Misconceptions you've had

[jeffbert]

Back when I didn't know that, I actually thought the state was where the city was! But I think I was still young when I made the distinction. However, I think it's only been a few years that I've known that the city of New York wasn't the capital of the state of New York (it's Albany, and by the way, I'm not American ). I also had a very strange idea of where Greece was located up until a few years ago.

For anyone who would want to check if they have misconceptions about European geography, you may try this game (it's in German, but the cities' names are very similar to their English names).

I did not deserve my HS graduation, I think they just wanted to get rid of me, & graduation was the easiest way. As such, my knowledge of geography is rather poor, the State's Capatals were supposed to be learned, but I know only a few, etc. Anyway, my education meant very little to me, until I was paying for it.

Despite my fascination with WWII, & the books I have read, I still have only a vague idea of Western European geography.

[Astro Forever]

I did not deserve my HS graduation, I think they just wanted to get rid of me, & graduation was the easiest way. As such, my knowledge of geography is rather poor, the State's Capatals were supposed to be learned, but I know only a few, etc. Anyway, my education meant very little to me, until I was paying for it.

Despite my fascination with WWII, & the books I have read, I still have only a vague idea of Western European geography.

If the previous game didn't help, then try this one. After playing at it a few times, you'll be a master. (The countries aren't asked in the same order each time, so don't freak out if you happen to get asked all the little ones at first.)

Why, oh why didn't we have the Internet when I was young? Learning could have been a little more amusing!

I remember learning our provinces' capitals [grammar?] (which is a lot easier than the US states since there aren't nearly as many), and other various geographical items about the country, but, if I did have a class in world history, I don't remember ever being asked to locate a foreign capital or country on a map. Maps were provided but I don't think locating Dunkerque, for example, has ever been a question.

Still, I thought that in comparison to my age group, I wasn't too bad since I had always been at least a little bit interested in maps (and not only to try to find Syldavia ). It reminds me how, when I was in high school in 1991-1992, we came back from the Christmas break, and a classmate wondered how I already knew that the Soviet Union had broken up when the teacher spoke about it! "Hmmm, well, I just opened the TV..."

I've read "The Three Musketeers" and its sequels recently. After that, I could almost travel through France without a map! But, boy did I knew nothing before that!

[DrFrag]

Maps were provided but I don't think locating Dunkerque, for example, has ever been a question.

That's another misconception I used to have. For years I thought it was spelt "Dunkirk", and was located in Scotland.

Has anyone had misconceptions about Australia? That always amuses me.

[Astro Forever]

That's another misconception I used to have. For years I thought it was spelt "Dunkirk", and was located in Scotland.

Its English spelling is Dunkirk, so you are not wrong, and with a spelling like that, it hardly sounds French. In fact, I've just learned this as it hadn't occured to me to check if it could be spelled any other way.

Has anyone had misconceptions about Australia? That always amuses me.

An easy one: that Sydney is the capital of Australia (it's Canberra, for those who would like to know). Also, since Australia's past as a penal colony is well-known, at least in Canada, as there were even a few French Canadians who were deported, I've always felt that as a result, the proportion of Australians that are descendants of those deported convicts is greatly overestimated... as in most of Australia's population (are there numbers on this, BTW? I might as well use this opportunity to learn the facts! )

For some reason, the explanation about how the water of the toilets gets flushed the other way around seems to spread easily among children (you do have a sense of humor, right? ). I don't know if that one is a myth or not, but the fact that this seems to be a relevant fact about Australia seems somewhat like a misconception anyway to me.

And among very young children, there is probably also the "oh, they live upside down" misconception too...

That said, I think that people's overall impression of Australia is extremely favorable, even if very little is known about it: a huge and peaceful country with beautiful and modern cities, along with original animals and nice weather.

While we're at it, what about Canada?

[fafner]

For some reason, the explanation about how the water of the toilets gets flushed the other way around seems to spread easily among children (you do have a sense of humor, right? ). I don't know if that one is a myth or not, but the fact that this seems to be a relevant fact about Australia seems somewhat like a misconception anyway to me.

The water flushes (almost) indepently of the hemisphere. I had read somewhere in the Internet that it was common knowledge to think it turns in one direction in the northern hemisphere, and the other way in the other hemisphere, but that it was false despite of the fact it is so easy to check. The Coriolis force is strong enough to generate deadly hurricanes, but is worth almost nothing with a few liters of water. So I checked, and I would say that about 60% of the time it is in the "correct" direction. (NB: I did the check with a bath each time, not toilets)
Did you make the check too, DrFrag?

I guess Bart Simpson were right after all

[Astro Forever]

Did you make the check too, DrFrag?

I guess Bart Simpson were right after all

I loved that episode, or at least the beginning.

But I guess one has to make sure to lift the cap of the bath evenly, or this in itself could "lead" the water into a direction.

[fafner]

But I guess one has to make sure to lift the cap of the bath evenly, or this in itself could "lead" the water into a direction.

