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.
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 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 current, as opposed to ancient or obsolete.
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 page with your rationale for inclusion.
This article is written in American English, which has its own spelling conventions (color, defense, traveled) and some terms that are used in it may be different or absent from other varieties of English. According to the relevant style guide, this should not be changed without broad consensus.
List 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.
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Reviewing the sourcing, it's not clear whether the woman depicted is supposed to be the wife or the daughter. Some sources clearly state "daughter" while others say that it is unclear. I'm raising the issue at the topic article since presumably the editors there are more familiar with the material.
The article American Gothic contends the painter Grant Wood said in a letter that she is the man's grown-up daughter and cites an archived website with a scan of the letter. However, the Slate article claims the relationship between the two was unclear and controversial and Wood was vague about it. "Artist In Iowa A Life Of Grant Wood" by Darrell Garwood contends it started out as a man and his wife, but later changed. I feel they are fictional characters created for a painting and can be what ever anyone wants, so anyone's misconception about it is just their interpretation. Richard-of-Earth (talk) 06:51, 20 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]
...(research has not) established that it is definitely a carcinogen in humans when consumed at the levels typically found in cooked food.
... dietary acrylamide isn’t likely to be related to risk for most common types of cancer.
There are many cancer myths, including eating burnt foods, that haven’t been proven to cause cancer.
OTOH, they also say:
... a modest association for kidney cancer, and for endometrial and ovarian cancers ... couldn’t be ruled out.
...probable human carcinogen
...reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen
...likely to be carcinogenic to humans.
... ongoing studies will continue to provide new information on whether acrylamide levels in foods are linked to increased cancer risk.
My reading is that eating burnt food has not been shown to cause cancer and that it is unlikely that it does, but as you say "research is ongoing". That makes this entry enough of a gray area that I'd support removing it. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 23:45, 27 January 2025 (UTC)[reply]
Pepperoni was invented in the US in the early 20th century by Italian immigrants, so pepperoni pizza is an American thing. But many American things have spread worldwide, pepperoni pizza included, so "does not exist in Italy" would be an overstatement.
While pepperoni may not be found on Neapolitan pizza, it has gained some popularity in other regions of Italy, such as Rome and Lazio. However, even in these regions, pepperoni pizza remains a deviation from the classic Italian pizza experience.
and
1. Can I find pepperoni pizza anywhere in Italy?
Yes, you may find pepperoni pizza in some tourist-oriented restaurants or pizzerias that cater to international visitors. However, it is not considered an authentic Italian dish.
Yeah, like many Italian-American dishes, pepperoni pizza is not an authentically Italian thing. I'm unconvinced that this is a misconception worth including here, and I don't see it mentioned in the topic article so it would fail the inclusion criteria. Mr. Swordfish (talk) 21:02, 6 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]
I added additional information to this paragraph to clarify that tetanus infections are enabled by puncture wounds. You can read the "Cause" section of the tetanus article (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetanus#Cause) for further explanation. That edit was deleted as being duplicate. Yet the original and surviving section of the paragraph does not mention puncture wounds at all, hence the additional explanation of puncture as a contributing factor is not duplicate.
Tetanus infections can be caused by any puncture wound caused by a contaminated object. Iron or rust are not required at all, just that common puncture hazards tend to be made of rusty iron, hence the misconception that rusty nails alone cause tetanus. However deep penetration is a factor that greatly increases the chance of a tetanus infection. In the spirit of informing readers, it seems appropriate to at least mention the importance of a puncture as a cause. For example a deep thorn puncture is also reason to seek medical help. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 23.119.120.188 (talk) 02:12, 20 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]
This is a long article with lots of entries. In the interest of keeping the reader engaged, each entry should be kept short and to the point and not go into tangential details. The topic articles are where to find more details.
Here, the misconception is that "rust causes tetanus" while the fact is that the same conditions that promote rust also harbor tetanus. In the interest of keeping the entries short, we don't need to go into further detail about puncture wounds.
I can reduce the word count. Part of the verbosity was to illustrate how "rust causes tetanus" came to be commonly accepted, but the main thrust is that puncture wounds are the hazard. Though a 4cm long tree thorn isn't rusty, it is still a tetanus hazard. 23.119.120.188 (talk) 18:12, 20 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]
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