Join the Fun!

TheJWeed , Rachel Claire / Pexels Report

Bored Panda asked N. Otre Le Vant, who researches progress in science and uses a pseudonym on purpose, about his thoughts on scientific boundaries that should potentially not be pushed.

"Since the dawn of humanity, discoveries in science and technology have always had two sides: the good and the bad. Nuclear energy can be used to build an atomic bomb, but it can also solve our energy problems. Dynamite can be used in war, but it can also help us access valuable resources by breaking through rock in mining. Even a stone can be used in two ways: to crack open a coconut or to hit someone’s head," he was kind enough to explain to us in an email.

According to the expert, the way to tackle this challenge is to learn to handle our knowledge responsibly.

#2

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) I only recently learned that when you get sunburned, the burn isn’t because of skin cell damage. The UV radiation damages the DNA. Then the skin cells decide to commit s***ide and fall off so that the damaged DNA doesn’t produce cancer. I’ll never be mad at my skin peeling again.

Final score:

232points

POST

TribbleThinking 3 months ago

*gratitude to gallant skin cells*

86points

#3

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) I don't think this is scary, but some tin-foil-hat types might.

The frequency range that 5G utilizes is the shared with the C-Band frequency range, which commercial satellites have been utilizing for the past 50+ years. If 5G frequencies do anything to humans (They do not) then they have been doing it on a global scale for decades.

Source: I'm a senior engineer at a global satcom company.

Ocksu2 , Robin Kearney / Flickr Report

Final score:

186points

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Peter Parker 3 months ago

This is actually reassuring.

58points

FormalExplanation412 , Nataliya Vaitkevich / Pexels Report

"Stopping science is equivalent to stopping to think. It’s also impossible: if we decide to halt certain scientific pursuits, who determines what type of science is permissible and what is not? This is similar to free speech. While some free speech can cause harm, restricting it raises the question: who decides what can be said, and what cannot? Such restrictions are always prone to misuse," he said.

N. Otre Le Vant added that there's no other path forward other than to continue to push science and technology. After all, it's them that we have to thank for the high living standards we can enjoy in this day and age. "We just have to learn how to handle these advancements responsibly."

#4

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) Homeopathy does not work and it's only proven effects derive from the so-called placebo effect.

Final score:

182points

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Cathy Hinz 3 months ago

Why, as an advanced society, do we still believe snake oil medicine that is NOT supported by science based proof?

104points

#5

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) Reverting global warming does not unmelt the south pole.

Antarctica is a giant ice mountain (size of US+Canada, average 1km thick) on top of land that is studded by plates of ice in the sea. Think of a very slow moving pudding held in place by a little edge.
All the modeling suggests that once you lose those plates, eventually all the ice will slide into the water.

To refreeze the plates once they are gone, you need an ice age of about -2C to preindustrial, or -3C to current.

There is a 70m of sea level rise of ice on the south pole. The models swing widely on how long it takes to melt on a bunch of factors, but it could be less than 2 centuries for the first 10m.

So either we geoengineer to cool at least the south pole by a tremendous amount, or to hold the ice in place, or in time all coastal regions are lost.
The plates are still in place, but the warmest one is showing signs of stress and thinning. It is linked to 7m of sea level rise if it fails.

To me this is more threatening than any other climate change catastrophe.

sanderjk , Pixabay / Pexels Report

Final score:

178points

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Sexual Harassment Panda 3 months ago

I just read that a heat wave in Antarctica put temperatures 50 degrees above normal.

45points

DonkeyTron42 , Polina Tankilevitch / Pexels Report

#6

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) If you're exposed to rabies and start to show symptoms, your chance of survival is virtually zero percent.

Final score:

168points

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Lyone Fein 3 months ago

This is why we always go to the ER for a rabies shot after being bitten by a random dog.

81points

Meanwhile, some facts about the world can make people a bit uncomfortable. We asked the scientific progress researcher for his thoughts on how they can deal with this anxiety. He shared a few possible strategies to help with this.

First of all, he pointed out that our brains have evolved to focus on risks and negatives. It's a survival mechanism that's hard-wired into us. If we understand and recognize this, we can then reduce our anxiety.

The expert also urged everyone to try to focus on the positives. "Scientific discoveries often lead to beneficial advancements," he said that focusing on these can help us develop a more optimistic perspective on science and life.

In the meantime, we should all strive to limit how long we dwell on any unsettling facts that we learn about. To put it bluntly, it's unproductive. "Instead, focus on areas where we can make a positive impact and engage with topics that inspire and uplift us."

