by George W. Zobrist

Urban myths, legends and hoaxes permeate our daily conversations. And often, the media propagates them. Most are harmless, but all cost time and money. Many of the most prevalent urban legends and hoaxes involve some aspect of science or technology.

ETs and the Face on Mars

The popular Face on Mars myth, for example, has been circulating since the Viking Orbiter photographed the Red Planet in 1976. The Viking spacecraft sent back images with features resembling a face. Some have argued that extra terrestrials fashioned this “face.” Most scientists with a background in planetary studies, however, agree that the pictures show nothing more than lighting conditions that enhanced natural landscape. For a description of this myth, visit www.space.com.

Ban DHMO

Another urban legend that serves as an excellent example of a joke gone awry is the effort to ban Dihydrogen Monoxide (DHMO), an odorless, colorless, tasteless compound that kills uncounted numbers of people each year. As the legend states, DHMO is a major component of acid rain, accelerates corrosion and rust, can cause electrical failures, and has been discovered in the tumors of cancer patients. The list of this compound’s dangers and contaminations is quite long. Of course, this is a parody of an exaggerated health alert. Similar examples appear on the Internet everyday. Eric Lechner, a Santa Cruz, Calif. student, posted this legend circa 1988. As you've probably already  realized, DHMO is a synonym for H₂O.

On 15 March 2004, a California city fell for this hoax. City officials even considered banning foam cups when they learned that the chemical compound DHMO was used to produce them. Luckily, they did learn that DHMO was simply water. More information on this topic and most of the other related items can be found at www.urbanlegends.about.com.

The Great Wall of China Myth

Yet another myth appears as the answer to a Trivial Pursuit question: that the Great Wall of China is the only man-made structure visible with the naked eye from outer space and/or the Moon. According to astronauts who have traversed outer space and been on the Moon, the Great Wall of China is barely visible from the space shuttle, much less the Moon. Further, astronauts can see many structures with the naked eye from space, and so the Great Wall of China is not unique.

According to an article on www.geography.about.com, many speculate that this urban legend probably got started when some after-dinner speaker tried to impress the audience during the space program’s early days. As with most others, someone started the legend, and then it took on a life of its own.

The Truth Can Be Stranger Than Fiction

One urban legend that happens to be true is the story of a man who saw the world from 16,000 feet — in his lawnchair. In 1982, a Long Beach, Calif., man wanted to see if helium-filled balloons could lift him to about 100 feet. So, he tethered his "very comfortable" lawnchair to several dozen weather balloons he picked up at an Army-Navy surplus store, and then climbed aboard. A group of his friends held onto the ropes, but when the ropes broke (or were cut, depending on which version you hear), the man soared skyward. The “traveler” had prepared for all eventualities and left the ground with a parachute, BB gun and CB radio. By some accounts, he dropped his BB gun, prolonging his voyage, but eventually, he floated back to earth, becoming entangled in power lines and causing a 20-minute blackout in the Long Beach area.

The Federal Aviation Administration fined him $10,000 (later reduced to $1,500) for not flying in a government-approved aircraft. Even though he lived to tell the tale, "Lawn Chair Larry" did receive an Darwin Awards Honorable Mention — awards traditionally given to individuals whose demise, through acts of “stupidity,” improves the gene pool.

Hoaxes Carry a High Price Tag

Sometimes humorous hoaxes and myths contain a grain of seriousness. You most likely have received stories and chain emails coming as warnings about new viruses, free money, saving children, and various other tales. While normally such e-mails don’t “destroy” your system with a virus, they do cost time and resources. You might spend considerable time “debunking” the claims, and even people who propagate the hoaxes use considerable resources as well.

In fact, the cost to handle hoaxes and chain letters is significant. As one estimate claims, if every Internet user received one hoax message and spent one minute reading and discarding it, the cost would be something like this:

50,000,000 people X 1/60 hour X $50/hour = $41.7 million

And hoaxes multiply. If one person sends a hoax to 10 people and they, in turn, do the same, it will take only six generations to propagate one million messages. Remember, users or their companies pay for the capacity to process these messages in terms of bandwidth and time.

Fact or Fiction?

The U.S. Department of Energy's Computer Incident Advisory Capability (CIAC) debunks hoaxes and handles Trojan incidents, among other cyber security — related functions. CIAC recommends checking a message's validity with a reliable source — such as the sender's company Web site or a hoax Web site (see sidebar) — before forwarding it on. All legitimate warnings will include a name and complete contact information, but today even that information can be "spoofed."

So, always err on the side of caution before hitting the "forward" or "reply" button. According to CIAC, the most obvious sign that a warning is a hoax is the directive to “send it to everyone you know.” Two factors make a successful hoax: technical sounding language and credibility by association. In turn, chain letters all have a similar pattern: a hook, a threat, and then a request. For more on how to recognize hoaxes and chain letters, and guidance on what to do if you come across one, visit http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org.