Get Premium
Dark mode theme is available exclusively for premium users. Learn more about the benefits of subscribing.
No fees, cancel anytime.
Dark Mode 
No fees, cancel anytime 
35 People Who Noticed An Alarming Number Of Individuals Not Knowing Basic Facts Share What They Were
Common knowledge isn't that common. Sure, you can't know everything, and excelling in one area often means neglecting another, but things like first aid and the definition (and use) of free speech should be universally understood. At least, in the perfect world — it's in everyone's best interest.
But, again, they're not. So when Reddit user CasualBeers made a post on the platform, asking its users to share basic facts that they've noticed a surprisingly large number of people don't know, folks immediately started listing their suggestions. Here are some of the most popular ones.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
that freedom of speech doesn't mean you can say whatever you want without consequences or other people giving you s**t about it. it just means you can't go to jail for criticizing the government.
RELATED:
#2
How vaccines work. If they “make you sick,” it’s because they’re working! Your body is mounting a defense and creating antibodies to help fight off infection. A lot of really smart scientists have devoted their entire lives to keep us safe against life-threatening infection and people who have no medical training refuse them. It seems pretty idiotic and cavalier to me
#3
Just because it's natural doesn't mean it is automatically healthy.
Just because it is artificial or synthetic doesn't mean it is automatically bad for you.
#4
Blinkers aren't for you; they're to warn other road users of your intentions. Blinking a fraction of a second before you turn, or worse, start to turn then activate the blinkers does f**k all.
William Teach 2 years ago
It's why it's called a signal: it signals your intention to slow down and turn. Do it. Do it before you put on your brakes. Give people that warning.
#5
Antibiotics do not work on a virus.
Edit: I did not expect this to blow up this much. Thank you so much for the awards and the shared information!
#7
#DON’T BOTHER WILD ANIMALS
I’m sure it’s just natural selection at this point
but the amount of stupid people I see walking up to wild creatures for video footage is irritating tbh.
Bonus points if the human gets hurt haha
#9
It is very easy to not block the whole aisle with your cart at the grocery store.
Appalachian Panda 2 years ago
But what if you, your spouse, and kids run into another family of five who you haven't seen since last Sunday and you have to spend 20 minutes catching up? /s
#10
Don't just pet someone's dog. Always ask first!
Mabelbabel 2 years ago
Especially if its a service dog, like a seeing eye dog. He's working, so don't distract him.
#11
How long it takes a semi truck to stop
#12
Don’t dive in the water to save a drowning person. They WILL kill you. Throw them a flotation device. Hand them a broomstick and pull them to safety. Do NOT get in the water with a panicking person. Wait until they are unconscious and then dive in to retrieve them.
Source: years of swim lessons and unfortunately knowing somebody who has died trying to rescue somebody
#13
That you should wait for people to get off the elevator when it arrives at your floor, instead of cramming yourself in when the doors open, blocking their departure.
#14
This one is for my fellow men out there. Washing your booty hole DOES NOT make you gay. I have seen comments being made by a plethora of males stating that. It’s basic hygiene yo.
#15
You can pick the better of two evils and still not like either choice.
Related:
You don't need to be 100% for one thing and 100% against something else.
Catherine Graffham 2 years ago
So many people don’t seem to understand grey area or nuance. I see it a lot with politics and opinions. I learned early on growing up with my siblings that sometimes you can both be kinda right or wrong and that just because someone did something hurtful doesn’t necessarily mean it was their intent to hurt, but so many people are so quick to vilify others for deeds or opinions (obviously this isn’t counting objectively wrong stuff like most crime or bigotry)
#16
Woman is singular, women is plural. Hate seeing inspirational comments that are intended to be moving start off with “As an independent women, I feel xyz”
Also that being a feminist doesn’t mean you hate men
#18
That not all internet news is real ….
#19
The Earth is not flat.
Pieter LeGrande 2 years ago
I had flat-earthers neighbour. He was a pretty good artist so I got him to do a mural of the solar system for my son's bedroom. Did a good job but he left out the Earth. Just couldn't bring himself to do a sphere, or a pancake so totally at odds with everything else.
#20
A guest requested their chicken to be cooked medium rare this week. I don't understand why I have to stress that chicken only leaves the kitchen when it's completely cooked
#21
That the scientific meaning of “theory” isn’t what the colloquial sense means.
