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{{Notice|image=Text-x-generic with pencil.svg |header=Inclusion Criteria|A rigid consensus on inclusion criteria for this list has not been reached. It is preferred to propose new items on the talk page first.
{| class="messagebox standard-talk"

|-
Any proposed new entries to the article must at least fulfill the following:
|<big><b>Please read before proposing new entries</b></big>

A rigid consensus on inclusion criteria for this list does not exist, but any proposed new entries to the article must at least fulfill the following:
*The common misconception's main topic has an article of its own.
#The common misconception's main topic has an article of its own.
*The item is reliably sourced, both with respect to the factual contents of the item ''and'' the fact that it is a common misconception.
#The item is reliably sourced, both with respect to the factual contents of the item ''and'' the fact that it is a common misconception.
*The common misconception is mentioned in its topic article with sources.
#The common misconception is mentioned in its topic article with sources.
*The common misconception is current, as opposed to ancient or obsolete.
#The common misconception is current, as opposed to ancient or obsolete.
If you propose an entry that does ''not'' fulfill these criteria but you still think should be included, please include your rationale for inclusion.
If you have an item to add that does ''not'' fulfill these criteria but you still think should be included, please suggest it on the [[Talk:List of common misconceptions|talk page]] with your rationale for inclusion.
|}
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== RFC on number of pages to split to ==
{{Closed rfc top|result=There is a rough consensus for '''three lists'''. <small>([[Wikipedia:Non-admin closure|non-admin closure]])</small> <span style="white-space: nowrap;">—[[User:Compassionate727|Compassionate727]]&nbsp;<sup>([[User talk:Compassionate727|T]]·[[Special:Contributions/Compassionate727|C]])</sup></span> 14:01, 21 December 2024 (UTC)}}
We have already [[Talk:List_of_common_misconceptions#Split_proposal|established a consensus to split]] this [[Special:LongPages|very long]] list. The next question is how to split it. Should this become two, three, or four separate lists of common misconceptions? [[User:WhatamIdoing|WhatamIdoing]] ([[User talk:WhatamIdoing|talk]]) 19:58, 29 October 2024 (UTC)

Here are three options:
{| class="wikitable"
|+Options for simple splits
!Two lists
!Three lists
!Four lists
|-
|
* [[List of common misconceptions about arts, culture, and history]]
* [[List of common misconceptions about science, technology, and mathematics]]
|
* [[List of common misconceptions about arts and culture]]
* [[List of common misconceptions about history]]
* [[List of common misconceptions about science, technology, and mathematics]]
|
* [[List of common misconceptions about arts and culture]]
* [[List of common misconceptions about history]]
* [[List of common misconceptions about science, technology, and mathematics]]
* [[List of common misconceptions about health]]
|}
<small>Note to people who wish the page wasn't being split: There is an effort (explained [[Talk:List of common misconceptions#c-S Marshall-20241013082400-Rollinginhisgrave-20241013073000|above]]) to create a single page view for readers. Splitting the current list is a necessary prerequisite for accomplishing that goal. Even if you opposed the decision to split this page, you are still invited to express a preference about how the pieces will be arranged. We can make no progress towards the goal of reassembling the pieces into a single view until we agree on what the pieces will be.</small>

The first option is "Two", and the second option is "Three", which could get confusing for the closer ("He said two, but did he mean two lists or the second option, which is three lists?"), so please spell out your vote in this format:

* '''Two lists'''
* '''Three lists'''
* '''Four lists'''

or in some other equally unmistakable format. [[User:WhatamIdoing|WhatamIdoing]] ([[User talk:WhatamIdoing|talk]]) 19:58, 29 October 2024 (UTC)

* ''' Two lists'''. The consensus was reached to split for ''technical'' reasons, so no need to split any further than necessary to address the size concerns raised in the split discussion. STEM vs humanities is a natural divide. UPDATE: below, some editors are !voting for '''One list''' - that is my very strong preference. As explained in the split discussion, I reluctantly agreed to a split if ''necessary for technical reasons''. That necessity has still not been established. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 20:40, 29 October 2024 (UTC)

* '''Three lists'''. The article is already divided into arts and culture, history, and STEM, so it'd be easiest and most natural to do it that way. {{summoned by bot}} [[User:Ships%26Space|<span style="color: #848482">Ships</span>]] &amp; [[User talk:Ships%26Space|<span style="color: MidnightBlue">Space</span>]]<sub>([[Special:Contributions/Ships%26Space|Edits]])</sub> 22:24, 29 October 2024 (UTC)

* '''Four lists''', but '''three''' would also make sense. Splitting by existing sections makes a lot of sense, but, judging by eye, the expected content for Health is about the same size as History, and also makes a lot of sense to me as a conceptual split. I want to say I prefer not to see the arbitrary clumping of two lists, but this whole thing is arbitrary at a certain point, isn’t it? <span style="font-family:Avenir, sans-serif">—&nbsp;<span style="border-radius:5px;padding:.1em .4em;background:#faeded">[[User:HTGS|HTGS]]</span>&nbsp;([[User talk:HTGS|talk]])</span> 23:33, 29 October 2024 (UTC)
* '''Four lists'''. If a separate page for "Health" is not benefiting [[WP:MEDRS]], it can be merged back in to three at a later date. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 23:56, 29 October 2024 (UTC)
* '''One list, Keep as is'''. It's not that long (most of the text's body is made up of References), and it's a great read and popular topic, obtaining over 2,300 readers a day for the last year! I haven't read the entire thing, so thanks for bringing attention to it. Nothing wrong in keeping this well-known list (and importantly, splits lose readers, I think, because not everyone goes to every page of a split topic). <small>univolved in the discussion to split, missed it, was it every posted at the affiliated WikiProjects?</small> [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] ([[User talk:Randy Kryn|talk]]) 01:50, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*:'''One list''', much as Randy Kryn suggests, but if the insistence is on more, then someone will have to put a LOT of effort into cross-linking to the separate parts. If you are lost in one list you can always do a find for keywords, whereas trying that with multiple lists is cumbersome and confusing.
*:Furthermore, misconceptions do not come neatly packaged into categories. Plenty of examples are both science-related and art-related, and history-related. Either you make it cumbersome with multiple entries in more than one list (and keep the entries equally updated and consistent!!!) or you wish the reader pot-luck in finding the right place and getting the context right.
*:Probably a better investment of effort would be the insertion of a '''''lot''''' of illustrations, and a '''''lot''''' of careful editing of ambiguous or unhelpful entries that even if not wrong, are no more helpful than the original error. Consider the one about cells not outnumbered by microorganisms -- it is just one example. Plenty where that came from. [[User:JonRichfield|JonRichfield]] ([[User talk:JonRichfield|talk]]) 06:26, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*: @[[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] The split discussion was not an RFC (it should have been) and to the best of my knowledge was not posted at at the affiliated WikiProjects. Agree with keeping it as one list, as do several other active editors for this page. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 13:59, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*::Hello {{u|Mr swordfish}}, and yes, this is such an iconic and well-known page of Wikipedia that such a major proposed dissection surprised me (especially when not the subject of project alerts or other ongoing discussion promotion). Maybe you can boldface the words 'keeping it as one list' to make your comment clearer to readers and a potential closer. Thanks. [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] ([[User talk:Randy Kryn|talk]]) 15:07, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*:@[[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]], we already have a consensus to split. If you wish to challenge that, then please see [[Wikipedia:Close review]].
*:If you want to re-litigate the previous discussion, then please note that this list has gotten so long that we can't use regular [[Wikipedia:Citation templates]] in it because of the [[WP:PEIS]] technical limits, and at the current rate of growth, even the workaround will eventually break. Any attempt to keep this on one page needs to explain how you're going to make the sources visible when even the capacity of the workaround is exceeded.
*:After the split happens, we're looking at a way to re-assemble the page into a single view for readers who like that. But we can't do that until the split happens. So what would actually be helpful here is "I'd like the technical split to involve ____ subpages, and I want S Marshall's magic solution to be implemented as soon as possible so people can still read it on one page". What's not helpful is "I'd like to kick this can down the road until it's an emergency". [[User:WhatamIdoing|WhatamIdoing]] ([[User talk:WhatamIdoing|talk]]) 16:58, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*::[[File:Template limits PEIS post-expand include size screenshot.png|thumb|What the references look like when the [[w:en:WP:PEIS]] limits have been exceeded on this page: Links to the templates, and not a single source shown anywhere on the page.]] Just to be clear about the technical problem, [https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=List_of_common_misconceptions&oldid=1254363137#References take a look at the refs section in this version]. Do you see 891 refs there? I don't. When you put too many templates on a page, they stop being shown. From the reader's POV, it becomes a completely unsourced article.
*::Now, if that's what you want, then you can just say that. A !vote like "Who cares about sources, since readers don't look at those anyway" would do. I'd even back you up with a source that shows readers almost never look at the sources. But if you think that article content should be cited, and not just by hiding the information in the wikitext code, then we are going to have to change our approach, and the only question is whether we do it now, with plenty of time to work out solutions, or when the whole page breaks and there's no time to do it well. [[User:WhatamIdoing|WhatamIdoing]] ([[User talk:WhatamIdoing|talk]]) 17:07, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*:::I don't know what you are trying to accomplish by deliberately breaking the references and then claiming that the page is broken, but it's not a very convincing argument. The references all appear in the current version. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 21:49, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*::::The sources are there and look fine on my computer. As for criticizing my !vote of keeping the list, two things. The RFC title asks how many pages the list should be split to. I suggested one list, to keep the page. That's my opinion in answering the title question. Then look at the List page itself, [https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=List_of_common_misconceptions&oldid=1254363255 the opening template asks for comments about a split, on the page since July]. No split needed. [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] ([[User talk:Randy Kryn|talk]]) 23:31, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*:::::Agree that the opening template needs updating given a consensus to split has been found. What would be an appropriate template? [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 23:43, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*::::::Nothing to agree to, I did not suggest changing it. This RfC opened and has progressed under it, and my opinion to keep the page as one list also rests on both the title of this RfC and the message of the present template. Arguably, the time has passed to remove that template, which should now be linked with this RfC. [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] ([[User talk:Randy Kryn|talk]]) 23:51, 30 October 2024 (UTC)
*:::::::Removed the template. For reference, the question this RfC aims to answer is {{tq|Should this become two, three, or four separate lists of common misconceptions?}} '''One list''' is answering a different question, that [[Talk:List_of_common_misconceptions#Split_proposal|has already been asked and answered]]. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 00:04, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
*::::::::"One list" is my answer to the RfC title. Since you removed the present template, and left no other<s>, this RfC is presently going unannounced</s>[Returned with the new date, October 2024]. The language on the template you removed seemed fine, just an update on the date and a link to this RfC should handle it. [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] ([[User talk:Randy Kryn|talk]]) 00:22, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
*:::::::::The RfC title is the topic, not the question. I did have a look at [[:Category:Wikipedia requests for comment|other current RfCs]] to find an applicable replacement template, and none seemed to indicate on the article page that an RfC was ongoing.
::::::::::The template text "It has been suggested that this article should be split into multiple articles." is outdated, given there is a consensus that the article should be split into multiple articles, and this RfC is determining how to implement that. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 00:29, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
:::::::::::There was no notice about a split discussion outside of the page itself, as far as I know, even though many Wikiprojects are involved in this article. If this RfC answers 'None', or 'Keep as is', then that's a perfectly good option. There is no "have to split" if consensus on this RfC chooses not to. [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] ([[User talk:Randy Kryn|talk]]) 00:36, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
::::::::::::[https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Talk:List_of_common_misconceptions&diff=prev&oldid=1254366140 WhatamIdoing linked the notices above]. You are more familiar with Wikipedia processes than I. Is this a thing you can do? Disregard the RfC question and instead use the RfC to challenge the consensus it's implementing? [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 00:47, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
:::::::::::::While there were some "notifications" outside this talk page, they did not reach a large audience. In particular, there was no notification to the standard places that an RfC would normally get i.e.
:::::::::::::* '''[[Wikipedia:Requests for comment/History and geography|History and geography]]'''
:::::::::::::* '''[[Wikipedia:Requests for comment/Language and linguistics|Language and linguistics]]'''
:::::::::::::* '''[[Wikipedia:Requests for comment/Maths, science, and technology|Maths, science, and technology]]'''
:::::::::::::* '''[[Wikipedia:Requests for comment/Media, the arts, and architecture|Media, the arts, and architecture]]'''
:::::::::::::* '''[[Wikipedia:Requests for comment/Politics, government, and law|Politics, government, and law]]'''
:::::::::::::* '''[[Wikipedia:Requests for comment/Society, sports, and culture|Society, sports, and culture]]'''
:::::::::::::* '''[[Wikipedia:Requests for comment/Religion and philosophy|Religion and philosophy]]'''
:::::::::::::Trying to claim that posting a question at the village pump is adequate is not very convincing. [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] observation that the split discussion was not adequately advertised is apt, and if a consensus forms among the wider audience of editors now made aware by the RfC not to split, well, [[WP:CCC|consensus can change]]. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 02:05, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
::::::::::::::{{u|Mr swordfish}} if you think the consensus to split was inappropriately established, it's worth going through [[WP:CLOSECHALLENGE]]. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 02:16, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
* '''Two or three.''' We should follow the precedent set by [[WP:REFDESK]] and split into lists according to those subject areas as needed. we can start with three lists: humanities, science and technology, and mathematics. Or two lists, humanities and STEM. ~[[User:Anachronist|Anachronist]] <small>([[User talk:Anachronist|talk]])</small> 03:21, 30 October 2024 (UTC)

:'''Three or four lists'''. To my eye the larger-scale topics are a bit ungainly, and as Ships&Space states, this article is already split into three topics. I wouldn't be opposed to spinning out health per HTGS's reasoning though. &nbsp;<b style="filter:blur(0.09em) sepia(1) saturate(99) hue-rotate(99deg)">[[User:Mir Novov|novov]]</b> <b style="font-size:0.6em;filter:grayscale(1)">[[User talk:Mir Novov|talk]] [[Special:Contributions/Mir Novov|edits]]</b> 09:27, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
*'''Find any consensus'''. It really doesn't matter how many pages to split to. What matters is that we finally get on with splitting it in whatever way the fewest editors disagree with.—[[User:S Marshall|<b style="font-family: Verdana; color: Maroon;">S&nbsp;Marshall</b>]]&nbsp;<small>[[User talk:S Marshall|T]]/[[Special:Contributions/S Marshall|C]]</small> 22:02, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
:*I want to add that it's needful to split this page for technical reasons, and "don't split" is an option the community has recently considered and explicitly rejected.—[[User:S Marshall|<b style="font-family: Verdana; color: Maroon;">S&nbsp;Marshall</b>]]&nbsp;<small>[[User talk:S Marshall|T]]/[[Special:Contributions/S Marshall|C]]</small> 22:05, 31 October 2024 (UTC)

