Daily Archives: May 20, 2022

A picture of the sky does not show ‘chemtrails’

A Facebook post which claims that a number of long white lines of vapour in the sky are “chemtrails” is inaccurate. The post includes a photograph with the caption “I’ve got a beautiful feeling those are chemtrails not clouds in my way.” The hashtag #Chemtrails has also been trending on Twitter in recent days. “Chemtrails”… Read More »

How many jobs has Crossrail created?

“I thought it was fantastic by the way, yesterday, to see Her Majesty the Queen open Crossrail. 72,000 jobs that has already delivered”. Boris Johnson MP, 18 May 2022. During Prime Minister’s Questions on 18 May, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson claimed Crossrail has delivered 72,000 jobs. Crossrail, also known as the Elizabeth line, is… Read More »

Smallpox not the only infectious disease eradicated by humans

A story published in The Times about the rising number of monkeypox cases claims that smallpox is “the only disease eradicated by humans”. This is not the case, despite similar statements being made elsewhere. Rinderpest—also known as cattle plague, steppe murrain or contagious bovine typhus—was a highly contagious disease that infected ruminant animals, primarily cattle… Read More »

Most Britons are not projected to be obese by 2040

“Most Britons will have lost obesity battle in 20 years.” Daily Express, 19 May 2022. A headline in the Daily Express on 19 May, also published online, claims that most Britons will have “lost obesity battle” in 20 years. While the wording isn’t entirely clear, if this means that the majority of Britons will be… Read More »

Facebook post does show real images of the sun

A Facebook post featuring detailed images of the sun has been the subject of some scepticism, with many comments on the post claiming that the images are not real photographs, calling them “CGI” and “artwork”. In actual fact, the images do appear to be genuine photographs of the sun, which have been captured using a… Read More »

25 Kickass Random Facts List #744

Harry Glicken and his mentor David Johnston were assigned to Mount St. Helens on the day of the eruption. Johnston was killed but Glicken was reassigned the day before. 11 years later Glicken died in the eruption of Mount Unzen. They remain the only US volcanologists killed by volcanos 31 years later. The post 25… Read More »