25 Strangest Scientific Theories Ever Proposed

Posted by , Updated on December 21, 2023

To better understand our world, scientists have presented some of the strangest scientific theories ever. They’re pretty much all wrong. Still, that doesn’t stop people from buying into them. On face value, some wacko scientific theories seem to be reasonable. Remember in the movie “My Girl” when Vada (Anna Chlumsky) tells Thomas (Macaulay Culkin) about the Phrenology statue? I do. And I totally believed it as a kid (I don’t anymore). But, here’s the thing, adults believed in Phrenology, too. What’s Phrenology? Stick around. It’s coming up.
The point is this: Many of these strangest scientific theories try to explain our world, its origins, or how certain things work, but they’re all way off the mark. They might sound good, but that doesn’t mean it’s true. Of course, pseudoscience and weird science still makes for good reading. It’ll give you a good anecdote when you’re with your friends and family. You can tell them about how someone thought life existed on the Sun. Let out a hearty laugh; it’s good for you.
Of course, there are so many bizarre scientific theories out there that it’s impossible to name them all. Nevertheless, many of these are stranger than the rest of them. Here are 25 strangest scientific theories ever proposed.

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25

Our universe arose from the collision of two or more universes

universe

Unlike the Big Bang Theory where the universe began from a singularity, the Ekpyrotic Model of the Universe suggests that the universe arose from the collision of two three-dimensional worlds in space. This means that, aside from our universe, there is at least one other universe out there and that our twin universe is separated from us by a distance that is allegedly less than the diameter of an atom.

24

White holes exist

white holes

There’s black holes that suck everything in and then there are white holes that supposedly spit everything out. According to some scientists, if white holes exist, then they may be linked to black holes in the exact manner we just described.

23

We kill the universe every time we look at dark energy

dark energy

Professor Lawrence Krauss once stated that we kill the universe every time we look at dark energy, which, as we know today, makes up 70% of the universe. According to the theory, we keep the universe unstable and reduce its lifespan as we continuously observe it.

22

The universe is a hologram

hologram

This theory suggests that we are living in a holographic universe (aka an anonymous hologram creator). It explains that what we see when we look at the sky is just a wall containing an image of galaxies and stars.

21

We live in a matrix universe

matrix

Although we’re all familiar with the movie, scientists theorized that humans live in a computer program. These scientists believe that computers are the ones that stimulate our consciousness and form what we consider reality.

Have you heard of the Simulation Hypothesis? It doesn’t matter. You need to read 25 Crazy Ideas About the Simulation Hypothesis.

20

A universe with many black holes has several baby universes

black holes

This theory arose from the theory that we are a child of a black hole. The idea is that when matter is pulled into a black hole, it becomes so dense that the black hole spits it out and forms a universe from it. Remember white holes?

19

We create a universe every time we make a decision

decision

This theory takes a different approach to the theory of the omniverse, or having many worlds. It states that we give birth to a new universe every time we make a decision since that is how we create reality.

18

Our universe is constantly smashing into a neighboring universe

colliding universes

According to the Clashing Branes Theory, our universe is a membrane floating in higher dimensional space and constantly smashing into a neighboring universe. This theory leads to the idea that a new big bang is produced every now and then which in turn leads to even more universes.

17

Space-time is a super-fluid substance

spacetime

The theory that space-time flows with zero friction is considered to be one of the most bizarre theories of this century. According to physicists Pawel Mazur and George Chapline, if space-time is super-fluid that means that the rotation of the universe causes super-fluid space-time to scatter with vortices. Those vortices give birth to galaxies, causing the never-ending expansion of the universe.

16

Universes continue to evolve, and those with the most black holes dominate the multiverse

black holes 2

A scientist once theorized that when matter is compressed to extreme densities at the center of a black hole, it leads to the creation of a baby universe. These universes evolve, make many black holes, and dominate the multiverse.