* '''One list, Keep as is''', per Randy Kryn, Mr swordfish, etc. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjamin]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 04:44, 2 November 2024 (UTC)
*:I agree with 'one list' but not 'keep as is'. I think this article should be a singular much smaller 'List of common misconceptions' page, with references to other more detailed lists, the fact it's too long isn't just a technical issue, it's also much worse for the readers to have to scroll through pages of trivia to find the useful content. The 'main' page should actually apply the inclusion criteria, many, MANY of the entries do not have any evidence that they are actually common misconceptions. The very the first entry is missing any reference to evidence that it is , in fact, a common misconception.
*:So, I think split into however many pages we want, then a long hard clean-up of this page. [[User talk:JeffUK|Jeff<span style="border-style:dashed;border-color:blue; border-width:1px">'''UK'''</span>]] 11:54, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
* '''Three lists''': The categories for two are ugly and awkward, but we should try to split as little as is reasonably possible. If a recent consensus hadn't been reached, I'd be against splitting at all, but since it has I am very against trying to override a recent consensus. [[User:LokiTheLiar|Loki]] ([[User talk:LokiTheLiar|talk]]) 06:07, 4 November 2024 (UTC)
*:{{u|LokiTheLiar}}, thanks for an interesting comment. You'd rather have one list but are going with a split that you don't like. This shows that the consensus reached was both premature and ill-timed, as it should have been reached at an RfC (preferably this one as an option). This RfC question is 'how many pages to split to', and your and other editors is 'none'. To not split. That seems the correct option for this long-term near-iconic Wikipedia page. The only split needed is the existing Table of Contents, which is used for that purpose. Readers know how to use a Table of Contents. Please reconsider, thanks. [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] ([[User talk:Randy Kryn|talk]]) 12:55, 4 November 2024 (UTC)
*::Randy, can I just ask: do you fully understand the technical considerations here? Do you understand that post-split there would still be a one-page version? Do you understand why and how the unsplit page is breaking Wikipedia's underlying code? We didn't decide to split on a whim.—[[User:S Marshall|<b style="font-family: Verdana; color: Maroon;">S&nbsp;Marshall</b>]]&nbsp;<small>[[User talk:S Marshall|T]]/[[Special:Contributions/S Marshall|C]]</small> 13:48, 4 November 2024 (UTC)
*:::Just got back to this, thanks {{u|S Marshall}}. No, I really don't understand the tech end of this, just seems that Wikipedia coding should be able to handle the page's uploading capacity on mobile (that's coming from someone not at all knowledgeable about code, or mobile, but expecting miracles and full functioning from both). I do know that the discussion had two sides, so keeping this as one page doesn't seem too much off the mark. In any case, I came in cold (or code) and answered the question about how many pages do I think this should be split into, and I opined about keeping it as is. That's still my opinion, given that I think that if the servers and coding can't handle the size of this page then they, and not the break-up of an iconic article, should be improved and brought up to speed even if it takes a Wikipedia/WMF Moon shot to do it. [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] ([[User talk:Randy Kryn|talk]]) 23:46, 8 November 2024 (UTC)
*::::Right --- no, it's not that. This isn't about server load and it isn't about whether the page will render on mobile.
:::::This is about the hard cap on the number of templates that will display.
:::::And I expect you're thinking, "What?" I know I did when I first came across this.
:::::Why is there a hard cap on the number of templates that will display? Well, it's necessary to protect the servers from certain kinds of sophisticated vandalism that amount to attacks. A clever vandal could set up templates that called each other recursively, so you end up with very large numbers of templates proliferating and absorbing our resources. There are good security reasons why we wouldn't want to change the cap. And the cap is set at such a high level that it almost never comes up (which is why it's confusing so many editors here).
:::::How does the hard cap affect this article? Well, all our references are in templates (and they rightly should be). So we've made this article unexpandable: we can't add further references. For a while now, editors have been using a workaround by adding special code into the references, but this too is on the point of failure.
:::::I've scratched my head about this and then devised a solution that keeps the whole article displaying on one page. The method uses selective transclusion. We can split the article into two, three, or four sections for editing purposes, but someone just wanting to view the list of common misconceptions as a whole will still be able to see it on one page. Some or all of the references won't be visible on the one-page view; but they'll still exist, and they'll be one click away.
:::::If you read the previous discussions, you'll find a link to a demo/mockup/proof of concept that I've set up.
:::::However, we can't proceed with this if we don't split the page.—[[User:S Marshall|<b style="font-family: Verdana; color: Maroon;">S&nbsp;Marshall</b>]]&nbsp;<small>[[User talk:S Marshall|T]]/[[Special:Contributions/S Marshall|C]]</small> 00:12, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
::::::Thanks {{u|S Marshall}}. You say the page will still be presented to readers as one page, and I can't say I understand the coding but will take your word on that. Which is all I was saying when presented with the question of this RM. If true, wasn't my 'one' already correct no matter how many pages the sources are split to? In any case, since you designed the work-around, I'll ease up on my comments above due to my misunderstanding the concept, but would still like to hear {{u|Mr swordfish}}'s analysis or objection in this sub-discussion. Mr swordfish, is it correct that the article's text will still be presented as one page? Thanks. [[User:Randy Kryn|Randy Kryn]] ([[User talk:Randy Kryn|talk]]) 11:34, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
:::::::I'm not really sure what S Marshall is proposing. I thought I did, but was told otherwise. Ideally, the article would look the same for most readers, rather than being N separate articles. There's a way to do this with transclusion and tags to suppress excessive templates, but I'm not sure that is what is in the works or whether it would be acceptable to have the citations "one click away" vs right there in-line. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 17:10, 13 November 2024 (UTC)
::::@[[User:S Marshall|S Marshall]] Suppose we split the list into two, add in all the markup to make the transclusions work, create the one-page article, all in some sandbox. Then, suppose we decide later the split should be three or four (or more) sub-articles. How much work would it entail to make this change? Seems to me that it would just be a matter of adding a couple of lines to the one-page version and cutting and pasting material into the one-page version. i.e. the majority of the work would be the initial addition of the suppression markup and that a 2 vs 3 vs 4 way split would be a trivial amount of work in comparison.
::::Which is to say, what are we waiting for? Split it 2 or 3 or 4 ways in a sandbox somewhere, do the rest of the transclusion magic, and let's take a good look at the final result. I understand that there's a fair amount of markup to be added, but there are dozens of us that the work could be split among. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 18:10, 13 November 2024 (UTC)
::::: It's enough work that I'm not willing to embark on it speculatively. I want a community decision on what we're doing, which should precede the actual doing it. WAID asked about the "one click away" references on WT:V but didn't get much engagement from people who understood the question.—[[User:S Marshall|<b style="font-family: Verdana; color: Maroon;">S&nbsp;Marshall</b>]]&nbsp;<small>[[User talk:S Marshall|T]]/[[Special:Contributions/S Marshall|C]]</small> 18:20, 13 November 2024 (UTC)
:Solely based on the idea that technical problems require splitting, I support '''Three lists, transcluded into the main article'''. This way using the "find" tool still works, and although more difficult, it is possible to find the citations. There is a clear notice telling you where to find them; although of course people don't read notices I figure it won't be impossible. It would be useful to A/B test that with people who do not edit Wikipedia, but likely this discussion does not have the means.
:Personally, I'm finding I don't hate the the "transclude subpages" idea as much as I thought I would. The real annoying part will be the markup -- why not mark the citations as "noinclude" rather than marking the text as "onlyinclude"? Having to specifically mark stuff to be included will make it more difficult for newer editors who forget, whose contributions will simply not appear on the main page. Unwanted citations will also be easier to spot then missing content.
:As for the number of lists -- the "health" section is small and can be split out later if necessary, but currently does not warrant its own article.
:I think that transcluding is the right choice because it preserves the single "List of common misconceptions" format -- it doesn't introduce extra friction -- it can be read in one piece -- and so on. There are babies born when the article was put into this format who can now drive, and there it's semi-famous for being what it is -- let's not split it up (at least text-wise) if we can avoid it. [[User:Mrfoogles|Mrfoogles]] ([[User talk:Mrfoogles|talk]]) 03:55, 26 November 2024 (UTC)
::{{bcc|Mrfoogles}}A small note that [[List of common misconceptions about science, technology, and mathematics]] would be 13000 words long, of which ~4000 would be health. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 04:34, 26 November 2024 (UTC)
*'''Four lists''' or '''three''' and then use technical wizardry to merge them together as has been proposed. The four lists will keep the page size down so that they can be expanded with references as needed, and merging them into one will solve the problem of diluting the lists. I prefer four to three lists simply to make sure this problem doesn't come up again in the future... I feel four lists is the best way to future-proof... but three might be fine, so I don't object to that. The talk pages for the split articles can be made to redirect to the main talk page. I think those !voting for one list should either challenge the close or move on. [[User:Fieari|Fieari]] ([[User talk:Fieari|talk]]) 07:20, 28 November 2024 (UTC)
*'''One list''' (splitting into sublists and then transcluding is fine). This is an iconic list in Wikipedia culture and has been referenced in materials like xkcd, and I think we'd be losing something if we split it. It's true that this list is longer than a typical article, but that's OK; unlike most articles, it's not meant to be read in a single sitting. [[User:Closed Limelike Curves|– Closed Limelike Curves]] ([[User talk:Closed Limelike Curves|talk]]) 18:43, 3 December 2024 (UTC)
*:For what sublists we could have, I'd suggest 4: "Social and behavioral sciences", "Natural sciences", "Math and engineering", and "History". [[User:Closed Limelike Curves|– Closed Limelike Curves]] ([[User talk:Closed Limelike Curves|talk]]) 19:02, 3 December 2024 (UTC)

====Mockup====
For ease of reference, my mockup/proof of concept is at [[User:S Marshall/Sandbox/List of common misconceptions demo]].—[[User:S Marshall|<b style="font-family: Verdana; color: Maroon;">S&nbsp;Marshall</b>]]&nbsp;<small>[[User talk:S Marshall|T]]/[[Special:Contributions/S Marshall|C]]</small> 10:15, 14 November 2024 (UTC)

:I expanded your demo to include the entire article. It's at [[User:Mr_swordfish/List_of_common_misconceptions]].
:I can't say it's perfect at this point, and I'm not sure what we're going to do about the talk page or what happens when a naive user clicks the edit button, but it's a start. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 20:11, 15 November 2024 (UTC)
::I assume by treating them to a giant edit notice, although I can't say the edit notice already on the page has been given much heed.
::I assume you and S Marshall missed [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:List_of_common_misconceptions#c-Rollinginhisgrave-20241028025000-Mr_swordfish-20241018190200 my comment for potential issues with transclusion], mentioning it again in case. I am sympathetic to [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:List_of_common_misconceptions#c-WhatamIdoing-20241030170700-WhatamIdoing-20241030165800 WAID's comment since], but if that is our approach, it should be identified as such. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 20:32, 15 November 2024 (UTC)
:::I didn't miss it. You raise a perfectly valid concern that I can't resolve.
:::Our choices are:
::::(a) Have an article that displays on one page;
::::(b) Have an article that displays all the references;
::::(c) Have an article that can be expanded with further references and entries.
:::Pick any two. You can't have all three.
:::The current version is (a) and (b). WAID's "split" proposal is (b) and (c), and my "transclude" proposal is (a) and (c). There seem to be editors with strident and passionate objections to every option.
:::WAID's comment is only tangentially related to yours; she's talking about how the software fails if we continue with our current (a) and (b) version and then try to add more content.
:::Hope this clarifies.—[[User:S Marshall|<b style="font-family: Verdana; color: Maroon;">S&nbsp;Marshall</b>]]&nbsp;<small>[[User talk:S Marshall|T]]/[[Special:Contributions/S Marshall|C]]</small> 00:18, 17 November 2024 (UTC)
:::: A and C seems like a reasonable compromise. I think much of the opposition to the split is fueled by the risk that it doesn't actually end up as one page. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjamin]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 03:11, 28 November 2024 (UTC)
{{Closed rfc bottom}}

== Masturbation ==

Popular belief asserts that individuals of either sex who are not in sexually active relationships tend to masturbate more frequently than those who are; however, much of the time this is not true as masturbation alone or with a partner is often a feature of a relationship. Contrary to this belief, several studies actually reveal a positive correlation between the frequency of masturbation and the frequency of intercourse. A study has reported a significantly higher rate of masturbation in gay men and women who were in a relationship.[52][64][65][66] [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjamin]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 17:19, 5 November 2024 (UTC)
:I'm not understanding why you posted this "common misconception" here on the talk page. Can you help me understand your purpose? [[User:Penguino35|Penguino35]] ([[User talk:Penguino35|talk]]) 20:03, 15 November 2024 (UTC)
:: I am suggesting it be added to the article, of course. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjamin]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 03:06, 28 November 2024 (UTC)
:::[[WP:BOLD|No need to ask for permission]]! [[User:Closed Limelike Curves|– Closed Limelike Curves]] ([[User talk:Closed Limelike Curves|talk]]) 19:03, 3 December 2024 (UTC)
:::: Hey [[User:Closed Limelike Curves]] it's nice to see you here. I know I could, but it's often controversial and I end up here on the talk page anyway. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjamin]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 10:48, 27 December 2024 (UTC)

== Suggested inclusion: tax on charitable donations from customers ==
Suggested inclusion in the "Economics" section - this is a resurrection of something I proposed back in April 2023, which I think merits inclusion as the concept now specifically has its own Wikipedia article that mentions the misconception specifically:
{{tq|Businesses do not get a tax benefit from collecting charitable donations from their customers, [[checkout charity|for example at supermarket checkouts]]. In most jurisdictions, corporation taxes are assessed based on a business' profits; a corporation gains zero tax benefit from collecting funds from customers to then pass on to charities, since the donation would not reflect as either an expense of or income for the business. A business could only use donations to reduce tax owed by donating ''their own'' money or resources - this ''would'' reduce tax, but only by reducing profit. It would not make economic sense for a company (or an individual) to donate money solely to save tax, since the amount of tax saved would be significantly smaller than the amount donated.<ref name="corptaxusatoday">{{cite news |last=Link |first=Devon |date=2021-06-10 |title=Fact check: Stores cannot use checkout charity funds to offset their own taxes |url=https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2021/06/10/fact-check-false-claim-checkout-charities-offset-corporate-taxes/7622379002/|work=[[USA Today]] |access-date=2023-04-01}}</ref><ref name="corptaxtaxpolicy">{{cite web
| url = https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/who-gets-tax-benefit-those-checkout-donations-0
| title = Who Gets the Tax Benefit For Those Checkout Donations?
| last = Zaretsky
| first = Renu
| date = 2020-11-04
| website = [[Tax Policy Center]]
| access-date = 2023-04-01}}</ref>}}
Inclusion criteria:
# The common misconception's main topic has an article of its own.: Yes, [[checkout charity]]
# The item is reliably sourced, both with respect to the factual contents of the item and the fact that it is a common misconception: Two sources provided, one referencing a widespread TikTok on the matter and the other from a major news source mentioning this being spread in Facebook. AP News has also fact checked this: https://apnews.com/article/fact-checking-000329849244
# The common misconception is mentioned in its topic article with sources: Yes.
# The common misconception is current, as opposed to ancient or obsolete: Sources are from the past couple of years, and it is a perennial misconception on social media.

