Flat Earth Society

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search
"Flat Earth Society" redirects here. For the Belgian band, see Flat Earth Society (band).
A rendered picture of the Flat Earth model.

The Flat Earth Society (also known as the International Flat Earth Society or International Flat Earth Research Society) is an organization that furthers the belief that the Earth is flat rather than a sphere. The modern organization was founded by Englishman Samuel Shenton in 1956[1], and later led by Charles K. Johnson, who based the organization out of his home in Lancaster, California. After Johnson’s death in 2001, the Flat Earth Society weakened and decentralized, but there are recent attempts to create a more unified and worldwide movement.[2]

Contents

[edit] Origins of the Flat Earth movement

Main article: Flat Earth

The belief that the Earth was flat was almost universal until about the 4th century BC, when the Ancient Greek scientists and philosophers proposed the idea that the Earth was a sphere, or at least rounded in shape. Aristotle was one of the first thinkers to provide evidence of a spherical Earth in 330 BC.[3] By the early Middle Ages, it was widespread knowledge throughout Europe that the Earth was a sphere.[4]

However, throughout history, many intellectuals and individuals continued to support the notion of a flat Earth. Modern hypotheses supporting a flat Earth originated with English inventor Samuel Rowbotham (1816-1884). Based on his interpretation of certain biblical passages, Rowbotham published a 16-page pamphlet, which he later expanded into a 430-page book, Earth Not a Globe, expounding his views. According to Rowbotham's system, which he called "Zetetic Astronomy", the earth is a flat disc centered at the North Pole and bounded along its southern edge by a wall of ice (Antarctica), with the sun and moon 3000 miles (4800 km) and the "cosmos" 3100 miles (5000 km) above earth.

Rowbotham and his followers gained attention by engaging in public debates with leading scientists of the day. One such debate, involving the prominent naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace, concerned the Bedford Level experiment (and later led to several lawsuits for fraud and libel).[5][6][7]

After Rowbotham's death, his followers established the Universal Zetetic Society, published a magazine entitled The Earth Not a Globe Review, and remained active well into the early part of the 20th century. After World War I, the movement underwent a slow decline.

In the United States, Rowbotham's ideas were taken up by the Christian Catholic Apostolic Church. Founded by a Scottish faith healer, John Alexander Dowie, in 1895, the church established the theocratic community of Zion, Illinois on the shore of Lake Michigan forty miles (sixty four kilometers) north of Chicago. In 1906, Dowie was deposed as leader of the sect by his lieutenant, Wilbur Glenn Voliva. The flat earth doctrine was exclusively taught in community schools. Voliva was a pioneer in religious radio broadcasting and described his views in broadcasts on a 100,000-watt (100 kW) radio station. Voliva died in 1942 and the church declined. A few flat earth supporters persisted in Zion into the 1950s.

[edit] Flat Earth Society Origins

In 1956, Samuel Shenton took over the Universal Zetetic Society and founded the Flat Earth Society. The organization took a hit when satellite images taken from outer space showed the Earth as a sphere rather than flat, but they were not fazed. Shenton remarked: "It's easy to see how a photograph like that could fool the untrained eye".

The society also took the position that the Apollo Moon landings were a hoax, staged by Hollywood and based on a script by Arthur C. Clarke, a position also held by others not connected to the Flat Earth Society. On hearing this, Clarke sent a facetious letter to NASA's chief administrator:

"Dear Sir, on checking my records, I see that I have never received payment for this work. Could you please look into this matter with some urgency? Otherwise you will be hearing from my solicitors, Messrs Geldsnatch, Geldsnatch and Blubberclutch". [8]

In 1971, Shenton died and Charles K. Johnson became the new president of the Flat Earth Society. Under his leadership, over the next three decades, the group grew in size from a few members to about 3,000. Johnson distributed newsletters, flyers, maps, and other promotional materials to anyone who asked for them, and he managed all membership applications together with his wife, Marjory, who was also a flat-earther. The most famous of these newsletters was The Flat Earth News, which was a quarterly four page tabloid. Johnson paid for this tabloid through annual dues of members, which ranged from $6–$10 over the course of his leadership.[9]

United Nations flag

The most recent world model propagated by the Flat Earth Society holds that humans live on a disc, with the North Pole at its center and a 150-foot (45 m) high wall of ice at the outer edge. The resulting map resembles the symbol of the United Nations, which Johnson used as evidence for his position. In this model, the sun and moon are each a mere 32 miles (52 km) in diameter.

