How would I convince people who lived in the past that earth wasnt the center of the universe?? no modern tool

Question

HELP!

Answer 1

The same way galileo and copernicus tried to... see where it got them :D

Answer 2

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hopefully you WOULDN'T explain it to them that way, because it would not be correct to do so. Thus far you've gotten alot of explanations as to why the sun is the center of the universe... however, that view is just as limited and ignorant as the old view that the earth was the center of the universe. Einstein, however, created the theory of relativity: a part of which showed that the center of the universe is an irrelevant concept and that mathematically ANY point can be considered the center of the universe (including the earth, for those who think that geocentrism is wrong). As such, the simple notions we teach people, that the sun is the center of the universe and our world rotates around it is a narrow view based on outdated science. And yet, for some reason people cling to this heliocentric idea just the same as the religions they bash clung to the geocentric position.

Answer 3

Hey there,

Copernicus formulated this in his book "On the Evolutions of the Celestial Spheres".

Here is more:

Despite these problems in the 16th century the theory of heliocentrism was revived by Nicolaus Copernicus, in a form consistent with then-current observations. This theory resolved the issue of planetary retrograde motion by arguing that such motion was only perceived and apparent, rather than real: it was a parallax effect, as a car that one is passing seems to move backwards against the horizon. This issue was also resolved in the geocentric Tychonic system; the latter, however, while eliminating the major epicycles, retained as a physical reality the irregular back-and-forth motion of the planets, which Kepler characterized as a "pretzel." In developing his theories of planetary motion, Copernicus was probably indebted to the earlier work of Indian astronomer Aryabhata for his work on heliocentrism, and the Muslim scientists/astronomers Tusi, al-Urdi, and Ibn al-Shatir for resolving significant problems in the Ptolemaic system.

Answer 4

M A T H. Before modern tools, people could track the sun and nearby planets and with math, you can figure out many things about their rotation. Galileo, if I'm not mistaken, did this and was punished by the Christian church for it.

Answer 5

You would need to set up an observatory that lets you record the size and angle of the midday sun on the floor through an occulus. Using the size of the image, you could infer the elliptical nature of the Earth's orbit. You would need to record the position of the planets in the sky long enough to infer their eliptacal orbits through Kepler's laws.

Foucault's pendulum wouldn't hurt either.

Answer 6

By showing them how the motions of the planets can only be explained by the sun being at the center. Otherwise the explanation of the orbits is almost impossible.

Answer 7

I don't think I'd WANT to try convincing people of the past such a thing...Galileo proved it with a telescope and the Spanish Inquisition still forced him to recant it...even though he knew he was right.

Answer 8

Define past (mid 20th century?) Pre historic? Need more Info

Answer 9

This is a good question.
I would make models out of whatever was available(tennis balls. golf balls, rocks, mud balls..etc. lol) and explain to them everything I knew as well as I could. Just like your science teacher did to you. If they would argue I would use the same models to show them examples of why they are wrong.
I was just wondering....Have you invented a time machine? or did you buy one on-line like Napolean Dynamites uncle?

Answer 10

I doubt they would care. It wouldnt change a thing about their lives. Theyd still have to struggle to survive. They didnt have all the free time we do to ponder such things.