These were not people trained in the sciences - generally, only high school teachers used to get subject matter training in any depth, until recently. Anyhow, one topic in this science curriculum was gravity. Now, rotations do relate to forces, but not to gravity, which is not mechanically caused. But, if you haven't had much science, you might still remember that rotations can result in forces, as in a centrifuge. Or, you might remember that some physical phenomena, like the tides, are related to planetary rotation.
Mental representations are a two-edged sword.
The right ones are necessary for acting in the world and for communicating with others to do complex tasks. However, the wrong representation can mess you up. Another example is the role played by mental representations in medicine. Each medical specialty has its own representations. As a result, seeing multiple specialists when you have a complex problem can sometimes be beneficial - one of them may have the right mental representation to support a solution to your problem.