Re: Sun-Centered? (was: The Flat Earth?)

Michael L. Siemon (mls@panix.com)
Sun, 14 May 1995 00:34:16 -0300

In article <1995May14.021730.1112@rosevax.rosemount.com>,
grante@reddwarf.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards) wrote:

+R. Mounce (mounce@u.washington.edu) wrote:
+
+: Sometimes, I'll admit, I think of the earth as flat.
+
+I quite often think of the earth as flat. While navigating cities streets,
+the approximation is quite useful. It makes the geometry simpler to assume
+that streets running north and south are parallel.

Silly boy. Why would you want to do *that*??? Are you measuring
the angles of intersection of some lines traversing these N-S running
streets or something? As a topologist by training, I really cannot
see any good reason why you should *care* about angles and such
like, if all you are concerned with is following maps to reach particular
points. Do you actually look at (and use) the scales printed on your maps?
Do you find the (geometrically wildly wrong, but topologically accurate)
subway maps in NYC hard to use? or what?

-- 

Michael L. Siemon   (mls@panix.com)



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