A newsletter from the society gives some insight into Johnson's thinking:

Aim: To carefully observe, think freely rediscover forgotten fact and oppose theoretical dogmatic assumptions. To help establish the United States...of the world on this flat earth. Replace the science religion...with SANITY
The International Flat Earth Society is the oldest continuous Society existing on the world today. It began with the Creation of the Creation. First the water...the face of the deep...without form or limits...just Water. Then the Land sitting in and on the Water, the Water then as now being flat and level, as is the very Nature of Water. There are, of course, mountains and valleys on the Land but since most of the World is Water, we say, "The World is Flat". Historical accounts and spoken history tell us the Land part may have been square, all in one mass at one time, then as now, the magnetic north being the Center. Vast cataclysmic events and shaking no doubt broke the land apart, divided the Land to be our present continents or islands as they exist today. One thing we know for sure about this world...the known inhabited world is Flat, Level, a Plain World.
We maintain that what is called 'Science' today and 'scientists' consist of the same old gang of witch doctors, sorcerers, tellers of tales, the 'Priest-Entertainers' for the common people. 'Science' consists of a weird, way-out occult concoction of gibberish theory-theology...unrelated to the real world of facts, technology and inventions, tall buildings and fast cars, airplanes and other Real and Good things in life; technology is not in any way related to the web of idiotic scientific theory. ALL inventors have been anti-science. The Wright brothers said: "Science theory held us up for years. When we threw out all science, started from experiment and experience, then we invented the airplane." By the way, airplanes all fly level on this Plane earth.

The Flat Earth Society recruited members by polarizing the United States government and all of its agencies, particularly NASA. Much of the society’s literature in its early days focused on interpreting the Bible literally to mean that the Earth is flat, although they did certainly attempt to offer scientific explanations and evidence.[10] Recently, the Flat Earth Society focuses on more scientific means of furthering their organization.[11]

[edit] Organizational Challenges

The Flat Earth Society faced a few organizational challenges that inhibited them from having a significant impact on modern society. One such problem is that members do not seem to have any physical meetings or any interaction with other members of the organization other than online discussion forums. This makes it difficult to raise group consciousness when such a huge part of that dynamic is group discussions in person and face to face meetings. Another problem that arises is that it is difficult to find tangible achievements and activities that the Flat Earth Society participates in. Other than discussing their theories online and a few notable articles throughout their existence, the Flat Earth Society has not had any significant events or group gatherings. This inhibits collective empowerment of the group due to the lack of visible and dramatic tactics.

Both of these problems really affect participant retention more than anything. The group rose to about 3,000 members during its peak under Charles K. Johnson. It is questionable though how many of those members actively furthered the Flat Earth Theory, and how many of those members were even supportive of the theory.[12]

Another large challenge facing the Flat Earth Society was public ridicule. The organization faced overwhelming scientific evidence and public opinion that maintained that the Earth was a sphere. The term flat-earther is even commonly used to refer to an individual who stubbornly adheres to discredited or outmoded ideas. At the very least, the Flat Earth Society lacks any substantial political, academic or organizational backing except for a few notable exceptions[citation needed].

The current Flat Earth Society does not have a central alternative theory; different members have unique ideas on how the Earth is constructed. Some advocate the idea that the Earth is utterly flat, while others advocate a disk construction.[13] The lack of alternative theory further affects the legitimacy of the group and the willingness of individuals to join the Flat Earth Society that may have been skeptics of the spherical theory.

The society began to decline in the 1990s, and was further affected by a fire at the house of Charles K. Johnson which destroyed all of the records and contacts of members of the Flat Earth Society. Johnson’s wife, who helped manage the database, died shortly thereafter.[14]

[edit] Flat Earth Society today

Charles K. Johnson died on March 19, 2001, leaving the fate of the Flat Earth Society uncertain. Since Johnson's death, the movement has decentralized and it is unclear how many current members there are. Much of the movement’s activity today takes place online through various websites and forums. It is unclear to what extent these different groups interact with each other, if at all. It is also unclear whether any of these groups were actually linked to the Flat Earth Society under Shenton and Johnson.

