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Columbus and the round earth

DrPizza

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Okay, this thread is inspired by a couple religion threads that mention Columbus tonight...

Most of you have been lied to by your elementary teachers. Here's the truth:

When Columbus wanted to sail to the Far East by going west, the educated people at that time KNEW that the earth was round. It had been known to be round for quite some time. (discovered independently by various cultures, Erastothenes was mentioned as a discoverer in one thread)

The reason his trip was opposed *WASN'T* because people thought the earth was flat... It's because estimates of the size of the earth showed that it was too big. He wouldn't be able to make it. AND, they were right. Columbus' first trip was a failure because he never reached the Far East for trading. Had it not been for some huge landmass (America) getting in his way, he and his crew would have died.

That is all.
 
This is true. Its also true Columbus was given crappy ships because the better ships
in the Spanish fleet were being used to deport Protestants to the Spanish Netherlands.
Later to become the country known as Holland. The Muslims were being forced out of Spain along with Jews and Gypsies at the same time. This is a piece of history not
well known....:sun:
 
Another interesting bit ... the ancient greeks knew that the sun was the center of the solar system, and the work of Copernicus in 1530 was dedicated to Pope Paul III and printing was paid for by the church. During his lifetime, his work was accepted by the church. It wasn't until the early 1600s that the church reversed course and declared it false and in opposition to scripture. This was about the time Kepler published his laws of planetary motion, and Galileo got into his famous run-in with the church over this issue.
 
Originally posted by: galvanizedyankee
This is true. Its also true Columbus was given crappy ships because the better ships
in the Spanish fleet were being used to deport Protestants to the Spanish Netherlands.
Later to become the country known as Holland. The Muslims were being forced out of Spain along with Jews and Gypsies at the same time. This is a piece of history not
well known....:sun:
Click to expand...

nobody expects the spanish inquisition!
 
Originally posted by: Deslocke
I thought everyone knew that.
Click to expand...

i got the story of "they thought he was crazy because the earth was flat but he wouldnt leave him alone so they gave him some boats and told him to leave"

ahh my education
 
Originally posted by: DrPizza
Okay, this thread is inspired by a couple religion threads that mention Columbus tonight...

Most of you have been lied to by your elementary teachers. Here's the truth:

When Columbus wanted to sail to the Far East by going west, the educated people at that time KNEW that the earth was round. It had been known to be round for quite some time. (discovered independently by various cultures, Erastothenes was mentioned as a discoverer in one thread)

The reason his trip was opposed *WASN'T* because people thought the earth was flat... It's because estimates of the size of the earth showed that it was too big. He wouldn't be able to make it. AND, they were right. Columbus' first trip was a failure because he never reached the Far East for trading. Had it not been for some huge landmass (America) getting in his way, he and his crew would have died.

That is all.
Click to expand...

hmmm sort of right, but not totally what was percieved (they thought the earth was smaller than it was, not too big). Concentrate on grammar a little more next time...sort of a hard read esp being so short.

Å
 
yep, all European scholars knew the earth was round, a lot of their knowledge was based on that of the greeks and Eratostenes actually caculated the circumference in 250bc using angles of the sun (10% of accuracy, not bad).

It probably goes back to that stupid song by Ira Gershin
 
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