33.Herds of Milk-Producing Cows Are Rife With Bovine Leukemia Virus
This is true, but it’s no real reason to be alarmed. Lymphoma only develops in a small proportion of infected cows. The virus is completely harmless to humans (assuming they’re not dumb enough to inject billions of the viruses directly into their bloodstream or something like that).
Who peed in your cornflakes?
This is an interesting thread. Don’t crap on it.
50.The World’s Museums Contain Innumerable Fakes
IANAMuseum Expert, but I’ll wager this one is right, in that perhaps many are hidden to thwart thieves or to be studied?
According to this, which I assume is a summary of the original claim, “Most Scientists Don’t Read All of the Articles They Cite” means “most scientists cite articles they have not read at all,” not “most scientists cite articles they’ve read only a portion of.”
This claim comes from a paper investigating the propagation of citation errors (here’s the New Scientist piece the blog refers to). Since very specific errors are repeated, the researchers conclude that scientists must be copy-pasting citations at a surprisingly high rate.
From that, they conclude that the scientists don’t actually read the papers they cite, but just copy-paste the citation.
Which is plausible, I suppose, but it’s a jump in logic. I know I find papers a lot through citations in other papers. Since I’ve already written or copied the citation from the first paper, its pretty easy to just use that, because it’s already in the right format (presumably). Plus, maybe I made an actual paper copy of the paper I’m citing, and it doesn’t have the volume number on it, or the editors of the proceedings, or whatever. Easier to copy-paste.
Maybe the original authors (Mikhail Simkin and Vwani Roychowdhury ) discuss this in their research, but if not, I’m pretty skeptical that the data support their conclusion.
Actually, the original research would seem to refute the statement that most scientists don’t read the articles:
In other words, 4,104 out of 4,300 citations (95%) were correct, and 45 (1%) of the remainder were original rather than copied mistakes. While not all of these scientists may have read the papers, there is no indication that they did not. So there is only evidence that 4% of all citations were copied. It’s only most of erroneous citations that were copied.
And even if the citation itself is copied, it doesn’t mean the scientist didn’t read the paper. Like zut, I have sometimes read a paper in a journal, so I know what it says; but then when I come to write my own paper I may look at the citation in another paper I have on hand rather than go back and check the original to make sure every detail is correct.
First, why is almost every word in this list capitalized? I hate that.
“3.The CIA Commits Over 100,000 Serious Crimes Each Year”
This comes from a 1996 report by the House of Representatives’ Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence titled “IC21: The Intelligence Community in the 21st Century.”
It is used by conspiracy theorists to allude to murder, assassination, etc, but the report is obviously saying these guys are spying, and spying can get you in trouble with the people you’re spying on.
“Most of the operations of the CS are, by all accounts, the
most tricky, politically sensitive, and troublesome of those in the
IC and frequently require the DCI’s close personal attention. The
CS is the only part of the IC, indeed of the government, where
hundreds of employees on a daily basis are directed to break
extremely serious laws in counties around the world in the face of
frequently sophisticated efforts by foreign governments to catch
them. A safe estimate is that several hundred times every day
(easily 100,000 times a year) DO officers engage in highly illegal
activities (according to foreign law) that not only risk political
embarrassment to the US but also endanger the freedom if not lives
of the participating foreign nationals and, more than occasionally,
of the clandestine officer himself. In other words, a typical 28
year old, GS-11 case officer has numerous opportunities every week,
by poor tradecraft or inattention, to embarrass his country and
President and to get agents imprisoned or executed. Considering
these facts and recent history, which has shown that the DCI,
whether he wants to or not, is held accountable for overseeing the
CS, the DCI must work closely with the Director of the CS and hold
him fully and directly responsible to him.”
“45.One of the Heroes of Black Hawk Down Is a Convicted Child Molester”
Well, one of the characters in the movie (Grimes) is a fictional person believed to be based on a real person who was there and who was later convicted on child molestation.
