Many of us are exposed to a massive, constant stream of information every single day. Not just at work but during our leisure time, too. And with so much data to process, it can be hard to distinguish between real facts and twisted truths.
That’s the topic that internet user u/Leefiey tackled in a r/AskReddit thread. At times, you can end up in confusing situations where some bizarre-sounding facts and stats are actually true, even though they genuinely sound fake. We’ve collected the top ones, as revealed by the people in the thread, to share them with you, Pandas. Scroll down to check them out. They might just change your perspective on science and history.
We wanted to learn about the reliability of statistics, so we reached out to Steven Wooding, a member of the Omni Calculator project, as well as the Institute of Physics in the UK. Steven is the creator of interesting tools like the Weird Units Converter, among others. Read on for his insights.
#1
If every church in America took in two homeless people, there would not be homeless people in America, and not all of them would have two people.
Final score: 385points 
Jessica Shookhoff Jessica Shookhoff Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
This is both astounding and deeply sad…
200 200points reply View More Replies… #2
There are more museums in the US than there are McDonald’s and Starbucks combined.
Final score: 315points Janner Wingfeather Janner Wingfeather Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
I like this fact.
190 190points reply #3
Ancient egyptians had their own historians.
By the time of Cleopatra, there were records of egyptians ‘discovering’ stuff about the pyrimad of Giza and others, and studying early egyptian practices. Cleopatra lived closer to modern day than she did to the building of the Giza pyramid, so that makes sense, but still.
Those f*****s had been around so long that even Egypt thought Egypt was ancient.
Final score: 303points Kira Okah Kira Okah Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
They even had specialist teams of researchers and restorers, specially to research the practices and techniques of the older Kingdoms and restore their monuments properly and faithfully.
62 62points reply
We were interested in what to keep front of mind when considering the possible reliability of statistics. Steven, from the Omni Calculator project, was kind enough to share his thoughts on this.
“Check the statistics are from a reliable source and up to date. In addition, a very important number to check is the sample size: A larger sample size is more likely to represent the whole population. However, the sample must also be representative of the population and not biased, so check what methods were used to ensure these critical points,” he explained to We.
“Another aspect is to check the margin of error of data points. If they are too large, the data points effectively overlap so that no solid conclusions can be made. Finally, check the same data from multiple sources or studies to see if they agree,” he suggested.
#4
We Went To The Moon Before We Put Wheels On Suitcases.
Darwinex , Project Apollo Archive Report
Final score: 268points 
Head_on_a_Stick Head_on_a_Stick Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Priorities!
80 80points reply #5
I saw a scale model of the earth, moon and sun in a museum. The sun was about the size of a basketball, and the earth was on the opposite side of the room, the size of a small marble, I’d guess about 30 metres away. The moon was the size of a tiny pinhead, about 10cm away from the earth.
On this scale, the nearest star to earth, Proxima Centauri, wouldn’t be in the same building, or even in the same city. It would be 10,000km away.
And that’s just one star, the nearest one to us, in a galaxy containing billions of stars, which is just one of billions of galaxies.
The scale of the universe really is mind bogglingly big. Far bigger than we can begin to comprehend.
Qabbalah , Big Yellow Dot avatar link Big Yellow Dot Report
Final score: 244points 
Edward Finger Hands Edward Finger Hands Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
That makes me feel all cute and smol
73 73points reply View More Replies… #6
After the british made head protection mandatory in WW1, the amount of head wounds increased.
It’s due to they were no longer KIA, but “only” a head wound.
WouldUKindlyDMBoobs , en.wikipedia.org Report
Final score: 230points Kira Okah Kira Okah Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Suvivor bias is an interesting and often scary logical error when viewed in statistics.
128 128points reply View More Replies…
We was also curious as to why using statistics can make a claim seem more trustworthy. “Statistics can provide a sense of objectivity,” the Omni Calculator representative said.
“When you see a statistic, it can be easy to think the claim is based on hard data, not just someone’s opinion. This can make the claim seem more credible, but of course, the statistic itself could be made up,” Steven noted.
“It often happens that someone’s guess at a statistic becomes pseudo-facts. For example, ‘You only use 10% of your brain,’ which any neuroscientist will tell you is wrong.”
