One in twenty British children believe Christopher Columbus discovered liposuction, not America London: The worrying stats emerged from a study of 2,000 schoolchildren. It shows most of them are clueless about key events in history although they are much more knowledgeable about celebrities instead. One in five kids believe Toy Story's Buzz Lightyear was the first person to set foot on the moon rather than Neil Armstrong. <img alt="" src="/imagedata/2010/oct/buzz.jpg" border="5" /> And one in twenty youngsters thought Counter Terrorist Jack Bauer was the brains behind the Gunpowder plot. But two thirds of the 6-12 year olds correctly identified malaria as Cheryl Cole's illness and David Beckham as being the most recent player to be dropped by Fabio Capello. The research was carried out to mark the launch of the What on Earth? Wallbook which details and illustrates historical events from the big bang to the present day. u00a0 The survey also found a third did not know Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, with nine cent reckoning it was Deal or No Deal's Noel Edmonds while one in five thought it was Charles Darwin. The research found kids' science and space knowledge isn't tip top either - with 11 per cent thinking Isaac Newton discovered fire and Albert Einstein was Frankenstein's brother. One in six think Darth Vader's Deathstar from Star Wars is the furthest planet from Earth. It also emerged one in twenty thought Christopher Columbus discovered liposuction, NOT America, while one in ten wrongly believe Rolf Harris painted the Mona Lisa. Another 12 per cent of kids reckon the battle of Britain took place in space and one in six said The Daleks from Dr Who occupied Britain. One in six even failed to identify US President Barrack Obama, claiming he was Mr T from the A-Team, F1 Lewis Hamilton and even Nelson Mandela. But while children were found to be clueless about historical happenings, they faired much better when it came to celebrities and showbiz. More than half knew Joe McElderry won last year's X Factor and nearly two thirds correctly identified Cheryl Cole's recent illness as malaria. A whopping 65 per cent knew Britney Spears shaved her head, and 55 per cent correctly said model Jordan has been married twice. Christopher Lloyd, the author of The What on Earth Wallbook, said: ''There seems to be a lot of confusion when it comes to children and historical events. ''Neil Armstrong would not be happy to learn a plastic action figure is getting the credit for first man to step on the moon. ''Young people have little or no context when it comes to knowledge about the past. "Often they know a great deal about a few topics, but seldom do they have any idea of the big picture - especially when it comes to events of the past that connect the story of human history with evolution and the natural world.u00a0 ''By picking up a book, exploring the UK and learning a bit more about the history which surrounds different towns and cities, children can become much more clued up. ''It's worrying to see so many youngsters are more aware of celeb culture than influential figures, key battles and events that changed the world. ''We hope our timeline will make it clearer for kids and adults to understand what happened between the Big Bang and the current day.''

One in twenty British children believe Christopher Columbus discovered liposuction, not America

Buzz Lightyear was the first man on moon

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Buzz Lightyear was the first man on moon

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