#7

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) Blue whale fart bubbles are big enough to hold a racehorse.

soldinio , Elianne Dipp / Pexels Report

Final score:

164points

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I-like-dogs 3 months ago

Ok this one is kinda funny

88points

crusttysack , Michael Burrows / Pexels Report

#8

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) All onions (all veggies in the Allium family) are toxic to dogs. Worst senario then can develop is AIHA, Auto immune hemolytic annemia, whereas the body destroys its own red blood cells. This disease is about 80% fatal. My dog caught it (we are not sure from where) but is was a primary disease (not a result of a cancer). We think he was eating leeks out of the garden. Took a week in the hospital, 2 blood transfusions, and about 6 months of meds to get him back. He started at 45lbs and was down to 19lbs at the worst part of it.

Final score:

153points

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Lorraine Woollands 3 months ago

Anyone who has a dog should know this anyway

70points

Magoogooo , Quang Nguyen Vinh / Pexels Report

#9

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) 50% of insects have disappeared since 1970. Insect population is down 27% in the last 30 years. Declining between 1 and 4% each year depending on the genus.

Final score:

149points

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Nils Skirnir 3 months ago

Except mosquitos

120points

Pixelpeoplewarrior Report

Learning more about people, nature, our planet, and the cosmos might be exhilarating, sure. But it can also be downright frightening at times. The more you learn, the more questions you have about how everything works. It’s a humbling experience to realize how little we actually know despite being well-educated.

On top of that, you can uncover a lot of terrifying stuff about how things actually work when your curiosity makes you leave your comfort zone. Whether that’s learning more about climate change, what black holes would do if you were to fall in one (hello, spaghettification), or how the circle of life might be less about balance and more about brutal chaos.

“Some species exclude all others in particular tracts. Where is the balance? When the locust devastates vast regions and causes the death of animals and man, what is the meaning of saying the balance is preserved… To human apprehension there is no balance but a struggle in which one often exterminates another,” wrote British naturalist and explorer Alfred Russel Wallace.

#10

There is a naturally occurring thought in many humans named “The Call of the Void” where, without reason, humans see a way they could die and they wonder whether they should kill themselves, even if they have no real intention of doing so

Edit: Yes, the true term is “L’appel du Vide”, the French term for “Call of the Void”. Also, thanks for the awards! I believe this is my first gold.

Final score:

145points

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Aspiring Canuck 3 months ago

I believe this is an example of the many destructive impulses called “intrusive thoughts.”

84points

MonsieurReynard , Helena Lopes / Pexels Report

#11

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) Microplastics in the food and water supplies are crossing the blood/brain barrier.

Shhh.

Final score:

132points

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lwolf1952 3 months ago

We're toast.

57points

#12

Many antibiotics make hormonal birth control stop working. Not just a fact but a warning.

stopnoyoustop Report

Final score:

127points

POST

Sexual Harassment Panda 3 months ago (edited)

Good to know, especially if you're in a state where abortion is illegal.

87points

anon , Chokniti Khongchum / Pexels Report

It’s easy to start getting anxious about all the ways the world could end or how a small accident could lead us to get hurt or worse. Some people develop phobias about certain things in part due to their genetics, and partly due to the environment in which they were raised. For example, if you had a particularly traumatic experience or your parents were scared of something, you might end up developing a phobia related to spiders, deep water, dogs, heights, eating in public, etc.

Dealing with anxiety and moving on from your phobias is a lot of hard work. Often, it’s worth getting in touch with a licensed counselor or psychologist who specializes in handling fears. They might suggest that you try something like exposure therapy and mindfulness techniques to react differently than you usually do when you feel distressed.

#13

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) Antimicrobial Resistance

The bacteria are getting resistant to the medicine much faster than the rate at which we are producing new medicine.

Soon we will reach a scenario when antibiotics cannot treat simple yet lethal infections.

Final score:

124points

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EmAdoresHerKats🇮🇪🇩🇿🇵🇸 3 months ago

It seems like gp's throw antibiotics at everything. My last doctor was like that. Didn't matter that they all gave me thrush and then he'd try to throw more antibiotics at that. I've a new doctor now who's completely the opposite.

40points

To_Fight_The_Night , Robina Weermeijer / Unsplash Report

#14

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) Brain aneurisms can be completely unpredictable and can happen at anytime in your life no matter how healthy you are. A kid who I went to high school with at the age of 16 just did not wake up one morning and his cause of death was a brain aneurism.

