Subject: Re: [HM] Flat earth fallacy
From: John Harper (John.Harper@MCS.VUW.AC.NZ)
Date: Mon Feb 21 2000 - 16:15:41 EST
On Mon, 21 Feb 1994, Vassilis Kyrtatas wrote:
>
> It is not uncommon to read in pre-university student essays that "people
> once believed that the earth is flat" and even that "people who suggested
> otherwise were burnt at the stake". I find this very disturbing.
Even in Greece?! I thought burning at the stake was a Western aberration,
both Catholic and Protestant; did the Orthodox do it too?
> 3. Is it possible that the wisdom of people like Ptolemy, Eratosthenes,
> Aristotle, all of who believed that the Earth is spherical, was lost in
> the Middle Ages?
Not entirely lost. Al-Biruni (973-1048) used spherical geometry correctly
when calculating the direction to Mecca from Afghanistan. His hardest task
must have been finding the longitude difference; he used two methods
agreeing to within a degree or two with each other and with what we now
know to be the correct answer, good enough for his purpose of deciding
what direction to face when praying. I do not know when Europeans became
aware of his work. (Do modern Muslims allow for ellipticity of the
Earth? It would matter near the antipodes of Mecca.)
John Harper, School of Mathematical and Computing Sciences,
Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand
e-mail john.harper@vuw.ac.nz phone (+64)(4)463 5341 fax (+64)(4)463 5045
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