Yes, Flat-Earthers Really Do Exist

wwkirk

Divine
The problem with the use of this image to prove your point is that it is taken with a wide-field, or fish-eye, lens. The edges of the solar panels in the picture are in actuality straight, but if you hold a straight edge up to this image you see that these straight edges evidence a pronounced curvature, thus the curvature of the earth's limb is greatly exaggerated.

View attachment 4501

This opens up a can of worms about the apparent straightness of lines. Although we can readily perceive straight lines in our surroundings, the actual projection of a straight line in three dimensions onto our visual field is curved, except in special circumstances, but the brain compensates for this and we perceive that a straight line is straight. It is also the case with straight lines projected onto photographic images. The image above demonstrates this in an exaggerated form.

Thus, you can show a curved horizon from an altitude which is too low to perceive such an effect:

1.jpg


And if you orientate your camera so that you have sky in the centre of the image and the horizon and ground towards the edge, you can get the horizon to apparently curve the wrong way:

Fisheye-2061.jpg
If you can, please post some photos that definitely establish that the earth is a sphere (or at least curved).
 

michael59

Celestial
If you can, please post some photos that definitely establish that the earth is a sphere (or at least curved).

Forgive me if I sound harsh, wwkirk because I do not mean to, but the fact that no one has ever explored the theory by going to all four corners and reporting back that it not round, is proof enough for me that it is round.

What about the guy who traveled around the earth in a hot air balloon?
 

wwkirk

Divine
Forgive me if I sound harsh, wwkirk because I do not mean to, but the fact that no one has ever explored the theory by going to all four corners and reporting back that it is not round, is proof enough for me that it is round.

What about the guy who traveled around the earth in a hot air balloon?
I definitely believe the earth is a sphere, but AD1184 said the photos posted earlier aren't proof.
I'm sure he too knows the earth to be a sphere.
I just want some conclusive photos to be posted.
 

AD1184

Celestial
I definitely believe the earth is a sphere, but AD1184 said the photos posted earlier aren't proof.
I'm sure he too knows the earth to be a sphere.
I just want some conclusive photos to be posted.
There were hundreds of photographs taken of the earth on the Apollo missions well outside of low orbit which show the earth to be a ball:
767px-The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg

apollo-11-image-gallery-apollo-11-earthrise.jpg

I think a necessary part of a flat-earth belief, to anyone who holds such a thing, is that all such evidence is faked, so showing them photographs won't achieve much.
 

michael59

Celestial
There were hundreds of photographs taken of the earth on the Apollo missions well outside of low orbit which show the earth to be a ball:
767px-The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg

apollo-11-image-gallery-apollo-11-earthrise.jpg

I think a necessary part of a flat-earth belief, to anyone who holds such a thing, is that all such evidence is faked, so showing them photographs won't achieve much.

Okay, how can they possibly dispute the fact that there are billions and billions of people and we have a tendency to spread out like a virus. Yet none of us has reached the edges or ends of the flat earth. lol

I just don't understand how they can hold on to such a thinly veiled theory. It's bonkers.
 

AD1184

Celestial
There is no epoch in the history of civilization when learned people have ever thought the earth to be flat. Simple observations (such as the existence of a horizon) demonstrated it was round and Eratosthenes' famous experiment in antiquity showed just how round it was. Before space flight and before aeroplanes, modern science had mapped the shape of the earth in exact quantitative detail, and the methods were never a secret and 'the powers that be' do not know enough science to deceive us about this thing.

There are simple observations you can make of your own if you have travelled a long distance on an aeroplane that those living thousands of years ago did not have the luxury of making. For one, the length of the day can change rapidly. I occasionally travel to a point significantly to the south of where I am. If I make this trip between the spring and autumn equinoxes, the day shortens when I get there, and lengthens when I get back. If I make the journey between the autumn and spring equinoxes, the day lengthens when I get there, and shortens when I get back.

If you telephone someone you trust a long distance east or west from you, the time of day will be different where they are. You can ask them. If you and someone you know are in temperate regions in opposite hemispheres, you could ask them at midwinter, or at midsummer, what the weather and length of the day are like where they are and how it compares to the rest of the year.

