Lan (R) and Xu Qianwen of the Beijing Eagles celebrate during the National Pro Fastpitch softball game against the Chicago Bandits at The Ball Park at Rosemont in Chicago yeezy boost 350 v2 schweiz , Illinois, the United States, on Aug. 1, 2017. (XinhuaJoel Lerner)






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by Larry Neild


LONDON, July 18 (Xinhua) -- Nearly two-thirds of people in Britain believe cows laying down on the grass is a sign it's about to rain.


It is just one of many folklore beliefs many British people have used over generations to gauge the weather. Meteorologists at the Met Office put the beliefs under the microscope, and gave their verdict Tuesday.


It seems some old-fashioned methods of predicting the forthcoming weather turned out to be true.


Over 60 percent believe cows really do lie down when it's about to rain adidas ultra boost schweiz , while three-quarters of the British public have used folklore such as "red sky at night, shepherd's delight" to predict the weather.


"The British public's fascination with the weather is well-known. We found in a new survey that the use of these sayings was more prevalent than expected, with three quarters of UK adults saying they use folklore to predict the weather," said a spokesman for the Met.


The most commonly-used were revealed to be: Red sky at night, shepherd's delight, used by 70 percent of UK adults. It can be too cold to snow used by 49 percent adidas superstar schuhe schweiz , Cows lie down when it is about to rain used by 44 percent, and pine cones open up when good weather is coming, used by 26 percent.


And almost a quarter believe the claim that if it rains on St Swithin's Day, July 15, it will rain on each of the next 40 days.


In total, 58 percent of UK adults think that these methods are accurate to some degree adidas iniki runner schweiz , and incredibly, almost two thirds think they can be more reliable than official forecasts.


However, nearly half of UK adults who have used traditional methods to predict the weather say they have been "caught out".


Met Office meteorologist Charlie Powell, who investigated the science behind the folklore, said: "We were blown away by just how many people use traditional methods to forecast the weather. However, some of these weather sayings are backed up by science and can help to give a sense of what sort of weather may be on its way. Others adidas prophere schweiz , such as cows lying down when it is about to rain, are nothing more than old wives' tales."


"But either way, none of the methods are as accurate as official forecasts and the research demonstrates