Does truth matter in inspirational stories?

I received an email today that featured an inspiration story:

A marine biologist puts a shark in a big tank with smaller fish. The shark eats the fish. Then the marine biologist puts a plexiglass barrier between the shark and the little fish. Eventually, the shark learns that it can't get at the fish on the other side of the tank and gives up. The marine biologist removes the barrier and, lo and behold, the shark doesn't even try to get to the little fish. It has been conditioned to behave in ways that no longer reflect reality.

The obvious moral is that we should all check whether we're behaving in ways that no longer serve us. I'm totally in agreement with that. But...

IS THIS A FISHY STORY?

All I know about sharks comes from watching a couple of days of "Shark Week," so I could be wrong, but it just doesn't sound like shark behavior to restrict itself to half the tank once the barrier is down. For one thing, wouldn't it pick up on the difference in the movement in the water when the barrier isn't there? I know it's a tank but even so, I think the movement of the smaller fish would have some effect. 

If you're a marine biologist, let me know whether the experiment sounds fishy to you.

THE FICTIONAL 3%

A story that has had even greater circulation but for which nobody has ever found a factual basis is the one claiming that years ago, only 3% of students at (Harvard/Yale/Stanford, depending on who's telling it) kept a written record of their goals...and 30 or 40 years later THEY were the leaders, the ones who had become wealthy, etc.

 

DOES IT MATTER?

 

Does it matter whether or not these types of anecdotes are true? Yes, they may inspire someone to examine their limitations and decide on their goals, and so on. But I do think we have to be careful about what we say 'science proves'-- it's important to separate fairy tales from fact. The internet is awash with the former masquerading as the latter, and it's another brick in the wall of "alternative facts." 

 

ASK!

 

If you agree with me on this, the next time you see a story about something that "science proves" without any link to or information about the source, why not ask the person posting it?