In 1610, Galileo published Sidereus Nuncius, the Starry Messenger, about discoveries he made with his new telescope. He was attacked for his theory because it seemed to contradict Scripture and what the Church told people to believe if they wanted to get into heaven. Because of this, in 1633, Galileo was tried and convicted of heresy.
Have you heard of the Flat Earth Society?
Fifteen hundred years prior to Galileo’s discovery that the earth was round and orbited the sun, there is evidence that Chinese mathematicians had calculated the size of the earth on the basis that it must have been spherical (round). However, similar to what happened to Galileo, the Chinese people would continue to believe the earth was flat for centuries. It’s possible that when Qin Shi Huangdi (259 – 210 BC), China’s first emperor, had the great book burning, he burned the evidence of earlier Chinese mathematical texts.
In addition, older Chinese creation myths included details that accounted for the tilt of the earth and other astronomical facts. Several existing, ancient Chinese applied mathematics texts prove the Chinese were the first to use some of the most basic and advanced mathematical principles and concepts utilized in modern times. Two of these texts are the Chou Pei and Chiu Chang (these texts date from the period of the Zhou Dynasty from 1046—256 BCE).
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Lloyd Lofthouse is the award-winning author of My Splendid Concubine [3rd edition]. When you love a Chinese woman, you marry her family and culture too. This is the love story Sir Robert Hart did not want the world to discover.
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Eventually, the earth will be flat again after civilization goes down the drain once again due to man’s folly and superstition and ignorance returns.
History reveals that the odds of this happening say you are probably right.
And, by coincidence, one of those old dead Greek mathematicians in Alexandria (Egypt not Virginia) also made the same discovery about 200 BCE. Some of our ancient friends appear to have been better educated than some of our present politicians, pundits and billionaire oligarchs.
Yea, it seems that leaders of all types always get in the way and work hard to promote fear, ignorance, myth and superstition.
“Some of our ancient friends appear to have been better educated than some of our present politicians, pundits and billionaire oligarchs.” Our present politicians have studied ignorance they the ancients searched for knowledge. It’s wouldn’t be hard to do better than the current crop of losers. I don’t believe they really believe most of the crap they say. It’s all politics, pandering and — dare I say it? Yes. BULLSHIT.
Trading BULLSHIT for money and power. That’s their game, all right.
I wish I could sell some of my bullshit. Oh, right. I did that. It’s called being a writer 🙂 I just didn’t sell enough of it.
Have you tried eReader News Today to promote your books? They don’t ask for payment up front. They take a percentage after the sale.
That’s a good idea. I shall check it out. Thanks.
OH MY GOD! You mean … it’s NOT flat?
No, it might still be flat if some billionaire or corporation wants people to believe it’s flat.
For instance, there’s the issue over the causes of global warming and if it’s even happening—with lots of Koch brother and Dupont/Monsanto PR money—that there’s no such thing as global warming caused by CO2, and that CO2, herbicides, pesticides, eating genetically modified food and meat loaded with growth hormones and antibiotics is healthy and will lead to our bodies being preserved for millennia.
Heck, I’m sure that Vodka producers also want us to believe we can pickle our bodies and live forever if we drink enough of their product.
OH MY GAWD! Global warming too? What’s next? Water pollution? Corporate piracy? I need to stick my head back in the sand of my nice flat earth.
LOL
Hopefully, if the earth is flat, the water and air will be clean too.