How would you feel about changing NORTH to down and SOUTH to up?

[BuyingThyme]

It makes more sense, doesn't it?

I mean, why should a magnetic arrow always point up, when stuff generally falls down anyways?

Does anybody know what the net effect would be on the climate?

[Goblinmonger]

1. Dude

don't bogart that bong.

[Oak2004]

96. Can I ask a stupid off-topic question?

I'm naive when it comes to drug use and its language. I've heard the term "bogart" before, in the context of marijuana use, but I have no idea what it means. What does it mean?

[Goblinmonger]

97. It is a reference to Humphrey Bogart

and the fact that he always had a cig in his mouth in his movies. Generally it means "to take more than your share" or "to hog."

There are some times when it means to act really tough but that is less popular than the one above.

[Cyrano]

2. That wouldn't make sense.

Everyone knows that a ship sailing South goes faster than a ship sailing North because it's going downhill. Just look at a globe if you don't believe me.

[Greyskye]

5. Only in the Northern hemisphere!

That's why we don't have kangaroos. That uphill sea voyage just takes too darn long!

:rofl:

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

3. This is why Republicans always win elections.

The general public reads this stuff and sees how stupid the liberals are.

If we did that then we'd have hot snow, and leaves would fall up, and thunder would come before lightning, and the Holy Spirit would digivolve back into Jesus and then everything would be fucked up.

Sheesh, I can't believe you people come up with this stuff.

[porphyrian]

4. We're overdue for a polar change, so it may happen.

Apparently, the magnetic field of the Earth flip-flops every so many million years. It's common knowledge to geologists. And, as best as they can tell time with rocks, the cycle should be occurring now, or some time soon. Nobody knows for sure what happens to all of us when it does occur, but it appears to happen in fairly rapidly in geological time.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

33. there are really neat magnetic records on the ocean bottom

from undersea lava. They show clear magnetic lines and the switch as you said.

how puny humans are, and how even punier are the religious reichists who claim that a collection of fairy tales contains the answer to everything

[porphyrian]

44. I don't mind them believing whatever they want as long as they don't deny scientific facts.

Unfortunately, they don't seem to think anyone should be able to be different from them.

[krispos42]

49. I wonder how the Creation Museum will explain that one away?

There is no documented evidence as long as humans have been using compasses of this happening, and yet, it happened.

Cue head explosion.

[porphyrian]

60. They'll just say it's a miracle and remain convinced that science is the mythology. - n/t

[krispos42]

79. Probably, but...

I was hoping for more of an effort. It's like they're not even trying anymore... :-)

[porphyrian]

80. The best lies are simple, and they're trying to reconcile paradox as it is.

They aren't going to create more simply for your entertainment. ;)

[Ediacara]

6. You mean flipping the maps the other way round?

Like this?



Why would that have any effect on climate?

[BuyingThyme]

7. Well, the earth would spin in the opposite direction.

Wouldn't that cause the prevailing winds to reverse also?

[Ediacara]

9. Well maybe

You want to reverse the direction of the rotation of the Earth? Or totally flip the planet so that Antarctica point to the solar system's north?

Friend, if we were able to do these things, we certainly could do something far less drastic about global climate change (and could probably live for 500 years, and travel to distant stars instantaneously, and could terraform Venus...).

[BuyingThyme]

11. Well, if we switch north and south, won't

the earth go from rotating left to right to rotating right to left?

[Ediacara]

13. How exactly do you propose we switch North and South?

[BuyingThyme]

16. Well, we can just put the S where the arrow points.

It will be confusing at first, because the existing maps will be reversed, but in the long run it will probably even out. When I was in grammar school, they were pushing the metric system bigtime. Now they don't even try. But it probably would have been worth it, for the fuel economy if nothing else. Americans are so ethnometric.

