Urban myths that somehow, people still believe

[Wiccan of Darkness]

BobToc said:

Didn't go through 17 pages, but the idea that everyone gets an A / 1st at uni if a classmate dies.

Yup. That's not even an urban 'myth' it's just pure bks. If a classmate dies, you get dispensations or the degree awarded based on current progress but you're never automatically given a first. Otherwise every student at 3rd level will bump off a classmate to get a first.

[sfaulds]

Donington Park is slippy in the wet because it's covered in jet fuel.

[Shakermaker]

Wiccan of Darkness said:

BobToc said:

Didn't go through 17 pages, but the idea that everyone gets an A / 1st at uni if a classmate dies.

Yup. That's not even an urban 'myth' it's just pure bks. If a classmate dies, you get dispensations or the degree awarded based on current progress but you're never automatically given a first. Otherwise every student at 3rd level will bump off a classmate to get a first.

The myth, as I have heard it, is that if your sibling or parent dies during your A Levels, you automatically get an A etc. So if you're 18 doing your A Levels and your mum/dad/brother/sister passes away, you get special treatment. But I don't know how that works in real life

One of my classmates died during out A Level year.

We didn't get any dispensation about grades etc. Her boyfriend got a lot off school, understandably, and was offered the chance to defer his university application by a year, and the school allowed him to attend for free when he came back to sit his A Levels. However, he still had to do all the work but this was 6 months/year later when they did the first round of exams in the January.

However I haven't seen him since then, and that was 2003 so I don't know what else happened.

Similarly, a girl I was at uni with, her brother died suddenly when she was about to do her finals and so she didn't sit them with us. But I don't know what then did happen to her as that was 2006 and I didn't keep in touch with her either.

[silentbrown]

If you post pics online of your car without blurring the numberplate, crims will find where you live and nick it.

(I suspect this is a myth, but don't have evidence either way!)

[r-kid]

GOG440 said:

ReaperCushions said:

peterz3 said:

rthere was a program on telly about that bit of road when it was built seems the ground by the farm wasn't strong are stable enough to take the road that's why it goes arround the farm
peterz3

The farm on the M62?

This a very long lasting urban myth, after talking to a friend of mine who worked on the construction and was actually involved with basically driving a landrover the proposed route across the pennines taking core samples. What actually caused the deviation in the carriageways was geology not an awkward farmer. They did offer to buy it anyway as it would have saved them a fair bit of effort in making access for him but the carriageways were always going to be where they are now.

Why does this keep coming up, the farm is a tenanted farm and as such even if the land was suitable to run the carriageway though the farm, he had no say in it. It was and still is owned by the water board (now Yorkshire Water) and they had already arranged a new farm for the tenant so every intention was to sell it for the motorway.

[P-Jay]

CanAm said:

Rickyy said:

Have we had the Mitsubishi Starion one yet?

I'd have been more inclined to believe Mitsubishi's contention that it was never meant to be Stallion had they not previously made a Colt Coupe which had definite Mustang styling cues..........

I think the whole language barrier myth was started by Clarkson, I'm sure he made it up.

I assumed the name was an attempt to merge Star (being an early 80's car when Space was still cool, Star Wars, The Shuttle etc) and Stallion. Of course if it was a US or Euro Car maker I think most people would have assumed the same, or something similar, car makers make up names all the time.

Mitsubishi says "Starion" is a contraction of "Star of Orion" — and refers to both a star and the mythical horse, Arion. or so says Wiki.

[CanAm]

P-Jay said:

I think the whole language barrier myth was started by Clarkson, I'm sure he made it up.

I assumed the name was an attempt to merge Star (being an early 80's car when Space was still cool, Star Wars, The Shuttle etc) and Stallion. Of course if it was a US or Euro Car maker I think most people would have assumed the same, or something similar, car makers make up names all the time.

Mitsubishi says "Starion" is a contraction of "Star of Orion" — and refers to both a star and the mythical horse, Arion. or so says Wiki.

That was bandied about at the time. Bearing in mind the Starion was introduced in 1982 and Clarkson started on Top Gear in 1988, this was all before his time.

[jesta1865]

Rickyy said:

Have we had this gem?

now I understand why I died horribly in the lake my discovery crashed into, I didn't have the correct head rests on my seats, they are built in. what a dangerous thing for land rover to have done.

[Morningside]

The one above reminds me of the other one going round Facebook of if you type your pin number in backwards at an ATM then the police will know you are being held against your will or something like that.

[CanAm]

A lady colleague told me that the number moulded into the bottom of the plastic mineral water bottle I was drinking from (5), signified the number of times it is safe to refill and use the bottle. If you re-use it more than that, dangerous chemicals can leach into the water.

I pointed out that the manufacturer had gone to a lot of trouble to print instructions on the label regarding safe storage, usage and 'best by' date; if they thought there was a danger in re-using their bottles they are rather more likely to include it on the label rather than as a cryptic code number on the bottle that nobody knows about.

She said it was true - it was on her friend's Facebook page!

[petrolbloke]

I've seen the backwards PIN thing going round recently. My ex also did the teaspoon in the wine bottle thing (think she got it from her mother).

Slightly worrying that the Police and supposedly reputable news outlets spread this sort of rubbish too:
http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge-new...
http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/housebreakers-c...

[Ayahuasca]

jesta1865 said:

now I understand why I died horribly in the lake my discovery crashed into, I didn't have the correct head rests on my seats, they are built in. what a dangerous thing for land rover to have done.

Not required - Land Rover windows will fall out anyway on impact.

[Shakermaker]

Morningside said:

The one above reminds me of the other one going round Facebook of if you type your pin number in backwards at an ATM then the police will know you are being held against your will or something like that.

Which was how I opened this thread in Post 1, Page 1 :lol:

[schmunk]

CanAm said:

A lady colleague told me that the number moulded into the bottom of the plastic mineral water bottle I was drinking from (5), signified the number of times it is safe to refill and use the bottle. If you re-use it more than that, dangerous chemicals can leach into the water.

I pointed out that the manufacturer had gone to a lot of trouble to print instructions on the label regarding safe storage, usage and 'best by' date; if they thought there was a danger in re-using their bottles they are rather more likely to include it on the label rather than as a cryptic code number on the bottle that nobody knows about.

She said it was true - it was on her friend's Facebook page!

In case anyone doesn't already know: https://www.lifewithoutplastic.com/store/common_pl...

[CanAm]

schmunk said:

In case anyone doesn't already know: https://www.lifewithoutplastic.com/store/common_pl...

These ladies are paranoid about the effects of these dangerous plastic bottles. If only they knew that they also contained the potentially lethal Dihydrogen Monoxide as well!

[shirt]

Ari said:

Dr Doofenshmirtz said:

Chalk marks on your house means you're about to be burgled by the local diddycoys.

This one!

Even got released as a warning by one particularly dopey police force!

Do they really not stop to wonder why a potential burglar, instead of robbing a house, would inscribe helpful secret chalk marks (known, somehow, only to other burglars) and just toddle off home?

This a million times over!

The marks are a 'talking bks' version of hobo code - best explained here:

http://www.angelfire.com/folk/famoustramp/signs.ht...

[Front bottom]

Playing death metal (I think) records backwards reveals satanic messages.

[Fastchas]

Water goes down the plug hole in the direction depending of what hemisphere it's in.

[bimsb6]

Front bottom said:

Playing death metal (I think) records backwards reveals satanic messages.

That was supposed to be black sabbath tracks

[eldar]

Fastchas said:

Water goes down the plug hole in the direction depending of what hemisphere it's in.

If you have an extremely large bath then that is true....