Fake news is a very broad term that encompasses a wide range of different types of false information. For instance, fake news in the narrow sense is literally a collection of made-up stories that are presented as though they were true, the Walden University Library explains.
However, that isn’t the same as biased stories which are based more on propaganda and opinions. And that, in turn, is different from clickbait that sensationalizes and exaggerates headlines for the sake of, well, clicks and greater ad revenue.
#7
In English, the color orange was named after the fruit. Before that, orange was just considered a shade of red. That’s why gingers are called redheads.
I_might_be_weasel , Delphine Hourlay Report
Final score: 225points 
And the like And the like Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
We do the same in Italian with redheads though. And the words to describe fruit and colour are the same. And i doubt oranges are native from England. So… i guess there’s more to know to the story
38 38points reply View More Replies… #8
The Appalachian, Scottish Highlands, and the Atlas mountains are actually the same prehistoric mountain range.
StolenDabloons , Fabesh Report
Final score: 217points 
martin734 martin734 Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
The trainline to Hogwarts.
66 66points reply View More Replies… #9
Humans have patterns (like stripes, spots and geometric shapes) on our bodies that are invisible to us but cats can see them
Final score: 209points 
Pernille. Pernille. Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
I wonder if my cats think that my pattern spells out idiot in cat.
135 135points reply View More Replies…
Other forms of fake news include satire—parodies of real events for the sake of humor and entertainment. You’d be surprised how often people fall for them: folks often read the headline and share it with their friends and followers without bothering to read the text itself.
Another subtype is astroturfing where political or religious organizations or sponsors create the illusion that their message is being shared by small, grassroots organizations. By creating the appearance that the local community is behind it, they then draw in more and more people.
Among other types of fake news is native advertising which looks like a collection of news stories but is simply meant to promote a certain product line. While incomplete news stories simply lack the proper background and context, and are examples of poorly-researched journalistic pieces.
#10
It took us more time to go from bronze swords to iron swords than it did for us to go from iron swords to nuclear weapons.
IMJUSTABRIK , Tor-Sven Berge Report
Final score: 203points Head_on_a_Stick Head_on_a_Stick Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago (edited) Report
My favourite “progress” factoid is that Orville Wright and Neil Armstrong were both alive at the same time so we went from the first air flight to the first landing on another planetary body within the lifetime of a single generation. EDIT: say what you want about fossil fuels but they really do get s**t done.
102 102points reply View More Replies… #11
Sharks have existed longer than trees have
Capital_Indication_4 , Matt Waters Report
Final score: 199points 
Yali-girl with weird name Yali-girl with weird name Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
And will probably continue to exist longer
36 36points reply View More Replies… #12
A million seconds is 12 days. A billion seconds is 31 years. A trillion seconds is 31,688 years. People have a lot of trouble comprehending numbers that big
sunbearimon , Andrea Piacquadio Report
Final score: 185points 
PeepPeep the duck PeepPeep the duck Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
I remember yahoo-ing all this in 1999 as an 11 yr old with my bff 😆before google there was yahoo, remember that ?
46 46points reply View More Replies…
With so much junk, bias, and lies out there, it would be completely impractical (not to mention utterly exhausting) to double-check every tiny little claim by yourself. Doing your own research is very important. But at some point, you have to start applying strategies for spotting fake news.
Some key things to keep in mind, according to the Walden University Library, include evaluating the news source, as well as the author of the piece. Dig a bit into what kind of reporting they do, and how (un)reliable it is. Though everyone makes mistakes at times, not every source is equal. An outlet’s track record for being right or wrong, factual or sensational, is what matters.
Meanwhile, do your best to read beyond just the headline and opening couple of paragraphs. If you have the time, read the entire thing and try to get a sense of the entire story. Read a few more articles on the topic from different sources to compose a more detailed and nuanced picture of the events. Moreover, take the time to see how the sources back up claims and stats: take a peek at the sources that they themselves rely on.
#13
1 out of every 4 girls & 1 out of every 6 to 13 boys are sexually assaulted as child. Child rape is far more common than people think & the majority of rapists get away with it to rape more children.
