Flat Earth is a modern phenomenon, generally attributed to Rowbotham of the Zetetic Society in the 1800's. "The theory follows from a mode of thought called the "Zetetic Method," an alternative to the scientific method, developed by a 19th-century flat-earther, in which sensory observations reign supreme."
Eratosthenes Proved The Earth Isn't Flat In approximately 300 B.C., Eratosthenes, a Greek mathematician living in Alexandria, devised a method of calculating the circumference of the Earth and in doing so, provided evidence to support his long held belief that the Earth is a sphere.
That there was ever a consensus that the earth is flat is flat wrong. [drum riff]
Most persons in the Dark Ages believed the world was flat. There were very, very few educated people and 99% of the Greco-Roman books were lost.
Most of the Greco-Roman texts only returned to the West during the final days and collapse of Byzantium; until the 13-1400s Westerners had far less access to the Classics than we have. Lucretius, Plato, many others copies did not exist or were only found once a strong drive was made to find them in the Renaissance, or Greek refugees brought them from Constantinople.
Contrary to the claims of militant atheists, most books were simply lost due to decay and time. A society whose population collapsed by 3/4th had other things to worry about than copying ancient books.
And yes, the Dark Ages were Dark. The population collapsed, literacy went from between a third and a half to less than 10%, the poor used to live in standardized, mass manufactured tile roof buildings to thatch roofs, and most Roman Cities had no walls except on the frontiers. ALl of this changed after about 400AD.
The 'consensus' of experts also thought the world was flat for a very long time.
Flat Earth is a modern phenomenon, generally attributed to Rowbotham of the Zetetic Society in the 1800's. "The theory follows from a mode of thought called the "Zetetic Method," an alternative to the scientific method, developed by a 19th-century flat-earther, in which sensory observations reign supreme."
Eratosthenes Proved The Earth Isn't Flat In approximately 300 B.C., Eratosthenes, a Greek mathematician living in Alexandria, devised a method of calculating the circumference of the Earth and in doing so, provided evidence to support his long held belief that the Earth is a sphere.
That there was ever a consensus that the earth is flat is flat wrong. [drum riff]
Most persons in the Dark Ages believed the world was flat. There were very, very few educated people and 99% of the Greco-Roman books were lost.
Most of the Greco-Roman texts only returned to the West during the final days and collapse of Byzantium; until the 13-1400s Westerners had far less access to the Classics than we have. Lucretius, Plato, many others copies did not exist or were only found once a strong drive was made to find them in the Renaissance, or Greek refugees brought them from Constantinople.
Contrary to the claims of militant atheists, most books were simply lost due to decay and time. A society whose population collapsed by 3/4th had other things to worry about than copying ancient books.
And yes, the Dark Ages were Dark. The population collapsed, literacy went from between a third and a half to less than 10%, the poor used to live in standardized, mass manufactured tile roof buildings to thatch roofs, and most Roman Cities had no walls except on the frontiers. ALl of this changed after about 400AD.