[[User:Foonblace|Foonblace]] ([[User talk:Foonblace|talk]]) 18:12, 13 November 2024 (UTC)

:I'm not seeing where a reliable source establishes that it is a common misconception. "Thousands" of facebook or tiktok posts wouldn't seem to be enough - there is so much misinformation floating through those and other similar social media sites that "thousands" is a drop in the bucket and I don't think we can list every single piece of misinformation that attracts 1000 or more posts. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 20:26, 13 November 2024 (UTC)
::Surely it being something that both the Associated Press and USA Today have published pieces rebutting, as well as being mentioned on the Wikipedia page for the overall concept, establishes that it is common? [[User:Foonblace|Foonblace]] ([[User talk:Foonblace|talk]]) 21:48, 13 November 2024 (UTC)
:::{{u|Foonblace}} both of these outlets post thousands of fact-checks [https://www.usatoday.com/news/factcheck/][https://apnews.com/ap-fact-check] and do not make claims that the facts they are checking constitute "common misconceptions" in general, nor in the linked articles. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 20:27, 14 November 2024 (UTC)
::::<strike>I think it's pretty common and should go into the article. The popularity of the social media posts is a reflection of the general misunderstanding around this. Anecdotally, it certainly feels like quite a common misconception. Another source here debunks it, again, they wouldn't need to debunk it if it wasn't relatively common. "TikTok And Other Social Media Posts Are Wrong About Charity At The Checkout"<ref>https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2024/06/12/tiktok-and-other-social-media-posts-are-wrong-about-charity-at-the-checkout/</ref> , there's another source here 'fact checking' the claim <ref>https://apnews.com/article/fact-checking-000329849244</ref>, here's a Canadian source, showing it's more of an international phenomenon "Why nobody gets a tax benefit when you donate at the checkout | CBC Radio"<ref>https://www.cbc.ca/radio/costofliving/checkout-donations-nobody-gets-tax-benefit-1.6524462</ref></strike> [[User talk:JeffUK|Jeff<span style="border-style:dashed;border-color:blue; border-width:1px">'''UK'''</span>]] 13:13, 28 November 2024 (UTC)
:::::I've changed my mind! having seen the issues about the article size, I don't think it's clear enough from the sources that this is a common misconception for it to be included. [[User talk:JeffUK|Jeff<span style="border-style:dashed;border-color:blue; border-width:1px">'''UK'''</span>]] 10:34, 3 December 2024 (UTC)
::::::I wouldn't worry about article size. If the article gets too long, we'll split it. [[User:Closed Limelike Curves|– Closed Limelike Curves]] ([[User talk:Closed Limelike Curves|talk]]) 19:52, 3 December 2024 (UTC)
::I get the feeling that maybe this list should be retitled "List of misconceptions" (dropping "common"). Three reasons for this:
::# The sourcing is generally not strong enough to actually establish they're "common", just that someone ''claims'' it is. Often these sources are weak, or only claim the misconception is common in passing.
::# Whether a misconception is "common" or not is an opinion that has to be attributed, not stated in Wikivoice. (What does "common" mean—5%? 20%? 50%?)
::# It lets a lot of misconceptions off the hook just because we haven't found a source using the exact word "common". (Even if the fact that someone's writing a piece to debunk it implies they think it's at least ''somewhat'' common.)
::[[User:Closed Limelike Curves|– Closed Limelike Curves]] ([[User talk:Closed Limelike Curves|talk]]) 19:50, 3 December 2024 (UTC)
:::One could apply that logic to every article on Wikipedia, which merely re-reports what the [[WP:RS|reliable sources]] say i.e. if a reliable source (''someone'') ''claims'' X to be true then we put X into the article. Here, the inclusion criteria requires that some reliable source states that it is a ''common misconception'' or words to that effect. We repeat what the reliable sources say.
:::If we relaxed that criteria and allowed entries for ''every'' misconception the article would be way way too long to be of interest to anyone.
:::That said, if there are specific entries where you don't think the sourcing is sufficient, please start a new thread here on the talk page. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 22:21, 3 December 2024 (UTC)
::::{{tqb|One could apply that logic to every article on Wikipedia, which merely re-reports what the reliable sources say i.e. if a reliable source (someone) claims X to be true then we put X into the article.}}
::::That's not always true: if a reliable source states an opinion (rather than a fact), it needs to attributed per [[WP:INTEXT]] and [[WP:RSOPINION]]. This is true even if the source is usually reliable—if a writer in the ''New York Times'' calls a film "the greatest of all time", we have to describe this as "Writer A described this film as 'the greatest of all time'".
::::{{tqb|That said, if there are specific entries where you don't think the sourcing is sufficient, please start a new thread here on the talk page.}}
::::I think almost all the entries don't have enough sourcing to establish the misconception is actually "common", because most of them don't provide evidence to back up their claims. Most of these are pop science or journalists making an offhand claim about the topic without backing it up. If we want to claim these misconceptions are common, we have to show the sources are genuinely reliable ''on the topic of public opinion''. Examples of reliable sources would be statistical analyses of standardized tests, social media posts, or polling by reputable firms. However, a [[WP:PASSING]] description of it as common by a journalist isn't enough—I'm sure journalists claim lots of things are "common misconceptions" even if they aren't.
::::{{tqb|If we relaxed that criteria and allowed entries for every misconception the article would be way way too long to be of interest to anyone.}}
::::Obviously we don't want to allow entries for every misconception, just the popular ones. However, every claim on Wikipedia includes two implicit assertions:
::::# The claim meets [[WP:VERIFIABILITY]]—there are enough highly-reliable sources to guarantee the fact is true.
::::# The claim meets [[WP:NOTABILITY]]—the claim is important.
::::A misconception needs to be discussed and covered in enough reliable sources to warrant being included in this list, which means it has to be common. [[WP:V#Verifiability does not guarantee inclusion|Verifiability does not guarantee inclusion.]] In other words, a "List of misconceptions" would still be a list of ''common'' misconceptions, because ''un''common misconceptions would not be notable—obviously we won't include every time someone was wrong about something in this article. [[User:Closed Limelike Curves|– Closed Limelike Curves]] ([[User talk:Closed Limelike Curves|talk]]) 04:26, 4 December 2024 (UTC)
:::::{{u|Closed Limelike Curves}}
:::::#I disagree that this falls into opinion rather than assertion of fact. Could you elaborate on why you think this falls into the former?
:::::#Could you list three misconceptions that would meet these standards of proof?
:::::#Every claim on Wikipedia is obviously not required to meet [[WP:NOTABILITY]], only articles are. This list does not use GNG as a criterion for inclusion.
:::::[[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 04:43, 4 December 2024 (UTC)
::::::# At what point does a misconception become "common"—5% of the population? 20%? 50%? (There's some extreme cases where e.g. >90% of people believe something, in which case any reasonable editor would agree it's "common", but lots of items on this list don't meet that bar—I doubt even 5% of people believe some of these, and most of this list would probably fall in the gray area.)
::::::# Here's 3: {{tq|Contemporary global warming is driven by human activities...}}; {{tq|The signing of the [[United States Declaration of Independence]] did not occur on...}}; and {{tq|Crime rates are declining...}}. These cite high-quality polls finding the misconceptions are common (or might be, if we had an objective bar for that).
::::::# There's no need to meet [[WP:GNG]], but there's still a need for facts to be somewhat notable—I probably should've cited [[WP:INDISCRIMINATE]] or [[WP:LSC]]. The point is just that retitling this article wouldn't force us to add uncommon misconceptions.
::::::[[User:Closed Limelike Curves|– Closed Limelike Curves]] ([[User talk:Closed Limelike Curves|talk]]) 18:24, 4 December 2024 (UTC)
:::::::#{{u|Closed Limelike Curves}} What is "the population"? American? Global? South Koreans? The elderly of South Korea? The other point to make is that unless >90% of the group is the global population, you will never get universal agreement on something being popular. 90% of the US is 3.5% of the world. Without qualification as common in the US, can this be said to be "common"? The reason why I am leaning against attributing opinion here is because it is at odds with standard Wikipedia practice. How the community applies attribution will generally require the assessment (this is ''common'' being contested) being contested, i.e. being contradicted in another source. Perhaps this should not be the way it should applied, but it would require so much more attention; read a featured article on a biography and all the "he was a difficult child" stuff (almost all of it) would require breaking out of Wikivoice.
:::::::#It is OR to draw that line. It was considered a few years back and that determination was made, and what is OR has become stricter since. We would need polling, and then the source to analyse it and call it common, and then probably [[MOS:DATE|date]] it. Do you have three of these sources?
:::::::#Indiscriminate doesn't really apply, that pertains more to un-analyzed data, of which this is all analysed as reflecting a common belief. I don't think this list meets [[WP:LSC]]. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 19:13, 4 December 2024 (UTC)
:::Probably not best to relitigate this at this time unless there is a more substantial groundswell, but the general critique is that a belief cannot be "common" in a vacuum, but must be qualified as common among a group (common among America but uncommon among the world etc).
:::If we try to exclude some groups from the page (i.e. if it's common in Texas that doesn't mean it's ''common'', if it's common among chemists it doesn't mean it's ''common'') we are trying again to define common in a vacuum, which is impossible. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 22:31, 3 December 2024 (UTC)
:I recommend not including this because:
:# It's only about the US tax structure.
:# The sources you're relying on for how the accounting works are – um, let's say "oversimplifying", because that sounds more pleasant than "wrong".
:This is 100% OR and therefore should not go in the article, but just so Wikipedia editors know, there are a couple of "correct" ways to handle such donations, and one of them results in "income" and a matching "expense". Additionally, most of these are going to raise the credit card processing fees, which is a deductible expense, and which therefore decreases income tax liability.
:A true statement would sound something closer to "Businesses do not pay income taxes on donations that they pass through to charities."
:A truer statement about common misconceptions might be "Americans often believe that there is a tax difference for businesses reducing their profits through donations vs reducing their profits through buying advertisements or through paying their employees more." Spending $500 to buy an advertisement at the local youth sports event produces the same tax benefit, down to the penny, as donating $500 to "sponsor" a youth sports program. I don't know if you could find a source for that, though. [[User:WhatamIdoing|WhatamIdoing]] ([[User talk:WhatamIdoing|talk]]) 18:37, 18 December 2024 (UTC)
<references/>


==Chocolate misconceptions==
== Schizophrenia (origin of the term) ==
{{ping|Rollinginhisgrave}}
I don't believe that the two recent additions about chocolate meet our inclusion criteria:
*The common misconception's main topic has an article of its own.:
:We have an article on [[mole (sauce)]] in general which mentions mole poblano. And an article on [[History of chocolate]] which mentions Aztec chocolate drinks.
*The item is reliably sourced, both with respect to the factual contents of the item and the fact that it is a common misconception:
:I don't think there's any dispute about the factual contents.
:On the other hand, I see no good evidence that they are common misconceptions. Do people expect Mexican chocolate to contain cinnamon? No doubt. But does that rise to a "misconception"? There are salad dressings in the US called "French", "Russian", and "Italian" which are not found in those countries. Do people actually believe that they come from those countries?
:Does anyone believe in a pre-Spanish origin for mole poblano? The usual origin story (for what it's worth) is about some nuns in a convent in the 18th century. A more nuanced story talks about various sources and influences on the dish. [https://eatfarmnow.com/2019/09/12/nuns-and-napoleon-the-history-of-mexicos-mole-dish/ "Nuns and Napoleon: The history of Mexico’s ‘mole’ dish"]
*The common misconception is mentioned in its topic article with sources:
:I see nothing in the topic articles about these misconceptions.
So I think we need to delete these two entries. --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 05:40, 27 November 2024 (UTC)
:{{u|Macrakis}} thanks for flagging, I'm not opposed to deleting them although I'd like to dig out the sourcing to see if you think it verifies that they are common misconceptions beforehand. Narrowly on "The common misconception is mentioned in its topic article with sources"; I couldn't find a way to work in a link to [[History of chocolate]] to the mole without going too far into [[MOS:EASTEREGG]] although this was intended to be the topic article and was linked next to the entry. The mentions in the topic article are as follows:
:*"While mole poblano, a sauce that contains chocolate, is commonly associated with the Aztecs, it originated in territory that was never occupied by them, and the sauce was only invented after the Spanish invasion."
:*"While Aztec chocolate drinks are commonly understood to contain cinnamon, the spice was only introduced to Mesoamerica by the Spanish conquest."
:Both in the Aztec section. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 05:47, 27 November 2024 (UTC)
::Quote verifying common misconception for cinnamon: "But historical fact does not determine present-day accuracy. For example, a chocolate drink globally coded as a “real Aztec recipe” is expected to contain cinnamon, a flavor and spice only introduced to Mesoamerica through the Spanish conquest."[https://revista.drclas.harvard.edu/what-is-mexican-chocolate/] I have argued in the past that sourcing of this kind, where it verifies it is a common misconception among people who have knowledge of a "real Aztec recipe for chocolate" does not verify it is a common misconception. My argument was rejected, so I put this forth. I'm happy to revisit it, from memory an example at issue was the Creme Chantilly item.
::Quote verifying common misconception for mole "In all of the pages of Sahagun that deal with Aztec cuisine and with chocolate, there is not a hint that it ever entered into an Aztec dish. Yet today many food writers and gourmets consider one particular dish, the famous pavo in mole poblano, which contains chocolate, to represent the pinnacle of the Mexican cooking tradition." This verifies it is held as misconception among many gourmets and food writers. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 06:09, 27 November 2024 (UTC)
:Agree with removal. They seems to be factually correct, but we don't have adequate sourcing that they are ''common'' misconceptions.
:As for the Whipped Cream entry, I think [[WP:WHATABOUTX]] would apply here, i.e. another entry being problematic is not a good argument for adding more problematic entries. I haven't looked carefully at the cites for that entry but would not object to its removal too. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 16:08, 27 November 2024 (UTC)
::No worries, we can go ahead and remove them. I didn't intend it as a WHATABOUTX, but as something we had established consensus on as adequate sourcing. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 16:18, 27 November 2024 (UTC)
:::Thanks for pointing to the quotes in the History of Chocolate article. My impression is that the post-conquest origin of mole poblano is widely acknowledged since it's so obvious that it contains both indigenous and European ingredients. As for drinking chocolate, it is true that it was used as a beverage pre-conquest, although of course without cinnamon and sugar, so it's hard to know whether someone claiming that it is of Aztec origin is misinformed or simply glossing over the evolution of the dish. After all, pretty much all recipes evolve. --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 23:52, 27 November 2024 (UTC)
::::For post-conquest mole poblano origin; I think simultaneously many people can acknowledge the post-conquest origins while also apparently being a misconception among food writers and gourmets (and perhaps beyond, this is whom we can verify at least). We see misconceptions being possible among multiple understandings for [[fuck]] for instance, where it people apparently both believe it originated from an acronym or from "pluck you"; just because there are multiple understandings doesn't preclude any one being a common misconception.
::::For drinking chocolate, I assume misinformed as the source implies; just as I do with basically every entry here. [[User:Rollinginhisgrave|Rollinginhisgrave]] ([[User talk:Rollinginhisgrave|talk]]) 00:08, 28 November 2024 (UTC)


== Snake misconceptions ==
I have read (but cannot provide a source, sorry), that the "split mind" definition of the word was intended to imply "split from reality". If someone is willing to find a source, would this be worthy of inclusion? [[Special:Contributions/61.88.210.42|61.88.210.42]] ([[User talk:61.88.210.42|talk]]) 05:34, 6 April 2013 (UTC)
:see [[History of schizophrenia]]. [[User:Martinevans123|Martinevans123]] ([[User talk:Martinevans123|talk]]) 21:58, 17 April 2013 (UTC)


Snakes are not deaf. Although you can't see them, all snake species have ears and are capable of hearing. You can look for reliable sources on [[Google]]. [[User:Jamgorham|Jamgorham]] ([[User talk:Jamgorham|talk]]) 19:52, 13 December 2024 (UTC)
== Computing ==


