Reddit user mariababexoxo asked:
"'Never confuse education with intelligence; you can have a PhD and still be an idiot,' stated Richard Feynman. What are some real-life examples of this?"
Chemical Engineer
"I had an intern with a PhD once. She was trying to be a chemical process engineer. VERY book smart."
"I spent the Summer teaching her how to use basic tools like screwdrivers and wrenches for simple tasks like opening containers and adjusting clamps. She had zero practical skills and couldn’t figure anything whatsoever out on her own."
"She’d get lost in a building and call me and I’d tell her to find the exit, but she’d get lost inside and we’d have to go in and get her. This routinely happened, and she would just find somewhere random and sit until we collected her."
"When her car’s GPS lost signal once she didn’t know what to do so she stopped in the middle of the road and texted me where she was and that there was something wrong with her car and to come help. I figured there was a breakdown or something based on the text and drove out to check on it because she wasn’t responding."
Giphy"She was crying sitting on the side of the road and a cop was yelling at her to move her car which was still in the lane."
"If you told her to pick something up from a store she’d ask where it was and if you didn’t know, she would never find it "She refused to ask an employee because she knew they weren’t as smart as she was."
"She’d just walk in random directions looking for things. For example if you said 'go to Walmart and find some work boots because you lost yours' she would send me pictures of random aisles in Walmart with 'is this close? which way from here?'.”
"Book smart but utterly dim."
~ captainofpizza
It's The Milk That Makes Them Healthy
"My wife once had a roommate who was working on her PhD."
"At one point she went on an Oreo diet because they're vegan."
"She was later surprised to find her health wasn't improving."
~ educational_palmeira
GiphySquirrel!
"I am a graduate student at the University of Oxford."
"I recently had to explain to another grad student the concept of animals hibernating. She's British and English is her first language, so it wasn't a vocabulary issue. She just didn't know that animals did that."
"When I explained it she said 'Oh! like squirrels!' Squirrels actually don't hibernate, but I just nodded."
~ slider501
Have You Tried Turning It Off...
"Ask literally anyone who's ever worked for a university's IT department. I've never met a group of people more unwilling to learn anything new—outside of their small specialization—than university professors."
"These people would rather argue with you for 10 minutes that 'I did restart my computer' than just spend the 2 minutes to restart the computer when the logistics software is showing the machine with a 45 day uptime and all of us can see that sh*t."
"Department heads do this."
~ Mammoth_Clue_5871
GiphyIt's One Banana, Michael
"My roommate in college was/is an academic genius, 35 ACT in med school right now."
"I brought him to Walmart with me because he wanted to buy an 8-pack of Gatorade. At the self checkout he scanned one, saw the price was 7 bucks, and decided that must have been the price for EACH Gatorade."
"He ended up scanning the pack 7 more times and paid 56 bucks for some Gatorade, all while thinking that was a fair price."
~ Royal-Character-2035
And Vampirism!
"The nurse I used to work with during the pandemic was constantly bragging about how rich and important and highly educated she was.
"Only for her to suggest to our director of nursing that the kitchen start putting extra garlic in everyone's meals because garlic cures COVID."
~ GlassPeepo
GiphyHistory ≠ Geography
"I know someone with a PhD in History who went to the Caribbean with only long trousers and jumpers/sweaters to wear."
"He was so hot he had to cut his jeans down to shorts."
"Then, as part of the same trip, he went to Washington DC, and had to wear jean shorts the whole time because he cut up all his trousers."
~ RexEverything_
And On The 7th Day...
"I met a PhD molecular biologist who was an evolution denier. I found out years later that he was somewhat infamous."
~ whittlingcanbefatal
"I’ve met two PhD students who worked on bacterial evolution and one who worked in biochemistry."
"All three believed that human evolution was not a thing, all three were religious."
~ D-g-tal-s_purpurea
GiphyNobel Disease
"There are a ton of laureates that go conspiratorial batsh*t later in life."
~ hacktheself
"Kary Mullis is the worst one and he really emboldens other conspiracy theorists."
"He won the Nobel prize for helping invent the PCR test... then he denied AIDS existed while in a government position leading to 330,000 deaths and said climate change wasn't real because his astrologer told him so."
"Oh, and ghosts."
"Anti-vaxxers love him."
~ AstonVanilla
Members Around The World
"Heard about a mechanical engineer who is a flat earther."
"So yeah, him, or any engineer, physicist, or astronomer that believes in that."