I do not suppose that anyone who holds a flat-earth belief is clever enough to be a pilot, but if on the off-chance you are, you will find that attempting to navigate the shortest distance between two points as on any cylindrically projected map will not work (i.e. attempting to fly a straight line on the map) and will take you longer. You need to move along a great circle, which is curved on any cylindrically projected map, unless it is along a line of longitude. This would also be the same for travelling across oceans, but again it is unlikely that a flat-earther would ever be licenced to be in charge of a watercraft larger than a rubber dinghy.
 
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Standingstones

Celestial
Okay, how can they possibly dispute the fact that there are billions and billions of people and we have a tendency to spread out like a virus. Yet none of us has reached the edges or ends of the flat earth. lol

I just don't understand how they can hold on to such a thinly veiled theory. It's bonkers.
As the saying goes: “You can’t fix dumb.”
 

AD1184

Celestial
I just don't understand how they can hold on to such a thinly veiled theory. It's bonkers.
Well, I am the one who is arguing that these people do not exist in significant numbers.

They would have to have an enormous deficit of intelligence. Or else be completely incurious about the world, unreasoning, uncontemplative and utterly gullible--a combination of traits that even with modern educational standards which would be difficult to achieve.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Well, I am the one who is arguing that these people do not exist in significant numbers.

They would have to have an enormous deficit of intelligence. Or else be completely incurious about the world, unreasoning, uncontemplative and utterly gullible--a combination of traits that even with modern educational standards which would be difficult to achieve.

The flat earth society has a history, and membership base...

History of the Flat Earth Society

The modern age of the Flat Earth Society dates back to the early 1800s, when it was founded by Samuel Birley Rowbotham, an English inventor. Samuel Rowbotham's Flat Earth views were based largely on literal interpretation of Bible passages. His system, called Zetetic Astronomy, held that the earth is a flat disk centered at the North Pole and bounded along its 'southern' edge by a wall of ice, with the sun, moon, planets, and stars only a few hundred miles above the surface of the earth. After Rowbotham's death in 1884, followers of his Zetetic Astronomy founded the Universal Zetetic Society.

Flat Earth theory spread to the United States, largely in the town of Zion, Illinois where Christian Catholic Apostolic Church founder John Alexander Dowie and later Wilbur Glenn Voliva promoted Flat Earth theory. Voliva died in 1942 and the church quickly disintegrated. Flat Earthism remained in Zion, gradually becoming less popular into the 1950s.

The International Flat Earth Society was formally founded in 1956 by Samuel Shenton, a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and the Royal Geographic Society. Shenton died in 1971 and Charles K. Johnson became president of the International Flat Earth Society. Johnson actively and charistmatically promoted the Society and, over time, its membership increased to over 3,000. His wife Marjory took an active role in the Society as well, often contributing articles to the Flat Earth Society Newsletter.

In 1995, a fire destroyed the Johnson's home as well as all of the Flat Earth Society's library, archives and membership lists. Following a long period of poor health, Charles K. Johnson's wife Marjory Johnson passed away in 1996. He vowed to rebuild the society. Sadly, Charles K. Johnson passed away in 2001 at the age of 76, leaving the Society's future uncertain.

After several years of inactivity, the Flat Earth Society was resurrected in 2004 and remains active today at theflatearthsociety.org. The Society officially reopened to new members on 30th October 2009.

...
 

nivek

As Above So Below
His system, called Zetetic Astronomy, held that the earth is a flat disk centered at the North Pole and bounded along its 'southern' edge by a wall of ice, with the sun, moon, planets, and stars only a few hundred miles above the surface of the earth.

Isn't this one of the most insane concepts in modern history?...Has any ship ran into this wall of ice yet?...

...
 

wwkirk

Divine
Flat Earthers Now Think The Earth Is Shaped Like A Doughnut
donutearth1.jpg

A Flat Earther (well, an ex-Flat Earther) now thinks the Earth is actually shaped like a doughnut.

"Not comfortable with the idea of our home looking like a vinyl record, Flat Earth Society member Varuag, has posed the possibility of the planet actually being more of a Krispy Kreme.

"‘I was wondering how a theory like FE theory gets formed, and I came to the conclusion that someone must’ve thought of the original idea,’ they wrote. ‘And then it must’ve been followed by a long series of people pointing out flaws and then re-adjusting the theory (or thinking of new ideas) to iron out the flaws in the theory.’