:I didn't know that anyone thought snakes were deaf. Is this a common misconception? <small><sub>''signed'', </sub></small>[[User:Willondon|Willondon]] ([[User Talk:Willondon|talk]]) 20:10, 13 December 2024 (UTC)
The sole entry in the [[List of common misconceptions#Computing|computing]] section is mostly unsourced, confusing, and partly inaccurate. Maybe an expert could take a look at it? [[Special:Contributions/91.153.231.146|91.153.231.146]] ([[User talk:91.153.231.146|talk]]) 18:55, 6 April 2013 (UTC)
::Apparently, yes:
:I removed a large unsourced portion of that section.--[[User:Asher196|Asher196]] ([[User talk:Asher196|talk]]) 21:19, 6 April 2013 (UTC)
::https://stories.uq.edu.au/news/2023/snakes-can-hear-more-than-you-think/index.html
::The current version is still not as good as it could be. In my experience, the misconception in question applies more to malware in general (as is suggested in the first sentence). The usual response among programmers and computer scientists is to point out that Mac and Linux may in fact be just as vulnerable to exploitation (hacking and malware) as Windows, but since they represent a much smaller portion of the market, there is a much smaller monetary incentive for criminals to write malware and hacks for these machines. Separately, there may be arguments to suggest that Mac and Linux are less susceptible to viruses because of their open source foundations (Mac is based on an open source system, BSD, and Linux is itself open source), but I would advise against including this point in the misconception itself since it isn't related to the much more significant reason for the misconception, which is smaller market share and thus less economic incentive. [[User:Jalaska13|Jalaska13]] ([[User talk:Jalaska13|talk]]) 17:53, 7 April 2013 (UTC)
::https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/snakes-can-hear-you-scream-new-research-reveals/
:::Deleted all the hedging and rationalization. The ''point'' of the misconception is that Mac and Linux systems simply are not ''immune'', as hyped so commonly and urgently, now (still) and in the past. --[[User:Lexein|Lexein]] ([[User talk:Lexein|talk]]) 19:48, 17 April 2013 (UTC)
::https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/yes-snakes-can-hear-sound
::::Also, the part about "''there is little that the operating system can do about this''". OSes that are locked down, such as iOS, Windows Phone, Windows RT and Windows 8 (Metro-side only), make a huge difference in security against malware. [[User:A Quest For Knowledge|A Quest For Knowledge]] ([[User talk:A Quest For Knowledge|talk]]) 19:58, 17 April 2013 (UTC)
::And this paywalled article from the WAPO that says:
:::“There’s been this enduring myth that snakes are deaf,” says neurobiologist Bruce Young of the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, who was not involved in the new research. “Behavioral studies have suggested that snakes can in fact hear, and now this work has gone one step further and explained how.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/how-snakes-hear-without-ears/2011/12/29/gIQAuseoWP_story.html
::It's mentioned in the topic article [[Snake#Perception]] paragraph 4.
::So, it seems to meet the inclusion criteria, although it's more of a "scientific consensus has changed" sort of misconception. It's also based on just one study, so we might want to be careful here. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 01:40, 14 December 2024 (UTC)
:::Snakes being able to hear seems like a good addition to me. I believe many people think that snakes can't hear, and according to one of the sources there are now multiple studies showing that they can. <span style="font-family: cursive;">— [[User:Mudwater|Mudwater]]<small><sup> ([[User talk:Mudwater|Talk]])</sup></small></span> 11:37, 18 December 2024 (UTC)


==Expiration dates==
== Persistence of data in powered-off RAM ==


In [https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=List_of_common_misconceptions&diff=prev&oldid=1260747829 this edit], @JeffUK removed the "expiration date" misconception, saying
There's a common misconception among computer programmers and hobbyists that when power to a computer's RAM chips is removed, the data stored therein becomes immediately unavailable. This is partly due to the fact that basic computer education usually contrasts RAM (random access memory) with more permanent forms of storage such as hard drives in an attempt to illustrate the difference in their uses. However, most RAM actually retains data for a period of seconds or minute at room temperature, and much, much longer when cooled significantly. Here's the source for RAM data persistence: http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/techreports/UCAM-CL-TR-536.html. However, I'm unclear on the requirements for this page in terms of what needs to be cited, and so I was hesitant to actually post it. Also, I can't find a good definitive source for the stuff about education that I mentioned above - this is mostly from my own experience. [[User:Jalaska13|Jalaska13]] ([[User talk:Jalaska13|talk]]) 17:37, 7 April 2013 (UTC)
:Remove package food entry, it's untrue as stated and therefore unsafe. The ‘use by’ is a safety date on all foods where it's used in much of the world. (EU: After the ‘use by’ date, a food is deemed unsafe in accordance with article 14 (2) of Regulation EC No. 178/2002 )
:The problem is that the popular conception that information stored in RAM is lost when power is removed is, by and large, correct. I don't know that there's a popular misconception about whether it's instantaneous or over a period of several seconds; I rather doubt it, but if you can source that part of it sufficiently, it would overcome that objection. [[User:Siafu|siafu]] ([[User talk:Siafu|talk]]) 15:33, 8 April 2013 (UTC)
That regulation ([https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eur/2002/178/article/14 Article 14 (2) of Regulation EC No. 178/2002]) reads (3b):
:In determining whether any food is unsafe, regard shall be had:... (b) to the information provided to the consumer, including information on the label, or other information generally available to the consumer concerning the avoidance of specific adverse health effects from a particular food or category of foods.
This is at best ambiguous. But in any case, it doesn't apply outside the EU.
I have restored the section, qualifying it as applying only to the US, where we have good sources. It would be nice to find good sources for other jurisdictions. --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 17:20, 16 December 2024 (UTC)


:"Use by" is a food safety issue; fluid milk has a "use by" date and is expected to spoil (i.e., make you sick) soon afterwards. "Best by" is a food quality issue; potato chips have a "best by" date and are expected to be safe but perhaps a bit stale afterwards. I believe that "don't drink milk after its 'use-by' date" is a common correct-conception, but "don't eat potato chips after their 'best-by' date" is a common mis-conception. This list should differentiate the two, or only mention the best-by. [[User:WhatamIdoing|WhatamIdoing]] ([[User talk:WhatamIdoing|talk]]) 18:42, 18 December 2024 (UTC)
:As an EE, I'd say that generally we just don't CARE whether RAM images are persistent after the power is removed. For a robust system design you have to ASSUME it disappears immediately when power goes away, even if it's just a short glitch. The fact that the image may still be valid is almost never of any use. [[User:Middlenamefrank|Middlenamefrank]] ([[User talk:Middlenamefrank|talk]]) 20:09, 29 April 2013 (UTC)
::Agreed. There is a difference between "use by" and "best by" in some jurisdictions. Our current [[expiration date]] needs some improvement to clarify which wording is used with what meaning in which jurisdictions (with better sources) and then we can update the misconception. For example, as far as I can tell (but I need to do more research), "use by" is not a legally defined term in the US. --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 21:17, 19 December 2024 (UTC)


== "Mama Cass" ==
== Dr. - In the front of a name does not mean Medical Doctor ==


This [https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=List_of_common_misconceptions&diff=prev&oldid=1264117866 diff] seems to be advocating a decidedly left-wing ideological and polemicist position. The "average" ordinary person '''''regularly''''' uses the nickname "Mama Cass" as do countless 1960s music playing radio stations, both internet and in the real world. Plus, "average" ordinary people don't use the terms "fat shaming" or "connotations" and wouldn't readily understand them or care if someone tried to explain, especially the latter. IMO, the IP is applying something that should not be done so in Wikipedia's "voice". [[Special:Contributions/180.150.37.138|180.150.37.138]] ([[User talk:180.150.37.138|talk]]) 19:23, 20 December 2024 (UTC)
I see way too many doctorates implying they are Medical Doctors or have a M.D. by simply placing "Dr." in front of their name or telling people to call them Doctor. This is a growing misconception and applies to all the pseudo sciences like sociology and psychology. I would also include Psychiatry but somehow they were able to attain MD's even though they do not diagnose, treat or cure any disease <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/68.50.119.13|68.50.119.13]] ([[User talk:68.50.119.13|talk]]) 01:06, 9 April 2013 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
:No need to characterize the edit as "left-wing" or comment on the phrasing used in the edit comment. The only question is whether we should include the name "Mama Cass" in the entry about Cass Elliot. That she didn't like the nickname isn't dispositive. The main question is whether including the nickname helps users identify her: is "Cass Elliot (of The Mamas & the Papas)" clear enough, or would it be helpful to write "Cass Elliot (Mama Cass of The Mamas & the Papas)"? According to Google nGrams, the name Mama Cass is [https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=Mama+Cass%2CCass+Eliot&year_start=1960&year_end=2019&corpus=en-2019&smoothing=10 about twice as common as Cass Elliot], so I think it's reasonable to assume that it's more familiar. It is also a name used for her in a Mamas & the Papas song, and the cited NYTimes article says "she found it hard to shake her nickname". So the name is widely familiar and I agree that it should be restored. --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 22:30, 22 December 2024 (UTC)
::While it's pretty clear that she did not like the name (at least in later life), unless someone can point to some relevant Wikipedia policy regarding nicknames that are disliked by the person we should include the more common identifier to make it understandable to the average reader. The fact that the edit comment and the initial comment above included some irrelevant editorializing shouldn't affect our decision on whether to include the alternate, more common identifier.
::I'm in favor of restoring "Cass Elliot (Mama Cass of The Mamas & the Papas)". Unless someone can point to some policy prohibiting or disfavoring it. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 16:14, 23 December 2024 (UTC)
:::According to Wikipedia policy, when writing about an individual, the preferred name to use is the one most commonly used in reliable sources, which includes respecting a person's self-identified gender and preferred name, even if it differs from their legal name or how they were previously known in the public eye. Cass Elliot (which is not her birth name) is the name she chose for herself. Her father nicknamed her Cass after the Greek mythological prophetess Cassandra, and she chose the surname to honor a friend who died in a car accident.
:::"Cass Elliot of The Mamas & the Papas" would work just fine. Her Wikipedia article is called [[Cass Elliot]], not Mama Cass. <b>[[User:Kingturtle|Kingturtle =]]</b> <small>([[User talk:Kingturtle|talk]])</small> 16:20, 23 December 2024 (UTC)
::::Which Wikipedia policy is that? The closest policy I can find is at [[WP:PUBLICFIGURE]] which says biographies
:::::... should simply document what these sources say. If an allegation or incident is noteworthy, relevant, and well documented, it belongs in the article—even if it is negative and the subject dislikes all mention of it.
::::[[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 22:17, 23 December 2024 (UTC)
:::::[[WP:COMMONNAME]] says Wikipedia "generally prefers the name that is most commonly used (as determined by its prevalence in a significant majority of independent, reliable, English-language sources)." <b>[[User:Kingturtle|Kingturtle =]]</b> <small>([[User talk:Kingturtle|talk]])</small> 03:37, 24 December 2024 (UTC)


:The Wikipedia article is called [[Cass Elliot]]. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame calls her [https://rockhall.com/inductees/mamas-and-papas/ Cass Elliot]. She is known as Cass Elliot. eom. <b>[[User:Kingturtle|Kingturtle =]]</b> <small>([[User talk:Kingturtle|talk]])</small> 03:31, 23 December 2024 (UTC)
: Please read the section at the top of this page that begins "please read". I have removed the other section you added -- there's no sense piling up things that don't meet the criteria for this article. [[User:Looie496|Looie496]] ([[User talk:Looie496|talk]]) 04:08, 9 April 2013 (UTC)
::The second sentence in [[Cass Elliot]] begins ''She was also known as "Mama Cass"...'' [[Mama Cass]] redirects to that page.
::See [[WP:UNCENSORED]]. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 16:21, 23 December 2024 (UTC)


:::Re "the preferred name to use is the one most commonly used in reliable sources" -- yes, that is the policy for ''article titles''. It doesn't say that other names shouldn't be used. We document names like [[William the Bad]]. And in the case of Cass Elliot, it seems that Mama Cass is a better known name than the name she preferred, a bit like [[Ivan the Terrible]] and [[Bloody Mary]], which I think you'll agree are better-known names than Ivan IV of Russia and Mary I of England. --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 13:43, 24 December 2024 (UTC)
:: Are you insinuating the previous comment is not a misconception? [[Special:Contributions/68.50.119.13|68.50.119.13]] ([[User talk:68.50.119.13|talk]]) 23:32, 29 April 2013 (UTC)
::::See [[WP:COMMONNAME]]. <b>[[User:Kingturtle|Kingturtle =]]</b> <small>([[User talk:Kingturtle|talk]])</small> 13:49, 24 December 2024 (UTC)
:::::That policy is about [[WP:TITLE|article titles]], and if adhered to strictly would require renaming the topic article, [[Cass Elliot]], to [[Mama Cass]]. I don't think anyone is arguing for that, and this is the wrong place to have that discussion.
:::::As Macrakis points out, Mama Cass is a better known name than the name she preferred. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 15:28, 24 December 2024 (UTC)
::::::No, if adhered to strictly, her article would be and IS Cass Elliot. We don't look to popular usage among people on the street. What matters is the name that she is referred to in sources. In biographies involving her she is referred to as Cass Elliot. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame calls her Cass Elliot. <b>[[User:Kingturtle|Kingturtle =]]</b> <small>([[User talk:Kingturtle|talk]])</small> 16:45, 24 December 2024 (UTC)
:::::::"People on the street" are ordinary people and it is an average person that defines the objective norm, not outlier populations such as tertiary-educated people. Professional orgs like the R&RHOF and poli-social activists like the diff maker i objected to, are also not ordinary. JMO and YMMV. [[Special:Contributions/180.150.37.138|180.150.37.138]] ([[User talk:180.150.37.138|talk]]) 04:38, 26 December 2024 (UTC)
::::::::No, actually, we don't base it on ordinary people or the average person. We base it on the usage in credible, notable sources. <b>[[User:Kingturtle|Kingturtle =]]</b> <small>([[User talk:Kingturtle|talk]])</small> 04:39, 26 December 2024 (UTC)
{{od |5}}There doesn't appear to be any Wikipedia policy that prohibits also mentioning the name under which she became famous, and which appears in most of the cites in the topic article. Or at least no one has been able to produce one. Given that, there appears to be consensus to restore the recent removal. I'll give it another day or so before making the change to see if anyone else wants to chime in. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 18:07, 24 December 2024 (UTC)


== catholicism ==
::: It's not a common one, nor is it sourced, nor mentioned at the [[Doctor (title)|main article]]. [[User:Siafu|siafu]] ([[User talk:Siafu|talk]]) 00:54, 30 April 2013 (UTC)


i think u still cant disagree on what the church and pope teach:
:::: There are other problems with it. Your comment reveals many misunderstandings. It is perfectly proper to call a PhD or holder of any other doctorate "Doctor." This does not imply they are an M.D.. That some people think so is a misunderstanding. Look up "[[Doctor (title)]]." Also sociology and psychology aren't generally consider pseudosciences, but psychiatry often is, but that's not a consensus opinion. Psychiatrists are first M.D.s, and then specialize in psychiatry. It's not the other way around. Psychiatrists are allowed to diagnose, treat, and cure any medical condition, just like other M.D.. (For more about controversies about whether psychoanalysis is pseudoscience or not, [http://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Talk:Psychoanalysis&diff=prev&oldid=550121121#Arbcom_says_NOT_to_placing_this_in_the_Pseudoscience_category look here].) -- [[User:BullRangifer|Brangifer]] ([[User talk:BullRangifer|talk]]) 03:17, 30 April 2013 (UTC)