15

The universe we see is hospitable; otherwise, we would not be here to observe it

nebula

The anthropic principle states that every universe in the multiverse has an almost infinite range of different properties and physical laws, and that we are here because the universe where we are is hospitable. This theory was eventually dismissed by some as being pseudoscience.

14

The liver circulates blood while the heart circulates “the vital spirit”

galen

Second-century physician Galen theorized that it was the liver that circulated blood, bile and phlegm, while it was the heart that circulated the “vital spirit.” He said that the blood is consumed by the organs as fuel and it moves in a back-and-forth motion.

13

Diseases are caused by the imbalances of the “four humors”

four humors

For hundreds of years doctors attributed diseases not to germs but to the imbalance of what they called “the four humors.” These humors, or temperaments, were first proposed by Hippocrates and referred to the different amounts of four supposed bodily fluids in any given person.

12

Lambs grow like weeds

livestock

Yes, you got the title right. The ancient Greeks were the first to have the crazy idea that a lamb could grow right out of the ground, with a stem attached to its navel. Pliny the Elder later mentioned it, and Europeans picked up the idea again in the 14th century.

11

Phrenology: Read your friends head like a crystal ball

phrenology

By taking measurements of the skull, Phrenology’s founder Franz Josef Gall argued you could determine a person’s personality traits, propensities, and intelligence. We bet he made a lot of money off this pseudoscience. 

10

Life on the Sun

sun

Although today we know that the sun is basically an enormous nuclear furnace, in the 16th century people thought differently. Even William Herschel, the discover of Uranus, thought that sunspots were actually mountains peaking through the layer of clouds.

9

Homeopathy

homeopathy

Basically the art of scamming sick people out of their money, homeopathy isn’t even a scientific theory. The only reason we put it on this list is because it’s a sham and the people who practice it claim that it’s science. Don’t get sucked in.

8

Fire is made of an element called Phlogiston

Fire_from_brazier

In 1667, a physicist named Johann Joachim Becher proposed to add another element to the already existing list of chemical elements on Earth—Phogiston. According to Becher, all combustible elements contain this stuff and release it when they burn. Today, Phogistan only exists in the history books.

7

Gold can be made of other substances

gold ingots

Alchemy, or the pursuit of creating gold out of other substances, is an theory that came out of the middles ages. The only problem was that the alchemists needed to find the philosopher’s stone which was the magical key to not only initiating this transformation but also to eternal life. It remains unfound.

6

The seeds of life were brought to Earth through meteorites

asteroid

Also called the Panspermia Theory, this old belief suggests that life actually exists throughout the universe and that it just ended up on Earth via some sort of space rock.

5

Life on Earth started from garbage

garbage

Often considered one of the silliest theories ever, the Garbage Theory states that the origins of life on Earth can be traced back to billions of years ago, when aliens dumped their trash on Earth.

4

Spontaneous Generation

microbio

According to Aristotle, a creature could arise out of an inanimate (or formerly animate) object, as a maggot “grows” from rotting meat. As crazy as it sounds people believed this straight up until the 20th century with scientific experiments even being conducted.

3

The whole universe is a computer

computer

We’ve already discussed the theory that states we live in a matrix-like computer environment. However, the “computer is the universe” theory states that the universe itself is the computer in which we live in. In essence, black holes, galaxies, stars and all of that act as the circuits and processors of a gargantuan motherboard where the most fundamental component of the universe is not a unit of matter, but a “bit.” Yes, literally the same boolean piece of data your computer uses to print this page, go figure.

2

The universe works like a mechanical clock

astronomical clock

According to the Clockwork Universe Theory, the universe is just like a mechanical clock controlled by a supreme being who uses the laws of physics as its gears to make everything in the world determinable. Unlike other scientific theories involving God, this theory limits His role to just setting the universe into motion. However, this theory was rejected by the Quantum Theory.

1

We are being observed by aliens

aliens

The Zoo Theory suggests that aliens exist but would never make their presence known to humanity so they cannot exert an influence on human development. This theory suggests that we are like animals being observed in a zoo, being monitored by aliens who would not make contact with us until we reach a certain level of advancement.



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