Kenneth Dean: On the Scene

Now that the Discovery Channel program "MythBusters" has proven that the 1969 lunar landing was not a hoax nor staged in some remote Hollywood soundstage, I can sleep better.

It had been bothering me for years as I wondered if Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong really hopped across the moon's remote landscape and how so many people could be involved in what would have been one of the century's biggest hoaxes.

We have all heard myths or stories about things that couldn't possibly be true, but that we still hear told again and again.

One that I was told when my oldest daughter was born was that cats steal a baby's breath and cause death.

We actually had people tell us we shouldn't buy a kitten, because it could become jealous and kill our child.

Of course it is not true and most infant deaths at night are due to parents rolling over on their own child or Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. It is also important to know the myth became popular in a time period when women were burned at the stake for witchcraft.

What about lightning strikes?

We have all heard that lightning does not strike in the same place twice, but that is not accurate, as lightning can strike anywhere and sometimes hits in the same spot more than once each year.

For example, the Empire State Building is struck more than 20 times each year, according to science publications. Our famous inventor Ben Franklin created the lightning rod by mounting a metal rod atop the roof of his home because of the strikes.

Don't eat that cookie even though it hit the floor momentarily, because science has proven that germs adhere to an object on contact. So the five-second rule is sadly another myth.

Myths don't always play on our fears or lack of understanding of strange occurrences in science, but are also weaved into our religious beliefs and even taught by some.

One that many Christians have heard is that the Holy Bible says, "God helps those who help themselves." Actually, we must give credit to Mr. Franklin, not Jehovah.

Franklin popularized the phrase in a 1736 edition of his "Poor Richard's Almanack" and thus the saying began being spread through families and taught as being from the Bible.

There's little doubt that old myths will continue to be believed by some even though they have been proven impossible and new myths will emerge. It would only seem logical, as with each passing day, new discoveries are being made.

One can look at the debate about greenhouse gasses and global warming to see there are myths associated with the threat of a warming climate.

As for the lunar landing hoax and my sleeping better, I was teasing. I was but a toddler when Armstrong uttered, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," and thus had not developed the mental capacity to believe in conspiracies.

As I close, I have to say if you cross your eyes they won't get stuck, accidentally swallowing a watermelon seed won't result in a melon growing in your stomach and eating fish and drinking milk at the same time will not kill you as my grandmother once told me.

Oh, and I have few doubts that the moon is made of cheese.

Kenneth Dean
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