Final score:

116points

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Upstaged75 3 months ago

I lost a friend to this as well. She had a 4 year old kid at the time. :(

35points

#15

If your dog swims in a lake after receiving a spot on flea treatment - it absolutely decimates the invertebrate population.

A large dog swimming in 8 Olympic swimming pools worth of water soon after treatment will leech enough neurotoxin to kill 50% of the lake's invertebrate population within 48 hours. I say "after" I mean relatively soon after, within say a day, to have an effect quite this devistating. The leeching does reduce over the month, but it's still there and the effect of multiple dogs still allows for a terrible buildup of chemicals.

pbourree Report

Final score:

114points

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WindySwede 3 months ago

By this I'm glad only cats here.

22points

younaughtypossum , Nothing Ahead / Pexels Report

For example, someone might be scared of deep bodies of water (they develop thalassophobia) because they might have learned something disturbing about them or they nearly drowned in the past. Exposure therapy in this particular case could include looking at photos of the sea and listening to the sound of the waves while the therapist guides the person and reminds them that they’re not at risk.

What is the scariest science fact that you personally know, dear Pandas? Which of the facts in this list creeped you out the most? How do you deal with the anxiety that comes from knowing too much about how scary the world can be? If you have a moment, share your thoughts in the comments section. For science!

#16

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) That you should never use bleach to clean cat pee.
The combination creates Chlorine gas that is very toxic.

Final score:

112points

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Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa) 3 months ago

Technically it's a gas called Chloramine. It's worse than chlorine. Chlorine irritates your eyes and mucus membranes and tells you to GTFO. Chloramine can reach deadly levels when you can barely smell it.

70points

#17

There's many unknown and forgotten diseases trapped in the permafrost and it's slowly but surely melting away. There's been a few cases in Russia (while exploring for oil/gas I believe) of people dying of strange diseases that we have no idea how to treat, because they've basically been hidden there since before medicine even existed. Some could be contagious, we just know very little about it.

Incorect_Speling Report

Final score:

111points

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reuben kift 3 months ago

This is just one of the things I worry about in regards to climate change. If just one of these long-lost diseases is contagious, regardless of how it's passed (direct contact or airborne), then there could be a pandemic on such a scale that modern medicine may not be able to cope. And with the world as populated as it is and with travel between countries and across seas being much faster, it would spread quickly. Ebola, y'know, that disease that was on the news that everyone seems to have forgotten about, is still here. There is a likelihood that it may become airborne and if it does (not likely, but not impossible), it has a 90% fatality rate. And we already know about that one. What if the ones lying dormant under permafrost are higher or are already airborne diseases? That's just one of the reasons why we must slow climate change down.

56points

#18

Magnolia plants are so old that they predate the evolution of pollination by bees. They were pollinated by beetles :).

aincs22 Report

Final score:

106points

POST

Heather W 3 months ago

Bees used to process corpses. Mmmm. Meat honey.

27points

#19

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) The plague is still out there. The Bubonic Plague is endemic in many parts of the world, but cases are very rare because we've got it pretty well handled.

If there's a general breakdown in society like a nuclear war, super volcano eruption or asteroid impact?

It's out there waiting to come back.

gogojack , Nandhu Kumar / Pexels Report

Final score:

104points

POST

Sara Frazer 3 months ago

I don't wanna be *that person*, but the difference in this model's nails bothers me 😮‍💨

97points

Matrozi , cottonbro studio / Pexels Report

#20

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) The youngest persons who developed Alzheimer's were around 25 years old. One lady got diagnosed with it at 31 while pregnant.

Btw, when you get the disease at like 65, it didn't suddenly begin. It has been creeping up and ravaging your brain for at least 20 years if not more. You just didn't realise it because our brain is very good at compensating damages until it cannot. Basically, the day you lose yourself in the supermarket, it's too late, your brain is mostly mush and there is so far nothing you can do.

That mean that if you are 40-60 years old and reading this, chances are that some of you already started to experience the onset of alzheimer's brain degeneration, it's just not advanced enough for you to realise it.

Have a nice day !

Final score:

100points

POST

Nils Skirnir 3 months ago

And even better, it might often be triggered by viruses and the shingles vaccine reduces chances of getting it (correlated with lower incidents). Also it is especially high in WW2 and Silent generations compared to later ones at same points in life.

44points

#21

I learned about Ton 618 the other day. My facts here may be mildly incorrect, feel free to google.