III
== Circumstantial evidence is not irrelevant evidence ==
THE MAGISTERIUM OF THE CHURCH'S PASTORS


17. Divine assistance is also given to the successors of the apostles teaching in communion with the successor of Peter, and in a particular way, to the Roman Pontiff as Pastor of the whole Church, when exercising their ordinary Magisterium, even should this not issue in an infallible definition or in a "definitive" pronouncement but in the proposal of some teaching which leads to a better understanding of Revelation in matters of faith and morals and to moral directives derived from such teaching.
Far too often in the popular press, we see an attorney objecting by saying "that's circumstantial evidence". In truth, all evidence falls into one of two categories: circumstantial and eye-witness. Therefore, the great majority of legally relevant evidence is circumstantial. Its degree of relevance and importance is to be determined by the jury (or the judge if it's not a jury trial). [[User:Middlenamefrank|Middlenamefrank]] ([[User talk:Middlenamefrank|talk]]) 20:47, 11 April 2013 (UTC)
One must therefore take into account the proper character of every exercise of the Magisterium, considering the extent to which its authority is engaged. It is also to be borne in mind that all acts of the Magisterium derive from the same source, that is, from Christ who desires that His People walk in the entire truth. For this same reason, magisterial decisions in matters of discipline, even if they are not guaranteed by the charism of infallibility, are not without divine assistance and call for the adherence of the faithful.


https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19900524_theologian-vocation_en.html [[Special:Contributions/2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4|2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4]] ([[User talk:2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4|talk]]) 15:06, 23 December 2024 (UTC)
:If that's the case then it is a common misconception that attorneys frequently successfully object to circumstantial evidence. Jack [[Special:Contributions/203.106.160.221|203.106.160.221]] ([[User talk:203.106.160.221|talk]]) 22:21, 26 April 2013 (UTC)


:Please see [[WP:RSPSCRIPTURE]] for the applicable Wikipedia policies. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 15:59, 23 December 2024 (UTC)
== Pasta cooking with admixture of oil ==
::Also, you need to be more specific about what changes you would like to see. Better to discuss things in the source article first, because this article is only supposed to summarize them. --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 13:27, 24 December 2024 (UTC)


== islam ==
Oil would not necessarily stay at the top. If the water is boiling and therefore agitated, droplets of oil could be drawn down to the pasta, and some might stick to it. I recommend speedy deletion of this item. <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/203.106.160.221|203.106.160.221]] ([[User talk:203.106.160.221|talk]]) 07:10, 12 April 2013 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
:I had a look at one of the sources for this statement, and it actually reads: "You may have heard that you can avoid sticky pasta by adding oil to the pasta water. '''This can prevent sticking''', but at a great price. Pasta that's cooked in oily water will become oily itself and, as a result, the sauce slides off, doesn't get absorbed, and you have flavorless pasta." (My emphasis). This is in direct contradiction to the statement that oil in the water does not prevent sticking. I also feel, based on my own experience, that it is unlikely that the oil "just stays on top" during a vigorous boil. I support removal. [[User:Dr bab|Dr bab]] ([[User talk:Dr bab|talk]]) 09:08, 12 April 2013 (UTC)
::I looked at the cited sources and did a bit of googling, and it seems that some sources say the oil doesn't come in contact with the pasta, others say it does and this is bad since it interferes with the sauce sticking. I did not find any sources that I would consider really ''reliable'' sources. I've removed the item since it is contradicted by it's own source.


corrections
::Also, this "misconception' is not included on the parent page so this entry fails to meet the criteria for this article. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 16:23, 12 April 2013 (UTC)


a sahih hadith mentions that u get 2 wives in paradise
== Another monosodium glutamate myth ==
https://sunnah.com/tirmidhi:2735


additionally, this article shouldnt make it look like hijab isnt prescribed in islam
It's a myth that it causes baldness in women who eat a lot of it. The baldness is actually genetic - the middle aged Chinese women go a bit thin on top and this is not uncommon among ethnic Chinese women in Malaysia about 50 years old, the hair still being black.[[Special:Contributions/203.106.160.221|203.106.160.221]] ([[User talk:203.106.160.221|talk]]) 07:19, 12 April 2013 (UTC)
https://quran.com/en/an-nur/31
:Please read the "Please read before proposing new entries"-box at the top of this page, and provide sources that this myth fulfills the 4 criteria. [[User:Dr bab|Dr bab]] ([[User talk:Dr bab|talk]]) 09:14, 12 April 2013 (UTC)


finally, this article shouldnt make it look like ahadith arent required for muslims:
== A microwave ovens heat only the outer one centimetre? ==


https://quran.com/en/al-hashr/7
This doesn't seem right.


https://quran.com/en/al-anfal/20
I think the microwave oven does not cook the food from the inside out.I also agree that it probably heats the outer 1 cm more than than the centre, but I don't think the direct heating at depths greater than 1 cm is insignificant as alleged. If it were, then it would not be possible to cook a whole potato so quickly in a microwave oven. It would take about as long as it would to cook a potato with a radius 1 cm less in a conventional oven, which in my experience is clearly not the case.


https://quran.com/en/ali-imran/31 [[Special:Contributions/2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4|2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4]] ([[User talk:2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4|talk]]) 15:24, 23 December 2024 (UTC)
Also, I seem to remember reading somewhere that the microwave oven heats the only the outer 5 cm directly, which would seem to make more sense.


:https://islamqa.info/en/answers/257509/number-of-huris-a-muslim-will-get-in-jannah#:~:text=%E2%80%9CEach%20man%20will%20be%20given,given%20in%20addition%20to%20that.
If it is true that lean meat behaves like this, I would suggest that it is not true of all or even most foods, and is a somewhat misleading example.
:https://www.anic.org.au/news/islamic-position-on-the-hijab/
:https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/are-hadith-necessary [[Special:Contributions/2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4|2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4]] ([[User talk:2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4|talk]]) 16:40, 23 December 2024 (UTC)


:You need to be more specific about what changes you would like to see. Better to discuss things in the source article first, because this article is only supposed to summarize them. --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 13:28, 24 December 2024 (UTC)
I recommend considering trimming off that bit about the 1 cm. <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/203.106.160.221|203.106.160.221]] ([[User talk:203.106.160.221|talk]]) 21:32, 26 April 2013 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->


== christianity ==
:The 1 cm limit is due to the [[penetration depth]] of microwaves, which is a function of the wavelength and the material in question. Since microwave ovens operate at short wavelengths (122 mm, corresponding to 2.45 GHz), the penetration depth is quite short, less than 1 cm in almost all cases. The precision of 1 cm as a metric is not terribly fine, but it's a good "average" for the variety of food items that go in microwaves, and it's also quite true that only a negligible amount of EM energy will penetrate beyond that since it falls off exponentially. The heating of the interior is due to indirect heating, i.e. it's heated by the outside material, and this obviously happens faster in substances with high heat conductance, like meat, potatoes, and other vegetables, all of which are mostly water. [[User:Siafu|siafu]] ([[User talk:Siafu|talk]]) 21:54, 26 April 2013 (UTC)


im not sure if im missing something but the catholic article source does not mention tertullian writing about 9 sins but rather 7
::If the interior is heated by the outside material, how is it that microwaving food heats the centre so much quicker than boiling it does? Jack [[Special:Contributions/203.106.160.221|203.106.160.221]] ([[User talk:203.106.160.221|talk]]) 07:06, 29 April 2013 (UTC)


and the 7 deadly sins are mentioned in the bible
::: How is that microwave ovens are so much quicker than ordinary ovens or boiling water at heating the interiors of large lumps of food, if they heat only the outer 1 cm of the food? It doesn't seem to make sense. Jack [[Special:Contributions/203.106.160.221|203.106.160.221]] ([[User talk:203.106.160.221|talk]]) 13:16, 3 May 2013 (UTC)


https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hebrews%206%3A10%E2%80%9312&version=KJV
::::Both boiling and microwaves heat only the outside. Boiling heats just the surface, while a microwave heats the outer 1cm. The reason the interior gets hot faster with a microwave is that it heats the outer layer faster than boiling. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 13:41, 3 May 2013 (UTC)


https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%205%3A19-21&version=KJV
== The gringo misconception is not very readable as it is. ==


https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20John%202%3A15-17&version=KJV
This is how it is:


https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%2018%3A9%E2%80%9312&version=KJV [[Special:Contributions/2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4|2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4]] ([[User talk:2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4|talk]]) 15:40, 23 December 2024 (UTC)
The word "gringo" did not originate during the Mexican-American War (1846–1848), the Venezuelan War of Independence (1811–1823), the Mexican Revolution (1910–1920), or in the American Old West (c. 1865–1899) as a corruption of the lyrics "green grow" in either "Green Grow the Lilacs" or "Green Grow the Rushes, O" sung by US-American soldiers or cowboys;[120] nor did it originate during any of these times as a corruption of "Green go home!", falsely said to have been shouted at green-clad American troops.[121] The word originally simply meant "foreigner", and is probably a corruption of Spanish griego, "Greek".[122]


:You need to be more specific about what changes you would like to see. Better to discuss things in the source article first, because this article is only supposed to summarize them. --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 13:28, 24 December 2024 (UTC)
This is how I'd have it:


== Article split & transclusion ==
The word "gringo" did not originate in any of the following ways: during the Mexican-American War (1846–1848), the Venezuelan War of Independence (1811–1823), the Mexican Revolution (1910–1920), in the American Old West (c. 1865–1899) as a corruption of the lyrics "green grow" in either "Green Grow the Lilacs" or "Green Grow the Rushes, O" sung by US-American soldiers or cowboys;[120] during any of these times as a corruption of "Green go home!" (falsely said to have been shouted at green-clad American troops).[121]


I've implemented the article split and transclusion of the sub-articles. Some implementation notes:
It truly originated this way: the word originally simply meant "foreigner", and is probably a corruption of Spanish griego, "Greek".[122]


*Having the sub-articles in a subdirectory did not work as well in the main space as it does in a user space so the three sub-articles are at the root of the main space. If anyone has a better way to do this, I'm all ears.
Jack [[Special:Contributions/203.106.160.221|203.106.160.221]] ([[User talk:203.106.160.221|talk]]) 22:12, 26 April 2013 (UTC)


*I've spot checked "What links here" and the dozen or so links to this page that I checked seem to work. I did not check them all.
== Biology ==


*There are still three cites that I can't figure out how to prevent from being transcluded so they show up at the end of the article. Would appreciate any help with this.
This section needs expanding. I'd suggest for example: the idea that tomato/pepper skins stick to the inside of stomachs causing problems. Also, the idea (in Eastern Europe especially) that air pressure affects people's moods (and causes headaches). It could be linked to [[meteoropathy]].
Oh, and for food: the idea that bananas have spiders/bacteria living in the end of them. I've heard that from many people. [[User:Malick78|Malick78]] ([[User talk:Malick78|talk]]) 19:19, 17 April 2013 (UTC)


*The new sub-articles have attracted attention from a few editors who don't seem to understand the context and have made some "helpful" edits - I expect more of this.
== Should more be included? ==


*Each sub-article has its own talk page and its own history. I'd recommend adding them to your watchlist since changes to them don't appear in the history here. Not sure what to do about potentially four different venues for discussion, but maybe it won't really matter in practice.
I like the list here, but I'm wondering if more should be included or not. Some people think that dog's mouths are cleaner than humans, which they aren't or that the golden spike that connected the railways in the US was real. As long as you can find more information about other bogus things that people think is true, I hope that you include them on the page.


*Currently, there is no edit notice on the sub-articles. I'll take a look at adding these. UPDATE: the edit notice has been applied to the sub-pages.
[[Special:Contributions/65.214.69.226|65.214.69.226]] ([[User talk:65.214.69.226|talk]]) 23:52, 27 April 2013 (UTC)
:Those are good ones, but: you are hereby enthusiastically encouraged to review the inclusion criteria (above), and add an item which meets all four. --[[User:Lexein|Lexein]] ([[User talk:Lexein|talk]]) 07:27, 2 May 2013 (UTC)


[[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 01:24, 27 December 2024 (UTC)
== Word misconceptions ==


:Could we perhaps package the include control and the ref tag into a template to make it easier to edit entries?
"Funner" and "impactful" could not be found in Merriam-Webster, Cambridge dictionaries online, or Dictionary.com. I am sure they appear in other dictionaries, but these three, especially Merriam-Webster, are fairly authoritative in this area. I would recommend that these words be removed from the given list. <span style="font-size: smaller;" class="autosigned">— Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/76.25.60.125|76.25.60.125]] ([[User talk:76.25.60.125|talk]]) 00:43, 7 May 2013 (UTC)</span><!-- Template:Unsigned IP --> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
:Something like <nowiki> {refnc|name=xxx|yyy} => <noinclude> <ref name=xxx> yyy </ref> </noinclude> </nowiki> and <nowiki> {refnc|xref=xxx} => <noinclude> <ref name=xxx /> </nowiki> .
:The article does not consider "funner". The claim made for "impactful" is that it is alleged to be "not a word". You seem to be making precisely that allegation, thereby supporting what is maintained in the article. The reference to dictionaries does not limit itself to authoritative dictionaries; it is quite within the scope of Wikipedia to make generalizations about just about anything, including dictionaries that are not authoritative. [[User:Peter M. Brown|Peter Brown]] ([[User talk:Peter M. Brown|talk]]) 01:05, 7 May 2013 (UTC)
:By the way, why did you use '''onlyinclude''' and not '''noinclude''', which seems easier to understand? --[[User:Macrakis|Macrakis]] ([[User talk:Macrakis|talk]]) 16:36, 28 December 2024 (UTC)
::Furthermore, any lexicographer will likely tell you that there's no such thing as an authoritative dictionary either. A dictionary is a record of the usage of our language as it evolves, and dictionaries evolve with the language, they aren't intended to determine or restrict a language and its usage. If a word is not in the dictionary, it simply means the dictionary publisher hasn't caught up with it yet. There's an excellent blog post by a lexicographer on the subject here: http://korystamper.wordpress.com/2013/01/25/the-voice-of-authority-morality-and-dictionaries/ ~[[User:Amatulic|Amatulić]] <small>([[User talk:Amatulic#top|talk]])</small> 01:27, 7 May 2013 (UTC)
::I'm not conversant with packaging controls into templates, but have no objection if it accomplishes what I think it accomplishes.
:::Not quite. While your source denies that dictionaries are authoritative as regards lots of things, he does acknowledge that they are authorities "on the meanings and uses of words." Not, to be clear, on what people <u>ought</u> to mean by words or how they ought to use them or pronounce them, but how, typically, they actually do. They're also authorities on etymology. [[User:Peter M. Brown|Peter Brown]] ([[User talk:Peter M. Brown|talk]]) 01:51, 7 May 2013 (UTC)
::I used onlyinclude because that was how [[User:S Marshall]] did it in the mockup. noinclude is probably the better way to do it, but I was not aware of that tag until now. I'll take a look at changing it, shouldn't be too hard since it's mostly just a find and replace exercise. [[User:Mr swordfish|Mr. Swordfish]] ([[User talk:Mr swordfish|talk]]) 18:20, 28 December 2024 (UTC)


== Romantic relationships ==
== caduceus is a symbol of medicine even if it was chosen in error ==


<nowiki>https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/behavioral-and-brain-sciences/article/romantic-relationships-matter-more-to-men-than-to-women/52E626D3CD7DB14CD946F9A2FBDA739C#</nowiki>
The caduceus is a symbol of medicine even if it was not well chosen or was chosen in error.


