This reminds me of reading about Africa's size in the introduction to Michael Crichton's Congo back when I was a kid: "Only prejudice, and a trick of the Merca

This reminds me of reading about Africa's size in the introduction to Michael Crichton's Congo back when I was a kid: "Only prejudice, and a trick of the Mercator projection, prevents us from recognizing the enormity of the African continent. Covering nearly twelve million square miles, Africa is almost as large as North America and Europe combined. It is nearly twice the size of South America."