It’s a black hole about 10.3 billion light years away, but we can still detect the massive amount of light bending around it. It’s so large, they had to make a new category of black hole for it called “Ultramassive Black Holes”. It’s believed to be the largest “thing” in the universe. It’s diameter is **14 times** the diameter of Neptunes orbit. So it could fit our entire solar system in it 14 times across, side to side. If the black hole replaced our sun, we would be deleted. If it replaced the black hole that is currently at the centre of the Milky Way, within 120 years the Milky Way would be deleted. This black hole doesn’t swallow planets, it swallows entire *Galaxies*.

The idea of this thing freaks me the f**k out.

Edit: Woah I went for a nap and this blew Tf up. Most upvoted comment of all time, les gooo

So yeah I was mistaken a few times here; like if the black hole replaced ours it would take 120 years to destroy *us*, not the entire galaxy. The black hole is larger than I originally said, and true black holes don’t technically give off light, but they are pretty much “surrounded by light”.

I typed this out from memory and sadly my memory is pure garbage, but still I’m glad this encouraged you folks to look more into it and stuff. Space is cool and terrifying, huh?

TTungsteNN Report

Final score:

98points

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Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My! 3 months ago

Hopefully, if the black hole taps the sun on its shoulder and says "I'm here to cover your break," the sun will say it's already eaten.

34points

#22

Airplanes are dynamically stable, but helicopters are dynamically unstable. That means, if an airplane pilot lets go of the controls of a small plane with no autopilot, if it's correctly trimmed and balanced it will keep flying level until it runs out of fuel. If a helicopter pilot lets go of the controls, in about 2.4 seconds, it will tip over to such a degree that it is unrecoverable. We can let go of one control (the collective) for a little while by frictioning it in place to change the radio, adjust something, scratch our nose or whatever - but it's friction on, do the thing with the left hand, friction off and hand back on the collective. We fly three seconds away from falling out of the sky all the time.

(But then that's also kinda the same for bicycles, although they can only tip left and right, not every direction. Subconsciously, you are always adusting your weight and controlling the steering to stay upright - same thing in a heli. You balance on a column of air, and you keep balancing the whole time, just like on a bike. You don't even notice, you just do it.).

WriterofWords2021 Report

Final score:

97points

POST

Owen 3 months ago

My Dad is an engineer, and worked developing helicopter blades and motors. He will not get on a helicopter, and told me to never get on one. Because if anything goes wrong... you're f*cked.

50points

avril04 , Polina Tankilevitch / Pexels Report

#23

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) Activated charcoal in foods and drinks can decrease the effectiveness of any medications you take. Those "instagrammable" black foods can end up killing you if you're not careful.

Final score:

94points

POST

LakotaWolf (she/her) 3 months ago

Activated charcoal isn't something you should take to "detox your liver" at home, or before you go out for a night of heavy drinking to "absorb the alcohol" to "prevent a hangover". It is used medically for SERIOUS conditions where they can't give you an antidote/magical cure for whatever you are poisoned with and need to absorb the bad junk ASAP. Leave activated charcoal to the medical professionals and not to your ice-cream shop or toothpaste brand.

98points

SuperfluouslySlims , Leah Newhouse / Pexels Report

#24

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) Microplastics are revealed in the placentas of unborn babies.

Final score:

89points

POST

Green Tree 3 months ago

They have also been found in human hearts and brains

34points

Doromclosie , Kampus Production / Pexels Report

#25

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) So many people will struggle with infertility. It's not talked about or really discussed in middle school or highschool in health class. When it happens, it's such a shock to the families and they are completely unprepared. The numbers are going up as well. Statistical 1/4 pregnancies end in miscarriage. Which is pretty high but again, miscarriage isn't discussed.

Final score:

87points

POST

Nils Skirnir 3 months ago

One quarter of known pregnancies. Likely much higher

73points

V 3 months ago

Very true. Not everyone has regular periods, so if they are sexually active, they could have no idea. An early miscarriage can just be like a heavy period.

17points

Tabitha 3 months ago

What looks like an unusually heavy flow that came with a late period (and the usual pregnancy scare) could very well have been a very early spontaneous abortion, the medical term for miscarriage.

7points

Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa) 3 months ago

Much much higher. Only 1/3 of fertilized eggs actually implant in the uterine wall. The rest get flushed out with the next period. That's from animal studies but I doubt humans are any different.

5points

Graham Berry 2 months ago

Exactly, it may not be that the number is going up so much as more of the existing normal amount is being reported. We are probably just better informed today than we were in the past.