#22
That epipens and narcan do not stop reactions/overdoses. They slow them down so getting a person to proper care is still a necessity
#23
Frankenstein isn’t the name of the moster. It’s the name of his doctor who created him.
Completely worthless information still.. I thought it may fit here. :|
Nicole Weymann 2 years ago
...until you get philosophical and realize that indeed, Frankenstein was the monster.
#24
That Africa is not a country.
Christof Irran 2 years ago
And I don't like the term "African-American." Elon Musk is "African-American" - he's an American resident and citizen and comes from (i.e. was born and raised) in Africa (Transvaal, I believe). And I know this pianist who (for now) lives here in Seattle; he is black; and he was born in Germany and has German citizenship, and yet they refer to him as being "African-American" - Huh?!
MonicaChicagoGal 2 years ago
I identify as a black person when it was decided to change that to African American all involved should have been asked. I was born and raised in Chicago never been to Africa.
Load More Replies...
Headless Roach 2 years ago
Europe not being a country is already a lot to take in. Don't push it Buren
Load More Replies...
Earl Grey 2 years ago
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/map-true-size-of-africa/ 1862345F-D...2a-png.jpg 
Argle Bargle 2 years ago
And yet Australia is a country and a continent. And it was here before it was 'discovered'. Voice. Treaty. Truth.
Catherine Graffham 2 years ago
And neither is America. Some people use it as short hand for the United States but there’s two American continents and a vast array of countries, cultures and dialects. It’s silly enough to generalise a country as big and variable as the US, but to generalise a whole continent (or two, but in my experience when someone says America, they either mean US or North America) is just ridiculous. I’m not even from anywhere in North or South America, but I always cringe when people say something like ‘Americans do xyz’ as if the entire country or continent is a monoculture
Robert T 2 years ago
In general usage, America is always taken to mean the United States of America. It's not that often that we need to say USA and Canada together, but that would be North America, and as there are only two countries, it's as easy to name them as to name the continent. The rest we refer to as Central America and South America if we aren't referring to a single country. If we need to refer to both continents, that would be The Americas.
Load More Replies...
DforDory 2 years ago
Republic of South Africa is a country, but there is also south Africa as the region (like western Europe), while Africa is a continent...at least it starts with a "C" as "country" :D
CatchTheWind 2 years ago
Actually it is. America is a shortened form of the United States of America. (The continents North America and South America are referred to together as "the Americas," but not to my knowledge as imply America. "
Load More Replies...
Bubbles and sparks 2 years ago
That was basic elementary school geography to know the continents, whoever didn't know those by the age of 12 didn't pay attention in class ;) Then again, I'm talking 70's here, kids nowadays... I just have no clue what they learn at school anymore.
Evelyn Haskins 2 years ago
Neither is America! America is a continent, that includes Canada, the USA and Mexico, as well as all the Central and South American nations
Susan Mercurio 2 years ago (edited)
OMG! You don't know how many immigrants from Africa I meet, and when I ask them what country they came from, they say, "Africa." I have to say, "That's not a country; that's a continent!" But it's because so many Americans don't know that, so they assume that I won't, either.
Martin Meierhofer 2 years ago
America is not a country neither, but I can read it everywhere, even by Americans.
Laura Lett 2 years ago
Africa isa Continent. There are 27 countries in Africa. My pastor is from Liberia.
Joselito El Zapatero 2 years ago
Maybe use wikipedia before just saying whatever
Load More Replies...
#25
How you should vote in elections. Just because your parents were one side or the other, doesn't mean you have to be. You don't have to tell anyone how you voted. Do your research and vote smart.
#26
Any soap is antibacterial, You do not need soap labeled as such to kill germs effectively
Guido Pisano 2 years ago
And most of all: friction is more important than the soap... So when you wash your hands rub accurately...
#29
How to tell if food has gone bad. When I worked in a meat department, we got like one call a day from people saying “I bought this X days ago, is it still good?” Lady, I’m not there with you. This ain’t a smellophone. You’re going to have to use your own senses and brain on this one.
#30
How to merge in traffic.
#31
Evidence based reasoning and what evidence means.
#32
Fact checking.
Most of people are prone to fake news and propaganda nowadays.
censorshipsucks 2 years ago
fact checking is easy. 1. Is it exciting or outrageous? 2. Does it make you angry or scared? 3. Does it contain exclamation marks? 4. Does it threaten your personal ingroup/identity? 5. Does it refer to, or imply, a massively powerful cabal controlling everything? If the answer to any of the above 5 is "yes", then it is likely fake news.
