Science Misconception Podcast

Science Misconception Podcast

Here, you can download my Podcast series.

The first series is on science misconceptions. These misconceptions are pervasive amongst students and many block students from learning the correct explanation for the concept. The collection will grow so check back frequently. For great videos about science misconceptions, go to http://www.learner.org and view the two series, A Private Universe and Minds of Our Own.

If you have ideas for misconceptions that are not listed here, please email them to MICHAEL HORTON.

Note: If you arrived at this webpage through an internet search, please realize that all of the statements below are FALSE. Do not quote them as being true.

 

46) Combustion reactions are endothermic because it takes energy to get them started
(Remake of a previous podcast, "Burning a candle is endothermic because you have to light it" that had an error in it)
Endothermic.mp3 transcript: Endothermic.doc

45) The Earth's Magnetic north pole is in the north near the geographic North Pole.
MagneticNorth.mp3 transcript: MagneticNorthPole.pdf
Teachers: There are some experiments listed in the podcast to crush this misonception.  Here are some links to the supplies:
Magnetic Globe
Magnetic Globe with Field Probe
N/S Marked Bar Magnets
Magnaprobe

44) Iron compounds are not magnetic and Compounds do not exhibit the properties of the elements that compose them
IronCompounds.mp3 transcript: IronCompoundsAreNotMagnetic.pdf

43) The Earth is a perfect sphere and The Earth is much fatter around the equator
EarthSquashed.mp3 transcript: EarthisSquashed.pdf accompanying PowerPoint: Squashed Earth Misconception.ppt

42) Series of heat and temperature misconceptions
1) Heat rises
2) Hot air rises
3) Atoms get bigger when you heat them up
4) Temperature and heat are the same thing
5) Sweat cools you off in the same way as pouring cold water on you
6) An object at 0 degrees has no heat
7) When you touch a cold object, it transfers some of its coldness to you
8) All ice is 0 degrees Celsius
HeatTemp.mp3 transcript: HeatMisconceptions.pdf

41) Misconceptions related to mirrors and reflection
1) A plane mirror reverses objects from left to right but not top to bottom
2) If you move far enough from a plane mirror, you can see your whole body
MirrorsReflection.mp3 transcript: MirrorReverses.pdf
Teachers: With some 2-sided tape and a small mirror, you can have students do this experiment.  Hang a mirror flat on a wall and have them back up until they can see their whole body (can't do it).
2-Sided Tape Squares
Square Mirror (shatter resistant)

40) Series of respiration misconceptions (edited with mistake corrected)
1) Respiration and breathing are the same things
2) Air is mostly oxygen
3) The air that we exhale has no oxygen in it
4) Plants photosynthesize and animals respire
5) Burning a candle under a glass can prove that air is 20% oxygen
Respiration.mp3 transcript: Respiration.pdf

39) Series of lightning misconceptions
1) Car tires protect you from lightning
2) Rubber-soled shoes protect you from lightning
3) Lightning rods work by attracting lightning strikes
4) Cloud-to-cloud lightning is the most common type
5) Lightning never strikes the same place twice
6) Ground-to-cloud lightning is more common than cloud-to-ground
Lightning.mp3 transcript: Lightning.pdf
Teachers: Van De Graaf and Wimshurst Generators are a great way to demonstrate these concepts.
Hand Crank Van De Graaf
Wimshurst Generator

38) "Lava rocks are magnetic." and "All meteorites are magnetic."
LavaRocksAreMagnetic.mp3 transcript: LavaRocksAreMagnetic.pdf
Teachers: You'll need some non-magnetic lava rocks, meteorites, and a good magnet for these demonstrations.
Non-magnetic scoria
Here are some other non-magnetic igneous rocks.
Non-magnetic obsidian
Non-magnetic pumice

37) "Science says that bumblebees cannot fly."
BumblebeesCannotFly.mp3 transcript: BumbleBeesCannotFly.pdf

36) "Chemicals are either soluble or insoluble" and "Like dissolves like"
Solubility.mp3 transcript: Solubility.pdf

35) "A hydrogen balloon can lift twice as much as a helium balloon because it is half as dense."
HydrogenBalloon.mp3 transcript: HydrogenBalloon.pdf

34) "Carbon-14 (radiocarbon) dating is used to determine the age of dinosaur fossils."
Carbon14Dating.mp3 transcript: Carbon14Dating.pdf
Teachers: You can do some simple radiation experiments with an inexpensive Geiger counter.  Inexpensive counters cannot detect alpha, but they will detect beta, gamma, and x-rays.
Geiger Counter

33) "Mars is red."
MarsisRed.mp3 transcript with links, photos, and more info: MarsIsRed.pdf

32) "The moon is bigger on the horizon because it passes through more atmosphere and is magnified."
MoonHorizon.mp3 transcript: MoonHorizon.pdf

31) "Friction always opposes the direction of motion."
FrictionDirection.mp3 transcript: FrictionDirection.pdf

30) "Infrared and heat are the same thing."
InfraredHeat.mp3 transcript: InfraredisHeat.pdf
Teachers: You can use infrared bulbs (often incorrectly called "Heat Lamps") and infrared thermometers to demonstrate many of these principles.
IR Bulb
IR LED
IR Thermometer
There is also an IR LED in most television remotes.  Although we cannot see the light with our eyes, your cell phone camera can detect it.