0points

DE Ray 3 months ago

I had friends who were had an experience of infertility - they were married around a decade, and tried desperately to have kids the entire time. Multiple rounds of IVF, the husband wearing an appliance in his pants, all the "that's extreme" things you hear about people desperate for a baby. It eventually destroyed their marriage, and they divorced amid bitter recriminations. Then they each had a child within 18 months. I wonder how many people aren't infertile, but rather incompatible with their partner?

12points

IlaTheRedheadBambooEater 3 months ago

So much true. And when woman miscarriages she often gets a lot of bad thoughts about herself and her failure even its really common... Let's talk about that.

8points

Heather W 3 months ago

Many miscarriages happen before a woman even knoows she's pregnant. Just seems like a heavy period.

6points

Ivy 3 months ago

While this can obviously be devastating for couples trying to have children (and I don’t want to negate their struggle), it almost feels like Mother Nature’s way of counteracting overpopulation.

5points

Ivy 3 months ago

I was thinking more about the increasing rates of infertility (which after rereading this I realize is a bit off topic).

6points

The Darkest Timeline 3 months ago

Yet, somehow, we’re still on track to reach over ten billion people.

4points

Wintermute 3 months ago

See the documentary "Idiocracy." That explains it well.

6points

WubiDubi 3 months ago

IVF prices are stunning.

4points

Gozer LeGozerian 3 months ago

I'll never understand the desperation and entitlement for a child

2points

Kevin Hickey 3 months ago

Fortunately, there are literally millions of children who have already been born who could use a good home. The world will not end if you don't reproduce.

2points

Seadog 3 months ago

The real question is, are those high number of miscarriages due to all the c**p that's in our food now? People from other countries come here and get sick from our food because of all the c**p that's in it compared to mush of the rest of the world. And then how many of those women smoke or are around smokers? D***s? Alcohol? Vaping etc.

1point

Rayne OfSalt 3 months ago

Interesting bit of modern biological science: it has been discovered that a not-insignificant number of men and women who have fertility issues have either XXY chromosomes (more common in women), or non-binary receptors at the cell level (more common in men). The discovery has opened up new paths of research into fertility treatments.

1point

Diane H 3 months ago

Too many people in this world anyway,

0points

Raven 3 months ago

I lost 9 before having my daughter at 32 and my son 14 months later. No trouble getting pregnant but staying pregnant was the issue and needed strict midwife monitoring and lots of hormones

0points

Gregg Bender 3 months ago

Some pregnancies spontaneously abort so early that no one knows it even happened.

0points

EJN 3 months ago

I had 4 miscarriages and one child born. They never could determine the cause of the problem. Most cases are the same. Some miscarriages are so early that you do not even realize it is a miscarriage.

0points

Rosemary Cameron 3 months ago

Working certain high stress jobs also skyrockets your chance of a miscarriage also. Healthcare workers have the highest rate. In my job myself and three others had 5 losses in a ten year span (3 in a 6 month span thanks covid) plus extreme rates of infertility in our department. We were expected to act like nothing happened and keep working. I tell new staff if they want babies to transfer out that our jobs have a 55% miscarriage rate ( that factors in children born too 45% chance of full term) my doctor said the stress of my job is absolutely the reason I lost my pregnancy at 7 weeks. I couldn’t get pregnant again and I can’t have children now because of a new health condition. I wish I never stayed in my job and switched careers.

0points

Rosemary Cameron 3 months ago

It’s also dependant on your environment. Healthcare workers are usually have the highest rate of miscarriage for a job sector. I know for my job, I miscarried at 7 weeks, three other coworkers with the same job had 4 miscarriages in a ten year span. I can’t have any children now, however my doctor said directly that it was workplace stress specifically my job. I’ve told new staff if they want babies they need to transfer to another department because I’ve done some math and the miscarriage rate for our jobs is 55% of all pregnancies.

0points

Mark Alexander 3 months ago

25% of attempted mothers are allegedly murderers. Explain that factoid to me Christian Nationalists.

0points

Xenia Harley 3 months ago

Male fertility is particularly on the decline, apparently!

0points

Vivi Pettiss 3 months ago

Good, if I get r*ped and plan b fails I have a 25 percent chance of my life not being ruined. (I live in Texas)

0points

Wintermute 3 months ago

4 out of 6 of my aunt/uncles are infertile, but all for different reasons.

0points

Scarlett O'Hara's Ghost 3 months ago

The point of sex Ed in highschool is to teach safe and healthy sex habits, not to discuss sexual dysfunction. Does anyone remember talking about erectile dysfunction in high school health class? No. You take a science or biology class for that. Putting it in the minds of high schoolers that infertility is a problem isn't a smart thing to do.

