Raindrop Misconception Essay, Research Paper

Common Raindrop Misconceptions

 Raindrops look like teardrops when they fall

 Gravity pulls the base of the water drop faster than the top

 All raindrops are the same shape

Raindrops look like teardrops when they fall.

This is a common misconception for children and adults because of the common artistic representation of rain being in the form of teardrops. Due to this explanation, this misconception would be classified as episodic personal information. This misconception could also be classified as a cultural personal misconception because the artistic representation is a part of our popular culture.

Gravity pulls the base of the water drop faster than the top.

This is an example of perceptual personal knowledge. Children that have a grasp of gravity, understand that gravity is a force that acts on or against objects. They may take this understanding and apply it to a falling drop of water and assume that the bottom of the drop is affected more so than the top.

All raindrops are the same shape.

This misconception is very similar to the first. People are led to believe that raindrops all fall in the same shape because of the way they are artistically represented. Therefore, this too is categorized as episodic and cultural personal information.