... on Flat Earth Theories

Flat Earth Conspiracy: The Surprising Truth
America Uncovered | 15.XII.2018
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GP0zYqoMwk

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"Being five centuries regressed in your reasoning" (Quoting the tweet of Neil deGrasse Tyson)

Proof of complete sphericity (not curved like a chapati pan or yarmulke, but a complete sphere or at least reasonably close to, unless there was a hole down south which hasn't shown up) - Magellan.

Proof of curve and suspicion of complete sphericity - since Eratosthenes and Aristotle (who also had a pseudo-Magellan, but this was soon revealed to be wrong).

Magellan is arguably about 500 years ago:

"Ferdinand Magellan (/məˈɡɛlən/[1] or /məˈdʒɛlən/;[2] Portuguese: Fernão de Magalhães, IPA: [fɨɾˈnɐ̃w dɨ mɐɣɐˈʎɐ̃jʃ]; Spanish: Fernando de Magallanes, IPA: [feɾˈnando ðe maɣaˈʎanes]; c. 1480 – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer who organised the Spanish expedition to the East Indies from 1519 to 1522, resulting in the first circumnavigation of the Earth, completed by Juan Sebastián Elcano."

Eratosthenes who gave a near correct angle of curvature is quite a bit older:

"Eratosthenes of Cyrene (/ɛrəˈtɒsθəniːz/; Greek: Ἐρατοσθένης ὁ Κυρηναῖος, IPA: [eratostʰénɛːs]; c. 276 BC[1] – c. 195/194 BC[2]) was a Greek mathematician, geographer, poet, astronomer, and music theorist. He was a man of learning, becoming the chief librarian at the Library of Alexandria. He invented the discipline of geography, including the terminology used today.[3]"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_Magellan

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eratosthenes

As the rapper said "where is the curve" it is more like 22 centuries ago.

I disagree with a terminology like "regressed in one's reasoning" since it illicitly compares the civilisation one enjoys and its development over time with individual age development.

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3:36 Without Magellan, I might explain lunar eclipses like very traditional Hindoos, if I weren't a Latin Rite Catholic Christian as I am and therefore biassed for Round Earth.

Flat Earth is more Nestorian or Jewish or Muslim, I'd say ...

But the Hindoos do account for eclipses by claiming "Rahoo" is a planet usually hidden below the ultimate horizon and sometimes going forth to instead hide Sun or Moon.

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4:27 Thank you very much.

I agree that it is bad to use Flat Earth as a bat to beat all other non-mainstream theories with.

One way to combat this, is of course to destigmatise Flat Earth.

It's incorrect, I wouldn't go for it, but it certainly is not "regressed reasoning" as Tyson put it (even if he said 5 centuries rather than age 5, appreciated measure in expression).

Bonus for Flat Earthers, how many corners does Australia count for?



I think it's more reasonable to count Australia as one corner if any at all, if Singapore isn't the real SE corner, which is easier to find on a globe.