Yes, really. Early 2017 I was watching short science related YouTube videos and I stumbled across a video that was titled something to the effect of: proof the earth is flat.
So I chuckled and then I bit... I thought it was a joke, you know... There are all kinds of joke videos YouTube. But the tone was off. At the end of the video I was like..." Wtf? " this can't be real.
So I found more. And it turns out that people actually believe it. In 2017. I was incredulous.
Then, yesterday, one of my atheist friends got a strange email that he shared with me. It was from a flat earther. So I thought, just for fun, I'd bring the topic to the AR community and we could destroy it. More as a light hearted thing and for laughs.
So destroy as you will... Or not if its of no interest to you.
I'll start by sending a link to one of these ridiculous videos so, in case you're not familiar, you know exactly what they believe.
(Warning: this video contains levels of bullshit known to cause adverse effects such as uncontrolled cursing, hard face palming and, in some, a loss of IQ points.)
Don't say I didn't warn you.
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What's wrong with these people? You can see the curvature of the horizon if you have a wide enough field of vision. You can certainly see it quite clearly from a jet at 10,000 meters.
In 1965, I traveled from England to New Zealand by sea via the Panama Canal. That's about half the circumference of the Earth. We traveled roughly southwest at a rate of about 600 kilometers a day. However far we traveled, the horizon was always the same distance away. Every time we approached land, we saw it rise little by little from the horizon. Never once did we see a landmass already above the horizon that simply got bigger as we approached. It always appeared from the top down. Are these flat-earthers aware that the constellations in the southern sky are completely different. You can't see the Southern Cross from London or New York.
I'm pleased to report that we did not fall off the edge of the Earth. I have since traveled from New Zealand to England several times in both westerly and easterly directions. That would not be possible on a flat Earth.
I don't know why I'm arguing with these idiots.
It's mind boggling, I know... Lol
If the Earth is flat why hasn't anyone ever discovered the edge? And what the heck is on the other side?
It is said the the "edge" is policed, some say by aliens and others by a conspiracy of world powers. If you reach or see the edge then you re captured, your mind is "cleansed" and you are returned to society.
I had an interesting FB post the other day from the flat earthers some of whom have decided, as Australia is a problem for the true believer, that Australia does not exist. Further that all Australians are imposters or "edgers" that have been captured and re-educated. The whole Australia myth is to make the round earth lie work for the masses.
The myth of Australia is to cover up a massacre of 162,000 people from the 1740's to the 1850s.
There ya go. Makes perfect sense now doesnt it?
@Old man shouts: "Australia does not exist."
Well Perth and Brisbane seem pretty real, but I find Sydney very hard to believe. And Canberra seems to be located about 500km away on the Moon.
@Algebe
I find Queensland very hard to believe.
Sydney of course is all funnel webs, chinese real estate agents and bent cops extracting bribes from each other. In NSW Wagga Wagga ( So good they named it twice) is where everyone is true blue ( like the smurfs) and Holiday in New England where they worship at the throne of Saint Barnabas the Condomless.
Nah Canberra is a place in another dimension/alternative universe where the expense accounts are made of gold, the food is free and christianity is the only religion to be true.
Where for some everyone owns a fish shop, data is flexible and Truth is a stranger you never ask to stay.
Melbourne was a great place until Dutnuts spoiled it by importing millions of Africans to stop you going to restaurants.
South Australia now has electricity thanks to Elon Musk.
Taswegia doesn't, it has the Abetzatroll.You know the nazi monster in the closet that eats gays.
The Northern Territory sold itself to China and must be discounted as part of the mythical Australia, a bit like selling the Brooklyn Bridge to the Saudis.
Western Australia cannot possibly exist. Beautiful beaches, sunshine 24/7, the loveliest girls in the world, its a mirage and you cannot leave once you stay. ( that could be because the trains stop running at 4pm)
No wonder the flat earthers decided we were a myth..
@Old man... "I find Queensland very hard to believe."