0points

UKGrandad 3 months ago

Infertility is not a sexual dysfunction, it's a reproduction issue.

6points

PurnimaTitha , Andrea Piacquadio / Pexels Report

#26

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) A lot of people in rural towns with an elevated cemetery around (this happens in Ireland a lot)….there is formaldehyde leaking into the drinking water. But it won’t kill you, but the thought of drinking dead people juice is probably equally bad. Sorry not sorry.

Final score:

81points

POST

TribbleThinking 3 months ago

Stop embalming as a matter of course.

61points

Chariatid , Nick Youngson CC BY-SA 3.0 Alpha Stock Images Report

#27

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) When doing an autopsy they don’t put the organs back where they belong, they are all stored in the belly.

Final score:

77points

POST

David 3 months ago

That isn't "scary". If you're dead you're dead. That's like saying, "Isn't it scary that after you are buried your body starts to decompose?". (actually it starts when you die but you get what I mean)

101points

#28

Limnic eruptions.

There are pockets of Co2 trapped under lakes all around the world that can be released at anytime creating an invisible tidal wave that kills everything in its path. Since it's heavier than air you will just suddenly start choking and die.

MurderDoneRight Report

Final score:

77points

POST

TribbleThinking 3 months ago

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Nyos_disaster. 🙂‍↕️

49points

#29

Politics plays a huge part in scientific research.

anon Report

Final score:

77points

POST

LakotaWolf (she/her) 3 months ago

::sad facepalming is heard from the general direction of America::

70points

#30

An electric current of only 20mA is enough to stop your heart and kill you. Under the right conditions, even a nine volt battery can be lethal

Tldr: we humans are incredibly easy to kill.

Ka0z_WARRIOR Report

Final score:

76points

POST

VikingAbroad 3 months ago

Tldr: don't lick batteries to test if they work.

50points

#31

Approximately 30% (in some reports) of the world's population have the parasite toxoplasma gondii in their brain. For a long time it's through to have been a benign presence, but recent statistical research shows that it may have an impact on things like levels of anger and rates of accidents and suicide.

When gondii is on rats it changes their behaviour so that they find the smell of cat urine sexually appealing. So they find cats and get eaten. In the gut of the cat the parasite can reproduce.

nervouscrying Report

Final score:

74points

POST

David 3 months ago

Cleaning my cat's litter box never made me horny so perhaps I'm okay. /J

88points

#32

You can overdose on water. Basically you dilute the normal chemical balance of your body so much you can cause serious damage, it's called hyponatremia.
In an EMT class, I heard a story of an old woman who bought distilled nutrient free water, normally used for ironing clothes or something, because it was cheaper, she had to call 911 and it took a while to figure out the problem.

Reddennisit Report

Final score:

70points

POST

Kangaroo 3 months ago

There was a lady who did a radio contest to win a Wii for her son - contestants had to drink as much water as they could without going to the bathroom, and whoever drank the most would win. She died of hyponatremia :(

69points

#33

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) At any given time the Earth can be hit with a gamma ray burst. We won’t see it coming since it moves at the speed of light and all life apart from deep underground or deep in the ocean will be wiped out in minutes. Although unlikely it can happen at any time.

anon , NEOM / Pexels Report

Final score:

69points

POST

Spencer's slave no longer 3 months ago

We'll be fine down here in New Zealand because we don't exist on most maps of Earth...

103points

#34

Heart muscle cells don’t reproduce much in adults (roughly 1% per year). If you have an infarction or other stressor that kills those cells, then your heart wont be able to “grow” new cells to replace the dead ones. This is why patients with diseases like heart failure end up needing a heart transplant. Trying to get this process to happen is a major goal for many cardiac researchers.

Keiterchip Report

Final score:

67points

POST

𝖊𝖜𝖔𝛋 3 months ago

The research into zebra (?) fish is fascinating because they can regenerate heart cells and have a low rate of heart disease. Or something like that, read about it years ago. I wonder if stem cell research can help with this as well?

27points

Reverend_Ooga_Booga , Pixabay / Pexels Report

#35

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) The human body temperature in developed countries is actually declining, and at the same time, global warming is increasing the temperature thresholds for many fungus types.

This is leading to a whole new medical issue of fungus infecting humans and its main source of protection (body temperature) is no longer working.

That body temperature is a large reason for the success of mammals all over the world.. After the K-T extinction the sun was blocked and cold-blooded species couldn't raise their body temperature to kill off infections in their bodies. There is ample evidence that aft K-T Fungus spread all over the world in massive quantities, which leads many to believe this lead to the ascendancy of mammals on earth.

