# Aren't you shocked by what some people DON'T know? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 30, 2000, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431 "2000-11-30T20:34:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![zut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zut/32/2875_2.png) [@zut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zut)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/21 "2000-11-30T22:17:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mahaloth \* > > I was in a college class a few weeks ago(U of Michigan) and a girl asked, “Does the 18th century mean the 1700’s or 1800’s?” When we explained it means the 1700’s, she said, “That’s so stupid. Why did they make it like that?” We tried to no avail to explain. Hey, I can top that! I had a college course on the Old Testament. During a lecture where the professor was detailing when certian prophets were alive, some poor woman raised her hand and asked, “How did people living that long ago know to count the years backwards? Did they know what they were counting down to?” To the professors credit, he patiently explained that the “BC” numbering system was put in place sometime _after_ the year 1BC. ---
**Author:** ![tourbot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@tourbot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tourbot)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/22 "2000-11-30T22:25:28Z")
shortly after the movie Titanic came out, my nephew and his girlfriend were discussing it with my wife and her sisters. My wife mentioned something about the ship sinking and my nephew’s girlfriend said, “Oh, you saw the movie?”. My son had a teacher (2nd grade, I think) who insisted that dinosaurs and cave men lived at the same time. Sadly, that woman who didn’t know the planets isn’t that much of an oddity. The general public’s misunderstanding of very basic science is woefully bad. There was a study of public attitudes and understanding of science put out by the NSF, which, if you’re interested, you can see at [http://www.icasl.org/www/nsf.html](http://www.icasl.org/www/nsf.html). Among other things, 50% of the people studied did not know that the earth revolves around the sun. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/23 "2000-11-30T22:28:10Z")
First, I was sitting in an epidemiology class, and my professor mentioned the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic. A guy sitting up near the front raised his hand and asked (I swear to God this is the unvarnished truth,) “That must be where the Egyptians came from, right?” Second, the all-time winner has got to be when the mayor of DC accepted an aide’s resignation after the flap about the aide using the word “niggardly.” Unbelievable. ---
**Author:** ![ThisYearsGirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/73ab20/32.png) [@ThisYearsGirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisYearsGirl)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/24 "2000-11-30T22:35:25Z")
The guy I was trying to define pop culture to (another thread–thanks for the responses by the way) thought that Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was a band rather than an album, couldn’t name a Beatles song, never heard of David Bowie, said “Who?” when I mentioned Anne Frank, just learned who Ray Bradbury is, and has no idea who James Dean is ---
**Author:** ![AETBOND417](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/47e85d/32.png) [@AETBOND417](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AETBOND417)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/25 "2000-11-30T22:35:25Z")
My mom didn’t know Alaska touches Canada. Various classmates didn’t know that: -Forte is pronounced “fort” (Yes, it _can_ be “for-tay” also, but that just shows the power of the masses of idiots to popularize and legitimize a mispronunciation.) -Melee is pronounced “may-lay” -Island is pronounced “eye-lund,” not “is-land” -Alaska and California are in different time zones Until elementary (primary) school, I didn’t know Chicago was a city. I thought it was a state. Yes, I had heard of Illinois. Cleared that up pretty quick. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/26 "2000-11-30T22:40:03Z")
There was a girl who lived next door to me in college who didn’t realize that West Virgina was actually a state all by itself. She thought when people mentioned “West Virginia”, they were referring to the western portion of Virginia. When we discussed her geography failings at length, we discovered she also thought there were two states, named “Dakota” and “Carolina”, with people just saying they lived in either the northern or southern parts. How she ever made it into college is beyond me. Heard in a theater bathroom during the “Titanic” mania (approx. 14-year-old girl): “Wow, so I guess that cool necklace is still down there. I wonder if anyone will really go look for it. It should be easy to find now, since it isn’t in the ship, it’s just laying nearby.” Thanks, Fillet, now I have this weird mental image of Paul Simon/Gene Simmons…Paul is dressed like he always does, playing something with KISS, and Gene Simmons (in full KISS regalia) is singing “Mrs. Robinson” with Art Garfunkel. Help! ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/27 "2000-11-30T22:42:36Z")
