Research polls churn out a steady stream of data, and among the most intriguing are the bizarre findings that surface when we dig into human behavior. From robot intimacy to bacon preferences, these results prove just how wonderfully odd we can be.
Bizarre Findings From Recent Research Polls
10 Sex With A Robot
In a 2014 UK poll of more than 2,000 adults, the question “Would you have sex with a robot if given the chance?” yielded a startling answer: one in five said they would. Moreover, 46 percent claimed they wouldn’t judge anyone who chose a droid partner. While it sounds like sci‑fi, advances in technology are turning this notion into a plausible future scenario.
Meanwhile, Japan reports a decline in sexual activity among 16‑ to 24‑year‑olds. The emerging Otaku subculture sees many men preferring virtual companions over real‑world relationships. A sex‑bot could quickly learn the ropes, offering a flawless experience without the usual trial‑and‑error of human intimacy.
9 Smarter Than The Average American
A 2014 survey revealed that about 55 percent of Americans believe they are smarter than the average fellow citizen, while 34 percent consider themselves on par with the average, and a mere 4 percent rate themselves below average. No direct questions about arrogance were asked, but the confidence is evident.
The United States ranks 14th worldwide in education and 20th in overall educational attainment, with many students never completing high school. This self‑perceived brilliance clashes with real‑world talent shortages; tech giants like Facebook have even petitioned the government to loosen immigration rules to broaden their pool of highly specialized candidates.
8 The Cloud Is A Cloud, Right?
A 2012 survey on cloud computing exposed a literal misunderstanding: 51 percent of respondents thought the term referred to weather, drugs, toilet paper, or pillows. An additional 22 percent admitted they pretended to know what the cloud was, and 17 percent claimed they faked knowledge on a first date.
Despite the confusion, 97 percent of participants actually use cloud services daily. The poll sparked massive online buzz, racking up 2.5 million social media impressions, 240 million news impressions, and over 9,000 Twitter conversations. In reality, the “cloud” is just a metaphor for remotely hosted data accessible from any smart device—nothing to do with actual clouds.
7 HTML Is An STD
A 2014 study discovered that 11 percent of Americans mistakenly believe HTML—HyperText Markup Language—is a venereal disease. The survey involved 2,400 adults matching tech‑related terms to definitions.
Even more bewildering were the other misconceptions: 42 percent thought a motherboard was the deck of a cruise ship, 27 percent imagined a gigabyte as a South American insect, 18 percent pictured a Blu‑ray as a marine creature, and 12 percent guessed that “USB” stood for a European country.
The alarming results led some media outlets to suspect a publicity stunt, but the polling firm insisted the data were genuine.
6 Save The Dog, Forget The Stranger
A 2013 study asked participants who they’d rescue in a burning building: their own dog or a foreign stranger. A striking 40 percent chose the canine companion over an unfamiliar person.
The survey, conducted with over 500 respondents, found that 46 percent of those who prioritized the dog were women. The findings underscore the deep bond between humans and their pets, a relationship that traces its roots back to the 19th‑century animal‑welfare movement.
5 The Sun Goes Around The Earth
A 2012 questionnaire of 2,200 people asked whether the Earth orbits the Sun. Surprisingly, 26 percent answered incorrectly, revealing lingering misconceptions about basic astronomy.
Only 39 percent of respondents believed in the Big Bang, and fewer than half accepted evolution. On average, participants answered 6.5 out of nine science questions correctly. Compared with a 2005 European survey—where 34 percent got the Earth‑Sun question wrong—the American sample performed slightly better on the evolution question.
4 Murder Fantasies Are Common
Early‑2000s research involving more than 5,000 participants worldwide revealed that 91 percent of men and 84 percent of women have entertained thoughts of murdering someone. The prevalence of such fantasies appears unrelated to gender; situational factors are what drive actual homicide rates.
Among the surveyed group, 375 individuals were confirmed murderers, highlighting the gap between fleeting dark thoughts and real‑world violent actions.
3 Vegetarians Lie About Not Eating Meat
A 2002 poll of over 10,000 Americans found that roughly 6 percent self‑identified as vegetarians. Yet when asked about their meals in the preceding 24 hours, a surprising 60 percent admitted to eating poultry, red meat, or fish.
Subsequent research showed that between 1994 and 2009, 97‑99 percent of Americans consumed meat. A 2005 study reported that strict vegetarians comprised less than 0.1 percent of the population. In 2003, among 13,300 respondents, about 300 claimed vegetarian status, but 65 percent of them still ate meat.
By 2014, 84 percent of those who once called themselves vegetarians had reverted to meat‑eating, with nearly half citing the difficulty of maintaining a “pure” vegetarian lifestyle as the primary reason.
2 Wealthy Panhandlers In Oregon
In 2008, officers in Coos Bay, Oregon, noticed a group of panhandlers outside a Walmart raking in $300‑$800 per day. A local newspaper profiled a couple who called themselves “affluent beggars,” revealing that they also received $500 in monthly food‑stamp assistance.
Oregon law permits panhandling as long as no privacy or traffic statutes are breached, making it an attractive option for some. In 2013, a former minimum‑wage employee quit his job to try “professional panhandling,” discovering he earned roughly $2 more per hour—tax‑free—and amassed $900 in just two weeks.
1 Bacon Over Sex
A 2012 Canadian survey asked participants to choose between bacon and sex. The results were mouth‑watering: 43 percent opted for crispy bacon over a night of intimacy.
Among those who chose bacon, 82 percent claimed to be good lovers, and 81 percent described themselves as romantics. Regional differences emerged as well—50 percent of respondents in British Columbia favored bacon, compared with only 37 percent in Quebec.