Team:SUSTech Shenzhen/Hoax

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The dihydrogen monoxide hoax involves calling water by the unfamiliar chemical name "dihydrogen monoxide" (DHMO), and listing some of water's effects in an alarming manner, such as the fact that it accelerates corrosion and can cause severe burns. The hoax often calls for dihydrogen monoxide to be regulated, labeled as hazardous, or banned. It illustrates how the lack of scientific literacy and an exaggerated analysis can lead to misplaced fears.

SUSTech Shenzhen-Water molecule (1).svg.png
The subject of the hoax, water
[1]

The hoax gained renewed popularity in the late 1990s when a 14-year-old student collected anti-DHMO petitions for a science project about gullibility.[2] The story has since been used in science education to encourage critical thinking and avoid the appeal to nature.

History

A 1983 April Fools' Day edition of the Durand Express, a weekly newspaper in Durand, Michigan, reported that "dihydrogen oxide" had been found in the city's water pipes, and warned that it was fatal if inhaled, and could produce blistering vapors.[3] The first appearance of the hoax on the internet was attributed by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to the so-called "Coalition to Ban Dihydrogen Monoxide",[4][5] a parody organization started by UC Santa Cruz student Craig Jackson following the on-campus postings and initial newsgroup discussions.

This new version of the hoax was created by Eric Lechner, Lars Norpchen, and Matthew Kaufman—housemates while attending the University of California, Santa Cruz in 1989–1990,[4][6]Template:Bsex revised by Jackson in 1994,[4] and brought to widespread public attention in 1997 when Nathan Zohner, a 14-year-old student, gathered petitions to ban "DHMO" as the basis of his science project, titled "How Gullible Are We?"[2]

Jackson's original site included the following warning:[7][8] Template:Quote frame

A mock material safety data sheet—a list of information about potentially dangerous materials used in research and industry—has also been created for H2O.[9][10]

Molecular terminology and naming conventions

The water molecule has the chemical formula H2O, meaning each molecule of water is composed of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. Literally, the term "dihydrogen monoxide" means "two hydrogen, one oxygen", consistent with its molecular formula: the prefix di- in dihydrogen means "two", the prefix mon- in monoxide means "one", and an oxide is a compound that contains one or more oxygen atoms.[11]

Using chemical nomenclature, various names for water are in common use within the scientific community. Some such names include hydrogen oxide, as well as an alkali name of hydrogen hydroxide, and several acid names such as hydric acid, hydroxic acid, hydroxyl acid, and hydroxilic acid. The term "hydroxyl acid" used in the original text is a non-standard name.[12]Template:Failed verification

Under the 2005 revisions of IUPAC nomenclature of inorganic chemistry, there is no single correct name for every compound.[13] The primary function of chemical nomenclature is to ensure that each name refers, unambiguously, to a single substance. It is considered less important to ensure that each substance should have a single name, although the number of acceptable names is limited.[13] Water is one acceptable name for this compound, even though it is neither a systematic nor an international name and is specific to just one phase of the compound. The other IUPAC recommendation is oxidane.[14]

