Forget what you were taught in school: facts that have ceased to be true

Everything changes over time. And even those facts that you previously considered reinforced concrete may change after some time. And there are also such statements that were presented to you at school not quite correctly, because the truth can be much more complicated than a student can understand.

Below are the facts that have either changed over time, or were presented to you incorrectly in the learning process.

Earlier: America gained independence on July 4, 1776.

Now: America officially became independent seven years later, in 1783.

Every year on July 4, Americans celebrate Independence Day on a grand scale. And although the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776, America was not yet free from British rule until the Treaty of Versailles was signed on September 3, 1783. That's when America became independent.

Earlier: Pluto is a planet.

Now: Pluto is not a planet.

Already since the late 1800s, they knew about the potential existence of the ninth planet. In 1906, astronomer Percival Lowell even began a research project aimed at discovering the mysterious "Planet X".

In 1929, Clyde Combo began photographing stars in the constellation Gemini, where, according to calculations, "Planet X" should have been located. In 1930, Pluto was discovered and acquired the status of a planet.

But with the discovery of Eris in 2005, which turned out to be the most massive trans-Neptunian object, Pluto was transferred to the category of minor planets.

Earlier: diamond is the hardest substance.

Now: boron nitride nanomaterial is harder than diamond.

American and Chinese physicists have created a special nanomaterial based on microcrystals of cubic boron nitride, superior in hardness and other qualities to diamonds.

Earlier: The Salem witches were burned at the stake.

Now: they were actually hanged.

Even if you haven't read Arthur Miller's Ordeal, you were probably sure that the townspeople of Salem burned witches at the stake. But, according to archivist Richard Trask, that's not how it happened. At that time, witchcraft was a criminal offense, which was punished by hanging, not burning at the stake. In Europe, however, witchcraft was considered heresy, and the guilty were burned. Maybe that's why the confusion started.

Earlier: the pyramids were built by slaves.

Now: the pyramids were built by Egyptian workers.

The culture supports the myth that the pyramids were built by slaves. But recent archaeological finds actually prove that the pyramids were built by the Egyptians themselves. Workers were recruited from poor families. They were highly respected and even earned crypts near the pyramids. Slaves wouldn't be treated like that.

Earlier: you can't fold a piece of paper twice more than seven times.

Now: American students have debunked this myth with toilet paper.

Students of St. Mark's School (St. Mark's School) under the guidance of their math teacher James Tanton (James Stuart Tanton), they got 16 kilometers of toilet paper and hellish patience. In seven hours, they folded the paper in half 13 times.

Earlier: The Great Wall of China is the only human creation that can be seen from space.

Now: there are actually a lot of such objects.

Rumors that the Chinese Wall can be seen not only from a spaceship, but even from the Moon, date back to 1938. In 2003, the first Chinese astronaut debunked this myth. He said that the Great Wall is visible from space only under certain conditions, and besides it you can see major highways, bridges, airports and much more. But nothing can be seen from the moon: only a blue-white sphere.