This is an amazing topic for getting scientific misconceptions out in the open. Unfortunately, it does nothing for allaying them. People keep on insisting on ridiculous things like dropping the Earth into the Sun, even though there are far more efficient ways to reduce the whole planet to a featureless, lifeless molten glob. Most of the people who have the capacity to learn from such a thread have already learned and the people left haven't the inclination.

This particular article can't hold a candle to rec.arts.sf.science discussions of the same topic from the early 90's.