How Smart Are You?
You might think you’re pretty clever, so why not test it out and see if you can answer the questions almost everyone gets wrong? From historical blunders to scientific mishaps, it's easy to see why these misconceptions stick around for decades. With that in mind, here are 20 trivia questions most people fail, and why.
1. What Color is the Sun?
If you look at the sky, you'd probably bet your house that the sun is yellow or orange. It turns out that's just an optical illusion caused by our atmosphere scattering blue and violet light. In reality, the sun emits all colors of the visible spectrum fairly evenly, which means its true color is a bright, pure white.
2. What is the Tallest Mountain?
Chances are you shouted “Mount Everest!” before reading the rest of this sentence. Everest isn’t technically the tallest mountain, however. Mauna Kea in Hawaii is taller when measured from bottom to peak. Over one-third of the massive mountain is underwater, bringing its total height to over 33,000 feet.
3. Was Napoleon Short?
He wasn’t that short. He stood about five feet seven inches tall, which is actually taller than most Frenchmen of his generation. Back then, France used different measurement standards from England, making him seem much shorter when converted.
4. Can You See the Great Wall from Space?
Seeing the Great Wall of China from space is something many people have falsely claimed. However, astronauts have debunked this age-old myth many times over. The wall is far too narrow, and its color blends in too well with the dirt surrounding it. Even glowing cities or large highways are easier to spot from orbit than this ancient relic.
5. What Type of Helmets Did Vikings Wear?
Raise your hand if you imagined Vikings rocking big, horned helmets before reading this article. Nobody? That’s because Vikings wearing horned helmets isn’t true. We can blame 19th-century opera singers for popularizing this notion.
6. What Fruit Did Eve Bite Into?
Eve biting into the forbidden apple is one of the first things we all learn about the Garden of Eden. Genesis, however, doesn’t even specify that it was an apple. It only says that she bit into the “fruit of the tree of knowledge.”
7. How Do Matadors Bait Bulls?
How many times have you watched matadors wave around red capes at angry bulls? They don’t actually see red, though. Bulls can’t distinguish the color red from other colors. They’re reacting to the movement of the cape as it’s waved around.
8. Where Do Fortune Cookies Come From?
You probably assumed fortune cookies were an import from China. The only problem is they aren’t served like this in most Chinese restaurants. Fortune cookies are actually an American creation made in California.
9. Are Goldfish Forgetful?
You may have heard that goldfish only have a three-second memory. It’s because they’re constantly encountering new and exciting information. Scientists have trained goldfish to recognize light and sound cues, and even navigate simple mazes.
10. Who Invented the Lightbulb?
Thomas Edison is credited with creating the lightbulb, but that’s far from the truth. Many people had invented working lightbulbs before Thomas Edison was even born. He simply made the first commercially viable bulb most could actually afford.
11. What Color Is Blood?
Many people believe that the blood flowing through the veins is blue until it mixes with oxygen. Veins may appear blue, but blood is always red. Oxygen-rich blood is a bright red color and becomes darker when it releases its oxygen.
12. Do We Only Have Five Senses?
Everyone knows humans have five senses: sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing. Scientists now believe there are far more than five senses. Some researchers put that number at an impressive twenty. This includes your sense of balance, body temperature, and kinesthetic sense.
13. Are Bats Blind?
We all know bats are blind, right? Wrong. Contrary to popular belief, bats actually have great vision. Some species can even see better than humans in dark environments. Using echolocation to find insects in the dark doesn’t mean they don’t use their eyes.
14. What Were George Washington’s Teeth Made Of?
Everyone was probably taught growing up that Washington had a set of wooden teeth. If that were the case, he would have been rocking some mega-uncomfortable teeth that would have rotted off. His real set of dentures was made from a combination of human teeth, ivory, and metals.
The Cleveland Museum of Art on Unsplash
15. Did They Burn Witches?
When you think of the trials in Salem, you probably imagine women being burned at the stake left and right. In reality, none of the accused witches in Salem were burned, but instead faced equally terrible executions using heavy stones and ropes.
16. Why Do Chameleons Change Color?
Most of us think chameleons change color specifically to blend in with whatever branch or leaf they’re sitting on. While that’s a nice thought, their color shifts are actually driven by their moods and body temperature. They might turn a darker color to soak up some sun or change hues to signal anger.
17. What's the Largest Desert?
If you’re asked to name the largest desert in the world, you’ll probably think of the scorching sands of the Sahara. A desert is actually defined by how little rain or snow it gets, not by how hot it is. This means Antarctica is technically the largest desert on Earth.
Wolfgang Hasselmann on Unsplash
18. Are Peanuts Nuts?
You’ll find peanuts in the nut aisle of every grocery store, but they aren't actually nuts at all. They belong to the legume family, which makes them much closer relatives to peas and lentils than to walnuts or almonds. They grow underground in pods, unlike "true" nuts that grow on trees.
19. What Color is a “Black Box”?
Whenever there's a plane crash in a movie, the search teams are always looking for the "black box." If you saw one in person, you'd notice right away that it’s actually a bright, neon orange. The vivid color is intentional so searchers can find it more easily among wreckage or underwater.
20. How Dangerous is Dropping a Penny?
You've probably heard the terrifying warning that dropping a penny from the top of the Empire State Building could hurt someone on the sidewalk. Because a penny is flat and light, air resistance prevents it from ever reaching a dangerous speed. It would likely just tumble and flutter like a leaf.
