:
I didn’t know this and now I feel stupid.
LegCompetitive6636:
The needle has a plastic tube, a catheter, on it which is left inside the vein when the needle itself is removed
Edit: just to clarify more, the needle pierces the vein then the catheter is advanced further into the vein and the needle is removed, that long needle isn’t going all the way in your vein.
GenericElder 2 weeks ago
Gotta say, I don't care if it's a metal needle or a short plastic catheter, SOMETHING is in my hand/arm. I'm very uncomfortable with it every single time. And don't yell at me how it's for my own good - I know that. Still doesn't make me like IVs.
#50
Pools of still water are the perfect breeding environment for mosquitos. Pour out your garden buckets and containers after it rains.
Huddo's sister 1 week ago
We used to collect rainwater for the garden in clean rubbish bins and my grandad would pour some methylated spirits on top to k**l any mosquitos.
#51
That front-loader washing machines are best left with the door open when not in use.
#52
How to read.
Nowadays 20% of kids are functionally illiterate after school according to PISA results (added: in Finland).
Jeremy James 2 weeks ago
Reading the emails of wealthy, powerful men lately, it doesn't look like the older generations are winning any awards for spelling or grammar, either.
#53
I (a Canadian) had to tell a grown woman (an American) that no I am not jet lagged from my flight because Vancouver and LA are in the same time zone. And then yes the entirety of Canada shares time zones with America.
Zig Zag Wanderer 2 weeks ago (edited)
Duh! I must admit, i was surprised to find that the west coast of South America was ahead of the US in time zone. That *did* surprise me!
#54
Thunder is the sound of lightning. I’ve met people with Bachelors degrees in Science that didn’t know this!
#55
Simple financial self disipline. I don't understand why so many people spend money they don't have to buy things they don't need to impress people who don't care.
#56
Thin doesn’t mean healthy. You could be what the BMI chart considers to be a healthy weight, but that’s just weight. You still need to eat healthy and live a healthy lifestyle; weight isn’t the only indicator of health, but the number of thin/average weight people who eat [badly] but don’t understand why they feel bad is alarming.
keyboardtek 2 weeks ago (edited)
I lived on a diet of white flour bread, sugared cereal, few vegetables, and over cooked meat. I drank sodas all day long. By the time I was 26, I had hypoglycemia, screwed up adrenal glands, skin infections, chronic muscle aches, and sinus infections. It took years of eating a healthy diet to recover.
#57
That 'German Chocolate Cake' has nothing to do with Germany.
It's named after an American guy named Sam German, who invented the specific baking chocolate for it. I mentioned this at a party and people looked at me like I'd just told them the sky was green.
#58
Yellow dandelions transform into white puffs. They are not separate plants.
Caroline Gavelfält 2 weeks ago
yep and you blow on them to spread the seeds and make a wish :)
#59
That plastic is created from oil.
David Paterson 2 weeks ago
Most but not all. Nylon tends to be made from coal and viscose from woodchips.
#60
As a former paramedic and child of law enforcement and firefighters ... FOR THE LOVE OF GOD PEOPLE FORGET WHAT TO DO WITH EMERGENCY VEHICLES COMING TOWARDS/AROUND THEM!!
STOP. Dont stop in the middle of an intersection, dont jerk your vehicle to try and get outta the way subsequently causing another accident, dont try to beat the EMS vehicle, dont follow the vehicle, just pull over safely (or, if all you can do is stop where you are, STOP). Seriously, the amount of accidents that happen with EMS vehicles to and from calls because of people who just panic or are so wrapped up in their phones, vlogs, conversations etc that they dont see big wee-woo's is insane.
#61
My parents were public defenders. I thought everybody knew you weren’t supposed to talk to the police, and that they police are allowed to lie.
#62
The lack of knowledge religious people have about their religion tends to surprise me.
Surullian:
American churches don't tech the bible. The ministers make speeches about what they believe, then cherry pick parts of the bible to quote that seem to back them up.
What I remember most from the times I've had to go to church in life was how most of the sermons I heard were actually quoting the bible.
#63
Local bird species. I grew up in a family that loved birdwatching, whenever we saw a bird they would refer to it by its name. For example, we wouldn’t just say there were birds on the feeder, we would say that there were goldfinches and grosbeaks on the feeder, etc. I am no expert, but I thought that knowing some common species was as normal as knowing some common dog breeds. Hearing that someone doesn’t know what a junco looks like, for me feels like someone saying they don’t know what a husky looks like.
#64
The separation of powers in the United States.
The Legislature creates or changes laws, and the branch that controls funding.
The Executive or President is final approval of law and who then enforces the laws, and also the branch that runs the Government.