"The fact that a single one can get their degree and then turn around years later and believe in something fundamentally incompatible with the BASIC physics required to make sense of their degree is baffling."
~ QuanticWizard
GiphyWhat Did They Do With The Couch?
"Helped some mates move house. One was a Uni Student doing a double degree in Computer Science and something else very challenging."
"While we were packing boxes he asked if he could could borrow a saw. When I asked why, it was so he could shorten the legs on the dining table so it would fit out the door."
"The look on his face when I grabbed one of the legs and started unscrewing it was priceless. As was the look when I asked him how he thought they got it in the room in the first place."
~ cruiserman_80
New-Fangled Gadgets
"In my old university in Germany in the early 2000s. The university was old, really old."
"And when I started they just began modernising the lecture halls etc... The German department got a new, fancy, state of the art lecture hall with any kind of technology you could wish for."
"The professors got extensive training on how to use it."
"There were some of them who after three months still didn’t know how to switch on the lights. Don’t even talk about the microphone or how to open and close the blinds on the skylight."
They didn’t originally plan on having an old-fashioned overhead projector there, but after a few weeks they relented and provided one because the professors didn’t know any other way."
"In their defence, the other lecture halls were so old that they still had the hole for the ink well in the tables."
~ moosmutzel81
GiphyDo No Harm
"I work in mental health and have known sooo many healthcare professionals with advanced degrees who I wouldn’t trust to take care of a goldfish and can’t believe counsel people on a regular basis."
~ DeadSharkEyes
What's That Burning Smell?
"My MIT PhD. friend complained his dryer was taking forever to dry his clothes."
"I asked him if he was cleaning the lint trap—'it doesn't have one'."
"Spoiler alert: it did have one, way in the back and I took out a sweater's worth of lint."
~ arbiterror
GiphyIt's Not Rocket Science...
I chuckle whenever someone uses this saying to indicate something isn't complex like rocket science ever since my friend became an aeronautical engineer.
Why?
Well, we'd have to go back to the mid-1980s when we were both teenagers in high school. As many teens with cars in rural America did, my friends liked to drive around on the back roads as a form of entertainment.
One sunny, Summer day two of my friends came to visit me with a tale to tell.
It seems they were driving on a stretch of road with a speed limit of 35mph [56kph] because of a cluster of homes and farms. When the car slowed to this speed, Mr. Future Rocket Scientist looked down at the pavement passing by below his window on the passenger side.
Upon studying the passing blacktop for several moments, he came to the conclusion he could easily run as fast as the car was moving, so...
...he undid his seatbelt, opened the car door and STEPPED OUT of the moving car.
According to the driver, one moment our friend was sitting next to him and the next he was gone. Or mostly gone.
After a brief moment of panic during which he slowed then stopped the car, he noticed Mr. Future Rocket Scientist's right hand gripping the door's armrest and his left hand gripping the side of the passenger seat.
He was probably only dragged for a few seconds which wasn't long enough to do more than scuff up his jeans, jean jacket and the toes of his shoes.
He escaped with only minor road rash and a few bruises.
After the driver told me what happened from his perspective, Mr. Future Rocket Scientist interjected:
"It worked!"
"I was doing really well until I tripped over that rock."
Luckily an understanding of things like velocity, speed, trajectory, friction, drag, inertia and gravity aren't needed for aeronautics.
GiphyNeedless to say, we've never let him forget his "experiment."
He still claims the only problem was that rock on the road.
And I now use the saying "it's not rocket surgery" instead of either of the original sayings.
Curious to hear from strangers online about their developmental growth, Redditor 1234kyou_ asked:
"What did you swear in your childhood you would never do, but ended up doing anyways?"
Some hobbies that delighted us as kids never really go away as these Redditors have experienced.
The "Bird Creep"
"Birdwatching. I used to think it was the lamest way someone could spend their time when I was a kid. How could anyone just sit around and look at birds? What are you, some kind of bird creep? ... 20 years later and I'm obsessed with birds. Love hearing their songs and seeing all the beautiful colors."
– Koala-teas
Unfilled Dream
"Give up drawing."
"I actually broke my own heart when I recently found a school project we did back when I was a kid. We had to write a letter for our future selves and mine starts with: 'Hey, did you become an artist already? I really hope you did not become a boring adult with a boring job who gave up on his dreams and passions.'"
"Well, sorry little me, but I kinda did."
