--- title: "This Might Be the Dumbest Vaccine Conspiracy Theory We’ve Ever Seen" description: "A diagram conspiracy theorists claimed to be of a 5G chip that had been inserted into the COVID-19 vaccine turned out to be the schematic of a guitar pedal." date: "2021-01-04" modified: "2021-01-04" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/dumbest-vaccine-conspiracy" categories: - "Developments" - "Health & Medicine" tags: - "conspiracy theories" - "coronavirus" - "covid19" - "vaccine" --- # This Might Be the Dumbest Vaccine Conspiracy Theory We’ve Ever Seen ![A diagram conspiracy theorists claimed to be of a 5G chip that had been inserted into the COVID-19 vaccine turned out to be the schematic of a guitar pedal.]() *\Image: Mario Fusco via Twitter\* Conspiracy theorists in Italy are sharing an image of a circuitry diagram they claim is a 5G chip that has been inserted into the COVID-19 vaccine. Not surprisingly, the [theory is nonsense.]() And as it turns out, as [*Boing Boing* points out](), the diagram is the schematic of a popular electric guitar pedal by music gear maker Boss. So if it were in the vaccine, which it's not, it would absolutely shred. https://twitter.com/mariofusco/status/1343547724013187072 A tweet by open source advocate and Red Hat project lead Mario Fusco first shed light on the extremely dumb theory. "In reality it is the electric circuit of a guitar pedal and I believe that putting it in the COVID vaccine has been an excellent idea," Fusco wrote. "I bet when they found out they were all, 'Wah! Wah!'" Twitter user Craig Cowling [quipped](). It's unclear how widely the image was shared on social media, but the unintentionally hilarious post is symptomatic of a much larger — and more serious — problem. Throughout the pandemic, coronavirus conspiracies and misinformation have circulated widely online. The World Health Organization even [had to create an entire webpage]() dedicated to the most common ones, including phony remedies such as taking a hot bath or eating garlic. The French ministry of health even had to declare in March that "no, cocaine does NOT protect against COVID-19," in [a post]() on Twitter. In case you're wondering, the BOSS Metal Zone MT-2 guitar pedal provides "incredible-sounding distortion pedal" and is "a must-have pedal for any hard rock or metal guitarist," [according to the company](). ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()