*Edit- sources:
CDC: https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/childsexualabuse/fastfact.html
National Sexual Violence Resource Center: https://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/publications_nsvrc_factsheet_media-packet_statistics-about-sexual-violence_0.pdf
Final score: 178points PeepPeep the duck PeepPeep the duck Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago (edited) Report
Back in my stripper days, not saying it’s industry related but because we are a huge groups of girls, out of about 70 of us only one claimed to never have been sexually assaulted as a child. It was eye opening. We had a group discussion one day. We were close and all friends
150 150points reply View More Replies… #14
Trees existed millions of years before rot. So trees, for millions of years, didn’t rot.
extremeindiscretion , Lukas Hartmann Report
Final score: 167points 
norabest321 norabest321 Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
And that’s why we have coal. It’s neat bc it’s peat.
110 110points reply View More Replies… #15
We live closer in time to Tyrannosaurus Rex than the T Rex did to the Stegosaurus.
reiveroftheborder , Dennis Jarvis Report
Final score: 163points 
Loverboy Loverboy Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
If all of Earth’s existence were squeezed into a single day, humans would have existed for about a second. We can’t even comprehend that.
43 43points reply View More Replies…
Substack writer Gurwinder Bhogal, who runs the popular ‘The Prism’ blog, had a very creative and unusual approach to tackling the rise of misinformation. In his opinion, instead of censoring fake news, we should instead embrace it because then people will be more wary of misleading facts. In other words, being constantly exposed to misinformation creates a sort of immunity to it.
He argues that we should “let misinformation spread so it becomes a clear and constant presence in everyone’s life, a perpetual reminder that we inhabit a dishonest world. Deception is part of nature, from the chameleon’s complexion to the Instagram model’s beauty filters, and it will never be legislated away while life still exists, so let’s stop trying to prevent people from seeing lies, and instead teach people to see through them.”
For some more facts that sound unreal but are true, check out We’s earlier posts here and here.
#16
If you took the populations of both China and India, then removed 1 billion people from each, they would still be the two most highly populated countries on earth.
And you’d probably be convicted of crimes against humanity for wiping out 2 billion people
Final score: 154points 
Tushar Roy Mukherjee Tushar Roy Mukherjee Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Depending on which of the two countries carries out the trial, and which communities you wiped out, you probably wouldn’t face death.
47 47points reply View More Replies… #17
The Oxford university in England existed centuries before the rise and fall of the Aztec civilization.
RefrigeratorStatus96 , Franco Folini Report
Final score: 147points 
Tiramisu 🇵🇸 Tiramisu 🇵🇸 Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Everyone loses their s**t over this one, it’s not even the oldest university still in operation. That title goes to the University of Karueein, in Fez, Morocco, established in 859 AD
86 86points reply View More Replies… #18
Cleopatra lived closer in time to the mobile phone than she did the construction of the pyramids.
There was a window of time where a samurai could have faxed Abraham Lincoln
Mr_Mojo_Risin_83 , Louis le Grand Report
Final score: 147points 
Lakota Wolf Lakota Wolf Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
She was also Ptolemaic Greek. ::gives the new Cleopatra “documentary” series the side-eye::
62 62points reply View More Replies… #19
Three out of every million Icelandic people are Björk.
Majestic-Mountain365 , Frédéric Vicomte Report
Final score: 140points 
Mav Mav Mav Mav Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Bjork’s are beautiful, there should be more of them
24 24points reply #20
Continents move at the same rate that fingernails grow. Which is also the same rate that the moon is receding from the Earth.
Midnight-Ran , Mikhail Nilov Report
Final score: 135points Edward Finger Hands Edward Finger Hands Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
There’s an answer to the meaning of life here…I’m just sure of it! Something about our interconnectedness 🙃
50 50points reply View More Replies… #21
The world population has never been more peaceful, healthier or happier than in the last few decades. On average we live in the best time humankind has ever had.