[Ediacara]

17. So how will flipping maps upsidedown change the direction of Earth's rotation?

[BuyingThyme]

18. Yes, assuming you leave the W and E where they are now.

[Ediacara]

22. So you want to turn the planet insideout and upsidedown?

[BuyingThyme]

24. I hadn't thought about the inside out thing.

But I think my point is that the planet is already upside down. The Earth's gravity makes everything go down, so why should the Earth's polarity make a compass point up? It doesn't make any sense. I mean, shoot an arrow into the air, and it's always going to land point down. Same deal when you loosen the hardware which secures the hands of old clocks.

[uppityperson]

26. Gravity and Polarity are 2 different forces

[BuyingThyme]

29. Yeah, but whatever goes up, must come down.

So why would anybody want a compass that's eventually going to fail miserably?

[Ediacara]

35. This is a non sequitor

[uppityperson]

37. "down" is toward center of earth. What do you mean compass fail miserably?

I am not sure if you are seriously asking these questions, or just playing around. Going with serious, I'll keep answering. If you want to play, I can do that too.

Gravity is the force that pulls everything to the center of the Earth (Earth's gravity that is). No matter where you are, you are pulled towards center of the Earth. The people directly opposite you on the globe are pulled toward the center of the Earth, meaning you and they are being pulled towards each other, your "down" is towards their "up". To each of you it looks like "down". To someone outside it looks like toward the center of the Earth.

I do not know what you mean by wanting a compass that's eventually going to fail miserably. True north moves a bit all the time, making the N/S lines on maps not necessarily line up with magnetic N/S, depending on where you are when. Anyone who uses compasses for more than rough reckoning needs to take this into consideration.

Polarity is N/S, Gravity is towards the center of the object. And yes, everything has polarity and gravity, we notice it with Earth since it is much bigger than we are.

[Ediacara]

27. You do understand that south isn't under your feet, right?

[BuyingThyme]

31. Well, I'm on the Pacific Coast right now.

[Ediacara]

36. so?

[BuyingThyme]

41. So the South is not under my feet right now.

It was earlier this month. What's the point?

[Ediacara]

51. "What's the point?" Ya, I'd like to know that too...

[NeedleCast]

28. Incorrect

The Earth's gravity makes everything go down

Negative ghost rider.

The Earth's gravity makes everything in it's sphere of influence go towards the center of the earth. If you stand on the north pole and I stand on the south pole and we both drop a brick, they both hit the ground. While we'd commonly say the bricks fell down, they actually fell towards the center of the earth.

[BuyingThyme]

32. Helium balloons go up.

[NoGOPZone]

34. Then why is it

that when I inhale helium I can't fly but my voice changes?

[BuyingThyme]

38. In what way does your voice change?

It goes up.

There's your answer.

[NoGOPZone]

40. OK. Thought maybe I wasn't flying because I needed to lose weight.

[BuyingThyme]

42. You're confusing polarity and gravity.

[NoGOPZone]

46. .

:rofl:

[uppityperson]

47. OMG! That's SERIES!!!

got'cha, you are messing with us. Good.

[Ediacara]

39. Ya, they go UP, they don't go NORTH

[BuyingThyme]

45. Exactly. But if we switch north and south, they will

go down, as is south. Just like the arrows.

[Ediacara]

53. You can't be serious

[uppityperson]

43. That is because air is heavier/denser, sort of like why does someone float in water.

Not because there is no gravity, but because gravity won't pull you past the water. Helium balloons are the same in air. Simply and basically.

[BuyingThyme]

50. At the Poles, all the water is frozen anyways.

I don't think we have anything to worry about.

[uppityperson]

54. Do Poles float other places too? What if they sink?

Change N/S, gravity will reverse and that will make them float!

[Greyskye]

67. sure they float in other places

Poland for one. But if they sink, they might indeed drown.

[flying rabbit]

82. If they float, then they are witches

But that is a different problem altogether

[krispos42]

83. We'd have to weigh the Poles

and compare them to, say, a duck

<edit: spelling>

[flying rabbit]

84. Or little tiny rocks

[krispos42]

86. Or churchs n/t

[ChairmanAgnostic]

58. not for long.

and we do have to worry.

