Why Do So Many People Believe in Satellites?

The saltiness is real. Cope

Your flight didn't go around the world, and neither did your sailing voyage. We are talking about going all the way around the world. That's the gold standard of empirical observation here.

In the sky, you saw a bright starlike object moving. Someone predicted it accurately, great. But it's still just a bright starlike object for all you've confirmed.

These threads go on forever because people just don't understand the fallacies their probably-true beliefs are founded on!

I didn't say 1800 years ago, but 1800 years before Newton formed his equations. (I was wrong because I don't know how to count centuries. It's closer to 2000 years.)

But, you are quite wrong to say that sailing around the world was the only way. If you had known your history:

"By the 5th century B.C., it was widely accepted that the Earth is a sphere."

"The sphericity of the Earth was established by Greek astronomy in the 3rd century BC,"

They had determined over time this by empirical observations, looking at shadows, at ships, at stars, and at the horizon.

Flat earther "research" is stuck some 2800 years in the past.

"Believe" still seems like the wrong verb. "Trust" too.

We are not playing the same game.

You are looking for something to believe in, and you think I am too.

Honest question: Are flat earthers just trolling for jollies because they love the online debate?

I see some anonymous posters but also some real registered people. Which would actually put somewhat of a real name to their posts and beliefs. Is it a game? In real life, do they share their flat earth beliefs with other real life human beings?

This is the only site I regularly visit where ignorance is seen as something to be proud of

" Real registered" doesn't mean anything. It's not like you have to present your driver license and your SS number.

Good question. I see Bad Wiggins post a lot in other threads. Seeing here that he's a flat earther explains a lot about all his other comments.

Still waiting for you to explain what happens to ships that appear to slowly sink into the ocean as they approach the horizon?

Dumb wigins isn't a flat Earther, he's just a fool trying to be a pedant.

In what way are you qualified to 1) determine satellites aren't real and 2) to dismiss facts that prove they exist?

Lots of sassiness going on by globers in here. Research flat earth. You'll find Truth and lose your saltiness.

At least attempt to answer the questions being posted above. BTW, based on how you are arguing the point: prove to us that those flat earth facts aren't just made up.

There's a adage from the very early days of internet forums to the effect, "The purpose of online forums is to prove you're the smartest guy in the room." A frame work of self-validation explains most of what goes on in social media.

This sort of thread, someone taking and arguing a seemingly absurd position, does demonstrate some cleverness. It involves "arguing like a lawyer", that is making the best case for a (self-assigned and seemingly untenable) position as opposed to "thinking like a scientist" where the goal is to converge on objective truth. On the other hand one doesn't have to be particularly clever to simply reject evidence that doesn't support one's position.

The first take away is that these sorts of threads not about objective truth and if one thinks they are, they're playing by a different set of rule than the instigators.

A second take away is that one's debate opponent may "argue like a lawyer" without realizing they're doing so. In technical matters, the ability for the various parties (debaters and their audience) to fairly evaluate the evidence and argument is important. This is the basis of the "Dunning Kruger" effect. Without sufficient subject matter expertise, one will not only be unable to fairly weigh evidence, they will be unable to recognize their ability to do so. The experts are not always right, but it's almost always the way to bet.

Finally, we live in a complex world and we take for granted an enormous body of knowledge. It is a fair point that no one knows everything and much of what we understand to be true are not things that a random individual could somehow derive proof for. Even for a domain expert proving the existance of man-made satellites is non-trivial.

Edit to add: It's also worth noting that the current trend towards distrusting experts, while not without merit, opens the door to reliance on non-experts which is inherently no more sensible.

Proper-like, studious-sounding response. Good, solid, yet still salty. No goodies for you. Research flat earth.

So you're an algebra genius are you?

This is a really good post!

I think it’s important to remember that the scientific process isn’t meant for people to understand everything. It’s meant to be a transparent process that gives people confidence in the system. If people decide the scientific community is untrustworthy, and of course trump-type people are trying very hard to convince the public of that, there’s really no plausible way for lay people to walk through 300 years of complicated science to convince skeptics.

It’s always easy to take a simple belief and try to make people convince you of a more complicated one: you’re giving them a virtually impossible job. I had a neighbor when I was a teenager who was a christian fundamentalist, and he would grill me on how I believed this or that. His position was pretty easy to take: god does magic. The position he gave to me was a lot harder. I think maybe the real answer then is the same as now: if you want me to walk you through how satellites work, eventually you’ll get to a point where my knowledge ends. But I believe scientists, because of their process and their track record.

I love that you're sitting there with your arms crossed, saying 'nah' and thinking you're cleverer than us globers. Why don't you educate us instead? What do you believe?

There are loads of flat earth theories I'm aware of - the shield, the upturned saucer, the snake around the edge which holds the water in, some invisible heavenly force field, the inside of an egg, the disc on the back of a turtle, the edge waterfall.

Do you think it's any of these? What is it that makes you believe it? And what's over the edge?