---
title: "List of common misconceptions about science, technology, and mathematics"
chunk: 8/16
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_common_misconceptions_about_science,_technology,_and_mathematics"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T03:28:18.528573+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

The total number of people living in extreme absolute poverty globally decreased by two-thirds from 1990 to 2025 (measured using the international poverty line), with other poverty measurements showing similar trends. However, most people surveyed in several countries incorrectly think it has increased or stayed the same.
Although the human population of Earth is increasing, the rate of human population growth is decreasing and the world population is expected to peak and then begin falling during the 21st century. Improvements in agricultural productivity and technology are expected to be able to meet anticipated increased demand for resources, making a global human overpopulation scenario unlikely.
For any given production set, there is not a set amount of labor input (a "lump of labor") to produce that output. This fallacy is commonly seen in Luddite and later, related movements as an argument either that automation causes permanent, structural unemployment, or that labor-limiting regulation can decrease unemployment. In fact, changes in capital allocation, efficiency, and economies of learning can change the amount of labor input for a given set of production.
Income is not a direct factor in determining credit score in the United States. Rather, credit score is affected by the amount of unused available credit, which is in turn affected by income. Income is also considered when evaluating creditworthiness more generally.
The US public vastly overestimates the amount spent on foreign aid.
In the US, an increase in gross income will never reduce a taxpayer's post-tax earnings (net income) by putting them in a higher tax bracket. Tax brackets specify marginal tax rates: only income earned in the higher tax bracket is taxed at the higher rate. An increase in gross income can reduce net income in a welfare cliff, however, when benefits are withdrawn when passing a certain income threshold. Prevalence of the misconception varies by political party affiliation.
Constructing new housing decreases the cost of rent and the price of homes in both the immediate neighborhood and in the city as a whole. In real estate economics, "supply skepticism" leads many Americans to misunderstand the effect of increasing the supply of housing on housing costs. The misconception is unique to the housing market.
Businesses do not get a tax benefit by collecting charitable donations from their customers. Corporation taxes are based on profit; the customer's donation would not change the amount of profit and therefore the tax payable. A business would need to donate its own money to receive a tax break.
Import tariffs are taxes paid to the government by importers, not by exporting countries or manufacturers as is claimed by some, including Donald Trump. There is a near-unanimous consensus among economists that tariffs have a net-negative effect on economic growth and welfare, and harm consumers through higher prices by more than they benefit domestic producers and governments.

== Geography ==

The Cape of Good Hope is not the southern tip of Africa; that distinction belongs to Cape Agulhas, located about 150 kilometres (90 mi) to the east-southeast.
The majority of the Sahara consists of rocks, rather than sand.
Rivers do not predominantly flow from north to south. Rivers flow downhill in all compass directions, often changing direction along their course. Many major rivers flow northward, including the Nile, the Yenisey, the Ob, the Rhine, the Lena, and the Orinoco.

== Human body and health ==