Science

Do dust particles rising from the ground to a statically charged balloon prove that gravity isn't real, as was implied in an interview shared on YouTube? No, that's not true: The concept described in the video is that of static electricity or static cling. This phenomenon occurs when differently charged objects attract others based on their number of neutrons, electrons…

Does photographic evidence and reports from several independent sources, including NASA, show that an ancient satellite has been orbiting Earth since at least the 1950s? No, that's not true: The supposed photographic evidence from NASA, sometimes used to support this myth, does not show an ancient satellite but a thermal blanket accidentally dropped during a space walk on the 1998…

Does a diagram from a patent application for a purported "sun simulator" prove that NASA's James Webb Space Telescope is also a sun simulator because of their similarities? No, that's not true: The diagram included in a 2003 patent application is for an "autonomously assembled space telescope" and does not depict a "sun simulator." The James Webb Space Telescope, which…

Does a photo show a lithium mine for electric cars, as a meme on Facebook implied? No, that's not true: The photograph depicts an Australian gold mine located near Marvel Loch in Western Australia. The mine is overseen by Minjar Mine, described on its website as an Australian gold producer, developer and explorer that manages the Southern Cross Operation on…

Did Barbara O'Neill guarantee that a hypertension medication will clear your vessels and cure the disease in three weeks or she will transfer $10,000 into your bank account -- and have Samuel Jackson, Jane Seymour and Tom Hanks all endorsed this treatment after it cured their hypertension? No, neither statement is true: This false promotion uses AI-generated voice-overs to put…

Can the European Incoherent Scatter Scientific Association, or EISCAT Scientific Association, use its technologies for mind control, as a video on social media claims? No, that's not true: EISCAT Scientific Association Director Axel Steuwer told Lead Stories that there is "absolutely no mind control possible" with the program's systems, which primarily measure physical elements of the upper atmosphere using the…

Do photos of sunflowers facing away from the sun prove the sun has been replaced? No, that's not true: Mature sunflowers do not follow the sun throughout the day, a sunflower farmer told Lead Stories, and also a scientific study shows. Only young sunflowers track the sun across the sky over the course of the day, so photos that show…

Is measles vaccination proven to have caused "63 times more" deaths than measles in the United States between 2003 and 2018? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found zero credible sources confirming that. The claim that has been circulating on social media and beyond since at least 2015 manipulates the vaccine adverse effect reports, conflating coinciding events with causation that…

Is the site known as Giant's Causeway on the coast of Northern Ireland actually a giant petrified armadillo, visible from the air? No, that's not true: The unusual geometric rock formations seen at Giant's Causeway are basalt columns, which, according to experts, take their shape from the way molten volcanic basalt lava shrinks as it cools. Some stone surfaces resemble…

Can black pepper oil cure arthritis and rheumatism, as a post on Facebook implied? No, that's not true: There is no known cure for osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis, a spokesperson for the Thurston Arthritis Research Center told Lead Stories. Similarly, there is no known cure for the autoimmune disorder rheumatism. The Arthritis Foundation told Lead Stories that…

Was an epic display of the northern lights in early May 2024 caused by testing at HAARP (the High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program) in Alaska? No, that's not true: There's no connection between the research program's experiments and the geomagnetic storms that overlapped them. According to a press release from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, where the program is based,…

Was Walt Disney a founder of NASA? No, that's not true: Disney founded an animation, television and movie studio as well as a theme park empire. He produced a television series about space travel in 1955 with a NASA rocket designer. This was three years before President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958, which…

Are stones depicting dinosaurs and humans coexisting real? No, that's not true: These stones were found to be hoaxes. A Smithsonian article reported that a 20th-century farmer and his wife were the creators of these stones, not an ancient people. The couple confessed to forging the stones using depictions of dinosaurs from comic books. The claim appeared in a post…

Did NASA announce that it has plans to build a railway system on the moon? No, that's not true: The space agency announced funding for visionary concept studies that include a "lunar railway," but not an official launch of a train system on the moon. As of May 2024, there was not a concrete plan to build a modern railway…

Is a video of TV personality Mark Cuban describing a "removed" "Shark Tank" episode that featured a natural cure to high blood sugar real? No, that's not true: Cuban denied the claim to Lead Stories, calling it "an obviously bad deep fake." An AI-detection tool deemed the audio from the claim 99.9 percent AI-generated. Lead Stories found that the visuals…

Do "parasites, metals and viruses" cause all "diseases and illnesses," as a post on TikTok claimed? No, that's not true: An infectious disease expert told Lead Stories that the "causes of human diseases are extraordinarily varied." Besides parasites and viruses, diseases can be caused by bacterial infection, genetic influences, environmental exposures and other things. As is often the case, the…

Has the FDA approved ear magnets as a smoking cessation product? No, that's not true: A social media post claimed such a device was a "Natural, FDA approved" method for people to quit smoking. A spokesperson for the Food and Drug Administration told Lead Stories on April 30, 2024, that they were "not aware of any acupressure magnets authorized for…

Can using a communal swimming pool cause HIV infection? No, that's not true: The chief medical officer of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation told Lead Stores that there are "no cases of HIV transmission" in a swimming pool. HIV is typically spread through unprotected sexual intercourse, sharing needles or syringes, or from mother to child during childbirth, breastfeeding or pregnancy. The…

Did controversial naturopath Barbara O'Neill endorse a recipe of thyme oil said to "eliminate 97% of lung tumor cells," as a post on Facebook suggested? No, that's not true: O'Neill is the subject of a fake post on Facebook designed to look as though it belongs to O'Neill. A link in the post's comment section redirects users to an unrelated…

Did Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez say, "The moon is more important than the sun as the moon gives us light at night when it is dark out. The sun only gives us light during the day when it is already light out"? No, that's not true: Lead Stories could not find any evidence that Ocasio-Cortez ever said this. The same purported…