Re: Kate's book/ "recessive memes"

From: Bill Spight (bspight@pacbell.net)
Date: Sat 26 Mar 2005 - 00:25:57 GMT

  • Next message: Bill Spight: "Re: Kate's book/ "recessive memes""

    Dear Scott,

    > The earth looks kinda flat to me from my view out my
    > window. If I lived on the beeach and could stare at
    > the horizon for extended periods of time I might say
    > "Hmmm...looks sort of curved...I wonder." When I
    > present my findings to my village they pelt me with
    > rocks and tell me to go live with the squirrels.

    (At least some) ancient Greeks realized that the earth was round because they noticed that they saw the masts of ships approaching port before the hulls. Nice inference, eh? :-)

    They even found a better estimate of the earth's circumference than Columbus did by measuring the difference in the angles of noontime shadows at different latitudes. If Columbus had known the ancient Greek estimate, he might not have set sail for Asia by heading west. Luckily there was another continent in the way. ;-)

    Best,

    Bill

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