MYTHS FROM DOWN
ON THE FARM

For huge parts of America, farming is still a way of life. It’s so ingrained in our culture that there are lots of things we think are true about farm animals and crops. It turns out a lot of that stuff isn’t true.

Myth:Dairy and beef cows eat grains and grass.

Fact:They do if they’re “free range” livestock, but the milk and meat end up costing more, because feed made from grains and grass is relatively expensive and it takes a lot to feed a large animal like a cow. Commercial dairy and beef cattle eat a carefully devised concoction of hay, grain, proteins (soybean meal, which is low-cost and effective), extra vitamins, and something called silage—a nutritionally dense, partially fermented mixture of vegetables and grains. Some big dairies (and beef cattle operations) might supplement that with whatever they can get on the cheap, such as unsold cookies and candy, or even sawdust.

Myth:Chickens are stupid.

Fact:They’re not quite birdbrained. Studies show that chickens scored almost as high as primates on intelligence tests. For example, they seem to understand their coop’s “pecking order,” and, if given a choice between an immediate food reward and waiting for a better one later on, they’ll wait. Chickens are also capable of more than 20 different vocalizations, each with a different meaning.

Myth:Organically raised crops are free of pesticides.

Fact:Organic crops are still crops, and they’re subject to being devastated by germs, bugs, and birds. Organic farmers can’t risk letting their fields be destroyed, so they still get a little help from pesticides—organic, caustic chemical–free pesticides that have been certified organic by the USDA, but pesticides nonetheless. The most common: Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis), an insect-killing protein found in soil bacteria. And vitamin D3 is an especially effective rodent killer.

Zebras sleep in groups.

Myth:Goats will eat anything, even tin cans.

Fact:That’s why farms have traditionally kept goats around in the first place—they’ll devour a lot of farm waste, such as the inedible parts of crops. There’s also the notion that goats will eat anything, even inedible stuff like tin cans, newspapers, or clothing. But they’re not really eating. They’re “browsers” (not “grazers”), which means they’ll put something in their mouth if they think there’s food on it or in it…and then spit out the item if they can’t actually eat it.

Myth:Brown eggs are more nutritious than white eggs.

Fact:The brown ones tend to cost a little more than white ones, leading to the idea that the higher price tag has something to do with higher quality, or more vitamin-based bang for the buck. The color of the shell actually tends to reflect the size of the chicken that laid the egg—bigger breeds make brown eggs, and since they’re larger, they require more feed (hence the higher cost).

ANOTHER MYTH-CONCEPTION

Myth:TV’s first interracial kiss was between Captain Kirk and Lieutenant Uhura on Star Trek in 1968.

Fact:It wasn’t even the first interracial kiss on Star Trek. The kiss in question occurred in the episode “Plato’s Stepchildren.” A hostile alien uses telepathy to force Kirk (William Shatner) and Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) to lock lips. As Star Trek grew in popularity over the next few decades, biographies of the show—and even the actors themselves—started bragging that the kiss was a television first (though Shatner denied their lips touched), and that it had a huge impact on society during the turbulent civil rights years. In truth, the kiss didn’t make a lot of news at the time (though NBC initially balked at airing it). Because it took place at the end of an episode in Trek’s low-rated third season, not that many people even saw it. Besides, a lot of interracial kisses had occurred on TV before that. For example: Lloyd Bridges kissed Nobu McCarthy on Sea Hunt in 1959; Robert Culp kissed France Nuyen on I Spy in 1966; Robert Conrad kissed Pilar Seurat on The Wild Wild West in 1966, Sammy Davis Jr. kissed Nancy Sinatra on Movin’ with Nancy in 1967, and William Shatner kissed France Nuyen on another Star Trek episode that had aired earlier in 1968.

When you cup your hands to form a bowl, that’s called a gowpen.