Public efforts involving the DHMO hoax

Template:Refex

  • In 1989–1990, several students circulated a dihydrogen monoxide contamination warning on the University of California, Santa Cruz campus via photocopied fliers.[4][15]
  • In 1994, Craig Jackson created a web page for the Coalition to Ban DHMO.[4][7]
  • The Friends of Hydrogen Hydroxide website was created by Dan Curtis Johnson; partly as a foil on the Coalition page, claiming to oppose its "subversive agenda". The site points out that hydrogen hydroxide is "environmentally safe" and "enhances the functionality, growth, and health of many forms of life".[16]
  • In 1997, Nathan Zohner, a 14-year-old student at Eagle Rock Junior High School in Idaho Falls, Idaho, gathered 43 votes to ban the chemical, out of 50 ninth-graders surveyed. Zohner received the first prize at Greater Idaho Falls Science Fair for analysis of the results of his survey.[2] In recognition of his experiment, journalist James K. Glassman coined the term "Zohnerism" to refer to "the use of a true fact to lead a scientifically and mathematically ignorant public to a false conclusion".[17]
  • In 1998, drawing inspiration from Jackson's web page and Zohner's research, Tom Way created a website at DHMO.org, including links to some legitimate sites such as the Environmental Protection Agency and National Institutes of Health.
  • On April 1, 1998 (April Fools' Day), a member of the Australian Parliament announced a campaign to ban dihydrogen monoxide internationally.[18]
  • In Template:Visible anchor a staffer in New Zealand Green Party MP Sue Kedgley's office responded to a request for support for a campaign to ban dihydrogen monoxide by saying she was "absolutely supportive of the campaign to ban this toxic substance". This was criticized in a press release by the National Party,[19] one of whose MPs fell for the very same hoax six years later.[20]
  • In 2002, radio talk show host Neal Boortz mentioned on the air that the Atlanta water system had been checked and found to be contaminated with dihydrogen monoxide, and set about relating the hazards associated with that "dangerous" chemical. A local TV station even covered the 'scandal'. A spokesperson for the city's water system told the reporter that there was no more dihydrogen monoxide in the system than what was allowed under the law.[21]
  • The idea was used for a segment of an episode of the Penn & Teller show Penn & Teller: Bullshit!, in which actress Kris McGaha and a camera crew gathered signatures from people considering themselves "concerned environmentalists" to sign a petition to ban DHMO.[22]
  • In March 2004, Aliso Viejo, California, almost considered banning the use of foam containers at city-sponsored events because dihydrogen monoxide is part of their production. A paralegal had asked the city council to put it on the agenda; he later attributed it to poor research.[23] The bill was pulled from the agenda before it could come to a vote, but not before the city received a raft of bad publicity.[2]
    File:Danger sign hydrogen.jpg
    Tongue-in-cheek warning sign in Louisville, Kentucky
  • In 2006, in Louisville, Kentucky, David Karem, executive director of the Waterfront Development Corporation, a public body that operates Waterfront Park, wished to deter bathers from using a large public fountain. "Counting on a lack of understanding about water's chemical makeup", he arranged for signs reading: "DANGER! – WATER CONTAINS HIGH LEVELS OF HYDROGEN – KEEP OUT" to be posted on the fountain at public expense.[24]
  • Occasionally, petitions on the UK Government e-petitions website on this subject have been closed or rejected.[25]
  • In 2007 Jacqui Dean, New Zealand National Party MP, fell for the hoax, writing a letter to Associate Minister of Health Jim Anderton asking "Does the Expert Advisory Committee on Drugs have a view on the banning of this drug?"[20][26][27]
  • On April 1, 2010, a Canadian Conservative Member of Parliament, Andrew Scheer, used the DHMO hoax as the basis for an April Fool's Day "media release" on his web site, in which he claimed to have presented a bill to ban the substance from all federal government buildings.[28] Scheer became Canada's speaker of the House in 2011.
  • In February 2011, during the campaign of the Finnish parliamentary election, a voting advice application asked the candidates whether the availability of "hydric acid also known as dihydrogen monoxide" should be restricted. 49% of the candidates answered in favor of the restriction.[29]
  • In April 2013, two radio personalities at Gator Country 101.9, a station in Lee County, Florida, told listeners dihydrogen monoxide was coming out of their water taps as part of an April Fool's Day prank and were suspended for a few days.[30][31] The prank resulted in several calls by consumers to the local utility company, which sent out a release stating that the water was safe.[32]

DHMO in education and debate

The DHMO hoax has been used in science education to encourage critical thinking and discussion of the scientific method.[33][34]

Jennifer Abel from Consumer Affairs also said: "search online for information about dihydrogen monoxide, and you'll find a long list of scary and absolutely true warnings about it: used by the nuclear power industry, vital to the production of everything from pesticides to Styrofoam, present in tumors removed from cancer patients, and guaranteed fatal to humans in large quantities."[35]