"Women are often viewed as more romantic than men, and romantic relationships are assumed to be more central to the lives of women than to those of men. Despite the prevalence of these beliefs, some recent research paints a different picture." [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjamin]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 10:39, 27 December 2024 (UTC)
14:11, 11 May 2013 (UTC) Michael Christian

Latest revision as of 18:20, 28 December 2024

Former FLCList of common misconceptions is a former featured list candidate. Please view the link under Article milestones below to see why the nomination was archived. Once the objections have been addressed you may resubmit the article for featured list status.
Article milestones
DateProcessResult
October 29, 2006Articles for deletionNo consensus
March 24, 2009Articles for deletionKept
February 8, 2011Articles for deletionNo consensus
April 25, 2011Featured list candidateNot promoted
September 26, 2018Articles for deletionKept
December 22, 2023Articles for deletionKept
Current status: Former featured list candidate


RFC on number of pages to split to

[edit]
The following discussion is an archived record of a request for comment. Please do not modify it. No further edits should be made to this discussion. A summary of the conclusions reached follows.
There is a rough consensus for three lists. (non-admin closure) Compassionate727 (T·C) 14:01, 21 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

We have already established a consensus to split this very long list. The next question is how to split it. Should this become two, three, or four separate lists of common misconceptions? WhatamIdoing (talk) 19:58, 29 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Here are three options:

Options for simple splits
Two lists Three lists Four lists

Note to people who wish the page wasn't being split: There is an effort (explained above) to create a single page view for readers. Splitting the current list is a necessary prerequisite for accomplishing that goal. Even if you opposed the decision to split this page, you are still invited to express a preference about how the pieces will be arranged. We can make no progress towards the goal of reassembling the pieces into a single view until we agree on what the pieces will be.

The first option is "Two", and the second option is "Three", which could get confusing for the closer ("He said two, but did he mean two lists or the second option, which is three lists?"), so please spell out your vote in this format:

  • Two lists
  • Three lists
  • Four lists

or in some other equally unmistakable format. WhatamIdoing (talk) 19:58, 29 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

  • Two lists. The consensus was reached to split for technical reasons, so no need to split any further than necessary to address the size concerns raised in the split discussion. STEM vs humanities is a natural divide. UPDATE: below, some editors are !voting for One list - that is my very strong preference. As explained in the split discussion, I reluctantly agreed to a split if necessary for technical reasons. That necessity has still not been established. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 20:40, 29 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • Four lists, but three would also make sense. Splitting by existing sections makes a lot of sense, but, judging by eye, the expected content for Health is about the same size as History, and also makes a lot of sense to me as a conceptual split. I want to say I prefer not to see the arbitrary clumping of two lists, but this whole thing is arbitrary at a certain point, isn’t it? — HTGS (talk) 23:33, 29 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • Four lists. If a separate page for "Health" is not benefiting WP:MEDRS, it can be merged back in to three at a later date. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 23:56, 29 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • One list, Keep as is. It's not that long (most of the text's body is made up of References), and it's a great read and popular topic, obtaining over 2,300 readers a day for the last year! I haven't read the entire thing, so thanks for bringing attention to it. Nothing wrong in keeping this well-known list (and importantly, splits lose readers, I think, because not everyone goes to every page of a split topic). univolved in the discussion to split, missed it, was it every posted at the affiliated WikiProjects? Randy Kryn (talk) 01:50, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    One list, much as Randy Kryn suggests, but if the insistence is on more, then someone will have to put a LOT of effort into cross-linking to the separate parts. If you are lost in one list you can always do a find for keywords, whereas trying that with multiple lists is cumbersome and confusing.
    Furthermore, misconceptions do not come neatly packaged into categories. Plenty of examples are both science-related and art-related, and history-related. Either you make it cumbersome with multiple entries in more than one list (and keep the entries equally updated and consistent!!!) or you wish the reader pot-luck in finding the right place and getting the context right.
    Probably a better investment of effort would be the insertion of a lot of illustrations, and a lot of careful editing of ambiguous or unhelpful entries that even if not wrong, are no more helpful than the original error. Consider the one about cells not outnumbered by microorganisms -- it is just one example. Plenty where that came from. JonRichfield (talk) 06:26, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    @Randy Kryn The split discussion was not an RFC (it should have been) and to the best of my knowledge was not posted at at the affiliated WikiProjects. Agree with keeping it as one list, as do several other active editors for this page. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 13:59, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    Hello Mr swordfish, and yes, this is such an iconic and well-known page of Wikipedia that such a major proposed dissection surprised me (especially when not the subject of project alerts or other ongoing discussion promotion). Maybe you can boldface the words 'keeping it as one list' to make your comment clearer to readers and a potential closer. Thanks. Randy Kryn (talk) 15:07, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    @Randy Kryn, we already have a consensus to split. If you wish to challenge that, then please see Wikipedia:Close review.
    If you want to re-litigate the previous discussion, then please note that this list has gotten so long that we can't use regular Wikipedia:Citation templates in it because of the WP:PEIS technical limits, and at the current rate of growth, even the workaround will eventually break. Any attempt to keep this on one page needs to explain how you're going to make the sources visible when even the capacity of the workaround is exceeded.
    After the split happens, we're looking at a way to re-assemble the page into a single view for readers who like that. But we can't do that until the split happens. So what would actually be helpful here is "I'd like the technical split to involve ____ subpages, and I want S Marshall's magic solution to be implemented as soon as possible so people can still read it on one page". What's not helpful is "I'd like to kick this can down the road until it's an emergency". WhatamIdoing (talk) 16:58, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    What the references look like when the w:en:WP:PEIS limits have been exceeded on this page: Links to the templates, and not a single source shown anywhere on the page.
    Just to be clear about the technical problem, take a look at the refs section in this version. Do you see 891 refs there? I don't. When you put too many templates on a page, they stop being shown. From the reader's POV, it becomes a completely unsourced article.
    Now, if that's what you want, then you can just say that. A !vote like "Who cares about sources, since readers don't look at those anyway" would do. I'd even back you up with a source that shows readers almost never look at the sources. But if you think that article content should be cited, and not just by hiding the information in the wikitext code, then we are going to have to change our approach, and the only question is whether we do it now, with plenty of time to work out solutions, or when the whole page breaks and there's no time to do it well. WhatamIdoing (talk) 17:07, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    I don't know what you are trying to accomplish by deliberately breaking the references and then claiming that the page is broken, but it's not a very convincing argument. The references all appear in the current version. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 21:49, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    The sources are there and look fine on my computer. As for criticizing my !vote of keeping the list, two things. The RFC title asks how many pages the list should be split to. I suggested one list, to keep the page. That's my opinion in answering the title question. Then look at the List page itself, the opening template asks for comments about a split, on the page since July. No split needed. Randy Kryn (talk) 23:31, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    Agree that the opening template needs updating given a consensus to split has been found. What would be an appropriate template? Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 23:43, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    Nothing to agree to, I did not suggest changing it. This RfC opened and has progressed under it, and my opinion to keep the page as one list also rests on both the title of this RfC and the message of the present template. Arguably, the time has passed to remove that template, which should now be linked with this RfC. Randy Kryn (talk) 23:51, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    Removed the template. For reference, the question this RfC aims to answer is Should this become two, three, or four separate lists of common misconceptions? One list is answering a different question, that has already been asked and answered. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 00:04, 31 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    "One list" is my answer to the RfC title. Since you removed the present template, and left no other, this RfC is presently going unannounced[Returned with the new date, October 2024]. The language on the template you removed seemed fine, just an update on the date and a link to this RfC should handle it. Randy Kryn (talk) 00:22, 31 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    The RfC title is the topic, not the question. I did have a look at other current RfCs to find an applicable replacement template, and none seemed to indicate on the article page that an RfC was ongoing.
The template text "It has been suggested that this article should be split into multiple articles." is outdated, given there is a consensus that the article should be split into multiple articles, and this RfC is determining how to implement that. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 00:29, 31 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
There was no notice about a split discussion outside of the page itself, as far as I know, even though many Wikiprojects are involved in this article. If this RfC answers 'None', or 'Keep as is', then that's a perfectly good option. There is no "have to split" if consensus on this RfC chooses not to. Randy Kryn (talk) 00:36, 31 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
WhatamIdoing linked the notices above. You are more familiar with Wikipedia processes than I. Is this a thing you can do? Disregard the RfC question and instead use the RfC to challenge the consensus it's implementing? Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 00:47, 31 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
While there were some "notifications" outside this talk page, they did not reach a large audience. In particular, there was no notification to the standard places that an RfC would normally get i.e.
Trying to claim that posting a question at the village pump is adequate is not very convincing. Randy Kryn observation that the split discussion was not adequately advertised is apt, and if a consensus forms among the wider audience of editors now made aware by the RfC not to split, well, consensus can change. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 02:05, 31 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Mr swordfish if you think the consensus to split was inappropriately established, it's worth going through WP:CLOSECHALLENGE. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 02:16, 31 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • Two or three. We should follow the precedent set by WP:REFDESK and split into lists according to those subject areas as needed. we can start with three lists: humanities, science and technology, and mathematics. Or two lists, humanities and STEM. ~Anachronist (talk) 03:21, 30 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Three or four lists. To my eye the larger-scale topics are a bit ungainly, and as Ships&Space states, this article is already split into three topics. I wouldn't be opposed to spinning out health per HTGS's reasoning though.  novov talk edits 09:27, 31 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • Find any consensus. It really doesn't matter how many pages to split to. What matters is that we finally get on with splitting it in whatever way the fewest editors disagree with.—S Marshall T/C 22:02, 31 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • One list, Keep as is, per Randy Kryn, Mr swordfish, etc. Benjamin (talk) 04:44, 2 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    I agree with 'one list' but not 'keep as is'. I think this article should be a singular much smaller 'List of common misconceptions' page, with references to other more detailed lists, the fact it's too long isn't just a technical issue, it's also much worse for the readers to have to scroll through pages of trivia to find the useful content. The 'main' page should actually apply the inclusion criteria, many, MANY of the entries do not have any evidence that they are actually common misconceptions. The very the first entry is missing any reference to evidence that it is , in fact, a common misconception.
    So, I think split into however many pages we want, then a long hard clean-up of this page. JeffUK 11:54, 2 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • Three lists: The categories for two are ugly and awkward, but we should try to split as little as is reasonably possible. If a recent consensus hadn't been reached, I'd be against splitting at all, but since it has I am very against trying to override a recent consensus. Loki (talk) 06:07, 4 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    LokiTheLiar, thanks for an interesting comment. You'd rather have one list but are going with a split that you don't like. This shows that the consensus reached was both premature and ill-timed, as it should have been reached at an RfC (preferably this one as an option). This RfC question is 'how many pages to split to', and your and other editors is 'none'. To not split. That seems the correct option for this long-term near-iconic Wikipedia page. The only split needed is the existing Table of Contents, which is used for that purpose. Readers know how to use a Table of Contents. Please reconsider, thanks. Randy Kryn (talk) 12:55, 4 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    Randy, can I just ask: do you fully understand the technical considerations here? Do you understand that post-split there would still be a one-page version? Do you understand why and how the unsplit page is breaking Wikipedia's underlying code? We didn't decide to split on a whim.—S Marshall T/C 13:48, 4 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    Just got back to this, thanks S Marshall. No, I really don't understand the tech end of this, just seems that Wikipedia coding should be able to handle the page's uploading capacity on mobile (that's coming from someone not at all knowledgeable about code, or mobile, but expecting miracles and full functioning from both). I do know that the discussion had two sides, so keeping this as one page doesn't seem too much off the mark. In any case, I came in cold (or code) and answered the question about how many pages do I think this should be split into, and I opined about keeping it as is. That's still my opinion, given that I think that if the servers and coding can't handle the size of this page then they, and not the break-up of an iconic article, should be improved and brought up to speed even if it takes a Wikipedia/WMF Moon shot to do it. Randy Kryn (talk) 23:46, 8 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    Right --- no, it's not that. This isn't about server load and it isn't about whether the page will render on mobile.
This is about the hard cap on the number of templates that will display.
And I expect you're thinking, "What?" I know I did when I first came across this.
Why is there a hard cap on the number of templates that will display? Well, it's necessary to protect the servers from certain kinds of sophisticated vandalism that amount to attacks. A clever vandal could set up templates that called each other recursively, so you end up with very large numbers of templates proliferating and absorbing our resources. There are good security reasons why we wouldn't want to change the cap. And the cap is set at such a high level that it almost never comes up (which is why it's confusing so many editors here).
How does the hard cap affect this article? Well, all our references are in templates (and they rightly should be). So we've made this article unexpandable: we can't add further references. For a while now, editors have been using a workaround by adding special code into the references, but this too is on the point of failure.
I've scratched my head about this and then devised a solution that keeps the whole article displaying on one page. The method uses selective transclusion. We can split the article into two, three, or four sections for editing purposes, but someone just wanting to view the list of common misconceptions as a whole will still be able to see it on one page. Some or all of the references won't be visible on the one-page view; but they'll still exist, and they'll be one click away.
If you read the previous discussions, you'll find a link to a demo/mockup/proof of concept that I've set up.
However, we can't proceed with this if we don't split the page.—S Marshall T/C 00:12, 9 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks S Marshall. You say the page will still be presented to readers as one page, and I can't say I understand the coding but will take your word on that. Which is all I was saying when presented with the question of this RM. If true, wasn't my 'one' already correct no matter how many pages the sources are split to? In any case, since you designed the work-around, I'll ease up on my comments above due to my misunderstanding the concept, but would still like to hear Mr swordfish's analysis or objection in this sub-discussion. Mr swordfish, is it correct that the article's text will still be presented as one page? Thanks. Randy Kryn (talk) 11:34, 9 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I'm not really sure what S Marshall is proposing. I thought I did, but was told otherwise. Ideally, the article would look the same for most readers, rather than being N separate articles. There's a way to do this with transclusion and tags to suppress excessive templates, but I'm not sure that is what is in the works or whether it would be acceptable to have the citations "one click away" vs right there in-line. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 17:10, 13 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
@S Marshall Suppose we split the list into two, add in all the markup to make the transclusions work, create the one-page article, all in some sandbox. Then, suppose we decide later the split should be three or four (or more) sub-articles. How much work would it entail to make this change? Seems to me that it would just be a matter of adding a couple of lines to the one-page version and cutting and pasting material into the one-page version. i.e. the majority of the work would be the initial addition of the suppression markup and that a 2 vs 3 vs 4 way split would be a trivial amount of work in comparison.
Which is to say, what are we waiting for? Split it 2 or 3 or 4 ways in a sandbox somewhere, do the rest of the transclusion magic, and let's take a good look at the final result. I understand that there's a fair amount of markup to be added, but there are dozens of us that the work could be split among. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 18:10, 13 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
It's enough work that I'm not willing to embark on it speculatively. I want a community decision on what we're doing, which should precede the actual doing it. WAID asked about the "one click away" references on WT:V but didn't get much engagement from people who understood the question.—S Marshall T/C 18:20, 13 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Solely based on the idea that technical problems require splitting, I support Three lists, transcluded into the main article. This way using the "find" tool still works, and although more difficult, it is possible to find the citations. There is a clear notice telling you where to find them; although of course people don't read notices I figure it won't be impossible. It would be useful to A/B test that with people who do not edit Wikipedia, but likely this discussion does not have the means.
Personally, I'm finding I don't hate the the "transclude subpages" idea as much as I thought I would. The real annoying part will be the markup -- why not mark the citations as "noinclude" rather than marking the text as "onlyinclude"? Having to specifically mark stuff to be included will make it more difficult for newer editors who forget, whose contributions will simply not appear on the main page. Unwanted citations will also be easier to spot then missing content.
As for the number of lists -- the "health" section is small and can be split out later if necessary, but currently does not warrant its own article.
I think that transcluding is the right choice because it preserves the single "List of common misconceptions" format -- it doesn't introduce extra friction -- it can be read in one piece -- and so on. There are babies born when the article was put into this format who can now drive, and there it's semi-famous for being what it is -- let's not split it up (at least text-wise) if we can avoid it. Mrfoogles (talk) 03:55, 26 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
A small note that List of common misconceptions about science, technology, and mathematics would be 13000 words long, of which ~4000 would be health. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 04:34, 26 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • Four lists or three and then use technical wizardry to merge them together as has been proposed. The four lists will keep the page size down so that they can be expanded with references as needed, and merging them into one will solve the problem of diluting the lists. I prefer four to three lists simply to make sure this problem doesn't come up again in the future... I feel four lists is the best way to future-proof... but three might be fine, so I don't object to that. The talk pages for the split articles can be made to redirect to the main talk page. I think those !voting for one list should either challenge the close or move on. Fieari (talk) 07:20, 28 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • One list (splitting into sublists and then transcluding is fine). This is an iconic list in Wikipedia culture and has been referenced in materials like xkcd, and I think we'd be losing something if we split it. It's true that this list is longer than a typical article, but that's OK; unlike most articles, it's not meant to be read in a single sitting. – Closed Limelike Curves (talk) 18:43, 3 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    For what sublists we could have, I'd suggest 4: "Social and behavioral sciences", "Natural sciences", "Math and engineering", and "History". – Closed Limelike Curves (talk) 19:02, 3 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Mockup