Final score: 129points Jessica Shookhoff Jessica Shookhoff Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Yes, this is absolutely true. In fact, you can even see it as our bones changed over human evolution, becoming thinner and more delicate, particularly the skull, and particularly in subsaharan Africa and East Asia populations, which is highly correlated with increased sociability. However, we still have a ways to go, and there are still many who need our help and compassion. But I like to remind myself of this fact when I hear something that really makes me hate all of humanity for a few seconds…
74 74points reply View More Replies… #22
George Washington didn’t know dinosaurs existed
Silver34 , Boston Public Library Report
Final score: 127points Janner Wingfeather Janner Wingfeather Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago (edited) Report
“D is for dinosaur, but it’s a brand new word/Invented in 1841, it means ‘terrible lizard’/Spelled D-I-N-O-S-A-U-R/Sir Richard Owen thought it up: D for dinosaur.”Isn’t it funny how little jingles you learn as a kid stick with you?
34 34points reply View More Replies… #23
Not positive how accurate these are but I seem to remember them being reliable.
80% of the people on the planet will never step foot on an airplane.
If you make more than $40K in a year you’re in the top 1% of the world.
My life is far more privileged and luxurious than I lead myself to believe.
Final score: 126points Kira Okah Kira Okah Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
The first is from a quote by the CEO of Boeing. It’s probably based on a US Bureau of Transport Statistics survey that found only 18% of people said they had ever flown on a plane. Not sure of the second, thought it was like net worth of 800k/annum.
11 11points reply View More Replies… #24
New Delhi hired people to hunt cobra snakes which led to people having Cobra Farms to earn money then the government stopped the project which led the Cobra Farmers to release their snakes causing twice as many snakes than they first started.
cathabit , Steven Belcher Report
Final score: 121points Tushar Roy Mukherjee Tushar Roy Mukherjee Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
The British did that while in India, not New Delhi.
40 40points reply View More Replies… #25
Horses [takes out] more people every year in Australia than all the other beasties combined. Everyone thinks it’s the spiders and snakes that’ll get you, but it’s the horses you’ve really got to watch.
Gingerbread_Cat , Bartosz Bartkowiak Report
Final score: 118points 
Niall Mac Iomera Niall Mac Iomera Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
I live in Australia and I’ve never heard of a horse taking anyone out.No movies, no dinner dates, nothing!
245 245points reply View More Replies… #26
Tyromancy is the art of divination/prediction by studying cheese.
Oldandnotbold , Community Archives Report
Final score: 117points Janner Wingfeather Janner Wingfeather Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
*Stares at cheese* Lo, I prophesy that I shall soon taste delicious Cheddar! *chomp* The prophecy has been fulfilled!
129 129points reply View More Replies… #27
Nintendo has existed longer than Disney.
Final score: 116points Jessica Shookhoff Jessica Shookhoff Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Yes! I believe they started off making playing cards?
49 49points reply View More Replies… #28
Joe Biden was born closer to the Lincoln presidency than to his own.
Final score: 114points censorshipsucks censorshipsucks Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
*puts on aviator sunglasses* *does fingerguns* *gives someone a shoulder massage* *tells an anecdote about Delaware*
49 49points reply View More Replies… #29
Chainsaws were invented to assist with childbirth…
[In 1780, two Scottish doctors invented the prototype of the chainsaw. Not to cut down trees or clear debris. No, John Aitken and James Jeffray invented the hand-cranked chainsaw to cut through the pelvises of delivering mothers who were having trouble pushing their babies out.]
fuzzygroodle , Sabine Salfer/WikiCommons Report
Final score: 112points Alvia Vseobecna Alvia Vseobecna Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
oh hell no
115 115points reply View More Replies… #30
Wombat poo is cube shape,to stop it rolling away
lockedinacupboard , twitter.com Report
Final score: 110points 
Elizabeth Elliot Elizabeth Elliot Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
..How is that an advantage?
84 84points reply View More Replies… #31
If you made $100,000 a day since birth you’d still not be worth as much as Bezos
IllustriousAd3838 , Van Ha Report
Final score: 108points General Anaesthesia General Anaesthesia Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago (edited) Report
He has a lot of money. Bezos himself is worthless. Just my opinion.
