西红柿是水果？破解50个现代常见误解

26. Bats are blind
蝙蝠是瞎子

Despite the tiny eyes and nocturnal lifestyle, none of the roughly 1,100 bat species are blind.
尽管它们的眼睛很小而且总在夜间活动，但所有1100种蝙蝠都不是瞎子。

27. Dropping a penny from the Empire State building would kill someone
从帝国大厦抛下一分钱硬币会砸死人

A penny only weighs about a gram and it tumbles as it falls. Because of the tumbling and the light weight, there's so much air resistance that the penny never really gathers that much speed before it hits its terminal velocity. A gram of weight travelling at a relatively slow speed might hurt a little if it hit you on the head, but it's not going to kill you.
一分钱，只重约1克。所以当它下落时，因为翻滚和重量轻，又有这么大空气阻力，就算是达到最大速度也没有多快。一克重量以相对较慢的速度砸到你头上可能会让你有点疼，但它不至于会杀了你。

28. Handling a baby bird will make its mother reject it
被人养过的幼鸟会被母亲抛弃

Most birds have a very poor sense of smell, so in most cases are unable to even notice human scent on baby bird.
大多数鸟类的嗅觉都不太灵敏，所以在大多数情况下甚至无法察觉到在幼鸟身上的人类气味。

29. You need to wait 24 hours before reporting a missing person to the police
一个人失踪24小时以后才能向警方报案

There is no rule that states you have to wait 24 hours before reporting a missing person. The person will be recorded as missing and their details made available to other UK police forces within 48 hours.
没有任何规定要求你必须等待24小时后才能报失踪案。失踪的人将被记录在案，并且案件细节必须在48小时内被传达到英国其他警察部队。

30. Your blood is blue before its oxygenated
你的血液在氧化前是蓝色的

While many believe that de-oxygenated blood is blue, it is actually a myth because human blood is always red - although the level of redness does differ depending on how oxygenated it is.
很多人都会认为去氧血是蓝色的，这是错的，因为人类血液永远会是红的，而红色的程度则取决于不同的含氧量。

31. A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds
金鱼只有三秒钟的记忆

This is not true as goldfish do actually have very good memories for fish. They can be trained to respond various ways to certain colours of light, different kinds of music and other sensory cues.
这实际上不是真的，金鱼是一种记忆力很好的鱼，经过训练它们能对特定颜色的光、不同种类的音乐和其他感官信号做出各种反应。

32. You need to wait an hour after eating before you can swim safely
你吃饭一小时后游泳才安全

As with any exercise after eating, swimming right after a big meal might be uncomfortable, but it won't cause you to drown. However, it is good advice to stay out of the pool right after a big meal as the digestive process does divert the circulation of the blood towards the gut and to a certain extent, away from the muscles, meaning swimming could feel harder.
与其他任何运动一样，大餐一顿之后马上游泳可能使胃会不舒服，但这不会使你溺水。然而，它确实值得注意，当大餐一顿后，消化过程在一定程度上确实将一部分血液循环从肌肉转移到肠道，这就意味着游泳会感觉到困难。

33. Bulls are enraged by the colour red
公牛是被红色激怒了

It is a proven fact that bulls only see blues and yellow. They only react to the red cape because of the movements that flutter around.
事实证明，公牛只能看到蓝色和黄色。他们有反应是因为红色斗篷不停地颤振。

34. Seasons are caused by the Earth being closer to the Sun
地球向太阳靠近造成季节的变换

As Earth orbits the sun, its tilted axis always points in the same direction. So, throughout the year, different parts of Earth get the sun's direct rays.
地球在围着太阳旋转时，其倾斜轴总是在同一个方向。因此，全年不同地区得到太阳的直接辐射不同导致季节变化。

35. Eating lots of chocolate will give you spots
吃太多巧克力会导致你长斑

There is no concrete evidence that suggests eating more chocolate can cause spots.
没有确切的证据表明多吃巧克力会导致长斑。

36. Shaving your leg hair will make it grow back quicker
剃掉你的腿毛会让它长得更快

Many believe shaving body hair makes it grow back quicker but shaving hair doesn't change its thickness, colour or rate of growth. Shaving facial or body hair simply gives the hair a blunt tip which might feel coarse or 'stubbly' for a period of time as it grows out.
许多人认为剃体毛让它长得更快，但剃头发并不会改变其厚度、颜色或生长率。剃掉脸上或身上的毛发仅仅给毛发留下钝形顶端，直到它长长之前，它在一段时间内会又粗又短而且硬。