Me too. And I'm living in it. On clear days I look wistfully across the perfectly flat Tasman Sea and gaze fondly at New Zealand's homely mountains just 2,000 kilometers away. When we bought a beachside apartment, the realtor's blurb said we'd be able to see Wales from our balcony, through the New York skyline obscures most of it.
That's pretty funny. Thanks for the laugh Algebe.
Old man shouts ...,
When you look at the moon from Australia is it in the North or in the South?
I don't know, I am too busy trying to find Uranus.
Old man shouts ...,
The reason I asked is that in the Northern Hemisphere you can tell directions at night if the moon is visible. The moon is always to the South and it moves East to West. As a resident of Down Yonder I thought you might have seen the moon at least once in your lifetime from that vantage point.
Got that; I was being facetious...I very upsetting habit of mine. But one I enjoy.
Current Time: Jan 8, 2018 at 6:57:07 pm
Moon Direction: ↑ 153.84° SSE
Moon Altitude: -54.82°
Moon Distance: 240200 mi
Next New Moon: Jan 17, 201810:17 am
Next Full Moon: Jan 31, 20189:26 pm
Next Moonrise: Tomorrow12:02 am
How is that? Also...did we give the Poms a drubbing or what?
Old man shouts ...,
So the moon is to the South from your vantage point? Since the Sun and the moon are always to the South a person should always be able to determine his general directions in the wilds. Moses and his group must have been blind wandering around lost for 40 years.
"Moses and his group must have been blind wandering around lost for 40 years." Oh yes, a bit like Joe Root and his followers ( For our American friends that is the Captain and team of English Cricket)
The Edge Bar and Grill would be an absolute " must see" tourist attraction - yet we don't even see t-shirts or bumper stickers.
That alone ought to be enough proof for the clueless sods.
Re: The Edge Bar and Grill
Great news, everybody! I have found one edge of the earth. It is located in Florence, SC. There is an Edge Bar and Grill located there! I'm gonna send off for a t-shirt! Here is a review of the place....
"1 review of The Edge Bar & Grill "Dingy bar in a sketchy hotel. It was dirty inside. Look at the ceiling vents they are caked with like hanging dust and dirt. Sticky menu and bar. I had a beer and left. I love animals but there were mangy cats…"
Maybe those Flat Earthers could be on to something. Hmmmm.....
No, you are a heathen Tin man!
We have the True™ Edge Bar & Grill here in Chicago!
Now I can see Flateartherism dividing into denominations, just like any good religion would.
@Lost Re: Edge Bar & Grill in Chicago
Say WHAAAAAAT??? So, am I to understand that one edge of the Earth is on the east coast of the U.S., while another edge of the Earth is near the northern borders of the U.S.??? I'm truly perplexed now. Wait, though.... Are we talking about the Earth being a "circular" flat, or is it maybe square, or a triangle, or maybe hexagonal, or some other shape? I mean, exactly how many edges are there? One thing I know for sure, though, is that I won't be going sailing off the coast of the Carolinas any time soon.
As I work within an astronomical/physics based industry, I have come across these people a few time.
in fact, one I talk to on a frequent basis, he isn't a die hard flat earther but follows it and says the lines such as "i'm just keeping my mind open", "science doesn't know everything!" and so on.
I like just throwing him(them) little questions at times such as if you say live in the UK, according to their model it takes 12hrs for the sun to go clockwise around to cape town (going on the premise they believe in 24 hours in a day lol), but in reality the time difference between cape town and London is 2hrs.
it is a ridiculous notion, and anyone who believe in it or a young earth, or that there are no planets (yes this is another line of 'thought' for some of them, really need to be re-educated and kept away from influencing people.
The next thing you'll know is that people will say that the stars aren't little specks of light. Everyone should know by now that they will all fall to the Earth. I read it in a book.
They also say the sun and moon both produce their own light and that they are both about 3000 miles away at 32 miles in diameter. Well shouldn't we see the sun all day and night? No they say... It gets too far away... Light... Too far away to see. They literally have to change all the physics we know and reject every bit of most science in general. Gravity isn't real they say. Well, fuck me running. That changes this a little, doesn't it.