This was in North Carolina. I mentioned to the woman cutting my hair that I just got back from Canada, she asked “Is that near here?”. During that same haircut, I mentioned Led Zeppelin and she said “I don’t like his music”. Oh, and my ex-girlfriend thought that water froze at 0 degress F. ---
**Author:** ![Palandine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/958977/32.png) [@Palandine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palandine)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/28 "2000-11-30T22:48:44Z")
I’m 29. When I was in my early teens, Paul McCartney did “Say Say Say” with Michael Jackson and “Ebony and Ivory” with Stevie Wonder. My classmates (in a rural high school where there were two kinds of music–country and western) had never heard of that band that Paul McCartney used to be in (and no, I don’t mean Wings) :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/29 "2000-11-30T22:50:11Z")
I got into an argument with a security guard… ahem, rentacop who worked at the BMW factory in South Carolina. This was several years ago, and I was asking: if Australia is in the Southern Hemisphere and the next summer Olympics will be held there… won’t it be winter then? (Turns out they kind of have a Florida-like climate and held the Olympics in what would be “fall” for them. Or do I have it backawards?) Idiot Rentacop insisted that he was in the Navy, so therefore Australia is in the Northern Hemisphere — and BTW, it connects to the Mediterranean Sea! He went on and on about how many years he was in the Navy and had sailed all over the world in that time. After he made his points… I stared at him, dumbfounded for a second, before I said… “Well. I certainly hope you weren’t the NAVIGATOR!” His friends busted out laughing and evidently, his lack of geographical knowledge was so humiliating… he never spoke to me again. ---
**Author:** ![Rock-n-Rolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/22d042/32.png) [@Rock-n-Rolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rock-n-Rolga)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/30 "2000-11-30T23:01:59Z")
Some of these are real jaw-droppers! Mine are sorta pedestrian, but here goes anyway: A few years ago, my parents booked a trip to London, England. When my mom told her co-worker (who is a community college instructor with a Master’s degree in English) about the trip, the co-worker said, “Make sure you see the Ivory Tower.” Mom puzzled for a few moments, then realized the co-worker was talking about the Eiffel Tower. Not only did this person not know the correct name, she couldn’t even get the right country! At least she realized it was in Europe… My sister doesn’t know anything about the Beatles, Judy Garland, the major dates in American history, how politics work, or any current events that don’t involve some emaciated actress. And she’s 30 and just finished breezing through a Master’s degree. In Biochemistry! Talk about a one-track mind. And if I could have a dime for every person I’ve met who can’t find places such as Australia, Vietnam or MEXICO on a nice-sized globe, I’d have $5.40. _grin_ ---
**Author:** ![Kerrigan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/49beb7/32.png) [@Kerrigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kerrigan)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/31 "2000-11-30T23:02:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AETBOND417 \* > \*\*-Forte is pronounced “fort” (Yes, it _can_ be “for-tay” also, but that just shows the power of the masses of idiots to popularize and legitimize a mispronunciation.) > \*\* Use the term “fort” around a group of professional, or any other group, of musicians, and they will give you only blank stares. Forte IS “for-tay” in the Italian musical term (translated as “loud”). I don’t know what you’re using it for… ---
**Author:** ![LazarusLong42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@LazarusLong42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LazarusLong42)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/32 "2000-11-30T23:09:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AETBOND417 \* > **Forte is pronounced “fort” (Yes, it _can_ be “for-tay” also, but that just shows the power of the masses of idiots to popularize and legitimize a mispronunciation.)** It is pronounced “for-tay” when written on a sheet of music and referring to dynamic level; it is pronounced “fort” when referring to a strength that a person has. LL ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/33 "2000-11-30T23:12:11Z")
I like to cook, so I’ve gotten some real winners over the years, but “How do you get the peels off the apples?” is my favorite. While waiting in line to see a Romeo and Juliet movie (the LA version that came out a few years ago) someone referred to the fact both main characters die in the end. A member of the group was very annoyed she’d “spoiled the ending for me”. My roommate (about 30 yrs old) has never seen “The Blues Brothers”. A shocking number of people don’t know that Sir Alec Guinness was an actor BEFORE Star Wars. One of my ex-boyfriends broke up with me shortly after I admitted I didn’t know how stereo speakers worked. Maybe it was unrelated. Probably not. ---
