Hearing rumors and pseudoscience about all kinds of things has existed for hundreds of years, things like your blood is blue after it drops off its oxygen around your body or your tongue has different parts that taste different flavors. Another popular subject of myths like this is something that may not surprise you, but rather the number of myths about it that are not true may surprise you, smartphones. 

A few myths about smartphones are: that you can cook an egg with radiation from your phone; this is technically true, you would need 7,000 smartphones to do it, that your phone is dirtier than a toilet seat; this is actually true as Americans touch their phones as much as 52 times a day, spreading germs through each touch, that removing your SIM card will prevent tracking; this one isn’t true as if your phone still has power from the battery (on or off) it could be tracked by the authorities, but you can prevent tracking by simply turning on airplane mode, disabling GPS, shutting down your phone, or removing the battery, and that phones interfere with hospitals, planes, and gas stations; the FAA doesn’t want to take any risks about planes, so while your phone doesn’t actually interfere with the aircraft it is best to leave it on airplane mode, one study showed that medical errors and injury are 6 times more likely to result from delayed communication rather than interference, so that means that having your phone off in a hospital setting could be harmful rather than helpful, and despite warnings to never use your phone at the pump, cell signals cannot spark a gasoline explosions, though it is still best to heed those warnings and leave your phone in your pocket.

Find out more smartphone urban legends and even some life hacks about your phone here.