With regard to #19, it is probably a reference to the alleged anti-abortion sentiments of Susan B. Anthony, which are contentious, to say the least.
I would also submit that, in this case, the definition of “fake” is also being stretched to cover replicas or reproductions of things to- for example, there’s only one Rosetta Stone, which the British Museum have, but there is also a replica in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, and presumably elsewhere. Are these other Rosetta Stones “fake”? Well, in the sense they’re not the Original One, yes. But they’re also faithful replicas/reproductions of the original, and they’re acknowledged as such, so they’re not “fake” in the generally accepted sense of the word (ie a non-genuine article being passed off as genuine).
What, just the one? As even the Catholic Encyclopedia’s entry on Pius II lists Eurialus and Lucretia among his literary works, it is stretching things a bit to say that no one is supposed to know this.
This is presumably a reference to the 2007 news story about the discovery of a draft of an unpublished newspaper paper article from 1937 allegedly written by Churchill. My impression is that most Churchill historians think that Sir Martin Gilbert, as the leading supporter of the view that it was by a ghostwriter and that Churchill disapproved of the contents, came out on top in the ensuing controversy.
This only means anything if ‘innumerable’ amounts to a significant proportion of their total holdings. Which in this case, it doesn’t. An overwhelming majority of objects in ‘the world’s museums’ are simply too unremarkable for anyone ever to have bothered faking them.
For reference, I found a pdf of a preprint of the original paper.
The original resarchers state: “As a preliminary attempt, one can estimate an *upper bound *on the ratio of the number of readers to the number of citers, R, as the ratio of the number of **distinct **misprints, D, to the total number of misprints, T.” In other words, as a first cut, they assume that the percentage of copiers in the non-misprints is the same as the number of copiers in the misprints, namely, (196-45)/196. Although there’s no proof that the percentages of copiers are the same in the two populations, that seems like a reasonable conclusion, at least until more data are taken.
However, where I disagree with the conclusion is where the paper explicitly handwaves away any alternative explanation of copied citations:
I’ve modestly reflected on that statement and remain unconvinced.
ETA: In any case, the original factoid 29 in the OP is based on actual research. Research with questionable conclusions, in my mind, but it’s not made up from whole cloth.
46.The Auto Industry Says That SUV Drivers Are Selfish and Insecure
According to the book “High and Mighty: SUVs – The World’s Most Dangerous Vehicles and How They Got That Way,” by Keith Bradsher; SUV makers marketed their cars by trying to tap into deep seated insecurity in the buyers.
So? Soap is sold in precisely the same way.
1.The Ten Commandments We Always See Aren’t the Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments in Exodus in the KJV are actually 15 or so. See here.
2.One of the Popes Wrote an Erotic Book
Well, the Master didn’t mention it, but that doesn’t mean it’s not true.
3.The CIA Commits Over 100,000 Serious Crimes Each Year
Strictly speaking, any covert surveillance or wiretapping without consent of either the authorities or the victim is generally illegal; the CIA conducts hundreds of such operations every year, which could theoretically be prosecuted as crimes under the laws of the country in which they occur (or where the victim is, if they’re intercepting communications from elsewhere).
4.The First CIA Agent to Die in the Line of Duty Was Douglas Mackiernan
Working on this one.
6.The US Government Lies About the Number of Terrorism Convictions It Obtains
The US Government (and all other governments) generally inflate almost any crime-prevention statistic.
7.The US Is Planning to Provoke Terrorist Attacks
Hope not.
10.World War III Almost Started in 1995.
World War III almost started in 1983, actually. There was a similar incident in 1995, but it was a less serious threat.
11.The Korean War Never Ended
The Korean War was never declared, and hence never actually began. The Korean conflict is over, although the occupation continues in a sense.
14.Winston Churchill Believed in a Worldwide Jewish Conspiracy
Churchill worried about Jews embracing Communism as a group, but he was unarguably pro-Zionist and was one of the early non-Jewish proponents of carving out a new State of Israel in Palestine.