181 181points reply View More Replies… #32
You are more likely to be married to Kim Kardashian in the United states then you are to die of Ebola in the United States. ( I know. Poor sample size and all. )
kamain42 , Jernej Furman Report
Final score: 108points Niall Mac Iomera Niall Mac Iomera Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
I’d rather have Ebola
273 273points reply View More Replies… #33
Meerkats have the highest “homicide” rate of any mammal.
Final score: 101points Kira Okah Kira Okah Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
They are very hierarchical and resource competitive. If a higher ranked meerkat is pregnant, she will kill the offspring of subordinates to make sure the resources go to hers. They will also cannibalise their offspring if resources are scarce.
41 41points reply View More Replies… #34
The weight of a sloth is anywhere up to one-third poop.
Sharks are the largest threat to the Internet.
neohylanmay , Steven Paton Report
Final score: 98points 
Chocolate llama Chocolate llama Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Sharks apparently like to chew on underwater cables if they get the chance to do so
96 96points reply View More Replies… #35
Barcode scanners scan the white lines, not the black ones.
Final score: 95points 
Mat Hall Mat Hall Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Yes, but also no. While the scanner can only “see” the white lines, the black lines tell it where the white ones are – if you changed the size of the black ones it wouldn’t work, so they’re just as significant a part of the code as the white ones…
96 96points reply View More Replies… #36
If for some strange reason you WANTED your child to be kidnapped by a stranger you would have to keep them outside, unattended, for 750,000 years. Based on statistics.
Final score: 94points censorshipsucks censorshipsucks Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
depends on country, surely? I imagine this statistic would be higher in my country
16 16points reply View More Replies… #37
The average human a**s can stretch up to 8 inches in diameter, and also an average full-grown raccoon can squeeze through a 4 inch hole. Therefore, technically speaking, you can fit two adult raccoons in your a*s.
Final score: 91points Chocolate llama Chocolate llama Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Well, those 3,500 rectal foreign bodies removed by doctors kinda advice against trying that out
60 60points reply View More Replies… #38
There are different sizes of infinity.
Final score: 89points Jessica Shookhoff Jessica Shookhoff Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
My favorite fact of all time!!!
27 27points reply #39
We are bioluminescent.We glow the light just isn’t perceptible to the human eye.
Final score: 84points 
Florence O'Grady Florence O'Grady Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
How can we make this light perceptible to the human eye? I want to see myself glow, pretty please.
67 67points reply View More Replies… #40
If we lost all the dead space inside our atoms, we would each be able to fit into a particle of dust, and the entire human species would fit into the volume of a sugar cube.
bonjelascott , Polina Tankilevitch Report
Final score: 82points Head_on_a_Stick Head_on_a_Stick Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago (edited) Report
There is no “dead space”. Atoms don’t work like that. Quantum mechanics describes atomic-level behaviour in terms of clouds of probability densities determining the position of the particles so the “empty” space isn’t empty at all.
71 71points reply View More Replies… #41
There are 80,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 possible arrangements of a 52 card deck.
MegaGrimer , Tima Miroshnichenko Report
Final score: 81points 
LuckyL LuckyL Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
It took me a ling time to find the “are”.
57 57points reply View More Replies… #42
The most efficient use of energy is achieved by a human riding a bicycle
Final score: 81points 
Awesome At Being Autistic Awesome At Being Autistic Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Not if I’m riding it.
97 97points reply #43
USA is only 2.4 miles from Russia.
2 islands in the Bering Strait, the body of water in the Pacific Ocean that separates Alaska from Russia, are 2.4 miles from each other at the narrowest point; one island is owned by Russia, the other is owned by USA.
Final score: 76points 
Lana Lana Banana Lana Lana Banana Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Waiting for the first person to say it….
28 28points reply View More Replies… #44
Divorce rates are declining.
Zdvj , cottonbro studio Report
Final score: 74points 
I think I’m hilarious I think I’m hilarious Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
Fewer people are getting married
253 253points reply View More Replies… #45
The number one cause of death for pregnant women is [being unalived].
boredasballsyo , cottonbro studio Report
Final score: 66points Mat Hall Mat Hall Community Member • points posts comments upvotes FollowUnfollow 5 months ago Report
BP’s ham fisted censorship strikes again.
166 166points reply View More Replies…
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