 The plot of the episode is based on the story of Michael Fay , an American teenager who was caned in Singapore in 1994 for vandalizing cars . This episode perpetuated a popular myth that the Coriolis effect affects the motion of drains in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres . In reality , the Coriolis effect affects global weather patterns . The amount of water in a toilet or sink is much too small to be affected by it . 