Albert A. Bartlett, an emeritus Professor of Physics at the University of Colorado at Boulder, is a current proponent of a group that he claims as the New Flat Earth Society. In his satirical piece, Bartlett uses physics and arithmetic to attempt to disprove the notion of a spherical Earth. A significant motivating factor behind Bartlett’s work is the belief that sustainable growth on Earth is impossible in a spherical Earth since resources are finite. He pretends to support the fact that scientists and intellectuals around the world need to adopt the Flat Earth model to move forward. He states: “We need to identify these people as members of "The New Flat Earth Society" because a flat earth is the only earth that has the potential to allow the human population to grow forever.”[15]

One group that claims to be the Flat Earth Society states on their website that it has existed as an organization since 1547.[16] They provide a mission statement, evidence, and a form that interested individuals can fill out to join, however the Alaska.net site is a parody page as is evidenced by their disclaimer:

The Flat Earth Society is not in any way responsible for the failure of the French to repel the Germans at the Maginot Line during WWII. Nor is the Flat Earth Society responsible for the recent yeti sightings outside the Vatican, or for the unfortunate enslavement of the Nabisco Inc. factory employees by a rogue hamster insurrectionist group. Furthermore, we are not responsible for the loss of one or more of the following, which may possibly occur as the result of exposing one's self to the dogmatic and dangerously subversive statements made within: life, limb, vision, Francois Mitterand, hearing, taste, smell, touch, thumb, Aunt Mildred, citizenship, spleen, bedrock, cloves, I Love Lucy reruns, toaster, pine derby racer, toy duck, antelope, horseradish, prosthetic ankle, double-cheeseburger, tin foil, limestone, watermelon-scented air freshner, sanity, paprika, German to Pig Latin dictionary, dish towel, pet Chihuahua, pogo stick, Golf Digest subscription, floor tile, upper torso or halibut.

Another group claiming to be the Flat Earth Society offers a discussion forum with topics ranging from Flat Earth discussion to information to a section for angry ranting.[17] As of November 24, 2008, this group had close to 500,000 total posts on their discussion board. This group does not appear to have any relationship with the first aforementioned Flat Earth Society. Fox News reported that the latter discussion board represented the official website[18], but other smaller websites and blogs exist.

The Flat Earth Society is an example of an organization which has benefited greatly from the technological boom of the 1990s, particularly the Internet. Members can share their ideas without leaving their homes, and enjoy the benefit of possible anonymity while they share their ideas. This allows members to make bolder statements and avoid public ridicule. Without use of the internet to communicate, it is possible that the Flat Earth Society would have dissolved following the death of Charles K. Johnson. In a recent article through the BBC, members expressed that plans are underway to better connect members of the Flat Earth Society around the world.[19]

[edit] Physics of a Flat Earth

 This section is missing citations or needs footnotes. Please help add inline citations to guard against copyright violations and factual inaccuracies. (November 2008)

The modern Flat Earth Society describes the Earth as being a disc with a diameter of about 40,000 km (24,900 miles) and a circumference of 126,000 km (78,225 miles)[citation needed]. The sun and moon are both discs about 52 km (32 miles) in diameter (although some sources say that the sun and moon are spheres)[who?] and are about 4,800 km (3,000 miles) above the Earth, and the stars about 160 km (100 miles) above the sun and moon[citation needed].

The Flat Earth Society also maintains that the Earth is accelerating upward at a rate of 9.8 m/s², thereby simulating gravity. [20] This upward momentum is caused by a form of dark energy[citation needed]. Gravity cannot exist on a flat Earth since the disc shape would eventually collapse on itself. However in a few Flat Earth models, other planetary bodies such as the moon and the sun are alleged to have gravitational pulls, causing the gravitational force on an object to decrease as it increases in altitude. This also allows spacecraft to "orbit".

The planetary bodies above the Earth revolve above it, thereby causing sunrise and sunset to occur[citation needed]. As the sun moves farther away, it shrinks until it is no longer able to be seen. The same phenomenon occurs with the stars to cause their movement.

The sinking ship effect is explained by a series of perspective laws, in which a ship on the horizon intersects with the vanishing point, causing it to appear as if it is sinking[citation needed]. The Flat Earth Society holds that there are multiple first hand accounts of the hulls of ships reappearing after the image is viewed through a telescope or binoculars.

A diagram depicting Flat Earth Seasons.