37. Frankenstein was the name of the monster in Mary Shelley's book 'Frankenstein'
弗兰肯斯坦是玛丽·雪莱的书《弗兰肯斯坦》中怪物的名字

Frankenstein was the name of the monster's creator.
弗兰肯斯坦是怪物的创造者的名字。

38. Microwave radiation can cause cancer
微波辐射能引发癌症。

Most experts say that microwave ovens don't give off enough energy to damage the genetic material (DNA) in cells so they can't cause cancer.
很多专家认为，微波炉所释放的能量是不足以损害细胞内的基因物质的，所以它们不会引发癌症。

39. Men think about sex every seven seconds
男性每隔七秒就会想到性

While some men might think about sex this often, there is no real evidence to support this statement.
一些男性也许经常会想到性，但没有切实的证据证明这个观点。

40. Ostriches bury their head in the sand when they are scared
鸵鸟害怕的时候，往往会把自己的头部埋入沙中。

Ostriches swallow sand and pebbles to help grind up food in their stomachs. This means they have to bend down and briefly stick their heads in the earth to collect the pebbles. It is not because they are scared.
鸵鸟会大量吞咽沙子和卵石，以此来磨碎他们胃里的食物。这也就意味着他们会弯腰并低下头来到地面去收集卵石，并不是因为它们害怕了。

41. Waking sleepwalkers harms them
叫醒梦游者会对他们造成伤害

Waking a sleepwalker won't cause them any physical harm but but could leave them startled or disoriented which is why many people believe it is best not to disturb them.
叫醒一个梦游者，不会对他们造成身体上的伤害，但却会使他感到惊恐以及分不清方向，所以很多人认为，面对梦游病患者，最好的办法就是不去打扰他们。

42. Albert Einstein failed maths at school
阿尔伯特·爱因斯坦在上学期间数学考试曾经不及格

He failed one entry exam to a school but in fact, he actually excelled at mathematics throughout his schooling and even considered becoming a mathematician for a time.
阿尔伯特·爱因斯坦曾经在一次升学考试上失败了，但实际上，通过他在学校期间的表现，可以看出他在数学方面十分有天赋，甚至有一段时间想过成为一名数学家。

43. Salty water boils quicker
盐水更容易被煮沸

The salt water requires more exposure to the heat in order to boil than water alone, so the boiling point is elevated and the time it takes to get the water to boil increases.
盐水需要吸收更多的热量才能煮沸，所以盐水的沸点更高，煮沸的时间也比纯水更长。

44. Carrots help you see in the dark
胡萝卜能让你在黑暗中看清东西

Carrots contain vitamin A, or retinol, and this is required for your body to synthesise rhodopsin, which is the pigment in your eyes that operates in low-light conditions. If you have a vitamin A deficiency, you will develop nyctalopia or night blindness. Eating carrots would correct this and improve your night vision, but only to the point of an ordinary healthy person - it won't ever let you see in complete darkness.
胡萝卜内含有维生素A，也就是所说的视黄醇，它是你体内综合视网膜紫质的必需物质，是你眼睛里的一种色素，这种色素能让你在光线较暗的环境下看清东西。如果你缺少维生素A，你可能会形成夜盲症。吃胡萝卜能够改善这种情况，并能提高你的夜市能力，但这种方法只针对于普通的健康人群，并且也不能让你在完全漆黑的环境下看清东西。

45. Houseflies only live for around 24hours
家蝇仅能存活大约24小时

The adult housefly can live up to one month in the wild.
家蝇成虫在野外能存活一个月。

46. Eating cheese before bed will give you nightmares
睡觉之前吃奶酪会让你做噩梦

Cheese is believed to give you more emotionally charged dreams but not necessarily nightmares.
据认为，奶酪会让你的梦情感更充沛，但不一定是噩梦。

47. The capital of Australia is Sydney
澳大利亚的首都是悉尼

The capital of Australia is, in fact, Canberra.
实际上，澳大利亚的首都应该是堪培拉。

48. Tomatoes are a vegetable
西红柿是一种蔬菜

Tomatoes are a fruit
西红柿是一种水果。

49. Going out in the cold with wet hair will make you ill
顶着湿漉漉的头发在寒风中出门会使你生病

There is no evidence to support this, it is regarded as an old wives' tale.
没有证据证明这个观点，它通常被看做妇人之见。

50. Alcohol keeps you warm
酒精使你温暖

Alcohol may make your skin feel warm, but this apparent heatwave is deceptive. A nip or two actually causes your blood vessels to dilate, moving warm blood closer to the surface of your skin, making you feel warmer temporarily. At the same time, however, those same veins pumping blood closer to the skin's surface causing you to lose core body heat.
酒精能使你的皮肤感到温暖，但这种表面上的温度是具有欺骗性的。一两口酒确实会让你的血管扩张，让热血流向皮肤表面，使你感到暂时的温暖。但与此同时，这些给皮肤表面供血的血管也会使你失去核心的体温。

Vocabulary

Chinese whispers: 传小话

chameleon: 变色龙

monogamous: 一夫一妻的

heliotropism: 向日性

velocity: 速率，速度