#33
How to spot an obvious scam. Look how many people fall for those clickbait articles and chain posts and propaganda and stuff
indiecognition 2 years ago
I will teach YOU how to avoid scams. Just send me your bank account info to get started.
#34
First Aid
indiecognition 2 years ago
Not really a fact so much as a body of knowledge. Or knowledge of body.
#35
It's better to use water that's not quite boiling when you're making your tea.
What do you think ?
Brobro McDuderson 2 years ago (edited)
Freedom to believe anything you want, including nothing if someone prefers.
Load More Replies...
wowbagger 2 years ago
How to navigate the city/town/area they're living in without GPS. GPS is great, especially when going somewhere new, but it's very useful to have an internal map of your own town in your head.
The Other Guest 2 years ago (edited)
My sense of direction is...shaky, at best. Although I live on the West Coast, because of the weird coastline shape the fastest way to get to the beach from here is to head directly south; you'll arrive in 10 minutes as opposed to over an hour going due west. This kinda messed with my whole N/S/E/W perceptions. Additionally, I have to envision the living room of the home I grew up in, and orient it in my head to match where I am to figure out directions. "OK, it's early afternoon and I'm pretty much facing the sun, which means it would be shining in the side window, not the front, so behind me is roughly North."
Load More Replies...
censorshipsucks 2 years ago
that's what it is. But at least it's curated and neat. I find Reddit impossible to follow because it's such a mess, and the tiktok reposts save you the nusance of watching a moronic video.
Load More Replies...
Cass Malone 2 years ago
Birds are real! They aren't mini drones that the govt put out to spy on us
Beck 2 years ago
Easy life hack:: always make your bed when you wake up. Climbing into a nicely made bed at the end of a long day is PRICELESS!!
RafCo (he/him) 2 years ago
I learned the hard way to make your bed and tuck in the sheets. Climbing into a bed with a snake in it is mildly uncomfortable at best.
Load More Replies...
Electra Complex 2 years ago
I wish everyone learned how to understand statistics and research. It's not enough to just say "well this study demonstrated X" like... What's the sample size? What's the population? I can say "100% of people surveyed think I'm super cool and smart" if I only survey my friends and family.
Brobro McDuderson 2 years ago
Many (most?) studies cite n, confidence intervals, distribution, etc.
Load More Replies...
Brobro McDuderson 2 years ago (edited)
Freedom to believe anything you want, including nothing if someone prefers.
Load More Replies... wowbagger 2 years ago
How to navigate the city/town/area they're living in without GPS. GPS is great, especially when going somewhere new, but it's very useful to have an internal map of your own town in your head.
The Other Guest 2 years ago (edited)
My sense of direction is...shaky, at best. Although I live on the West Coast, because of the weird coastline shape the fastest way to get to the beach from here is to head directly south; you'll arrive in 10 minutes as opposed to over an hour going due west. This kinda messed with my whole N/S/E/W perceptions. Additionally, I have to envision the living room of the home I grew up in, and orient it in my head to match where I am to figure out directions. "OK, it's early afternoon and I'm pretty much facing the sun, which means it would be shining in the side window, not the front, so behind me is roughly North."
Load More Replies... censorshipsucks 2 years ago
that's what it is. But at least it's curated and neat. I find Reddit impossible to follow because it's such a mess, and the tiktok reposts save you the nusance of watching a moronic video.
Load More Replies... Cass Malone 2 years ago
Birds are real! They aren't mini drones that the govt put out to spy on us
Beck 2 years ago
Easy life hack:: always make your bed when you wake up. Climbing into a nicely made bed at the end of a long day is PRICELESS!!
RafCo (he/him) 2 years ago
I learned the hard way to make your bed and tuck in the sheets. Climbing into a bed with a snake in it is mildly uncomfortable at best.
Load More Replies... Electra Complex 2 years ago
I wish everyone learned how to understand statistics and research. It's not enough to just say "well this study demonstrated X" like... What's the sample size? What's the population? I can say "100% of people surveyed think I'm super cool and smart" if I only survey my friends and family.
Brobro McDuderson 2 years ago
Many (most?) studies cite n, confidence intervals, distribution, etc.
Load More Replies... Related on Bored Panda