29) Big Bang misconceptions including, "All galaxies are moving through space away from us", "The Big Bang occurred at the center of the universe", and "We can see to the edge of the universe."
BigBang.mp3 transcript: BigBang.pdf

28) "There is no gravity in space, that's why the astronauts float around."
NoGravity.mp3 transcript: NoGravityTranscript.pdf

Another blog entry I wrote in response to Neil Degrasse Tyson's comments about the lack of gravity in space: http://motivationalschoolleadership.blogspot.com/2015/06/a-message-to-dr-neil-degrasse-tyson-re.html

27) "Hot peppers are hot and mints are cold." and "All nerves sense pain."
HotPeppers.mp3 Transcript:HotPeppers.pdf

26) "Hair stops growing at a certain length and starts growing again when it is cut." and "Hair grows back thicker after it is cut."
Hair.mp3 Transcript: Hair.pdf

25) "Christmas/Holiday lights are wired in parallel."
ChristmasLights.mp3 Transcript: ChristmasLights.pdf

24) "Ice is slippery because of the pressure of the ice skates." or "You can cut ice in half with a wire because of the pressure."
SlipperyIce.mp3 Transcript: IceSkates.pdf

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Below this line, files are lower quality because I was recording them in the car while driving to my former office in Orange County (not recommended).

23) "Projectiles have zero acceleration at the top of their trajectory."
ProjectileZeroAcc.mp3 transcript: ProjectileZeroAccTranscript.doc

22) "Oxygen rich blood is red, oxygen-deprived blood is blue." BLUEBLOOD.mp3 transcript: BlueBloodTranscript.pdf
Untouched picture of red food coloring looking blue through milk: BlueBlood.JPG

21) "There is a dark side of the moon" DarkSideMoon.mp3 transcript: DarkSideMoonTranscript.pdf

20) "Opposites Attract" Opposites.mp3

19) "The Earth's surface is rough." EarthRough.mp3

18) "Airplanes get their lift from the Bernoulli principle." Bernoulli.mp3

17) "The primary colors are Red, Yellow, and Blue."
PRIMARYCOLORS.mp3 transcript: Primary Colors.doc

16) "40 degrees Celsius is twice as hot as 20 degrees Celsius." 40DEG.mp3

15) "Air friction slows a car down and makes space ships red hot upon re-entry."
AirFrictionCar.mp3 transcript: AirFriction.doc

14) "Atoms get larger when they are heated."
AtomsLarger.mp3

13) "The seasons are caused by the earth being closer to and farther from the sun." and "The Earth's orbit is highly elliptical."
Seasons.mp3 transcript: Seasons.doc
Word document to accompany seasons misconception podcast.

EarthOrbit.doc

12) "The material to make a tree comes from the soil." TreeMass.mp3

11) "Battery acid leaks out of old batteries." BatteryAcid.mp3

10) "Boiling water bubbles are made of a) hydrogen b) oxygen or c) air." BoilingWater.mp3

9) "Fish breathe the oxygen from the H2O (water)" FishBreathe.mp3

8) "I have seen a picture of the Milky Way spiral galaxy." MilkyWay.mp3

7) "Oil and water repel each other."
OilWaterRepel.mp3 transcript: OilAndWater.doc

6) "The oxygen that we breathe comes from the rain forests." OxygenRainForest.mp3

5) "You can cool your house down by opening the refrigerator door." Refrigerator.mp3

4) "Salts and salt solutions have neutral pH." SaltsAreNeutral.mp3

3) "Sound is a transverse wave . . . I've seen it on the computer." SoundTransverse.mp3

2) "Water molecules are wet. Rock molecules are hard." WaterMoleculesWet.mp3

1) "Race cars have wide tires to provide more friction." Friction.mp3

*All of the information on this page belongs to Michael Horton, copyright, 2008 under intellectual property laws. You may use the podcasts and transcripts for your own information, in school classrooms, and you may link to this site from your own. You may not use them for commercial gain, download them and put them on your website, or modify them and play them in public. For permission to do anything else with these files, contact Michael Horton, mhorton@hemetusd.org.