This is why the water doesn't always go in the "correct" direction: the Coriolis force is too weak compared to other forces when it is about a few liters. Scientists have done the experiment by letting the water reach a "zero" movement for several days, then open in a really even way. This way, the water almost always turn in the "right" direction. Otherwise it is rather random.

[Latu]

I used to think Alaska was an island....I never noticed that it was connected to Canada.

[jeffbert]

If the previous game didn't help, then try this one. After playing at it a few times, you'll be a master. (The countries aren't asked in the same order each time, so don't freak out if you happen to get asked all the little ones at first.)

Why, oh why didn't we have the Internet when I was young? Learning could have been a little more amusing!

I remember learning our provinces' capitals [grammar?] (which is a lot easier than the US states since there aren't nearly as many), and other various geographical items about the country, but, if I did have a class in world history, I don't remember ever being asked to locate a foreign capital or country on a map. Maps were provided but I don't think locating Dunkerque, for example, has ever been a question.

Still, I thought that in comparison to my age group, I wasn't too bad since I had always been at least a little bit interested in maps (and not only to try to find Syldavia ). It reminds me how, when I was in high school in 1991-1992, we came back from the Christmas break, and a classmate wondered how I already knew that the Soviet Union had broken up when the teacher spoke about it! "Hmmm, well, I just opened the TV..."

I've read "The Three Musketeers" and its sequels recently. After that, I could almost travel through France without a map! But, boy did I knew nothing before that!

I just made the mistake of selling an item to a Canadain. I only got $7.51 for the thing, then & only then, did I realize the complexities involved with customs. I had to search for the thing's country of manufacture because it was not marked upon it. Next time, I will include a surcharge for canadian buyers.

[DrFrag]

An easy one: that Sydney is the capital of Australia (it's Canberra, for those who would like to know).

I used to think that when I was younger. Sydney and Melbourne are easily the two biggest Australian cities, about 4 million people in each. They had an argument over which one was going to be the capital, so in the end it was decided a new capital would be built in between them. So Canberra is comparitively tiny (about 300,000 people). And it's not in a State either, they made a little Territory called the ACT (Australian Capital Territory). I think States are a little more independent, and Territories have more ferderal control.

Also, since Australia's past as a penal colony is well-known, at least in Canada, as there were even a few French Canadians who were deported, I've always felt that as a result, the proportion of Australians that are descendants of those deported convicts is greatly overestimated... as in most of Australia's population (are there numbers on this, BTW? I might as well use this opportunity to learn the facts! )

We hear Australia's penal colony history mentioned occassionally by American comedians (and in school), but otherwise people don't think about it much. The state I live in never had any penal colonists so maybe there's just less history of it here.
I found it hard to get solid figures, but roughly:
1788 - First colony established (penal)
1828 - 36,000 people, 85% convicts
1851 - 400,000 people, 20% convicts or ex-convicts
1905 - 4,000,000 people, ?% convicts
I don't think anyone knows how many people today are descended from convicts, it's been so many generations. I doubt there would be many. The amount of regular immigration by the mid-1800s was huge. Convict transport ceased in 1868. In total, there were 162,000 convicts. By comparison, the USA had 50,000.

I think the biggest sticking point about this in history is that the very first colony was penal. First impressions last.

For some reason, the explanation about how the water of the toilets gets flushed the other way around seems to spread easily among children (you do have a sense of humor, right? ). I don't know if that one is a myth or not, but the fact that this seems to be a relevant fact about Australia seems somewhat like a misconception anyway to me.

Toilet water doesn't spin in Australia. I think we use a different flushing mechanism.
It spins in sinks and baths though, and my Dad tested this while on holiday in the northern hemisphere. Unfortunately, no one can remember the result.

When I was little I would let the bath water out, and swish the water around to change the spin. Once it had stabilised, I would swish it in the other direction, and see how many times I could do this before the bath was empty.

along with original animals

I have to admit I've always found kangaroos kind of bizarre looking. I'm not sure if it's something you can ever adjust to.

While we're at it, what about Canada?

On the whole, I see Canada, Australia and New Zealand as kind of an axis-of-ex-british. That is, I think we've generally kept the Queen's English but lost the pomp of Britain (no offence to our British members!) . We were colonised by the British, in one way or another, but lack the cultural zealotry of the USA (no offence to our American members!).

As for specifics, I think of Canada as a big country that blends across from English to French with sensibly drawn borders. Lots of natural beauty like forests and, um, beavers. I can't actually think of specific things apart from Niagra Falls. Snow, beer, nice people gathered in bars or bowling alleys enjoying a beer together and getting out of the snow, mounted heads of animals with big complicated horns (antelope?). Towards the north it's like my memory; vague, fragmented, barren, and the occassional polar bear.
Great people to meet while backpacking in foreign countries, because they speak English and you can make fun of the Americans together.
Everything else I learnt from Degrassi Junior High, which I try to relegate to accents and environment rather than specific social interactions, because I'm aware of how distorted the British view of Australia is after watching the soap opera "Neighbours".