Robert Cockcroft
LIPS, Notre Dame
Tuesday, 7th August 2012
Outline
“Our brains help us to survive, not to comprehend the
cosmos.” – N. Comins, Heavenly Errors (2001)
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Origins
Why we develop them
How to avoid in the future
How to get rid of old ones (the hard part)
 Interactivities:
 What is a misconception?
 Common misconceptions
 How to avoid them in the future
What is a misconception?
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Definition:
Broader misunderstanding
Might not know that you’re wrong
Cognitive error
Not understanding a concept or structure
There is a correct conception – you haven’t got it
Could be a logical conclusion, but based on bad facts
Not understanding what you’re seeing
Incorrect mental map so can’t properly interpret
Applying cause and effect to something that you can’t
Might not be based on factual error – just conceptual
Misconceptions might change over time
Mistaken model – something you have no experience with
Knowledge is quite relative
What is a misconception?
 The difference between scientific reality and
perception (AND/OR BELIEF)
 They can scale from incorrect fact to deep-seated,
long-held framework
 E.g., “prior beliefs” have less negative connotations
and are less likely to make people defensive
Origins (1 of 2)
 Taught/Learned/Memorized incorrectly
 Misinterpreted, reasoning is faulty
 Sci-fi misrepresentations
 Cartoons
 Pop culture
 Transferring everyday occurrences to the cosmos
 Missing information
 Inaccurate/incorrect observations
Origins (2 of 2)
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Words themselves
Poor memory
Common sense
Media AND SOCIAL MEDIA
Overgeneralizations
Permanence
Emotional ties to beliefs
Some math may be required
DISCRETE DISTINCTIONS IN TEACHING CAN EXASCERBATE MISCONCEPTIONS
SIMPLIFICATIONS OF INITIAL TEACHING CAN CAUSE PROBLEMS LATER ON
DYNAMIC NATURE OF SCIENCE – OUR KNOWLEDGE IS EVOLVING
SUSPICIOUS OF SCIENCE, STUBBORNLY HOLD TO BELIEFS
INABILITY TO UNDERSTAND MICRO/MACRO SCALES – WE THINK EVERYTHING IS
HUMAN-ORIENTED
Misconceptions can propagate
Common Misconceptions from
McCallion Planetarium Audiences
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Seasons (due to axial tilt not closeness to the Sun)
The planetarium is not an observatory (the dome will not open)
The planetarium is not a live feed, but rather a computer simulation
We project on a 2D surface, but the objects have distances (i.e., it's all
3D)
Eclipses - the difference between solar and lunar
BHs don't “suck”
We can't see the Moon during the day
Why is the sky blue? Not because of water reflection
Astrology (and horoscopes/zodiac signs) vs. astronomy
Conspiracy theories (Moon landing, aliens)
How to engage Christian groups (e.g., requests not to mention
evolution or the age of the Universe, "only Jesus can escape from
BHs")
Common Misconceptions
In your experience:
 Astronauts on Mars
 Earth is the only place with gravity – there is no gravity in space
 Space is empty
 Scale of the Universe
 Moon phases
 Everything has an atmosphere
 Planet X – so many potentials
 Doomsday
 Magnetic fields flip
 Floating in space
 BHs as a passage to another place
 Maximum distance of manned flight
 Planets shine by their own light (JAAP: big problem in the Netherlands’ exam
writers)
 Planets are bigger than stars
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Polaris is the brightest star
Moon phases caused by Earth’s shadow
Sky turns exactly once
We just take space shuttle to the Moon
People are on ALL spacecraft
Space is far away
Daily vs. weekly/monthly/annual motion
Show me the Star of Bethlehem
Sun causing global warming
Buying/naming stars
We have two Suns (the other one is Nemesis)
Mars is as big as the full Moon
Magical planetary alignments
Planetary alignments are common
50 Most Common Misconceptions
According to N. Comins:
1. Pluto is always the farthest planet from the Sun.
2. Stars really twinkle.
3. The Sun primarily emits yellow light.
4. There are twelve zodiac constellations.
5. The constellations are only the stars making the patterns.
6. Saturn is the only planet with rings.
7. Seasons depend on the distance between the Earth and the Sun.
8. Polaris, the North Star, is the brightest star in the night sky.
9. The asteroid belt is densely packed, as in Star Wars.
10. Giant planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) have solid surfaces.
11. We see all sides of the Moon from the Earth.
12. Black holes are huge vacuum cleaners in space, sucking everything in.
13. All planets have prograde rotation (they spin in the same direction as they orbit the
Sun).
14. The only function of a telescope is to magnify.
15. A shooting star is actually a star falling through the sky.
16. Comet tails are always behind the comet.
17. Black holes last forever.
50 Most Common Misconceptions
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All moons are spherical.
Only the Moon causes tides.
Ours is the only moon.
The Sun is a unique object, not a star.
Pulsars are pulsating stars.
Spring tide only occurs in the spring.
Saturn's rings are solid.
The Sun will last forever.
The Sun shines by burning gas or from molten lava.
There is a permanently dark side of the Moon.
Black holes are empty space or holes in space.
The Sun doesn't rotate.
The Sun is solid.
All stars are yellow.
The Moon is not changing distance from the Earth.
Stars last forever.
There are many stars in the Solar System.
50 Most Common Misconceptions
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The Sun always rises directly in the east.
Meteors, meteorites, meteoroids, asteroids, and comets are all the same
things.
The Galaxy, the Solar System, and the Universe are all the same thing.
The Big Dipper is a constellation.
Mercury is hot everywhere on its surface.
Gravity is the strongest force in the universe.
Once the ozone is gone, it's gone forever.
There are only a few galaxies in the universe.
The universe is static or unchanging.
The center of the Moon's core is at its geometric center.
Jupiter's Great Red Spot is some kind of surface feature.
All planetary orbits are circular.
High tide only occurs between the Earth and the Moon.
Comets are burning and giving off gas as their tails.
The Earth is at the center of the Universe.
All galaxies are spiral-shaped.
How to get rid of the old ones
… and how to avoid them in the future:
 Facts!
 Training teachers to teach science
 Show people! (e.g., Moon in the day time)
 “Tell me what you see” – make them notice, everyone is an observer (e.g., Griffith’s
observatory in LA)
 Media should have science consultant
 Engaging visitors beyond one visit to planetarium (e.g., extend q+a period… or?)
 Examining a prior belief, and leading them to an answer
 Focus on inquiry learning
 Giving an example of how scientists change their paradigm when given new facts
 Get them to acknowledge that learning is changing yourself
 Different “Realms” (e.g., religion and science)
 Correct social media incorrectness
 Scalable: facts (just correct) vs. beliefs (get them to acknowledge it!)
 Be aware of over-arching misconceptions surrounding science (e.g., scientific process,
science has all the answers, it’s ongoing
How to get rid of the old ones
 Facing the reality that some of our knowledge is wrong,
and identifying the incorrect beliefs (discovery vs.
confrontational)
 N. Comins
 “The sage on stage” or “The guide by your side”
 Introduces himself at the start of the semester to his class,
and let’s them know that roughly 10% of what they learn will
be incorrect
 Show them
 Reason with them
 Test with observations
How to avoid them in the future
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Maintain healthy skepticism
Be sure of your sources
Check with other reliable sources
Verify things for yourself
Acceptance of errors
Consensus of experts’ opinions (in the experts’ field)
Traditions and traditional beliefs are insufficient justification
Consider the arguments rather than the person delivering the information
Occam’s razor for two competing theories
Question assumptions
Check the logic
Be wary of common sense and intuition when applied to science
Be careful of patterns, overgeneralization, and extending analogies
Develop intellectual humility (e.g., avoid starting with “as you know…”)
Keep an open mind – but not so much that your brain falls out
Don’t let egos get in the way
Yes! And…
DINNER