The Judicial Branch with our Legal system is the ones who determine if a law should stay or should be removed from the books. They also able to overrule the Executive if they feel a law is not being enforced.
They all have roles, ALL of them, not just the President. That is why he is not and cannot be an absolute ruler or King. 🙈🤷♂️
… and this IS as good thing, regardless of who the president might be.
Norfolk and good 2 weeks ago (edited)
Talking of Kings, a lot people seem to think that the monarch has absolute power in the UK and that the UK isn't democratic. The UK is a constitutional monarchy meaning that the monarch has very little to no power over how the country is run, and hasn't had for centuries. We even executed a king for treason because he believed he wasn't answerable to Parliament. Our laws are made by elected members of Parliament. We do have an elected leader, called the Prime Minister and even they aren't unanswerable. Another general election must be called within five years of their appointment. Several Prime Ministers have been forced to resign because of their conduct. While in theory the monarch has to give royal assent to make a bill an Act of Parliament, in practice they would never refuse and this is considered more of a formality these days. The last monarch to do so was Queen Anne in 1708, and she only did that on the advice of ministers.
#65
How seasons work and that they *are not* caused by daylight saving time.
How banks work. Too many people think a regular checking/savings account means they keep cash in a vault specifically for you.
#66
The basics of the solar system and how things like eclipses work. It's not genius level stuff, but I've heard incredibly ignorant explanations of solar system phenomena from many adults.
Miss Ann Thrope 2 weeks ago
Worked with a woman who was pregnant. Her family told her it was dangerous for the baby for her to go outside during an eclipse. She believed them.
#67
That human bodily fluids contain germs and other disgusting gunk, which can in turn linger on public surfaces.
This after a co-worker touched an elevator button and proceeded to immediately dig the insides of his nose. I told him, you never know where the hands of the previous person could've been - up scratching his armpits, picking up some slimy [stuff], etc - before touching that same button.
And it's just ewwww that he would touch the same surfaces before putting it inside his nose.
His response - "*That can't be. If we can't see those germs then there's probably nothing there*."
Even before Covid, I've always avoided touching elevator buttons, door handles, etc with my fingers and used my elbows instead. If I had no choice, I would at least remember to avoid putting it in my mouth, nose or eyes before washing my hands.
Pernille 2 weeks ago
I just read an article that shows that people have become so germophopes that even basic viruses are making them more sick, meanwhile Finland decided to ship dirt from the country side to urban kindergartens so the kids could eat some dirt, get muddy, and improve their immune systems.
#68
How to use computers in general, it's funny cause there are at least 2 generations alive right now who don't truly know how to work one and both are completely different in terms of age.
Miss Cellania 2 weeks ago
A woman I know, my age, couldn't find a website. I suggested she copy and paste the URL. She was confused, and I assumed she didn't know the term URL so I explained. It turns out she has no idea what copy and paste mean. Also I am finding out how many people I know, who use iPhones every day, do not realize that the internet exists outside of Facebook.
#69
That the Moon doesn't actually Glow In The Dark! 🤔.
Anonymouse 2 weeks ago
People thought the moon was made of cheese, when they landed on it, it was rock... That is what happens when you leave cheese out for a long time!
#70
That alcohol is a class one carcinogen. Just like asbestos and smoking cigarettes.
Geobugi🇰🇷🇰🇭 2 weeks ago
Just like a lot of things that make life nicer. I could write a wall of text about what sugar does to your body if you eat to much of it. As it so happens i enjoy my beer and my chocolate and many other things most adults know are not exactly healthy. I prefer that to living a miserable life without good food and drinks. I also depends on how much poison you put into your body but you can take my beer from my cold, dead hands
#71
I once jokingly said “it’s like herding cats”
People looked confused, “why would you hurt a cat?”
“No, *herding* cats.”
“Wouldn’t that be really hard?”
I said it cause we were talking about something difficult.
#72
I still see folks on reddit talking about the "alpha dog" theory.
there's no such thing as an "alpha" dog, even in wolf packs the hierarchy goes to the breeding pair of a family unit. the breeding pair keeps the pack cohesive.
in domesticated dogs, the social hierarchy is fluid based on immediate needs and opportunity, and is constantly being reevaluated and adjusted to. what people assume is "alpha dominance" in a group of dogs is just a dog atm displaying more confidence in its surroundings and prioritizing its needs, be it resources or instincts. humans are the "pack leader" because they are the ones in control or in possession of the dog's priorities. this is how we domesticated them to begin with...and are able to teach them silly tricks.
#73
How sound works. Now, I'm a highly trained audio engineer, so I'm biased, but I'm not talking the fancy tone pitch and frequent stuff. Just the simple fact that sound is often directional and gets soft rapidly.
