Scientific Facts That Have Changed Over the Years

18 Apr 2018 6282 share it:

We all have been studying scientific facts from an early age, be it formally or informally. Everyone believed them to be true always without any room for debate as science is supposed to be factual. However, with time scientists started using new technologies and methods to redefine some of those facts. And we learned that regardless of what we have studied in school, these facts were modified over the years or have been proven wrong to reveal more accurate information. We agree that this might come to you as shock and disappointment, but the truth is that there are some facts which simply failed the test of time.

Our science assignment help team has broken down some so-called facts that we all have always believed to be true. Take a look:

Mount Everest is the Tallest Mountain in the World

Yes, it's true that Mt. Everest climbs higher above sea level as compared to any other mountain in the world with the height of 29,029 feet. However, the inactive Hawaiian volcano, Mauna Kea is prominently taller than the former with a height of whopping 33,465 feet if measured from its seabed base. But unfortunately, only 13,799 feet of this mammoth rises from the surface of the Pacific.

There are four oceans

It seems that four oceans were not enough for some inquisitive enthusiasts working at the International Hydrographic Organization. Once only the four oceans namely the Pacific, Atlantic, Arctic, and Indian reigned supreme, as per the facts. But in 2000, the Southern Ocean joined their ranks.

Pluto is a planet

Everyone around the world is now aware of the news that Pluto is no more considered as a planet. A few years ago some astronomers at the IAU decided that Pluto is no more eligible to be called a planet. In February 1930, Pluto was discovered and accredited as ninth planet of our solar system, and in 1977, scientists began to reevaluate its classification. The numerous icy interstellar objects were identified at that time around which resembled Pluto. In 2005, scientists found out Eris, an object 27 percent more massive than Pluto. So IAU decided to create a new subclass of dwarf planets which are smaller planets from larger ones.

The world map is always reliable

After this point, we are sure that you will all have a bone to pick with cartographers. It is because of the reliance on Mercator world map that some of you might have a poor grasp of geography. This map inflates the size of the country according to their distance from the equator, due to which Greenland appeared larger than Africa. However, the fact is that latter is 14 times larger than the former. Many organizations have replaced Mercator map in recent years considering that it exaggerates the size of prosperous nations while trimming the size of less powerful countries.

The Great Wall is the only Man-made object visible from space

The story about Great Wall of China being the only man-made object that is visible from space started even before the Space Age and gradually gained popularity. However, there is a plethora of man-made objects that astronauts can see from space especially at night when our globe beams like Christmas lights. It includes highways, bridges, dams, etc.

Black holes don't exist near young stars

According to Galison, it was mind-blowing to find out evidence of a black hole just in the center of our galaxy. Another galaxy called M87 also has a central black hole which has a mass equal to billions of suns. Scientists were not familiar with this fact decades ago. But, black holes are quite significant in the dynamics of what galaxies do which is more than what many of us may suspect.

Birds are not that clever

We always assumed that other than chimps, there is no other animal who could actually be very intelligent. The idea that one bird could think about the mental state of another, also known as the theory of mind was regarded preposterous. The study in 2005 found the evidence that birds are freaking smart. In fact, some of them, like parrots and crows are equally intelligent like apes. They have similar size forebrains, and in a few cases, they even surpass the apes.

So let us know how you like discovering the truth behind these facts that you might have been believing for years. For more interesting write-ups, stay tuned!

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