15.The Auschwitz Tattoo Was Originally an IBM Code Number
Possibly.
16.Adolph Hitler’s Blood Relatives Are Alive and Well in New York State
Some of them are.
17.Around One Quarter of “Witches” Were Men
I assume this means people accused of being witches, and finding any reliable number of accused witches is a fool’s errand.
18.The Virginia Colonists Practiced Cannibalism
The Jamestown colonists resorted to cannibalism due to famine. I wouldn’t say “the colonists practiced it”, though.
19.Many of the Pioneering Feminists Opposed Abortion
The suffragettes were united only by their desire for self-determination. Surely many of them did oppose abortion. For what it’s worth, Betty Friedan was an outspoken critic of abortion (restriction) laws.
21.Electric Cars Have Been Around Since the 1880s
True; Ferdinand Porsche’s first design was an electric car powered by lead-acid batteries. The second was a horseless carriage with electric motors in each wheel hub, powered by an internal combustion engine. It was arguably the first hybrid automobile.
22.Juries Are Allowed to Judge the Law, Not Just the Facts
True in a criminal setting, though oddly phrased.
24.The Government Can Take Your House and Land, Then Sell Them to Private Corporations
True, assuming there is a legitimate public purpose in the transfer.
26.The Age of Consent in Most of the US Is Not Eighteen
True. It’s usually 16. I thought this was common knowledge.
29.The Creator of the GAIA Hypothesis Supports Nuclear Power
True.
30.Genetically-Engineered Humans Have Already Been Born
True. Women with defective mitochondrial DNA have had donated eggs implanted which result in a child with a 50% genetic contribution from the father and 25% from each mother.
32.Smoking Causes Problems Other Than Lung Cancer and Heart Disease
It causes lots of other cancers, emphysema and bad breath, too.
33.Herds of Milk-Producing Cows Are Rife With Bovine Leukemia Virus
True in North America; in Western Europe the disease was eradicated via selective culling. However, BLV is no more dangerous to domesticated cattle than chickenpox is to human adults, and the disease is not transmitted to humans.
34.Most Doctors Don’t Know the Radiation Level of CAT Scans
Probably not.
35.Medication Errors Kill Thousands Each Year
True.
36.Prescription Drugs Kill Over 100,000 Annually
True. See above.
37.Work Kills More People Than War
Well, it depends which war. Total casualties (including civilians) for World War II were around 50 million over 6 years, but on a year-to-year basis the number is The worldwide fatality rate from work-related injuries and diseases is about 1 million per year. A more representative war casualty rate is hard to judge, but according to this cite 1 million/year is about right.
39.For Low-Risk People, a Positive Result from an HIV Test Is Wrong Half the Time
Properly administered antibody tests are accurate 99.5% of the time or better.
40.DNA Matching Is Not Infallible
Nothing is infallible. The accuracy of the matching process depends on the database size.
41.An FBI Expert Testified That Lie Detectors Are Worthless for Security Screening
Possibly, but the FBI instituted polygraph testing for all employees after Robert Hanssen was caught.
42.The Bayer Company Made Heroin
Bayer didn’t create heroin, but they did produce and market it as a treatment for morphine addiction, ironically enough. They later determined that heroin is metabolized into morphine anyway.
43.LSD Has Been Used Successfully in Psychiatric Therapy
Kind of true. “Success” is in the eye of the mentally disordered beholder.
44.Carl Sagan Was an Avid Pot-Smoker
Carl Sagan smoked pot. Biographer William Poundstone disputes that he was all that avid about it.
45.One of the Heroes of Black Hawk Down Is a Convicted Child Molester
One of the heroes of the book is a convicted child molester. The character was removed from the movie adaptation.