The exact explanation for lunar eclipses in the Flat Earth theory is vague. However, two commonly accepted hypotheses are the Shadow Object Theory (that an object undiscovered and undetectable by science obscures the moon causing moon phases and lunar eclipses) and the Reflection hypothesis (the sun's light reflects off the Earth and reflects back to the moon, with some areas of the Earth being less reflective than others, thus producing shadows). There is also a minority which believes moon phases are caused by weather patterns on the moon.

As the sun orbits over the Earth, the Flat Earth theory maintains that the sun's orbit radius changes, causing it to be directly overhead different locations at different times of the year[citation needed]. There is no explanation of the mechanism that exists to cause this.

Flat Earth Society also does not have an answer for the apparent discrepancies that arise in surface distances between a round Earth map and that of the flat Earth equivalent. The map of the flat Earth severely distorts the distances and appearance of land masses in both hemispheres. In the southern hemisphere (outer disc) the distances on the flat earth appear extended while the opposite is true for the northern hemisphere (inner disc).

This becomes apparent with the distance between New Zealand and Chile. The exact distance between Auckland, New Zealand and Santiago, Chile is 6011 miles on a round Earth map. That same distance using the flat earth map appears to be between 20,000 – 30,000 miles. No distances are given by the Flat Earth Society.

[edit] The Flat Earth Society in popular culture

  • In the film Hopscotch, Miles Kendig (Walter Matthau) jokes that he is bequeathing all his money to the Flat Earth Society.
  • In the 1980s, talk show host Wally George often sparred with and ridiculed members of the Flat Earth Society on his show Hot Seat. Australian talk show host Don Lane also had Flat Earth Society advocates on his show.
  • A tourism commercial for Newfoundland and Labrador states that the Flat Earth Society believed that Newfoundland and Labrador was one of the four corners of the world.[21]
  • California-based punk rock band Bad Religion include a song entitled "Flat Earth Society" on their 1990 album Against the Grain (as well as their compilation album All Ages), written by Brett Gurewitz. A prominent feature of the song is the refrain "lie, lie, lie", indicating a strong denunciation of the society and its theories. The band has produced similar songs criticizing other movements it views as pseudoscientific.
  • Terry Pratchett's popular Discworld series of fantasy novels take place on a flat, disc-shaped planet which sits on the back of four elephants, which in turn stand on the back of a giant spacefaring tortoise named The Great A'Tuin. The cosmology of Discworld is such that occasionally an elephant has to lift its leg to allow the Discworld's sun to rotate unhindered around it. Pratchett's vision of a flat earth owes more to ancient depictions of the cosmos than it does to Zetetic astronomy. However, it does parody the Flat Earth movement by the inclusion of the Omnian religion (in Small Gods), who believe that the Discworld is actually a sphere.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://science.howstuffworks.com/space-conspiracy-theory8.htm
  2. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7540427.stm
  3. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7540427.stm
  4. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7540427.stm
  5. ^ Nature April 7, 1870.
  6. ^ "The Form of the Earth—A Shock of Opinions". New York Times. 1871-08-10. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9C00EFDF113EEE34BC4852DFBE66838A669FDE&oref=slogin. Retrieved on 2007-11-02. 
  7. ^ Hampden, John (1870): The Bedford Canal swindle detected & exposed. A. Bull, London.
  8. ^ Hill, Graham (2001-01-08). "Arthur C Clarke Looks To The Future". BBC World Service. http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/people/highlights/010104_arthur.shtml. Retrieved on 2008-06-26. 
  9. ^ http://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek/fe-scidi.htm
  10. ^ http://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek/fe-scidi.htm
  11. ^ http://www.theflatearthsociety.org/forum/
  12. ^ http://ncseweb.org/rncse/21/3-4/flat-earth-society-president-dies
  13. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7540427.stm
  14. ^ http://ncseweb.org/rncse/21/3-4/flat-earth-society-president-dies
  15. ^ http://jclahr.com/bartlett/flat-earth.html
  16. ^ http://www.alaska.net/~clund/e_djublonskopf/Flatearthsociety.htm
  17. ^ http://www.theflatearthsociety.org/forum/
  18. ^ http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,403802,00.html
  19. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7540427.stm
  20. ^ Flat Earth FAQ, http://theflatearthsociety.org/forum/index.php?topic=69.0
  21. ^ http://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/SightsAndSounds/VideoClips.aspx?videoID=3

[edit] Additional resources

[edit] Further reading

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_Earth_Society"
Personal tools