Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

The Scariest Science Facts Most People Don't Know

Close up of a molecule
Visualization of the Coronavirus

Reddit user DogeStonks69 asked: 'what's the scariest science fact that the public knows nothing about?'

Some of the things we learn in elementary school science class have a more likely chance of keeping us up at night than anything we might see in a Wes Craven film.

The fact that the sun will one day explode and destroy Earth in the process or that wearing headphones for long periods of time grows an exponential amount of bacteria in your ears.


But these are only the surface level of frightening scientific facts, not theories, but facts that most of the world's population doesn't know about.

Or, perhaps, chooses to ignore.

Redditor DogeStonks69 was eager to learn about some of the most terrifying and overlooked scientific facts, leading them to ask:

"What's the scariest science fact that the public knows nothing about?"

Apocalypse Eventually...

"For two days in September of 1859, a massive solar flare (coronal mass ejection) powerful enough to make hanging telegraph lines burst into flames from the induced current washed over the Earth."

"Another massive burst in 2012 only just missed Earth, but it's not going to be pretty when our luck runs out on this."-- No_MrBond

It Was There All Along

"Scientific literature conclusion on Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases in general is that the diseases start decades before the first obvious symptoms and that we need to treat them at this stage."

"When you exhibit obvious symptoms, it's too late..."

"If you get diagnosed with Alzheimer's at 65, you had the disease since your early 40's at least."

"And you experienced very mild symptoms but didn't notice it."

"And your brain fought like hell to compensate for the deficit."

"When you get diagnosed, your brain is already very severely damaged and will never recover from the deficit."- GotPC

The Deep Blue Sea

"For me personally, the acidification of our oceans."

"You don’t want to know what will happen if all plankton dies."- yannynotlaurel

"CO2 levels are causing the pH levels in the ocean to move towards an acidic level."

"No not like burn yourself acid, but just enough that it's causing an already noticeable impact to microorganisms at the bottom of the food chain."

"This may eventually lead to an ecological collapse."

"It seems to be impacting phytoplankton, which is responsible for producing a good chunk of the air you breathe as well."

"If the oceans go anaerobic, the atmosphere would become toxic."

"A similar event has occurred during one or two of the past mass extinction events."- CodeMonkeyPhoto

Marine Life Sea GIF by BBCGiphy

A Less Than Comforting Thought...

"Last time I had to go under the knife, i mentioned to the anesthesiologist, 'I read online that no one knows how anesthesia even works,' and he kinda just said, 'yeah....'"- SamURLJackson

The Water Is Wide...

"Europa, even though smaller than Earth, has more water than all water bodies in the world combined."- terrific_mephit325

Why "Drink Responsibly" Isn't Just An Idiom

"Alcohol increases the permeability of the blood-brain barrier by unpredictable factors, which is why people die from overdose on their normal drug dosages."- desexmachina

Dance Drink Responsibly GIF by London Kings RumGiphy

Before You Swat That Fly...

"Insect population depletion."- abysse

Way Too Little, Way Too Late

"By the time AIDS was first discovered in the United States in 1981, 250,000 Americans were already infected with HIV."- squid_ward_16

Make Sure That Detector Works...

"Our bodies have no way of knowing that we're breathing oxygen."

"If I could snap my fingers and replace all the oxygen in your room with another inert gas, you wouldn't notice."

"You wouldn't start to choke or struggle."

"You'd just get sleepier and sleepier until you die."

"That's why carbon monoxide is so dangerous."

"If you have any sort of gas appliance in your building, invest in a detector."- Lastalmark

Keep Those Oceans Clean

"The actual amount of crude oil that's been pumped directly into the ocean."

"BP had High Definition 4K live footage of the pipe that ruptured and chose to censor it."

"And it's not just BP that's had an incident like that."- Reddit

oil spill water GIF by South Park Giphy

Hands In The Air, I Give Up!

"Scientists were trying to study the effects that microplastics have on the human body and brain but were unable to draw any reasonable conclusions because they could not find a control group."- TheSpaceBornMars

At Least It's Out Of Pencils

"The greatest chemical contributor to IQ loss and violent behavior is Lead, and it's still in millions of people's piping."- re_artist

Talk About Perspective

"Tetra ethyl lead raised worldwide lead levels so significantly they had to drill into arctic ice to find an in contaminated sample."-biohazardmind

Giphy

The future of our universe is full of mysteries and uncertainties.

While some will continue to dig deep to unearth these unsettling facts, others will likely embrace the fact that ignorance is, indeed, bliss.

More from Trending

Donald Trump
Scott Olson/Getty Images

Fox News Just Listed Off Trump's 'Accomplishments' So Far—And They're Completely Bananas

As shown during coverage of a cabinet meeting when members spent time telling the President how great he is, MAGA Republican President Donald Trump's biggest priority is Donald Trump's image and ego.

Also caught on video was Trump telling a Fox News correspondent to make sure the network praised his cabinet meeting.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Donald Trump and Terry Moran
ABC News

Trump Bizarrely Clashes With Reporter Over Photoshopped 'Tattoo' On Abrego Garcia's Knuckles

President Donald Trump sparked criticism after claiming during an interview with ABC News’ Terry Moran that an edited photo depicting tattoos of wrongly-deported Maryland father Kilmar Abrego Garcia showed that he has an alleged connection to the MS-13 gang.

Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran national who arrived in the U.S. in 2012, was labeled a threat in 2019 due to an alleged connection to MS-13. He spent months in detention before an immigration judge found he had a credible fear of persecution—not from MS-13, but from a rival group, Barrio 18, which he said had been extorting his family.

Keep ReadingShow less
Karoline Leavitt; Jeff Bezos
Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images; Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Leavitt Lashes Out At Amazon Over 'Hostile' Plan To Display Added Tariff Costs For Products On Website

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt lashed out at Amazon over news that the commerce giant planned to display increased "import charges" on items on their Amazon Haul website, essentially showing to customers the extra money they'd have to shell out as a result of President Donald Trump's tariffs.

Trump has escalated a growing trade war by imposing tariffs of up to 145% on Chinese imports, prompting China to retaliate with its own 125% tariffs on American goods. Additionally, the U.S. has slapped a 10% tax on imports from most other countries, while temporarily suspending higher rates for several nations for 90 days.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Canadian voter
CNN

Canadian Voter's Epic Take On Trump In Viral Interview Clip Has The Internet Cheering

A Canadian woman has gone viral following her NSFW interview with CNN in which she explained that her decision of whom to support for prime minister In Monday's election was based primarily on who could "take care of" President Donald Trump, who had threatened Canadian sovereignty amid an ongoing trade war.

In the end, Canadian voters returned the Liberal Party to power for a fourth consecutive term, although Prime Minister Mark Carney will lead a minority government, according to projections from CNN’s broadcast partner CBC.

Keep ReadingShow less
man and woman with cardboard boxes on their heads with faces drawn on them
julio andres rosario ortiz on Unsplash

People Describe The Most Unhinged Things They've Seen Someone Do In Public

One person's "most unhinged thing they've ever seen" is another person's everyday occurrence. It's all about perspective.

If you live 24/7 in an insane environment, unhinged starts to seem completely normal.

Keep ReadingShow less