46.The Auto Industry Says That SUV Drivers Are Selfish and Insecure
This claim appears to come from the book Bumper Mentality by Keith Bradsher, and the claim is his own, not “the auto industry’s”, although he does provide auto executive quotes in support.
47.The Word “Squaw” Is Not a Derisive Term for the Vagina
True. The Master Speaks.
48.You Can Mail Letters for Little or No Cost
For 44 cents the USPS will take a piece of paper anywhere in the United States in a couple of days. That’s pretty freakin’ cheap.
49.Advertisers’ Influence on the News Media Is Widespread
Er… duh. I think this means advertisers suppress negative stories about them and get positive stories pushed. I do not think this is news to anyone.
50.The World’s Museums Contain Innumerable Fakes
Assuredly. Any curator will tell you that some pieces are just too delicate (or costly) to show, and to keep down the cost of insurance replicas are placed on display instead. For example, the British Museum’s Tutankhamun exhibition displays nine replica mummies.
Based on my own experience, and what I know of my colleagues, it’s not accurate. I can’t recall ever citing any article where I haven’t seen the original, although I may not actually have it in hand when I write it. And the scientists I know have a pretty thorough knowledge of the literature in their field.
In any case, their research is based on a single paper that is surely not representative of all papers. One might argue that a famous and widely cited paper is exactly the sort of citation that might be copied rather than going back to check the citation against the original. Everybody knows the article and has read it at some point; one recalls the conclusions without having to re-read the article. It’s probably being cited in the intro to the article as establishing the basic parameters of research. As such, it is not a reasonable test of the question.
Do scientists copy citations? Sure. Does that mean they never read the article they are citing? Very unlikely.
With due respect, Google often sends people here, to the Straight Dope Message Board. But aside from that, a part of the purpose of GQ, it seems to me (and I could be all wet on this) is to serve as an archive to attract new users who are searching for answers to questions. The more questions and answers, the better.
And too, I sort of see Straight Dope as a clearing house for information, somewhat like Barb’s site, Snopes. There might be conflicting information out there about the OP’s list. But here, there will be no speculation. No guesses. No tales about something someone heard from someone who heard something from someone. Just the straight dope.
This. Googling Auschwitz IBM gave me an arseload of contradictory claims, some from Holocaust deniers, others from Jewish protest groups, and a third group from unbiased or unopenlybiased sources.
We (the denizens of GQ) don’t just know things; in fact, lots of us know nothing. We are, however, very good at sorting the wheat from the chaff.
Maybe the title of the original webpage should be “50 Things You Are Not Supposed to Think About in Any Depth or the List will Sound Pretty Stupid”.
Gee, Hitler has living relatives. So what? Were the Allies supposed to wipe out the whole family tree?
Regards,
Shodan
This has been addressed already, but even a 99.5% accurate test is going to have a lot of false positives (i.e., 50 false positives per 10,000 people); if the disease is sufficiently rare (i.e., less than 50 real cases per 10,000 people), then the false positives will outnumber the real positives.
I think the “surprising” part of that one was that they’re living in New York, not that they’re living.
That suggests that they claimed asylum or something, when in fact William Patrick Hitler was already in the US when WWII began, having fled Germany after being asked to surrender his British citizenship in exchange for a Party sinecure.
Well, no. But I think you missed the point of the the factoid. Adolf Hitler is singularly despised by all but the most daft living humans. Most (ordinary) people might likely be predisposed to thinking of relatives as descendants — as opposed to cousins and nephews and such. Therefore, it might take them a moment to realize that such a monster could have living relatives, despite that he had no children. I think the list is one of those that is meant to make the average reader look at things in ways that are less familiar than his normal day-to-day thinking patterns. Like the superheated water, for example. Most people, I would wager, had no idea that such a thing could take place unless they knew some of the ancillary facts involved. In the case of Hitler, I think it startles people more than anything. A typical reaction might be something like this, after a brief pause. “Yeah, I hadn’t thought about that, really, but it’s certainly likely.”