Final score:

67points

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Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My! 3 months ago

Three mushroom pizzas for this fun guy.

52points

#36

Before the vaccine, the number of people who have had HPV infection, and have had at least one sexual partner, was 85% in females and 91% of males. By far the most common STI.

carringtonagain Report

Final score:

64points

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Kangaroo 3 months ago

Get your HPV vaccine folks!

32points

#37

Late to the party, but here goes:

There are weaponized strains of anthrax which can remain viable and dangerous for 40+ years after release. In 1942, the UK tested an anthrax bomb on Gruinard Island, killing a flock of sheep in days (some died in hours.) Examination showed that the spores could remain active "for decades" and decontamination proved impossible at the time. The project was scrapped.

Fast forward to 1981, an eco-terrorist group smuggled a sample off of the island and threatened the UK government with releasing it if the island wasn't decontaminated. The spores were still active and deadly. It took 4 years to plan and execute the cleanup, using 280 tons of formaldehyde in a seawater solution, and removing 7 hectares worth of soil to a depth of 3 feet (about 58,000 tons of topsoil) where the concentration was too high for the juice to do the job. The island was confirmed clean in 1990, 4 years after cleanup began.

ivanthemute Report

Final score:

60points

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LakotaWolf (she/her) 3 months ago

Fortunately, even inhalation anthrax infections are only fatal 45% of the time, thanks to modern treatment. (If you do not get treatment it and it progresses, fatality rates can jump to nearly 100%.) Cutaneous anthrax is fatal only 20% of the time. Gastrointestinal anthrax fatality rates are 25% to 60%. ALL forms can be treated. If you are traveling to somewhere where anthrax is endemic (regions in sub-Saharan Africa, Central and South America, central and southwestern Asia, and southern and eastern Europe), take precautions. If you think you have been exposed to any form of anthrax, seek medical attention immediately.

33points

#38

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) Scientists don't know exactly how Acetaminophen works to relieve pain and reduce fever. They have an idea but nothing for sure. But yet it's the most commonly used pain reliever in the world.

anon , Pixabay / Pexels Report

Final score:

58points

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arthbach 3 months ago

It is still being debated whether paracetamol (acetaminophen) inhibits prostaglandin synthesis or works through an active metabolite influencing cannabinoid receptors. This is an area of study for researchers. However, the important thing is we know it works, how well it works, and the safe dose levels.

33points

#39

Not sure if this counts but no matter what we do the final result will always be the same. We will all die, the universe will cease to exist eventually and everything will become nothing.

BradRodriguez Report

Final score:

57points

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caro 3 months ago

I don't care, i'm here now and i'm going to make it everyone else's problem

70points

#40

The United States has lost and never recovered at least six nuclear devices.

hagantic42 Report

Final score:

56points

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Matthew Barabas 3 months ago

i wonder what the statistic is for russia?

28points

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#41

Your microwave has several components that can kill you by touch. NEVER OPEN THE INSIDES OF A MICROWAVE!!!!!

JohnsonHardwood Report

Final score:

23points

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caro 3 months ago

what if the wires are really pretty

14points

#42

CVS is about to close most of its outlet pharmacies. Which means many small-towns across the US will be without a conventionally available pharmacy, until others replace them.

Not to mention, in most districts, there simply aren't enough pharmacists to cover shifts to keep stores open. In my district, there's an average of two stores closed every day due to staff shortage. One store was closed for four days in a row.

People are going to die. There isn't a solution in sight.

TheOvershear Report

Final score:

23points

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Mike D 3 months ago

This is why you shop local and not chains.

13points

#43

Another Carrington Event.

The 'original Carrington event was in 1859, which was basically an intense geomagnetic storm that disrupted/knocked out telegrams because thats all the technology there was to disrupt back then.

Nowadays we use electricity for virtually everything. If it hit now the effect would be like an EMP, but globally. There'd be no functional technology that involved electrics.

In essence, losing all electrics would in turn stop communications, then logistics and then fundamental infrastructure like food distribution, healthcare and utilities (other than electricity).

anon Report

Final score:

21points

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InfiniteZeek 3 months ago

Snake Plissken has entered the chat.

3points

#44

It’s easier to make gunpowder than it is to bake a cake.

God-of-Tomorrow Report

Final score:

21points

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Francois 3 months ago

Uhm it is way easier to get the ingredients for cake than gun powder.

32points

#45

We still have no idea what consciousness is. Worse, we have not many ideas how to think about it. Just some philosophical ideas (Dennet, Chalmers etc).