It goes on and on.
https://youtu.be/p7lDq4dOlIk
I shit you not. You will scream and tear your eyes out if you watch this, but here it is in case you're brave. This whole video is so ignorant you might think you're watching Ray Comfort....
By the way I have seen many... So in case I ever meet a flat earther I can be sure of their exact beliefs and tear them a new asshole accordingly.
@Apost Re: Flat Earth video
Ooooooowwwww....!!!
Obviously, none of those guys have ever done any land navigation (using an old-fashioned map and compass), nor have they ever had any flight training. Having done quite a bit of both over the years, watching that video was that much more painful for me. I'm gonna go curl up in the corner with my blankie now and cry myself to sleep.
perhaps the person who think the earth is flat haven't traveled around that much.when i was a kid i never thought that earth would be flat, i thought of it as a cube, or triangular, like in the bottom of Bermuda triangle has.
Ouch, my brain feels like all the IQ has been sucked out watching that video.
But despite the pain, I forced myself to watch to the end. Many of the author's comments are full of holes. Here are some counter-points.
We believe that the earth is round because we have been exposed to that idea since we were young. This also applies to religion, many of us were exposed to it from an early age, and conditioned to believe it. But as we have proven, critical examination has allowed us to change our minds. So we can change our minds if presented with logical and sane arguments.
Water appears flat to us because the earth is very large, and it is near impossible to discern while on the surface. And of course, flat earthers claim that anything else is photoshopped. Every picture from space, be it USA, Russia, or China all show the same conspiracy? Heck, we can't get these three nations to co-operate on anything.
NASA says we can't go beyond low earth orbit ... are you kidding me, we have walked on the moon, and satellite probes have traveled beyond the outer limits of the solar system. Oh wait, we haven't, it's all a conspiracy.
The pictures showing (for example Toronto) only show the tops of the buildings, and we see nothing of the much lower structures. That is actually proof of curvature.
As far as the Michelson-Morley experiment, this is how science works. Theories are tested, results may point us in another direction so we may refine our knowledge. Almost all theories are subject to revision as new data challenges or supplements it. This representation (by the author of the video) is completely twisted around. It proved a lot and pointed us in the right direction in research. It did not force Einstein to create another theory, it just gave us new data and showed what directions to pursue.
When they use the formula for calculating curvature they never consider the height of the observer. The formula is for an observer of height 0 elevation 0. So every time they give you a distance it's probably wrong. Plus when they show stuff they just tell you how far away it is... How do we know?
Btw, kudos for watching that whole video... It's rough. Lol
Had you never heard of the Flat Earth Society?
https://www.tfes.org/
It's no less idiotic than believing humans were created in an instant in their current form roughly 6000 years ago. So yeah it's deeply moronic stuff, but as Einstein said "Two things are infinite, the universe, and human stupidity, and I am unsure about the universe."
If you want moronic AB just said I was being insensitive to the rights of children for calling a blastocyst a collection of cells, you couldn't make it up.
@Sheldon. Re: AB/blastocyst
Well, when you consider that AB really isn't much more than a blastocyst himself (based on his repeated nonsensical babblings and his seemingly total lack of higher cognitive functions), I guess one could say he is simply trying to fend for his own. *scratching chin*
Interesting for me, that this should come up now.
I totally agree with everyone here, that this just sounds ludicrous. So I was quite surprised recently when a young friend of mine {a very sharp, no bullshit kind if guy... a computer guru, and actually, my website builder} told me he thought this flat Earth thing could be true !
I was like, wait, wtf ?
Of course I started hitting him with all the questions you guys brought up. He had straight up answers for most of these questions, and referred me to a website which explained a lot of other things.
I'm not saying I now believe the Earth is flat..... Any sooner than believing in a supreme being in the sky... But I am always striving to be completely open minded.
If these flat earthers want to change my mind, ok, let's hear it.
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