With great scientific progress, the truth of most of the puzzles surrounding us has unfolded and our worldview becomes clearer than before. But every beginning must be difficult. In the previous centuries, scientists believed in strange theories and based their interpretation on beliefs that seemed ridiculous and ridiculous now!
In this article, we review some of the strangest beliefs that scientists have relied on to explain what is around them and theories seem very crazy today!
The strangest beliefs that scientists believed in the past!
"Miasma" theory of disease prevalence
Before the emergence of the bacteriological theory of diseases, doctors believed that diseases spread according to a theory they called “Miasma”, which means that diseases spread through the toxic air raised from the ground as a result of the decomposition of organic matter and carried by winds from stagnant swamps and cemeteries.
Intercontinental bridges
Before accepting the theory of plate tectonics, scientists believed that there were transcontinental “big bridges” that span thousands of miles deep in the ocean, which connect the continents together.
Cleansing the hands of doctors before dealing with patients
Before the 1860s, doctors did not wash their hands before dealing with patients. As the doctor who advised this act was described as suffering from a nervous breakdown!
Use of mercury as a treatment
In the past, the toxic risks of mercury were unknown, and it was prescribed as a disinfectant, softener for the intestine, a treatment for syphilis, and even a treatment for skin problems and acne!
Travelling at speeds above 30 mph
Earlier, it was believed among people that travelling above 30 mph causes suffocation because they will not be able to breathe due to the surrounding air flowing into them. This belief was prevalent before the invention of railways and the emergence of trains in the 1870s.
The element "phlogiston"
Before the oxygen was discovered, scientists believed that fire and fires contain an important element called "phlogiston" that is released into the atmosphere during fires. This element was used to understand combustion and rust processes. Phlogiston theory was the most accepted in science until the 1770s before Joseph Priestley discovered oxygen in 1774.
"Aether"
Before the emergence of the concept of emptiness, physicists did not believe in the existence of empty spaces in the universe, and they considered that light travels through a medium called "ether". Ether was considered to be the fifth element besides earth, wind, water, and fire.
Use of "gasoline" as an aromatic and antiseptic substance
In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, benzene was used as an aromatic liquid after shaving, and as an organic solvent, chemists used it to wash their hands despite being a carcinogen.
The fact of "tasting points" in the tongue
Even today, the concept of “tongue map” is still very popular and is taught in schools and universities that the tongue is divided into several regions, each of which senses a different taste. But recent studies have shown that the tongue diagram is wrong in form and content and that all tasting receptors in the tongue can sense different flavours contrary to popular belief.
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