4 ms·

Reminds me of William Hershel and a classic example of "if your scientific theory relies on you being special/unique, it is almost certainly wrong" Hershel mad

by xref 8y ago

Reminds me of William Hershel and a classic example of "if your scientific theory relies on you being special/unique, it is almost certainly wrong" Hershel made a lot of amazing discoveries and advancements with this telescopes, so decided to count the stars in every direction of the sky. He found that there were equal numbers no matter where he pointed his scope, so we must be at the center of the universe! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galactocentrism https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galactocentrism

jobigoud 8y ago
Well, we are at the center of the observable universe.
- nojvek 8y ago
  We are at the center of “our” observable universe. But ... since we don’t still know the bounds of universe, technically we don’t exactly know where our absolute position in the universe really is.
  - moopling 8y ago
    I was under the impression us doesn't make sense to consider the idea of absolute position in space.
    - aeorgnoieang 8y ago
      I don't think that's completely true. Details of the cosmic microwave background might indicate that we're at the center of the universe: - [Axis of evil (cosmology) - Wikiwand](https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Axis_of_evil_(cosmology) https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Axis_of_evil_(cosmology)) And besides the above, the CMB itself provides a 'natural absolute frame of reference' as it's the remnants of the very early universe.
rimliu 8y ago
Center of the galaxy. And he must be counting stars in the galactic plane not in every direction.
JoeDaDude 8y ago
To be fair, Herschel thought we were at the center of our galaxy, rather than the entire universe. I'd expect Herschel to be acquainted with Olber's Paradox [1]. Olber postulated that if the stars were uniformly distributed in space, the sky would be brightly illuminated in all directions. It isn't therefore, either stars are not uniformly distributed and we cannot be at the center of an infinite universe. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olbers%27_paradox https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olbers%27_paradox

by xref 8y ago

jobigoud 8y ago

Well, we are at the center of the observable universe.

nojvek 8y ago
We are at the center of “our” observable universe. But ... since we don’t still know the bounds of universe, technically we don’t exactly know where our absolute position in the universe really is.
- moopling 8y ago
  I was under the impression us doesn't make sense to consider the idea of absolute position in space.
  - aeorgnoieang 8y ago
    I don't think that's completely true. Details of the cosmic microwave background might indicate that we're at the center of the universe: - [Axis of evil (cosmology) - Wikiwand](https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Axis_of_evil_(cosmology) https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Axis_of_evil_(cosmology)) And besides the above, the CMB itself provides a 'natural absolute frame of reference' as it's the remnants of the very early universe.

rimliu 8y ago

Center of the galaxy. And he must be counting stars in the galactic plane not in every direction.

JoeDaDude 8y ago

To be fair, Herschel thought we were at the center of our galaxy, rather than the entire universe. I'd expect Herschel to be acquainted with Olber's Paradox [1]. Olber postulated that if the stars were uniformly distributed in space, the sky would be brightly illuminated in all directions. It isn't therefore, either stars are not uniformly distributed and we cannot be at the center of an infinite universe. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olbers%27_paradox https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olbers%27_paradox