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He writes books for a wider audience and I think he is speaking broadly in terms of the bigger picture. It was a belief among ordinary people that the earth was
by michaelwww 13y ago
He writes books for a wider audience and I think he is speaking broadly in terms of the bigger picture. It was a belief among ordinary people that the earth was flat and the center of the universe. The telescope probably had the most to do with changing that world view. I think we have to take what pop-sci writers say with a grain of salt (Michio Kaku for example.)
- cgore 13y agoExcept that is the whole primary thesis of his book, and it is based on trivially falsified premises. (At the time ordinary people had probably no real conception of the general order of the universe, being uneducated illiterate peasants. The educated at the time mostly viewed the Earth as sperical, because of the ancient Greek philosopher/scientists, and the Earth as the center of the Pysical Universe, again because of the ancient Greek philosopher/scientists.)
- michaelwww 13y agoAh, I didn't realize that. I haven't read this book, but did read his "Amusing Ourselves to Death." Thanks.
- cgore 13y agoI'm going completely off of the Wikipedia page you posted, I haven't read the book either, so it could be really misrepresenting the book. But the whole "theocratic -> technocratic society" step seems to be based on that shallow argument. "Amusing Ourselves to Death" seems like a good book, I have a copy but have yet to read it.