Yes, there are a lot of dumb cunts in high school, but that question wasn't necessarily so stupid.
Your teacher could have told everyone something they probably dont realize, like for example the gases in the room that make up the atmosphere are exerting a pressure on everything inside it. This pressure can raise a column of mercury some distance against the force of gravity, and this is the barometric pressure.
Ignorance of biology makes killing babies acceptable too. 'She didn't know she was pregnant for weeks already! Its just a clump of cells!'
The fetal nervous system begins devoloping around 3 weeks after conception, if I remember correctly.