Teens Only | Urban Legends

An urban legend is a secondhand story told as true and just plausible enough to be believed....about some horrific, embarrassing, ironic or exasperating series of events that supposedly happened to a real person.

We've all heard an urban legend or two. But which ones are true? And which ones are just myth?

As you probably know, you can go to the Snopes website and find out which legends are truth or myth. But let's try our own "urban legend" knowledge. Admittedly, these are pretty mild. Do you know which ones are truth and which ones are myth?

1. Sir Isaac Newton discovered gravity when an apple fell out of a tree he was sitting under and hit him on the head.

2. The height of the Eiffel Tower changes by as much as six inches depending on the temperature outside.

3. During the day, you can see the stars from the bottom of a well.

4. Bats are blind.

5. A Japanese man -- hoping that his father would miraculously come back to life -- kept the man's corpse in a coffin-sized freezer for 13 years before authorities intervened.

Coconut milk for plasma?

6. Coconut milk can be used as a blood plasma substitute in an emergency.

7. A 22-year-old New York waiter was drowned in Coca Cola by a Russian mobster angry that his drink was removed from his table before he was finished with it.

Still thinking? If you'd like to check out some books filled with urban legends, stop by one of the SSJCPL branches. If the one you want isn't on the shelves, ask library staff to help you place a request! Here are a few cool ones:

Urban Legends: The Complete-As-One-Could-Be Guide to Modern Myths by Ngaire Genge

Urban Legends: The Truth Behind All Those Deliciously Entertaining Myths That Are Absolutely, Positively 100% Not True! by Richard Roeper

And now for the answers: 1. (Myth); 2. (True); 3. (True); 4. (Myth); 5. (True); 6. (True); 7. (Myth)

See you next Saturday!