The 5 Most Ridiculous Lies You Were Taught In History Class. The story: Another great American hero to whom many seem to attribute mutant superpowers is Ben Franklin, the scientist and statesman whose inventions included bifocal spectacles, the urinary catheter and freedom. He was particularly interested in electricity, and faced with intense skepticism from his colleagues about his theory that lightning is electricity, legend has it that he conducted an experiment to prove them wrong. Franklin, with a knowing wink, went out into a raging thunderstorm and released a kite with a lightning rod affixed to the top and a metal key attached to the string. When the kite had annoyed the face of God to the point that he threw a bolt of lightning at it, the charge passed down the string and into the key, and when Franklin touched the key, it let off a spark of static, which somehow allowed him to discover electricity. The truth: It's certainly true that Franklin at least proposed a kite experiment. Less certain, however, is whether or not he ever actually got around to performing it, and some sources suggest he did not. What is certain is that the experiment had nothing to do with lightning. If someone flew a kite into a storm, and it was struck by lightning, there's a good chance that person would be utterly destroyed. In fact, everyone in the vicinity would at the least suffer from hairless- scalp syndrome. Many people today who believe the amended story of Franklin's kite experiment grew up immersed in the revisionist history of Walt Disney, whose classic cartoon Ben and Me portrayed Franklin not only as having flown the kite in a thunderstorm, but also having been a complete fucking jerk. While few people still believe that all of Franklin's innovations are actually attributable to his pet mouse, the kite story is still widely accepted despite the unfortunate testimonies of anyone who's ever been stupid enough to replicate it. The reality of Franklin's experiment is that it simply involved flying a kite into some clouds to collect a few harmless ions, in order to prove that the atmosphere carries a charge. It is through Franklin's discoveries that science was able to infer, later on, that lightning probably has something to do with electricity. The idea that his kite was actually directly struck by a bolt of lightning is a rather dramatic exaggeration perpetuated by some school textbooks, which also helpfully serves to convince generations of children that getting hit by lightning is not only totally harmless, but scientific fun! It also, like the Newton apple thing, takes one of history's great geniuses and portrays them experiencing childlike wonder at some now- common idea, as if everyone who lived before the 2. Why can't there be some other legend about him, one closer to his real personality? Like the time he pleasured six women at once. Sure, we made that up. But if you go out and repeat it enough, it'll be in the textbooks by 2. Let's try it. S Peter Davis runs the exceedingly adequate SPeter. Davis. com. The illustrations in the article were by Nedroid of Nedroid. If you liked that, you'll probably enjoy reading about more bullshit your mom tried to pull on you in 5 Common Body Myths Debunked. Or, enjoy S Peter Davis's tour through the The History of the Sitcom. And be sure to find out how the latest Vogue cover manages to be the most racist masturbation fodder since Paris Hilton became too skanky to excite us anymore. We have some bad news: Ancient Greece looked like a pastel explosion, Columbus didn't discover America, and your favorite book sellers are now taking pre- orders for a text book written and illustrated entirely by the Cracked team! Hitting shelves in October, Cracked's De- Textbook is a fully- illustrated, systematic deconstruction of all of the bullshit you learned in school. It's loaded with facts about history, your body, and the world around you that your teachers didn't want you to know. Ripley Under Ground is a psychological thriller by Patricia Highsmith, the second novel in her Ripliad series. It was published in June 1970. Most commonly asked Questions: Minimum Inspection for Ripley County 'A 24 HOUR NOTICE IS REQUIRED ON ALL INSPECTIONS' The following code, CABO, references apply.
We've also included the kinkiest sex acts ever described in the Bible. The White House provides timely and accurate information about the President's latest events and public statements. Here you'll find photos, video, and. Andy Ripley Andy Ripley, who died on June 17 aged 62, was a giant of a man in several ways and one of the most colourful personalities in the history of.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
December 2016
Categories |