My church's sanctuary had 4 speakers installed when I started attending. They were sideways, under a soffit, and pointed up to the vaulted ceiling. And they sounded [bad]. I got then rotated upright and pointed at the seating area, and it was night and day.
UKGrandad 2 weeks ago
Although South Park's famous 'brown note' is a myth, a lot of churches with pipe organs have one pipe that produces infrasound; a note so low that it is below the range of human hearing but which can be felt as a vibration. If ever somebody tells you that they felt the presence of God in church, that was the organist playing the infrasound note at a pre-arranged point in the sermon.
#74
All calico cats are female or sterile males. To get both orange and black, a cat needs to have two X chromosomes. Any male calico cat has an extra X chromosome (XXY) and is therefore sterile.
TotallyNOTAFox 2 weeks ago
And around 80% of orange cats are male. The gene is located on the X chromosome and a female would have to have the marker for it on both chromosomes for her to get orange fur
#75
That the left lane is for passing.
Zig Zag Wanderer 2 weeks ago
Instructions unclear. Causes major accidents on roads in about 1/3 of countries!
#76
Gravity at the International Space Station is about 90% of the earth's gravity. People think that the astronauts appear floating because of lack of gravity.
It's actually because they are in a continuous free fall as they orbit the earth. Kind of like you would look if you were inside an elevator that was free falling towards the ground floor.
Zig Zag Wanderer 2 weeks ago (edited)
That is what an orbit is, falling but keeps missing. There's no 'zero gravity' in the solar system (and beyond) or planets wouldn't hang around.
#77
Sharks are older than trees.
#78
Two children can have the same parents and have two different attachment styles and relationships with this person.
#79
I'm always surprised that the random medical knowledge in my head is not actually common knowledge.
#80
Organic farming adopted 100% on a global scale would lead to major price shocks, crop failure and famine. Organic production also blows conventional production away when it comes to CO2 emissions, producing more carbon per pound of food produced . And last, the rules for organic certification are often arbitrary and meaningless, meant only to virtue signal to end consumers.
Zig Zag Wanderer 2 weeks ago
Actually, it would lead to mass starvation. We can only support our population with modern fertilisers. It takes far to long to fix nitrogen in the soil naturally, unfortunately.
#81
On Highway signs announcing upcoming exits, the smaller sign with the exit number on it which is above the larger sign will be aligned to the edge of the sign corresponding to which side of the road that exit will be on.
Apatheist Account2 2 weeks ago
In the UK, we only exit a motorway on the left (which is the side on which we drive). There's then an underpass or flyover to turn right if need be. Hence the schoolboy joke about "How do you turn right off a motorway? You don't!"
#82
We are losing our effective antibiotics at a shocking rate that far outpaces the rate at which we discover new antibiotics. We will return to the days of people dying of simple infections within most living people’s lifetimes. If you are younger than 45 today and live until you’re 70, this will likely be what [ends] you.
#83
“Tucking in” the string when you put in a tampon. My mom advised me to do that the very first time I wore one, so that 1) it would be possible to go to the bathroom without having to take the tampon out, and 2) there’s no risk of the string sticking out in a bathing suit.
Fast-forward to now, when I’ve heard way too many times to count from other women how they hate having to take the tampon out every time they [go to the bathroom], or how it’s a miracle that the string is staying in their bathing suit, etc etc. Come to find out, mainly from reading internet discussions, that almost NOBODY knows about tucking in the string?!?
GenericElder 2 weeks ago
A correctly inserted tampon should in no way interfere with urination, regardless of where you put the string (unless you somehow manage to push the end of the string into your urethra?) I absolutely agree we need more safe/sane education about menstruation for everyone going through puberty!
#84
People don’t know that you should not swaddle a child with a fever ! TAKE THEM CLOTHES OFF ! you’re trapping in body heat and making the fever elevate.
#85
That the best way to store cake is to put it on the lid of a container and put the container over it, rather than put the cake in the container.
#86
The little arrow by the gas icon on a dashboard indicates what side of the car the gas cap is on.
#87
The US Interstate system is numbered so that even numbers run East- West, and odd numbers North-South.
I've met an incredible number of grown assed adults that had no idea about this.
2 weeks ago (edited)
Also, there are interstates in Hawai'i, but they can't take you to another state. I assume the same is true in Alaska. This is due to funding,.
#88
That caffeine stays in your body for 10 hours. A lot of people I know complain about not being able to sleep and I see them having coffee, tea or caffeinated soda at 4pm… I’m like, that’s why….
KatWitch57 2 weeks ago
But, there are some who can drink coffee, go straight to bed and sleep well.
#89
Apart and a part are opposites.