– Aesma_
Tending To One's Garden
"Gardening. We had a large garden. We raised and preserved what we grew. It was me and my sister's job to care for this garden. This was back when whipping your child was acceptable punishment. I was whipped sooo many times, because I hated that I had to grew and preserved vegetables I did not like. I hated it! Swore I'd never have a garden. Never do THAT to my kids. Then I had kids. A switch flipped in my head. I had to have a garden! I never made my kids take care of it. Gardening was my 'me' time. But being little kids, they wanted to be with mom and 'help' with the garden. I 'gave' them an area and they were allowed to grow whatever they wanted. If it was a fruit or vegetables , they had to eat it. As a result, they both love gardening and neither are picky eaters."
– Eogh21
When it comes to keeping it in the family, it's not always the goal.
Like Father...
"I have become my father."
– jer1303
Like Mother...
"I have become my mom.... even the voice is similar."
– rogue1206
Dad's Cynicism
"I've taken on a lot more of my dad's cynicism than I would like, but mostly I have my mom's wonder and carefreeness."
"But my dad is rich and mom is poor."
"He does not share the wealth he just shares 'you should've done X like this'. But his advice is the level of 'tear down the sign punch them in the face and say you're looking at your new employee'. I've also never heard a single dad joke from him."
– BugTester350
Posthumous Disapproval
"When I was touring houses to buy before the pandemic, my mother's spirit must have possessed me because I opened my mouth and her voice said 'i don't know, i don't think I could live in a house without both a coat closet and a linen closet.'"
– TJtherock
Adulting is hard.
The Financial Hole
"Get into debt I can't pay off."
– lilviviv
Potty-Mouth
"I said I wouldn’t curse unless a nuke was dropped on my house. That was a f'king lie."
– -notjosh-
Can't Wait, Don't Hate
"Have sex before marriage. Thank f'k I never made good on that one since I'm 41 and have never been married."
– squid1891
I'm a pretty fussy eater. Always have been.
I grew up in a Japanese family where regularly eating natto was a thing.
Natto is a Japanese dish made from Bacillus subtilis-fermented soybeans. It's known to have magical health benefits but the smell is overwhelmingly powerful, and the nutty taste leaves little to be desired.
Many people not used to eating exotic foods can't stand the flavor and slimy, sticky texture–let alone the pungent aroma.
I swore as a child that would be the one food I would never eat again after having a bad experience.
And yet, here I am as an adult, eating it for breakfast 2-3 times a week after truly understanding the health benefits.
Natto–which is rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals– helps maintain healthy cholesterol levels, reduces blood pressure, and can prevent heart disease. Some studies have suggested it can prevent certain cancers.
Once I trained myself to get used to flavor and smell, I actually crave it now.
It's definitely an acquired taste, but it's crazy to know that we are all capable of liking or appreciating something previously thought of as repulsive once we set our mind to it.
Redditor DaniTheLovebug wanted to hear about the "wisdoms" people shared that were the worst possible things to say.
So they asked:
"What life hacks are actually terrible advice or dangerous?"
I do my best with bad advice. But I've taken too much.
Don't be like me.
The Winner
Wrestle Romantic Comedy GIF by HBO MaxGiphy"Any street fight 'advice' that isn't 'it's not worth it, run away.'"
AltruisticTadpole898
"The thing about street fights the street always wins."
OldElPasoSnowplow
Just 5
"Absolutely anything posted by 5 Minute Crafts."
WeaverWitch
"I came in here just to mention this, particularly one video-- not sure if it was by 5 Minutes Crafts or another similar channel-- that tells you to microwave an egg for a quick meal. It will explode and send you to the hospital."
sagganuts18
"This is what I was gonna say. Those people are the worst."
babybiggfoot
The Cut
"When cutting bagels remember to put your finger through the stabilization hole."
Bruin-lb-31
"Took me a minute to work this one out. My eyes widened so much the person next to me in Starbucks just asked if I needed help."
OffTheRecord_Models
"I know this is a joke, but I had to legit tell my then eight year old that she couldn’t put her hand in one of those big grinder/chipper thingys because she would not, in fact, grow a new one when it got chopped up."
dixiequick
A Bad Transformer
"ANYTHING AT ALL involving a microwave transformer. Woodburning, metal melting, arcs and sparks, whatever. Those little sh**s will kill you before you even know you're dying."
NotInherentAfterAll
"I had to go to a CPR of a 33 year old who fried himself in his backyard garage using some jerry-rigged microwave welder. He had a wife and two young kids. All I could think was 'man what a STUPID way to die.'"
anoncop1
New York Rule #1
bruce almighty fire GIFGiphy"Setting up candles and clay pots to heat your room instead of turning on the radiator. That's how a lot of fires start."
halbesbrot
I'm always weary around candles.
