长见识了！一些你以为的事实，其实不是那样滴！

　　抽水马桶冲水时，水流会产生一个旋涡流下排水空。有理论称，在北半球，水流旋涡是朝顺时针方向的;而在南半球，则是逆时针旋转的。而之所以出现这种现象，是由于地球自转的缘故。其实，地球自转的作用很微弱，因此难以影响水流动的方向。你可以在一些盥洗室中轻易地验证这一点，无论是逆时针还是顺时针，水流旋涡的方向取决于水槽的结构，而非南北半球。

　　Water drains backwards in the Southern Hemisphere due to the Earth's rotation Not only is the Earth's rotation too weak to affect the direction of water flowing in a drain, tests you can easily perform in a few washrooms will show that water whirlpools both ways depending on the sink's structure, not the hemisphere.

　　2、鸡没有脑袋也能存活

　　正确!而且鸡在被“斩首”之后绝不只是能“苟延残喘”几分钟而已。事实证明，曾有一只精力充沛的家伙在被斩首后，居然摇摇摆摆、跌跌撞撞地活了整整18个月!鸡没有脑袋也能存活的秘密就在于，被砍头后，鸡的脑干通常会有一部分保存完整，而它可以控制鸡的大部分条件反射。

　　Chickens can live without a head

　　True, and not just for a few minutes. A chicken can stagger around without its noggin because the brain stem, often left partially intact after a beheading, controls most of its reflexes. One robust fellow lived a full eighteen months. Likely he was a real birdbrain, however.

　　3、人类的大脑只开发了十分之一

　　这一被媒体广泛关注的理论已至少存在了1个世纪。但幸运的是，这个理论并不正确。核磁共振图象明确地显示出，即使是在打瞌睡的时候，人们都很好地利用了其大部分的大脑皮层，人脑并没有被荒废。

　　Humans use only 10 percent of their brains

　　This media darling has been around for at least a century. Fortunately, it's just not true. MRI imaging clearly demonstrates—with fancy colors no less—that humans put most of their cerebral cortex to good use, even while dozing.

　　4、太空无重力

　　这是个普遍的误解，事实上重力无处不在，即使在太空也是如此。宇航员之所以看起来无重力是由于他们处于向地球的持续下落中，而保持高高在上则是由于他们的水平运动所致。重力的影响会随远离而减小，但它绝不会真正地消失殆尽。

　　There is no gravity in space

　　Blame the term "zero-gravity" for this common misconception. Gravity is everywhere, even in space. Astronauts look weightless because they are in continuous freefall towards the Earth, staying aloft because of their horizontal motion. The effect of gravity diminishes with distance, but it never truly goes away.

　　5、高处落下的一分硬币可致人死亡

　　从高处落下的一分硬币并非最能体现空气动力学的武器。将硬币的形状和下落时的空气摩擦力结合起来考虑，即使从1250英尺(约合375米)高的纽约帝国大厦上扔下一枚硬币，它所带来的快速冲击力仅仅是让一个不幸的过路者感到一阵刺痛而已。

　　A penny dropped from the top of a tall building could kill a pedestrian

　　A penny isn't the most aerodynamic of weapons. A combination of its shape and wind friction means that, tossed even from the 1,250-foot Empire State Building, it would travel fast enough merely to sting an unlucky pedestrian.

　　6、消化口香糖需要7年时间

　　或许，我们的肠胃消化口香糖会比消化有机食物稍困难一些。但实际上，口香糖并不会从我们的消化系统那里得到什么特殊的待遇。医生们认为，上述这种不正确的说法之所以会出现，可能是因为人们为了不让孩子们将这种橡胶性物质吞咽到肚子里，所想出来的办法。

　　It takes seven years to digest gum

　　While it may prove a bit more difficult to break down than organic foodstuffs, chewing gum gets no special treatment from the digestive system. Doctors figure this old wives' tale was invented to prevent kids from swallowing the rubbery substance.

　　7、打哈欠会传染

　　几乎我们每个人都遇到过“打哈欠被传染”的情况，因此从经验上来讲，我们很难否认这种说法。真正的问题在于，这其中究竟有没有什么生理学上的依据在起作用，而答案很可能是肯定的。科学家发现，就连黑猩猩之间，打哈欠也是会相互传染的。

　　Yawning is "contagious"

　　Empirically, this is tough to deny; perhaps you'll yawn while reading this. The real question is whether there's actually something physiological at work here, and the answer is likely yes: even chimpanzees mimic each other's yawns.

　　8、成年人不会再长出新的脑细胞

　　人类脑部许多至关重要的发育都集中在孩童时期。过去人们曾普遍认为脑细胞在成年后就会基本保持静态，应对新情况时，结构也不会发生改变。但有最新研究结果显示，在人们步入成年之后，脑部的神经细胞仍会继续生长并发生变化。

　　Adults don't grow new brain cells

　　Much of a human's crucial brain development happens during childhood, but it isn't all downhill from there. Studies have shown that neurons continue to grow and change well into the adult years.

　　9、喝鸡汤能治感冒

　　相关研究已证实，鸡汤中确实含有某些抗炎成分，能有助于减少因感冒引起的喉咙充血。因此，世界范围内的妈妈们在孩子感冒不舒服时，还是应该强迫他们喝下对身体有益的鸡汤。

　　Chicken soup can cure the common cold

　　Cure is a strong word, but science suggests Moms around the world are still right in forcing spoonfuls of chicken soup down their kids' throats. Studies have found that the broth actually contains anti-inflammatory properties that help reduce congestion.

　　10、人死后指甲和头发会继续生长

　　尽管看起来确实如此，人死后他们的手指甲和头发反而更长了，但这种恐怖的现象仅仅是种错觉而已。要知道，人死后尸体会严重脱水，皮肤发生收缩后，就会露出更多的指甲和头发。

　　Hair and fingernails continue growing after death

　　Though hair and fingernails appear to keep growing after death, this is merely a morbid optical illusion at work. In death the human body dehydrates severely, retracting enough skin to expose more nail and hair.