Seeking Truth, Exposing Fiction
Factismals separates fact from fiction, one claim at a time — calm, evidence-first, and never alarmist.
Factismals is a home for curious, skeptical minds. We take the claims circulating online — about health, science, history, and viral stories — and check them against genuine evidence. Each piece is written to be short, clear, and honest about what is actually known, without exaggeration or clutter.
What We Cover
Health Myths
Popular health claims examined against established medical understanding, minus the hype.
Claims about guaranteed systems or hot streaks often surface around games of chance as well, and a closer look at something like Rainbow Riches usually shows the outcome is far less predictable than the rumours suggest.
Science Myths
Everyday science questions and widely repeated “facts” explained simply and accurately.
Urban Legends
Long-circulating stories traced back to their roots, and tested against reality.
Viral Claims
The posts and screenshots everyone is sharing, checked carefully before you share them too.
Conspiracy Theories
Persistent theories weighed against available evidence, calmly and without judgment.
Our Approach
We favor well-established knowledge over sensational statistics, and we cite our sources.
A Note From the Editor
Factismals is run by Billy Scott, who has always been the person interrupting conversations with a fact that needed checking. This site is an attempt to slow things down — to look at claims carefully, cite sources, and leave readers a little more informed than when they arrived.
Have a Claim You Want Checked?
If you have come across something that sounds too strange, too alarming, or too convenient to be true, get in touch. We are always glad to look into it.
Latest Articles
- ‘Swallowed Gum Stays in Your Stomach for Seven Years,’ Playground Wisdom Insists
Generations of kids have been warned that a swallowed piece of gum will sit in their belly for the better part of a decade. Here’s what actually happens when gum goes down the wrong way. - ‘You Lose Most of Your Body Heat Through Your Head,’ Old Advice Claims
Grandparents everywhere insist a hat is the only thing standing between you and hypothermia. Here’s what actually happens to your body heat, and where this stubborn bit of advice came from. - ‘You Swallow Eight Spiders a Year While You Sleep,’ Urban Legend Claims
A staple of dorm-room trivia nights, the claim that sleepers swallow eight spiders annually has no real source behind it. Here’s why the number is fiction and what actually happens between you and the arachnids sharing your bedroom.