Petition to ban dihydrogen monoxide

In 1997, 14-year-old Nathan Zohner, a student at Eagle Rock Junior High School in Idaho Falls, Idaho, won first prize in a local science fair with a project entitled "How Gullible Are We?" He presented a report to his fellow students about the dangers of a substance called "dihydrogen monoxide" and then asked for their opinions. Out of 50 students, 43 thought it should be banned, six were undecided, and one correctly recognized that "dihydrogen monoxide" is just another name for H2O — in other words, water.

Young Nathan did not invent the concept of "dihydrogen monoxide," however. Tongue-in-cheek reports about its alleged dangers have been circulating for years, especially on the Internet. A college professor has even created an entire Web site about it (www.dhmo.org) to make a point about the importance of critical thinking.