Melted
Melt Love GIF by CubemeltGiphy"There was a big thing a while back about boiling water melting the ice on your Windshield. Someone else used this 'hack' for me and my Windshield cracked into a total spider web."
LeeshaLeSmart
"That you can make your own air hockey table out of a couple dryers and some pegboard. Remember, if women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy."
Dokino21
"Love how I instantly thought of Red/Green 25 years after watching that episode."
reddituseronebillion
"Gotta love that show. My dad played it once when I was a kid and for some reason red green making a cop cars siren a toy girl doll crying was hilarious. And that was my gateway to this show."
Project-SBC
A Close Shave
"Using a nail file to shave the edges of your teeth to make them straighter."
youcantsitwithus-
"I got hit in the face with a hammer, and broke some teeth. Used this trick (well, 120grit sandpaper) to smooth off the jagged edges to tide me over until I could see a dentist. Dentist said I did a perfect job, and didn't charge me for the visit."
clueless_cueless
"It's so weird seeing people do it as a trend. I've always had people comment on the bottom of my teeth being uniform and straight, but its from years of grinding my teeth."
washed_up_okie
down your drain...
"Line your sink with foil and pour the grease and fat in that. Then when it dries an hour later, you can just roll it up and throw it away. Use an empty tin can. Line any ceramic bowl or mug with foil and use that instead. Don't make your sink unusable for at least an hour. Don't risk the foil tearing and the fat going down your drain. Use some common sense here."
manderifffic
A Delicate Balance
Credit Card Money GIF by Pudgy PenguinsGiphy"Keeping balances on your credit cards and opening more credit lines makes your score better. I've heard this thousands of times and it's the exact opposite of what you should do."
jc456981
Lesson here? Always research "advice" before you take it.
Curious to hear examples of this, Redditor TheToastyNuts asked:
"What do you swear on your life to be 100% true?"
These Redditors had very specific memories or thoughts.
Upon Reflection
"I look good in the mirror. I look terrible in photos."
– thepresidentsturtle
What Are The Odds
"That the printer will always run out of ink or that the paper will get jammed when you're already rushing and stressed."
"Happens all the time."
– PresentCrab2517
Rigged Dispenser
"The makers of baby wipes intentionally wrap them in a way so when you pull 1 out the container you get 2-3 and waste them because they are a bitch to put back in."
– Ducati0411
Uncooperative Cart
"Every cart I pull at Walmart has at least one square tire."
– SettledWater
Shoppers And Drivers
"The way people drive and the way they use a shopping trolley are directly linked."
– KatrinaMystery
Downward Spiral
"If I’m having a bad day it can always get worse."
– TheeJimmyHoffa
The beauty of the movie going experience is the fact that we all have different interpretations. Some, however, are very unique.
Goonies In Theaters
"The first time I saw the movie The Goonies in theaters, there was slightly more footage to the movie. Just a few camera angles and scenes here and there. I watched the movie twice in the same theater during the original run, and only opening night had the longer version. 2 weeks later when I saw it again, they played the normal version that is considered official now."
"Edit: Looks like I could definitely be right"
– justinsayin
Honey, I Forgot The Scene
"I swear there was originally a scene in Honey I Shrunk The Kids where the neighbor dad flicks his cigarette butt over the fence and nearly burns up his own son. It's not on any home release I've ever seen."
– heatherbyism
If there was an evolution about America's favorite snack, we missed the memo.
Altered Taste
"They changed the Reese’s recipe."
– whippedcreamcheese
Consistently Inconsistent
"The chocolate is hit or miss - sometimes it's amazing chocolaty goodness and sometimes it's all crumbly and tastes like ash. But NOBODY ELSE KNOWS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT AND GOOGLE DOESN'T EITHER."
– wellfork
That Waxy Flavor
"A lot of candy companies have switched to vegetable oil instead of cocoa butter in their chocolate and it makes a huge difference in taste (I think). The candy with the vegetable oil always tastes and feels waxy to me."
"I've thought they changed the recipe for Reese's for awhile now too. The ingredients still show cocoa butter though so maybe they changed something else. They're certainly not the same."
– Zozo061050
I find that if you ever change lines at the grocery store because the one you're in seems longer than the others, you are gravely mistaken.
Because the moment you step out of line, the new line somehow becomes much longer.
Come on. We all know this to be 100% accurate.