"They stated their theory, and then invited fellow members to point out flaws and to see ‘if we can think of arguments that will counteract these flaws.’"

 

APIGuy

Independent Field Investigator
Well, I am the one who is arguing that these people do not exist in significant numbers.

They would have to have an enormous deficit of intelligence. Or else be completely incurious about the world, unreasoning, uncontemplative and utterly gullible--a combination of traits that even with modern educational standards which would be difficult to achieve.

Ross and Carrie did an interesting series on the FE types. They are a small minority, but it's more about being delusional than stupid.
 

APIGuy

Independent Field Investigator
There were hundreds of photographs taken of the earth on the Apollo missions well outside of low orbit which show the earth to be a ball:

I think a necessary part of a flat-earth belief, to anyone who holds such a thing, is that all such evidence is faked, so showing them photographs won't achieve much.

Actually, scores of space mission have taken pictures showing the Earth to be a ball, without contradiction. The GOES weather satellites take many such images every day, and the first of those was launched in 1974. Other countries have similar satellites. DSCOVR took hundreds (maybe thousands?) of such pictures from about a million miles away. All the Earth flyby missions took pictures of a round globe. I was involved in the pictures NEAR took as it flew by the Earth in 1998.

I think many of the FE people do not appreciate the sheer volume of evidence, all of which has to be hoaxed, fooling lots of very sophisticated people (or they're all in on it).

 

nivek

As Above So Below
Video: Flat Earth Fans Flock to Colorado for Annual Conference - Coast to Coast AM

(Video on the link page)

Flat Earth enthusiasts from around the, in their eyes, questionably-shaped globe are descending upon Aurora, Colorado this weekend for a massive gathering devoted to the controversial conspiracy theory. The 2nd annual Flat Earth International Conference comes on the heels of a wildly successful inaugural event held last November in North Carolina as well as subsequent similar confabs in Canada and England earlier this year.

Fears that the sequel would pale in comparison to the first event appear to be unfounded as the festivities in Aurora are reportedly expected to draw more than 800 people. This would be a significant increase in attendance compared to last year's event which sold a still-impressive 525 tickets. As is the case with most paranormal or conspiracy-themed conventions, one of the big allures of the gathering is that 'fellow travelers' can share their ideas without the fear of being ridiculed.

Alongside an array of speakers discussing their research as well as, no doubt, vendors selling all manner of Flat Earth swag, one of the highlights of the conference looks to be an appearance by "Mad" Mike Hughes, who launched himself in a homemade rocket back in March in an attempt to prove that the Earth is not round. The stunt transformed the daredevil into something of a celebrity in the Flat Earth community and fans of the daredevil will be able to see the steam-powered craft he created for his headline-making mission.

.
 

APIGuy

Independent Field Investigator
Video: Flat Earth Fans Flock to Colorado for Annual Conference - Coast to Coast AM

(Video on the link page)

Flat Earth enthusiasts from around the, in their eyes, questionably-shaped globe are descending upon Aurora, Colorado this weekend for a massive gathering devoted to the controversial conspiracy theory. The 2nd annual Flat Earth International Conference comes on the heels of a wildly successful inaugural event held last November in North Carolina as well as subsequent similar confabs in Canada and England earlier this year.

They're coming from all around the globe!
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
Flat Earthers Now Think The Earth Is Shaped Like A Doughnut
donutearth1.jpg

A Flat Earther (well, an ex-Flat Earther) now thinks the Earth is actually shaped like a doughnut.

"Not comfortable with the idea of our home looking like a vinyl record, Flat Earth Society member Varuag, has posed the possibility of the planet actually being more of a Krispy Kreme.

"‘I was wondering how a theory like FE theory gets formed, and I came to the conclusion that someone must’ve thought of the original idea,’ they wrote. ‘And then it must’ve been followed by a long series of people pointing out flaws and then re-adjusting the theory (or thinking of new ideas) to iron out the flaws in the theory.’

"They stated their theory, and then invited fellow members to point out flaws and to see ‘if we can think of arguments that will counteract these flaws.’"



Cool. I love doughtnuts
 
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