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For ease of reference, my mockup/proof of concept is at User:S Marshall/Sandbox/List of common misconceptions demo.—S Marshall T/C 10:15, 14 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I expanded your demo to include the entire article. It's at User:Mr_swordfish/List_of_common_misconceptions.
I can't say it's perfect at this point, and I'm not sure what we're going to do about the talk page or what happens when a naive user clicks the edit button, but it's a start. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 20:11, 15 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I assume by treating them to a giant edit notice, although I can't say the edit notice already on the page has been given much heed.
I assume you and S Marshall missed my comment for potential issues with transclusion, mentioning it again in case. I am sympathetic to WAID's comment since, but if that is our approach, it should be identified as such. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 20:32, 15 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I didn't miss it. You raise a perfectly valid concern that I can't resolve.
Our choices are:
(a) Have an article that displays on one page;
(b) Have an article that displays all the references;
(c) Have an article that can be expanded with further references and entries.
Pick any two. You can't have all three.
The current version is (a) and (b). WAID's "split" proposal is (b) and (c), and my "transclude" proposal is (a) and (c). There seem to be editors with strident and passionate objections to every option.
WAID's comment is only tangentially related to yours; she's talking about how the software fails if we continue with our current (a) and (b) version and then try to add more content.
Hope this clarifies.—S Marshall T/C 00:18, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
A and C seems like a reasonable compromise. I think much of the opposition to the split is fueled by the risk that it doesn't actually end up as one page. Benjamin (talk) 03:11, 28 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

Masturbation

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Popular belief asserts that individuals of either sex who are not in sexually active relationships tend to masturbate more frequently than those who are; however, much of the time this is not true as masturbation alone or with a partner is often a feature of a relationship. Contrary to this belief, several studies actually reveal a positive correlation between the frequency of masturbation and the frequency of intercourse. A study has reported a significantly higher rate of masturbation in gay men and women who were in a relationship.[52][64][65][66] Benjamin (talk) 17:19, 5 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not understanding why you posted this "common misconception" here on the talk page. Can you help me understand your purpose? Penguino35 (talk) 20:03, 15 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I am suggesting it be added to the article, of course. Benjamin (talk) 03:06, 28 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
No need to ask for permission! – Closed Limelike Curves (talk) 19:03, 3 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Hey User:Closed Limelike Curves it's nice to see you here. I know I could, but it's often controversial and I end up here on the talk page anyway. Benjamin (talk) 10:48, 27 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Suggested inclusion: tax on charitable donations from customers

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Suggested inclusion in the "Economics" section - this is a resurrection of something I proposed back in April 2023, which I think merits inclusion as the concept now specifically has its own Wikipedia article that mentions the misconception specifically:

Businesses do not get a tax benefit from collecting charitable donations from their customers, for example at supermarket checkouts. In most jurisdictions, corporation taxes are assessed based on a business' profits; a corporation gains zero tax benefit from collecting funds from customers to then pass on to charities, since the donation would not reflect as either an expense of or income for the business. A business could only use donations to reduce tax owed by donating their own money or resources - this would reduce tax, but only by reducing profit. It would not make economic sense for a company (or an individual) to donate money solely to save tax, since the amount of tax saved would be significantly smaller than the amount donated.[1][2]


Inclusion criteria:

  1. The common misconception's main topic has an article of its own.: Yes, checkout charity
  2. The item is reliably sourced, both with respect to the factual contents of the item and the fact that it is a common misconception: Two sources provided, one referencing a widespread TikTok on the matter and the other from a major news source mentioning this being spread in Facebook. AP News has also fact checked this: https://apnews.com/article/fact-checking-000329849244
  3. The common misconception is mentioned in its topic article with sources: Yes.
  4. The common misconception is current, as opposed to ancient or obsolete: Sources are from the past couple of years, and it is a perennial misconception on social media.

Foonblace (talk) 18:12, 13 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not seeing where a reliable source establishes that it is a common misconception. "Thousands" of facebook or tiktok posts wouldn't seem to be enough - there is so much misinformation floating through those and other similar social media sites that "thousands" is a drop in the bucket and I don't think we can list every single piece of misinformation that attracts 1000 or more posts. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 20:26, 13 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Surely it being something that both the Associated Press and USA Today have published pieces rebutting, as well as being mentioned on the Wikipedia page for the overall concept, establishes that it is common? Foonblace (talk) 21:48, 13 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Foonblace both of these outlets post thousands of fact-checks [1][2] and do not make claims that the facts they are checking constitute "common misconceptions" in general, nor in the linked articles. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 20:27, 14 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I think it's pretty common and should go into the article. The popularity of the social media posts is a reflection of the general misunderstanding around this. Anecdotally, it certainly feels like quite a common misconception. Another source here debunks it, again, they wouldn't need to debunk it if it wasn't relatively common. "TikTok And Other Social Media Posts Are Wrong About Charity At The Checkout"[3] , there's another source here 'fact checking' the claim [4], here's a Canadian source, showing it's more of an international phenomenon "Why nobody gets a tax benefit when you donate at the checkout | CBC Radio"[5] JeffUK 13:13, 28 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I've changed my mind! having seen the issues about the article size, I don't think it's clear enough from the sources that this is a common misconception for it to be included. JeffUK 10:34, 3 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I wouldn't worry about article size. If the article gets too long, we'll split it. – Closed Limelike Curves (talk) 19:52, 3 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I get the feeling that maybe this list should be retitled "List of misconceptions" (dropping "common"). Three reasons for this:
  1. The sourcing is generally not strong enough to actually establish they're "common", just that someone claims it is. Often these sources are weak, or only claim the misconception is common in passing.
  2. Whether a misconception is "common" or not is an opinion that has to be attributed, not stated in Wikivoice. (What does "common" mean—5%? 20%? 50%?)
  3. It lets a lot of misconceptions off the hook just because we haven't found a source using the exact word "common". (Even if the fact that someone's writing a piece to debunk it implies they think it's at least somewhat common.)
– Closed Limelike Curves (talk) 19:50, 3 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
One could apply that logic to every article on Wikipedia, which merely re-reports what the reliable sources say i.e. if a reliable source (someone) claims X to be true then we put X into the article. Here, the inclusion criteria requires that some reliable source states that it is a common misconception or words to that effect. We repeat what the reliable sources say.
If we relaxed that criteria and allowed entries for every misconception the article would be way way too long to be of interest to anyone.
That said, if there are specific entries where you don't think the sourcing is sufficient, please start a new thread here on the talk page. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 22:21, 3 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

One could apply that logic to every article on Wikipedia, which merely re-reports what the reliable sources say i.e. if a reliable source (someone) claims X to be true then we put X into the article.

That's not always true: if a reliable source states an opinion (rather than a fact), it needs to attributed per WP:INTEXT and WP:RSOPINION. This is true even if the source is usually reliable—if a writer in the New York Times calls a film "the greatest of all time", we have to describe this as "Writer A described this film as 'the greatest of all time'".

That said, if there are specific entries where you don't think the sourcing is sufficient, please start a new thread here on the talk page.

I think almost all the entries don't have enough sourcing to establish the misconception is actually "common", because most of them don't provide evidence to back up their claims. Most of these are pop science or journalists making an offhand claim about the topic without backing it up. If we want to claim these misconceptions are common, we have to show the sources are genuinely reliable on the topic of public opinion. Examples of reliable sources would be statistical analyses of standardized tests, social media posts, or polling by reputable firms. However, a WP:PASSING description of it as common by a journalist isn't enough—I'm sure journalists claim lots of things are "common misconceptions" even if they aren't.

If we relaxed that criteria and allowed entries for every misconception the article would be way way too long to be of interest to anyone.

Obviously we don't want to allow entries for every misconception, just the popular ones. However, every claim on Wikipedia includes two implicit assertions:
  1. The claim meets WP:VERIFIABILITY—there are enough highly-reliable sources to guarantee the fact is true.
  2. The claim meets WP:NOTABILITY—the claim is important.
A misconception needs to be discussed and covered in enough reliable sources to warrant being included in this list, which means it has to be common. Verifiability does not guarantee inclusion. In other words, a "List of misconceptions" would still be a list of common misconceptions, because uncommon misconceptions would not be notable—obviously we won't include every time someone was wrong about something in this article. – Closed Limelike Curves (talk) 04:26, 4 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Closed Limelike Curves
  1. I disagree that this falls into opinion rather than assertion of fact. Could you elaborate on why you think this falls into the former?
  2. Could you list three misconceptions that would meet these standards of proof?
  3. Every claim on Wikipedia is obviously not required to meet WP:NOTABILITY, only articles are. This list does not use GNG as a criterion for inclusion.
Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 04:43, 4 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  1. At what point does a misconception become "common"—5% of the population? 20%? 50%? (There's some extreme cases where e.g. >90% of people believe something, in which case any reasonable editor would agree it's "common", but lots of items on this list don't meet that bar—I doubt even 5% of people believe some of these, and most of this list would probably fall in the gray area.)
  2. Here's 3: Contemporary global warming is driven by human activities...; The signing of the United States Declaration of Independence did not occur on...; and Crime rates are declining.... These cite high-quality polls finding the misconceptions are common (or might be, if we had an objective bar for that).
  3. There's no need to meet WP:GNG, but there's still a need for facts to be somewhat notable—I probably should've cited WP:INDISCRIMINATE or WP:LSC. The point is just that retitling this article wouldn't force us to add uncommon misconceptions.
– Closed Limelike Curves (talk) 18:24, 4 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  1. Closed Limelike Curves What is "the population"? American? Global? South Koreans? The elderly of South Korea? The other point to make is that unless >90% of the group is the global population, you will never get universal agreement on something being popular. 90% of the US is 3.5% of the world. Without qualification as common in the US, can this be said to be "common"? The reason why I am leaning against attributing opinion here is because it is at odds with standard Wikipedia practice. How the community applies attribution will generally require the assessment (this is common being contested) being contested, i.e. being contradicted in another source. Perhaps this should not be the way it should applied, but it would require so much more attention; read a featured article on a biography and all the "he was a difficult child" stuff (almost all of it) would require breaking out of Wikivoice.
  2. It is OR to draw that line. It was considered a few years back and that determination was made, and what is OR has become stricter since. We would need polling, and then the source to analyse it and call it common, and then probably date it. Do you have three of these sources?
  3. Indiscriminate doesn't really apply, that pertains more to un-analyzed data, of which this is all analysed as reflecting a common belief. I don't think this list meets WP:LSC. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 19:13, 4 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Probably not best to relitigate this at this time unless there is a more substantial groundswell, but the general critique is that a belief cannot be "common" in a vacuum, but must be qualified as common among a group (common among America but uncommon among the world etc).
If we try to exclude some groups from the page (i.e. if it's common in Texas that doesn't mean it's common, if it's common among chemists it doesn't mean it's common) we are trying again to define common in a vacuum, which is impossible. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 22:31, 3 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I recommend not including this because:
  1. It's only about the US tax structure.
  2. The sources you're relying on for how the accounting works are – um, let's say "oversimplifying", because that sounds more pleasant than "wrong".
This is 100% OR and therefore should not go in the article, but just so Wikipedia editors know, there are a couple of "correct" ways to handle such donations, and one of them results in "income" and a matching "expense". Additionally, most of these are going to raise the credit card processing fees, which is a deductible expense, and which therefore decreases income tax liability.
A true statement would sound something closer to "Businesses do not pay income taxes on donations that they pass through to charities."
A truer statement about common misconceptions might be "Americans often believe that there is a tax difference for businesses reducing their profits through donations vs reducing their profits through buying advertisements or through paying their employees more." Spending $500 to buy an advertisement at the local youth sports event produces the same tax benefit, down to the penny, as donating $500 to "sponsor" a youth sports program. I don't know if you could find a source for that, though. WhatamIdoing (talk) 18:37, 18 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Chocolate misconceptions

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@Rollinginhisgrave: I don't believe that the two recent additions about chocolate meet our inclusion criteria:

  • The common misconception's main topic has an article of its own.:
We have an article on mole (sauce) in general which mentions mole poblano. And an article on History of chocolate which mentions Aztec chocolate drinks.
  • The item is reliably sourced, both with respect to the factual contents of the item and the fact that it is a common misconception:
I don't think there's any dispute about the factual contents.
On the other hand, I see no good evidence that they are common misconceptions. Do people expect Mexican chocolate to contain cinnamon? No doubt. But does that rise to a "misconception"? There are salad dressings in the US called "French", "Russian", and "Italian" which are not found in those countries. Do people actually believe that they come from those countries?
Does anyone believe in a pre-Spanish origin for mole poblano? The usual origin story (for what it's worth) is about some nuns in a convent in the 18th century. A more nuanced story talks about various sources and influences on the dish. "Nuns and Napoleon: The history of Mexico’s ‘mole’ dish"
  • The common misconception is mentioned in its topic article with sources:
I see nothing in the topic articles about these misconceptions.

