Fact: In 1269 theologian and philosopher Roger Bacon successfully predicted that men would walk on the moon "sefenn hundredd yeirs hennes" [seven hundred years hence].

A concerned reader writes: "I looked up the Roger Bacon prediction that you have written about - that he successfully predicted that man would walk on the moon 700 years hence. It is not true. What is your source for this info."

We sent the following reply:

Do you actually have a source that denies that Roger Bacon made this prediction? Or have you merely failed to find evidence that he did? A lack of evidence, of course, is not evidence of lack. Interestingly, Bacon himself considered these kinds of distinctions, and many regard him as a pioneer in the development of the scientific method.

We found a reference to the source in L. Sprague de Campe's wonderful book, "The Ancient Engineers", an engaging and informative discussion of the history of technology. It has been a goldmine for the researchers here at Gullible.info, and I most highly recommend it.

Bacon was truly an amazing fellow; apart from his scientific and philosophical accomplishments, he predicted bombs that could flatten cities, automobiles, spaceflight, etc, but also text messaging, home shopping, curbside recycling (of paper), and power seating!

To be fair, though, sometimes it's hard to really know what Bacon had in mind: consider his prediction that a mildy narcotic icy refreshment made of sweetened milk, flavored with the roasted beans of an as of then unknown tree, would be sold in nearly every shop in every town. Was he predicting chocolate ice cream? Iced cappuccino? Mocha milk shakes? We just will never know.