**Author:** ![pricciar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@pricciar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pricciar)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/34 "2000-11-30T23:17:00Z")
I went to a dictionary site to see what they had to say about the whole _forte_ issue. I was greeted with an amusing entry. (I have bolded the section that cracks me up.) From [Merriam-Webster Online](http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?forte). > [@](#): > > Main Entry: 1forte > Pronunciation: 'fOrt, 'fort; 2 is often 'for-"tA or > for-'tA or 'for-tE > Function: noun > Etymology: French fort, from fort, adjective, strong > Date: circa 1648 > 1 : the part of a sword or foil blade that is between the middle and the > hilt and that is the strongest part of the blade > 2 : one’s strong point > usage In forte we have a word derived from French that in its “strong > point” sense has no entirely satisfactory pronunciation. Usage writers > have denigrated 'for-"tA\ and 'for-tE\ because they reflect the > influence of the Italian-derived 2forte. Their recommended > pronunciation 'fort, however, does not exactly reflect French either: > the French would write the word le fort and would rhyme it with > English for. **So you can take your choice, knowing that someone > somewhere will dislike whichever variant you choose.** All are standard, > however. In British English 'fo-"tA\ and 'fot\ predominate; 'for-"tA > and \for-'tA\ are probably the most frequent pronunciations in > American English. pat ---
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/35 "2000-11-30T23:17:17Z")
I taught college and my first year was in the gulf war. It was hard to avoid talking about it. When someone mentioned that she was worried that the war would spill over into US soil I drew a rough map on a piece of paper and photocopied it. I handed it out and asked them to x the spot where Iraq was. Only two out of 16 were right! I thought they were pulling my leg at first but when we continued talking about it, I realized they were not. BTW, the most common response was about Brazil, with 7 out of 16 saying Iraq was near there. Another was (I taught Math), I was going over how clever the Greeks were in figuring how far the moon was from the Earth. They actually were really close. However, the messed up with the sun. After showing how it was done, we got an answer and I asked how close our derived answer was to the actual distance. NOT ONE PERSON IN THE CLASS KNEW HOW FAR THE EARTH WAS FROM THE SUN OR THE MOON! Not even close! They thought the sun was about 10,000 miles from the Earth. ---
**Author:** ![Mauve\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ad7895/32.png) [@Mauve\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauve_Dog)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/36 "2000-11-30T23:36:57Z")
At the movie theatre, the trailer for the upcoming movie, “Pearl Harbor” was being shown. The relase date for the movie was listed as May 30 (31?), 2001. Someone behind me commented that the chosen date was odd, why not release it on Pearl Harbor Day (a comment I myself have made, actually). This person’s friend, sitting next to him, asked, “Why? When was that?” The first person was silent for a moment, then said, “Uh…December 7.” His friend remarked, “Oh. What year?” And these individuals were in their 20’s, at least. My best friend grew up thinking that elephants were the only animals that had four knees. ---
**Author:** ![zyzzyva](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@zyzzyva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zyzzyva)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/37 "2000-11-30T23:45:37Z")
[hijack] > [@](#): > > I went to a dictionary site to see what they had to say about the whole forte issue. I was greeted with an amusing entry. (I have bolded the section that cracks me up.) > From Merriam-Webster Online. I did the exact same thing! You beat me to the post tho. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![HannibalV](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e47c2d/32.png) [@HannibalV](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HannibalV)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/38 "2000-11-30T23:49:07Z")
This one goes to the somewhat obscure idea that there are sugars besides sucrose–hey, it’s obscure if you haven’t taken Chemistry yet. In my 10th grade health class, during the Sex Ed. chapter, we were discussing the composition of semen. The teacher mentioned that sperm was a very small part of it, and most of the rest was sugar. One girl, sitting in the back of the classroom, raised her hand and said the words that I will remember the rest of my days: “So why doesn’t it taste sweet?” ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2000, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/39 "2000-11-30T23:57:08Z")
I had a roomie in navy tech school that was convinced that David Bowie fought at the Alamo. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2000, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/40 "2000-12-01T00:15:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by xtal \* > \*\*My roommate (about 30 yrs old) has never seen “The Blues Brothers”. > \*\* Well, OF COURSE I’ve seen “Blues Brothers”, but I haven’t seen “Terms Of Endearment.” Ever. Really! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431.md?page=3)