So I think we need to delete these two entries. --Macrakis (talk) 05:40, 27 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Macrakis thanks for flagging, I'm not opposed to deleting them although I'd like to dig out the sourcing to see if you think it verifies that they are common misconceptions beforehand. Narrowly on "The common misconception is mentioned in its topic article with sources"; I couldn't find a way to work in a link to History of chocolate to the mole without going too far into MOS:EASTEREGG although this was intended to be the topic article and was linked next to the entry. The mentions in the topic article are as follows:
  • "While mole poblano, a sauce that contains chocolate, is commonly associated with the Aztecs, it originated in territory that was never occupied by them, and the sauce was only invented after the Spanish invasion."
  • "While Aztec chocolate drinks are commonly understood to contain cinnamon, the spice was only introduced to Mesoamerica by the Spanish conquest."
Both in the Aztec section. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 05:47, 27 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Quote verifying common misconception for cinnamon: "But historical fact does not determine present-day accuracy. For example, a chocolate drink globally coded as a “real Aztec recipe” is expected to contain cinnamon, a flavor and spice only introduced to Mesoamerica through the Spanish conquest."[3] I have argued in the past that sourcing of this kind, where it verifies it is a common misconception among people who have knowledge of a "real Aztec recipe for chocolate" does not verify it is a common misconception. My argument was rejected, so I put this forth. I'm happy to revisit it, from memory an example at issue was the Creme Chantilly item.
Quote verifying common misconception for mole "In all of the pages of Sahagun that deal with Aztec cuisine and with chocolate, there is not a hint that it ever entered into an Aztec dish. Yet today many food writers and gourmets consider one particular dish, the famous pavo in mole poblano, which contains chocolate, to represent the pinnacle of the Mexican cooking tradition." This verifies it is held as misconception among many gourmets and food writers. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 06:09, 27 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Agree with removal. They seems to be factually correct, but we don't have adequate sourcing that they are common misconceptions.
As for the Whipped Cream entry, I think WP:WHATABOUTX would apply here, i.e. another entry being problematic is not a good argument for adding more problematic entries. I haven't looked carefully at the cites for that entry but would not object to its removal too. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 16:08, 27 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
No worries, we can go ahead and remove them. I didn't intend it as a WHATABOUTX, but as something we had established consensus on as adequate sourcing. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 16:18, 27 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for pointing to the quotes in the History of Chocolate article. My impression is that the post-conquest origin of mole poblano is widely acknowledged since it's so obvious that it contains both indigenous and European ingredients. As for drinking chocolate, it is true that it was used as a beverage pre-conquest, although of course without cinnamon and sugar, so it's hard to know whether someone claiming that it is of Aztec origin is misinformed or simply glossing over the evolution of the dish. After all, pretty much all recipes evolve. --Macrakis (talk) 23:52, 27 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
For post-conquest mole poblano origin; I think simultaneously many people can acknowledge the post-conquest origins while also apparently being a misconception among food writers and gourmets (and perhaps beyond, this is whom we can verify at least). We see misconceptions being possible among multiple understandings for fuck for instance, where it people apparently both believe it originated from an acronym or from "pluck you"; just because there are multiple understandings doesn't preclude any one being a common misconception.
For drinking chocolate, I assume misinformed as the source implies; just as I do with basically every entry here. Rollinginhisgrave (talk) 00:08, 28 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Snake misconceptions

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Snakes are not deaf. Although you can't see them, all snake species have ears and are capable of hearing. You can look for reliable sources on Google. Jamgorham (talk) 19:52, 13 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I didn't know that anyone thought snakes were deaf. Is this a common misconception? signed, Willondon (talk) 20:10, 13 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Apparently, yes:
https://stories.uq.edu.au/news/2023/snakes-can-hear-more-than-you-think/index.html
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/snakes-can-hear-you-scream-new-research-reveals/
https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/yes-snakes-can-hear-sound
And this paywalled article from the WAPO that says:
“There’s been this enduring myth that snakes are deaf,” says neurobiologist Bruce Young of the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, who was not involved in the new research. “Behavioral studies have suggested that snakes can in fact hear, and now this work has gone one step further and explained how.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/how-snakes-hear-without-ears/2011/12/29/gIQAuseoWP_story.html
It's mentioned in the topic article Snake#Perception paragraph 4.
So, it seems to meet the inclusion criteria, although it's more of a "scientific consensus has changed" sort of misconception. It's also based on just one study, so we might want to be careful here. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 01:40, 14 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Snakes being able to hear seems like a good addition to me. I believe many people think that snakes can't hear, and according to one of the sources there are now multiple studies showing that they can. Mudwater (Talk) 11:37, 18 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Expiration dates

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In this edit, @JeffUK removed the "expiration date" misconception, saying

Remove package food entry, it's untrue as stated and therefore unsafe. The ‘use by’ is a safety date on all foods where it's used in much of the world. (EU: After the ‘use by’ date, a food is deemed unsafe in accordance with article 14 (2) of Regulation EC No. 178/2002 )

That regulation (Article 14 (2) of Regulation EC No. 178/2002) reads (3b):

In determining whether any food is unsafe, regard shall be had:... (b) to the information provided to the consumer, including information on the label, or other information generally available to the consumer concerning the avoidance of specific adverse health effects from a particular food or category of foods.

This is at best ambiguous. But in any case, it doesn't apply outside the EU. I have restored the section, qualifying it as applying only to the US, where we have good sources. It would be nice to find good sources for other jurisdictions. --Macrakis (talk) 17:20, 16 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

"Use by" is a food safety issue; fluid milk has a "use by" date and is expected to spoil (i.e., make you sick) soon afterwards. "Best by" is a food quality issue; potato chips have a "best by" date and are expected to be safe but perhaps a bit stale afterwards. I believe that "don't drink milk after its 'use-by' date" is a common correct-conception, but "don't eat potato chips after their 'best-by' date" is a common mis-conception. This list should differentiate the two, or only mention the best-by. WhatamIdoing (talk) 18:42, 18 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Agreed. There is a difference between "use by" and "best by" in some jurisdictions. Our current expiration date needs some improvement to clarify which wording is used with what meaning in which jurisdictions (with better sources) and then we can update the misconception. For example, as far as I can tell (but I need to do more research), "use by" is not a legally defined term in the US. --Macrakis (talk) 21:17, 19 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

"Mama Cass"

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This diff seems to be advocating a decidedly left-wing ideological and polemicist position. The "average" ordinary person regularly uses the nickname "Mama Cass" as do countless 1960s music playing radio stations, both internet and in the real world. Plus, "average" ordinary people don't use the terms "fat shaming" or "connotations" and wouldn't readily understand them or care if someone tried to explain, especially the latter. IMO, the IP is applying something that should not be done so in Wikipedia's "voice". 180.150.37.138 (talk) 19:23, 20 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

No need to characterize the edit as "left-wing" or comment on the phrasing used in the edit comment. The only question is whether we should include the name "Mama Cass" in the entry about Cass Elliot. That she didn't like the nickname isn't dispositive. The main question is whether including the nickname helps users identify her: is "Cass Elliot (of The Mamas & the Papas)" clear enough, or would it be helpful to write "Cass Elliot (Mama Cass of The Mamas & the Papas)"? According to Google nGrams, the name Mama Cass is about twice as common as Cass Elliot, so I think it's reasonable to assume that it's more familiar. It is also a name used for her in a Mamas & the Papas song, and the cited NYTimes article says "she found it hard to shake her nickname". So the name is widely familiar and I agree that it should be restored. --Macrakis (talk) 22:30, 22 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
While it's pretty clear that she did not like the name (at least in later life), unless someone can point to some relevant Wikipedia policy regarding nicknames that are disliked by the person we should include the more common identifier to make it understandable to the average reader. The fact that the edit comment and the initial comment above included some irrelevant editorializing shouldn't affect our decision on whether to include the alternate, more common identifier.
I'm in favor of restoring "Cass Elliot (Mama Cass of The Mamas & the Papas)". Unless someone can point to some policy prohibiting or disfavoring it. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 16:14, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
According to Wikipedia policy, when writing about an individual, the preferred name to use is the one most commonly used in reliable sources, which includes respecting a person's self-identified gender and preferred name, even if it differs from their legal name or how they were previously known in the public eye. Cass Elliot (which is not her birth name) is the name she chose for herself. Her father nicknamed her Cass after the Greek mythological prophetess Cassandra, and she chose the surname to honor a friend who died in a car accident.
"Cass Elliot of The Mamas & the Papas" would work just fine. Her Wikipedia article is called Cass Elliot, not Mama Cass. Kingturtle = (talk) 16:20, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Which Wikipedia policy is that? The closest policy I can find is at WP:PUBLICFIGURE which says biographies
... should simply document what these sources say. If an allegation or incident is noteworthy, relevant, and well documented, it belongs in the article—even if it is negative and the subject dislikes all mention of it.
Mr. Swordfish (talk) 22:17, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
WP:COMMONNAME says Wikipedia "generally prefers the name that is most commonly used (as determined by its prevalence in a significant majority of independent, reliable, English-language sources)." Kingturtle = (talk) 03:37, 24 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
The Wikipedia article is called Cass Elliot. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame calls her Cass Elliot. She is known as Cass Elliot. eom. Kingturtle = (talk) 03:31, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
The second sentence in Cass Elliot begins She was also known as "Mama Cass"... Mama Cass redirects to that page.
See WP:UNCENSORED. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 16:21, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Re "the preferred name to use is the one most commonly used in reliable sources" -- yes, that is the policy for article titles. It doesn't say that other names shouldn't be used. We document names like William the Bad. And in the case of Cass Elliot, it seems that Mama Cass is a better known name than the name she preferred, a bit like Ivan the Terrible and Bloody Mary, which I think you'll agree are better-known names than Ivan IV of Russia and Mary I of England. --Macrakis (talk) 13:43, 24 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
See WP:COMMONNAME. Kingturtle = (talk) 13:49, 24 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
That policy is about article titles, and if adhered to strictly would require renaming the topic article, Cass Elliot, to Mama Cass. I don't think anyone is arguing for that, and this is the wrong place to have that discussion.
As Macrakis points out, Mama Cass is a better known name than the name she preferred. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 15:28, 24 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
No, if adhered to strictly, her article would be and IS Cass Elliot. We don't look to popular usage among people on the street. What matters is the name that she is referred to in sources. In biographies involving her she is referred to as Cass Elliot. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame calls her Cass Elliot. Kingturtle = (talk) 16:45, 24 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
"People on the street" are ordinary people and it is an average person that defines the objective norm, not outlier populations such as tertiary-educated people. Professional orgs like the R&RHOF and poli-social activists like the diff maker i objected to, are also not ordinary. JMO and YMMV. 180.150.37.138 (talk) 04:38, 26 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
No, actually, we don't base it on ordinary people or the average person. We base it on the usage in credible, notable sources. Kingturtle = (talk) 04:39, 26 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

There doesn't appear to be any Wikipedia policy that prohibits also mentioning the name under which she became famous, and which appears in most of the cites in the topic article. Or at least no one has been able to produce one. Given that, there appears to be consensus to restore the recent removal. I'll give it another day or so before making the change to see if anyone else wants to chime in. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 18:07, 24 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

catholicism

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i think u still cant disagree on what the church and pope teach:

III THE MAGISTERIUM OF THE CHURCH'S PASTORS

17. Divine assistance is also given to the successors of the apostles teaching in communion with the successor of Peter, and in a particular way, to the Roman Pontiff as Pastor of the whole Church, when exercising their ordinary Magisterium, even should this not issue in an infallible definition or in a "definitive" pronouncement but in the proposal of some teaching which leads to a better understanding of Revelation in matters of faith and morals and to moral directives derived from such teaching. One must therefore take into account the proper character of every exercise of the Magisterium, considering the extent to which its authority is engaged. It is also to be borne in mind that all acts of the Magisterium derive from the same source, that is, from Christ who desires that His People walk in the entire truth. For this same reason, magisterial decisions in matters of discipline, even if they are not guaranteed by the charism of infallibility, are not without divine assistance and call for the adherence of the faithful.

https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19900524_theologian-vocation_en.html 2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4 (talk) 15:06, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Please see WP:RSPSCRIPTURE for the applicable Wikipedia policies. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 15:59, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Also, you need to be more specific about what changes you would like to see. Better to discuss things in the source article first, because this article is only supposed to summarize them. --Macrakis (talk) 13:27, 24 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

islam

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corrections

a sahih hadith mentions that u get 2 wives in paradise https://sunnah.com/tirmidhi:2735

additionally, this article shouldnt make it look like hijab isnt prescribed in islam https://quran.com/en/an-nur/31

finally, this article shouldnt make it look like ahadith arent required for muslims:

https://quran.com/en/al-hashr/7

https://quran.com/en/al-anfal/20

https://quran.com/en/ali-imran/31 2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4 (talk) 15:24, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

https://islamqa.info/en/answers/257509/number-of-huris-a-muslim-will-get-in-jannah#:~:text=%E2%80%9CEach%20man%20will%20be%20given,given%20in%20addition%20to%20that.
https://www.anic.org.au/news/islamic-position-on-the-hijab/
https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/are-hadith-necessary 2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4 (talk) 16:40, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
You need to be more specific about what changes you would like to see. Better to discuss things in the source article first, because this article is only supposed to summarize them. --Macrakis (talk) 13:28, 24 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

christianity

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im not sure if im missing something but the catholic article source does not mention tertullian writing about 9 sins but rather 7

and the 7 deadly sins are mentioned in the bible

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hebrews%206%3A10%E2%80%9312&version=KJV

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%205%3A19-21&version=KJV

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20John%202%3A15-17&version=KJV

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%2018%3A9%E2%80%9312&version=KJV 2A02:3100:3AF7:1200:ECE6:229F:FADE:A6E4 (talk) 15:40, 23 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

You need to be more specific about what changes you would like to see. Better to discuss things in the source article first, because this article is only supposed to summarize them. --Macrakis (talk) 13:28, 24 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Article split & transclusion

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I've implemented the article split and transclusion of the sub-articles. Some implementation notes:

  • Having the sub-articles in a subdirectory did not work as well in the main space as it does in a user space so the three sub-articles are at the root of the main space. If anyone has a better way to do this, I'm all ears.
  • I've spot checked "What links here" and the dozen or so links to this page that I checked seem to work. I did not check them all.
  • There are still three cites that I can't figure out how to prevent from being transcluded so they show up at the end of the article. Would appreciate any help with this.
  • The new sub-articles have attracted attention from a few editors who don't seem to understand the context and have made some "helpful" edits - I expect more of this.
  • Each sub-article has its own talk page and its own history. I'd recommend adding them to your watchlist since changes to them don't appear in the history here. Not sure what to do about potentially four different venues for discussion, but maybe it won't really matter in practice.
  • Currently, there is no edit notice on the sub-articles. I'll take a look at adding these. UPDATE: the edit notice has been applied to the sub-pages.

Mr. Swordfish (talk) 01:24, 27 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Could we perhaps package the include control and the ref tag into a template to make it easier to edit entries?
Something like {refnc|name=xxx|yyy} => <noinclude> <ref name=xxx> yyy </ref> </noinclude> and {refnc|xref=xxx} => <noinclude> <ref name=xxx /> .
By the way, why did you use onlyinclude and not noinclude, which seems easier to understand? --Macrakis (talk) 16:36, 28 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I'm not conversant with packaging controls into templates, but have no objection if it accomplishes what I think it accomplishes.
I used onlyinclude because that was how User:S Marshall did it in the mockup. noinclude is probably the better way to do it, but I was not aware of that tag until now. I'll take a look at changing it, shouldn't be too hard since it's mostly just a find and replace exercise. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 18:20, 28 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Romantic relationships

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https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/behavioral-and-brain-sciences/article/romantic-relationships-matter-more-to-men-than-to-women/52E626D3CD7DB14CD946F9A2FBDA739C#

"Women are often viewed as more romantic than men, and romantic relationships are assumed to be more central to the lives of women than to those of men. Despite the prevalence of these beliefs, some recent research paints a different picture." Benjamin (talk) 10:39, 27 December 2024 (UTC)[reply]