Poll: If you were holding a pen on the moon…

by Laurie Ashton on Wednesday, 6 May 2009 · 0 comments

in Geekery,Weird Stuff

This is based on an interesting bit I read on a university site. Don’t read the article or the rest of this blog entry until you’ve voted in the polls. No cheating! :)

If you're standing on the moon and let a pen go, it will:

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When the Apollo astronauts were on the Moon, they did not fall off because:

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You’ve answered both polls? Great! Now read the article. Please also note that both of my polls are straight out of the article, which, by all appearances, was written by Steve Dettweiler, professor of physics at the University of Florida.

Basically, there seems to be a fundamental flaw in how some people regard gravity on the moon. There seems to be a major disconnect between basic (to me, anyway) physics as taught in, what, junior high school and how it applies in actual situations.

If only 47% of the adult population understands that the moon has its own gravity, how does this affect you? Not just specifically about the moon’s gravity, but about misconceptions and misunderstandings and other forms of disconnect.

If you’re a reader, how does this affect you? If you’re reading something that’s factually incorrect, how do you respond?

As a writer, how does this affect you? Does it change how you write? Does it change how you present certain ideas? Can you use this kind of disconnect to your advantage?

Do you see this sort of disconnect in other areas, or is it confined to science?

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