• Re: The Flat Earth is Dead

    From Paul S Person@3:633/10 to All on Wed Feb 4 08:49:05 2026
    On 4 Feb 2026 13:31:48 GMT, ram@zedat.fu-berlin.de (Stefan Ram) wrote:

    quadi <quadibloc@ca.invalid> wrote or quoted:
    Of course, though, the Ptolemaic geocentric solar system is not
    disproved
    by this.

    Basically, all coordinate systems are on equal footing as long
    as you can link them with diffeomorphisms. So yeah, you can
    pick a system where Earth always has the coordinates (0,0,0),
    meaning it's "at rest", but you can't use one where Earth is
    flat, since there's no diffeomorphism that turns a sphere into
    a plane or a surface built from one.

    You guys do realize that /Ptolemy/ showed the Earth was round (just
    immobile and at the center of everything) by pointing out that the
    "horizon" would have no meaning on a Flat Earth: the fixed stars are
    so far away that they would /all/ be visible regardless of lattittude,
    right?
    --
    "Here lies the Tuscan poet Aretino,
    Who evil spoke of everyone but God,
    Giving as his excuse, 'I never knew him.'"

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.11
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Lawrence D?Oliveiro@3:633/10 to All on Wed Feb 4 20:55:01 2026
    On 4 Feb 2026 13:31:48 GMT, Stefan Ram wrote:

    Basically, all coordinate systems are on equal footing as long as
    you can link them with diffeomorphisms. So yeah, you can pick a
    system where Earth always has the coordinates (0,0,0), meaning it's
    "at rest", but you can't use one where Earth is flat, since there's
    no diffeomorphism that turns a sphere into a plane or a surface
    built from one.

    You can do that for a sphere with a hole in it.

    I?m sure the Earth has plenty of candidates for such a hole ...

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.11
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)