#90
People treat you better when you invest in your appearance and take care of yourself.
Cosmos in your eyes 2 weeks ago
Making a little bit of an effort goes a long way and to me is a sign of respect. I dress up just to go grocery shopping!
#91
The rules of Monopoly. The game goes on so long because no one plays by the rules. If a person lands on a property and decides not to buy it than the banker must hold an auction for that property right away and all players can bid on it including the person who declined the purchase in the first place.
#92
That you have to take the corn husk off of a tamale before eating it. My wife made tamales for her coworkers and many of them didnt know to do that.
Zig Zag Wanderer 2 weeks ago
I don't even know what a tamale is. I'm quite happy that way, though.
#93
Lots of people have no idea who Amerigo Vespucci was, even though he’s widely known in my country. If you’re wondering, he’s the one who realized that Christopher Columbus had actually reached a new continent rather than India. That’s where the name “America” comes from.
Apatheist Account2 2 weeks ago
This is highly disputed - not least because places were never named after someone's first name unless they were royalty. It's much more likely to have been named after Richard Amerike, an Anglo-Welsh merchant, customs officer, and sheriff of Bristol, who some believe was the owner of the ship Matthew used by John Cabot, but there's no conclusive proof either way.
#94
Try listing these in order of (average) size from smallest to largest or I guess in order of orbit. I’ll put them in a random order, you reorder them.
* Galaxies
* Moons
* Stars
* Solar Systems
* Planets
I was surprised how few people can do this.
#95
"Earthquake weather" is nonsense. Earthquakes originate many miles underground and most weather won't affect ground soil more than a foot or two deep, if that.
#96
That Alaska is not an island and it is not smaller than Texas.
If you laid Alaska over the lower 48 you wouldn’t have a lot of land left over.
Foxglove🇮🇪 2 weeks ago
I was educated in Scotland and we often used maps of Scotland alone, but we still all knew it was attached to England and part of the UK
#97
Surprised at how little knowledge of civics most people have........
* That the First Amendment applies only to the government and not individuals and businesses.
* That a presidential executive order applies only to the Executive branch of the federal government and is not a law.
* That a presidential pardon can apply only to someone convicted on federal charges and does not apply to someone convicted on state or local charges.
* That a person born in a foreign country to a parent with US citizenship is automatically a US citizen.
#98
That modern physics is real. I've spent my entire adult life reading books about physics. Some things that I just take for granted, I find a lot of people have trouble wrapping their minds around. Things like time being relative or the concept of superposition are just intuitive for me. We've proven time is relative. We've measured it. It's not a fringe idea. Superposition is fundamental to quantum computing.
Zig Zag Wanderer 2 weeks ago
Space isn't actually fixed in size either. It's changing constantly.
#99
Laying on your left side for digestion.
Lol the middle school nurse told me that and I walked around in life thinking everyone knew that because of their school nurses until someone else was like omg! I just found out this fact and told me. I was like duh and they said how would you know that and I said that the nurse tells you and they looked at me like that was just you haha.
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What do you think ?
Lee Gilliland 2 weeks ago
Half of this illustrates the fact if you don't need it, you don't learn it until you do.
Mike F 2 weeks ago
That's pretty common, I didn't learn about furnace flame sensors and ignitors until I woke up one morning to a frosty house!
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Trashy Panda 2 weeks ago
Here's mine: Not everyone has a kettle because not everyone drinks tea
Huddo's sister 1 week ago
Kettles can be used for far more than tea though. Especially if you have electric stoves so it's faster to boil water in the kettle before putting it on the stove (though I believe this isn't the case in the US where kettles have less voltage or something).
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Trip Martin 2 weeks ago
The poll question should have included " lack of wanting to be educated".
David Paterson 2 weeks ago (edited)
About half of the items on this list are prejudice and intolerance, rather than "common knowledge".
Lee Gilliland 2 weeks ago
Half of this illustrates the fact if you don't need it, you don't learn it until you do.
Mike F 2 weeks ago
That's pretty common, I didn't learn about furnace flame sensors and ignitors until I woke up one morning to a frosty house!
Load More Replies... Trashy Panda 2 weeks ago
Here's mine: Not everyone has a kettle because not everyone drinks tea
Huddo's sister 1 week ago
Kettles can be used for far more than tea though. Especially if you have electric stoves so it's faster to boil water in the kettle before putting it on the stove (though I believe this isn't the case in the US where kettles have less voltage or something).
Load More Replies... Trip Martin 2 weeks ago
The poll question should have included " lack of wanting to be educated".
David Paterson 2 weeks ago (edited)
About half of the items on this list are prejudice and intolerance, rather than "common knowledge".
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