See also

References

Template:Research help Template:Reflist

  1. ↑ Cardet L., Case-based, problem-based learning: Information literacy for the real world, Research Strategies, Retrieved from http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0734331002000873.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 [http://www.snopes.com/science/dhmo.asp Dihydrogen Monoxide] from Urban Legends Reference Pages, retrieved 2006-09-25.
  3. ↑ April Fool's Day, 1983, Retrieved from http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/af_1983.html.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Mysterious Killer Chemical, {{{newspaper}}} May 17, 2006, Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2006/05/17/1631494.htm?site=science/greatmomentsinscience.
  5. ↑ Internet-inspired prank lands 4 teens in hot water, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette April 19, 1997, Retrieved from https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-uZRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0G8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5974%2C1742699.
  6. ↑ Warning! Dangerous Contamination! (original usenet posting), Retrieved from https://groups.google.com/group/rec.humor.funny/browse_thread/thread/3f985a069a2a19d8/.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Ban Dihydrogen Monoxide!, Retrieved from http://media.circus.com/~no_dhmo/. Coalition to ban DHMO officers, Retrieved from http://media.circus.com/~no_dhmo/members.html.
  8. ↑ Ban Di-hydrogen Monoxide!, Retrieved from http://media.circus.com/~no_dhmo/.
  9. ↑ DHMO Material Safety Data Sheet, Retrieved from http://improbable.com/2010/03/24/dhmo-material-safety-data-sheet/.
  10. ↑ Material Safety Sheet – DiHydrogen Monoxide, Retrieved from http://www.dhmo.org/msds/MSDS-DHMO-Kemp.pdf.
  11. ↑ Chemical Nomenclature, Retrieved from http://science.widener.edu/svb/pset/nomen_b.html.
  12. ↑ /www.bluelaketec.com, Retrieved from http://www.bluelaketec.com/awater.htm.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 [http://old.iupac.org/publications/books/rbook/Red_Book_2005.pdf IUPAC Report: General Aims, Functions and Methods of Chemical Nomenclature (March 2004)]
  14. ↑ Leigh, G. J. et al. 1998. [http://web.archive.org/web/20110726171925/http://old.iupac.org/publications/books/principles/principles_of_nomenclature.pdf Principles of Chemical Nomenclature: A Guide to IUPAC Recommendations], p. 99. Blackwell Science Ltd, UK. ISBN 0-86542-685-6
  15. ↑ [http://www.matthew.at/dhm.pdf Original Poster Circulated at UC Santa Cruz]; (PDF)
  16. ↑ Hydrogen Hydroxide: Now More Than Ever!, Retrieved from http://www.armory.com/~crisper/DHMO/.
  17. ↑ Dihydrogen Monoxide: Unrecognized Killer, {{{newspaper}}} {{{date}}}, Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/opinions/1997/10/21/dihydrogen-monoxide-unrecognized-killer/ee85631a-c426-42c4-bda7-ed63db993106/.
  18. ↑ Campaign launched against dihydrogen monoxide, {{{newspaper}}} April 1, 1998, Retrieved from {{{url}}}.
  19. ↑ Greens Support Ban On Water!, Retrieved from http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0110/S00440.htm.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 MP tries to ban water, Retrieved from http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10463579.
  21. ↑ Neal Boortz to Hang Up the Headphones, Retrieved from http://fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com/2012/06/05/neal-boortz-to-hang-up-the-headphones/.
  22. ↑ "Penn & Teller: Bullshit!" Environmental Hysteria (2003), Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0672528/.
  23. ↑ [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4534017/ Local officials nearly fall for H2O hoax], at MSNBC March 15, 2004, Retrieved 2006-09-25.
  24. ↑ [http://cen.acs.org/articles/84/i43/Newscripts.html Danger! H in H2O], Chemical & Engineering News, October 23, 2006 [http://www.webcitation.org/5OwIq682q webcite mirror]
  25. ↑ [http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/search?q=dihydrogen&state=closed Petition to "Ban dihydrogen monoxide" on UK Government e-petitions Web site] Template:Wayback
  26. ↑ Questions And Answers – Wednesday, September 12, 2007, Retrieved from http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0709/S00224.htm.
  27. ↑ PDF file of related correspondence, Retrieved from http://img.scoop.co.nz/media/pdfs/0709/DeanDHMO.pdf.
  28. ↑ Regina-qu'appelle mp tables legislation to ban dihydrogen monoxide, Retrieved from http://www.andrewmp.ca/090401_release_dhmo.html. Template:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore
  29. ↑ Pitäisikö lakia tiukentaa vetyhapon saatavuuden ja käytön osalta?, Retrieved from http://old.sosiaalinenvaalikone.com/kysymykset.php?id=12894.
  30. ↑ Florida DJs are Off the Hook for Their Successful April Fool's Prank, Retrieved from http://www.theatlanticwire.com/entertainment/2013/04/florida-dj-indefinite-suspension-didnt-last-very-long/63837/.
  31. ↑ Presenters suspended for April Fool hoax, Retrieved from http://radiotoday.co.uk/2013/04/presenters-suspended-for-april-fool-hoax/.
  32. ↑ 2 radio personalities suspended due to April Fools' Day prank, {{{newspaper}}} April 2, 2013, Retrieved from http://www.wftv.com/news/news/local/2-radio-personalities-suspended-due-april-fools-da/nW9gM/.
  33. ↑ Joel J. Mintzes, William H. Leonard, eds.; Handbook of College Science Teaching; National Science Teachers Association; 2006; p. 264; ISBN 0873552601.
  34. ↑ Donald M. Simanek, John C. Holden; Science Askew: A Light-hearted Look at the Scientific World; CRC Press; 2001; p. 71; ISBN 0750307145.
  35. ↑ Coca-Cola to remove "flame retardant" from American drinks, {{{newspaper}}} , Retrieved from https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/coca-cola-to-remove-flame-retardant-from-american-drinks-050614.html.

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