I mean we don't know how to build interstellar ship, but we could write books and make movies about it. We could speculate about different approaches and ideas. For consciousness it's not true. We don't know why it exists, what is "I", what is the role of consciousness, how it emerges, how to research it and so on.

hudvin Report

Final score:

20points

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LakotaWolf (she/her) 3 months ago

Can confirm from personal experience that if you start thinking about this at night, you will not sleep XD

26points

#46

Farm salmon loses the pink color in captivity because its natural diet consist on krill and shrimp. So there are companies that offer artificial pink pellets that you can feed to the salmon in order to get the ideal Pantone.

Also the salmon is loaded with antibiotics due to farm parasites, yummy!

Microserves Report

Final score:

19points

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EmAdoresHerKats🇮🇪🇩🇿🇵🇸 3 months ago

Ah yuck 🤮

7points

#47

How easy it is to create large amounts of high-explosives.

Everyone determined enough and desperate enough can create easy workable explosives.

MrWarfaith Report

Final score:

17points

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Aspiring Canuck 3 months ago

Especially if you’re a blue whale.

14points

TheShendelzare , Pixabay / Pexels Report

#48

People Share The Scariest Science Facts They Know (40 Answers) The Vacuum Decay death of the universe.

The basic eli5 premise is that it is possible that at some point in the universe , the universe itself started collapsing into a more stable version of itself, and once this started , the 'collapse' spreads outwards into all directions at the speed of light. Because it travels at the speed of light , there is no way to know it's coming.

You could literally stop existing the next second.

Final score:

16points

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Peter Parker 3 months ago

This is just a theoretical scenario, so don't lose your sleep over this.

22points

#49

Bananas could be gone within a year.
We only grow one type of banana tree. If a specific infection occurs that kills that kind of tree, it woult spread like wildfire and we have no alternative.... Appearently this already happened now so long ago.

ZheWeasel Report

Final score:

16points

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Green Tree 3 months ago

The Cavendish Banana

14points

hinkelmckrinkelberry Report

#50

Governments around the world have, and are developing, weapons technologies that can easily wipe out all life on Earth.

Final score:

16points

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LakotaWolf (she/her) 3 months ago

That, sadly, has been happening for hundreds of years :( Not just weapons tech but chemical, bacterial, viral, etc.

22points

#51

1 in 3 people will get cancer

Electric_Kiwi007 Report

Final score:

15points

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arthbach 3 months ago

Many, many people will have cancer at some point in their life. A former colleague has prostate cancer. His oncologist has said this will be something he will live with, rather than die from. Cancer shows up on the autopsies of lots of people, but it's not what killed them.

15points

#52

If my college biology professor wasn't completely misinformed, most humans have some form of parasite living inside them. Some variety of worm, etc. There are just creepy crawlies in our insides and we might never notice them.

The one that came closest to giving me nightmares was hookworms. Although the thought that you could have heartworms kind of messed with me, too. Evidently, they're not just for dogs.

Hollz23 Report

Final score:

12points

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EmAdoresHerKats🇮🇪🇩🇿🇵🇸 3 months ago

It's the eyebrow and eyelash bugs that freak me out. The idea of it just makes me shiver

18points

#53

Neutrinos are a particle that has an extremely small chance of interacting with matter. Like if a rock was dropped randomly from space to the Earth, the chance it would hit a specific target is similar to the chance it would interact with any matter. They have to build huge chambers deep in the earth and wait ~~months~~ *a while* to have the possibility to detect one from the countless that constantly zoom through the Earth from the sun.

If the sun were to go supernova, it would create so many neutrinos that they would kill you assuming nothing else did.

Edit: apparently, they detect more than I expected, several hundred a year.

Eskaminagaga Report

Final score:

12points

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T'Mar of Vulcan 3 months ago

But according to Col. Jack O'Neill, "Nintendos go through everything!"

6points

#54

If there is a nuclear attack on a city, don't expect a rescue or medical attention. The area will be so irradiated damaged that red cross will only be able to drop supplies from high altitudes and not let anyone out for risk of contaminates leaving the area.

LBusko2898 Report

Final score:

12points

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David 3 months ago (edited)

First part likely true. Last part likely false. Wherever they chose to set the perimeter, if people can make it to the perimeter, they will likely have decon showers set up same as they do for a nuclear spill. Strip, shower, monitor. Anyone well enough to try to leave the area is unlikely to be a danger to others once decontaminated and isolated. They might still die from radiation poisoning but they won't be the glowing zombies you see in some movies or Fallout 4

29points