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12 Ridiculous Theories Put Forward By Supposedly Smart People

A Victorian intellectual suggested that fairies evolved from grasses, ants and bees, and had their own distinct colors.

12 Ridiculous Theories Put Forward By Supposedly Smart People

April 18, 2023

Ah, the mysteries of the universe. We have been trying to solve them since the dawn of time, and it is no surprise that they have been the source of endless speculation and debate. From the ancient Greeks to the modern-day scientists, we have been asking questions and searching for answers. But what if some of these answers are hiding in plain sight? What if there is a hidden side to things that we have been missing?

This list is an exploration of the strangest theories about the universe and its inhabitants. From Charles Webster Leadbeater's suggestion that fairies are part of the evolutionary tree, to Heribert Illig's claim that the Middle Ages were invented, to Garry Kasparov's 'New Chronology' conspiracy theory, to Avi Loeb's suggestion that 'Oumuamua might be an alien creation—these are just some of the wildest theories about the universe and its inhabitants that you will find in this list.

So, if you are ready to explore the hidden side of things, then buckle up and let's get started!

12

Pythagoras: Bean-hating, death-defying.

CRACKED BEANS CONTAIN THE SPIRITS OF THE DEAD PYTHAGORA Pythagoras thought that eating beans was like eating people, as he thought that beans had the spirits of the dead in them. This idea may have killed him when he wouldn't walk through a bean field while running from a group of angry people. — IFL Science / Sweet CS Designs

11

Alien-made 'Oumuamua'? Sure, why not.

CRACKED THIS OBJECT IN SPACE IS AN ALIEN ARTIFACT AVI LOEB Avi Loeb, a professor at Harvard and well-known astrophysicist, has suggested that the mysterious 'Oumuamua, which flew through our solar system in 2017, might be a creation of an alien civilization. — Scientific American / ESO

10

Believing the Unbelievable.

CRACKED DOGS LITERALLY EXACTLY KNOW WHEN YOU'RE COMING HOME RUPERT SHELDRAKE Sheldrake, a British biologist, has written books about telepathy and other supernatural things, like Dogs That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home (1999) Не believes that these phenomena are real. — Scientific American / iStock

9

Einstein: Religion is in the stars.

CRACKED UNIVERSAL ORDER AS RELIGION ALBERT EINSTEIN Albert Einstein had a unique view of religion. Не didn't believe in the traditional God of Western religions or the religions of the East. Instead, he thought that faith in the order of the universe was a kind of religion. — Washington Post / New Scientist

8

Jesus: Mushroom. God: Penis in the sky.

CRACKED CHRIST WAS A MUSHROOM AND GOD WAS A DONG JOHN MARCO ALLEGRO Allegro, a famous scholar and archaeologist, suggested that Jesus was a mushroom that walked around and the God of the Old Testament was like a powerful penis in the sky that shot out semen during a thunderstorm. Is this Freudian theology? — Why Now / Polygon

7

Jefferson's idea: outdated.

CRACKED EVERY GENERATION SHOULD REWRITE THE CONSTITUTION THOMAS JEFFERSON Thomas Jefferson thought that the Constitution should be updated every 19 years - - but the U.S. Constitution has been the same since 1789, barring the occasional amendment, so we wonder what he'd think about that. — Illinois News Bureau / History

6

Innovative, yet misguided.

CRACKED PHYSICS IN GENERAL IS WRONG NIKOLA TESLA Nikola Tesla thought that space was flat, that atoms couldn't be broken apart, and that he had discovered something that could travel faster than light, even though it turned out he was wrong about all of these things. — IFL Science / History Biography

5

Psychedelic mushrooms: the food of the gods.

CRACKED PSYCHEDELIC MUSHROOMS GAVE US CIVILIZATION TERRENCE MCKENNA Terrence McKenna suggested that eating psychedelic mushrooms could have been a major factor in the evolution of the human mind and culture. This idea is now known as the 'Stoned Ape Hypothesis'. — How Stuff Works / Psychiatrist

4

NASA: "Trust us." Paul Cox: "No."

CRACKED THERE'S A SECOND SUN IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM PAUL COX Paul Cox, an astronomer, believes that NASA is not telling us the whole story, and there's a second sun in our solar system. Sure, man. — HuffPo / Republic World

3

Kasparov's "New Chronology": A thousand-year conspiracy.

GRACKED OLD TESTAMENT KINGS WERE ACTUALLY HOLY ROMAN EMPERORS GARRY KASPAROV Kasparov, a chess legend, is a well-known supporter of the 'New Chronology' theory. This theory suggests that the reigns of the Old Testament kings and the Holy Roman Emperors were actually the same, but were given different dates. — Skeptic / Britannica

2

History, rewritten.

GRACKED THE MIDDLE AGES WERE MOSTLY INVENTED OUT OF THIN AIR HERIBERT ILLIG Heribert Illig, a German historian, suggested in 1991 that the year is actually 1720, and that the Gregorian calendar is a fabrication. Не argued that a large part of the Middle Ages was invented. — The Archaeologist / History of European Fashion

1

Evolution, with fairies included.

CRACKED EVOLUTION CREATED FAIRIES CHARLES WEBSTER LEADBEATER Leadbeater, an early 20th-century English clergyman, thought that fairies had evolved from grasses and cereals, then ants and bees, and that each fairy-race had its own color to distinguish it from other species. — History Extra / Fandom

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