[NeedleCast]

52. Depends

Things go up and down only in relation to what point of gravity is influencing them most, so it all depends on your point of reference. If your point of reference is the moon, and the moon is directly above you, a helium baloon is going "up" from the earth and "down" towards the moon.

[shireen]

76. buy a compass on ebay

> How exactly do you propose we switch North and South?


i did ... north and south were flipped.

i have a lousy sense of direction.
the compass was supposed to help.
instead, i'm even more confused than ever :silly:

[uppityperson]

19. Won't work unless you keep the rest of the universe the same

In relation to everything else, it will be the same.

[BuyingThyme]

20. But if we base right and left on up and down, won't

up being down and down being up cause left to be right and right to be left?

[uppityperson]

14. Everyone would need to be warned so they could hold on tight.

Had someone teaching a Polarity class that everything has N/S directions, cells, arms, bodies, even the earth! and that's why there is gravity! Friends in the class looked at me to find me quickly looking down, eyes shut, trying to not laugh or wince.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

56. toilets would go counterclockwise? or would they spew forth?

kinda like I feel when I hear Dick Cheney.

[Greyskye]

61. They would do this.

Be afraid. Be very afraid!

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=5fe_1176635740

[uppityperson]

62. Oh shit

[Greyskye]

63. ROFLMAO!

Perfect reply! :rofl:

[DireStrike]

8. No, we already have up and down directions

They go UP and DOWN.

[rhiannon55]

10. Wow...how Orwellian!

:D

[TahitiNut]

12. Just try to get folks in Dixie to stop saying "Down South" or "Deep South."

:eyes: ... "Away, Away, Away down south in Dixie!"

[Bucky]

87. "Ah say, now you just lissen heah, Tahitah Nuut! Up Noath heah we do thangs a maht difrunt.

"Now mebbe down in the Southwest you Yankee New Yoakuhs lack to toin thangs all topsuh toivy lack. But up heah in Dixie we lack to whistle to a diff, Ah say, a diffrunt tune!"

Does that really sound better to you?

[Throwing Stones]

15. I'm pretty sure it's already happened

I mean, Tony Snow has been saying up is down for god-knows how long, not to mention

fight 'em there
makin' progress
amnesty
personnel matter
unlawful combatant
weapons of mass destruction
peace in the middle east

damn, I'd go on but I think I'm going to :puke:

[NoGOPZone]

21. Let's wait until the Earth's magnetic field changes direction.

[tridim]

25. Exactly, then it would make a little bit of sense.

It'd be a boon to the compass industry too. :)

[shireen]

78. compass i bought on ebay already flipped .... nt

[Javaman]

23. whoa...totally cosmic...

there is no up in space...

[Jed Dilligan]

30. It's been done

http://flourish.org/upsidedownmap/

People often propose a different cartography to break free of imperialist conceptions about the earth. However, the fact that the northern hemisphere contains the bulk of the land makes it something of a "natural" for the top, despite the Eurocentrism behind the placement.

[myrna minx]

48. Well, how about we change the name of the spotted snow leopard to that of ant and

voila! we can remove it from the endangered species list.

[BuyingThyme]

55. Not likely. All the birds and anteaters would quickly eat up the entire

population of snow leopards, which I assume is down to a few thousand?

Do you know how long it would take for the earth's population of birds to eat a few thousand ants, err snow leopards? We're talking a matter of metric weeks.

[uppityperson]

57. you are killing me

recovering from pneumonia which makes me cough whenever I laugh.

[myrna minx]

59. Metric weeks, ok, but if we're talking god days, well,

that changes our whole paradigm. :rofl: On the other hand, if spotted snow leopards were renamed ants, then that would confuse an entire generation of children who watched this cartoon:


This is hard work!

[Greyskye]

64. to the Greatest page with you!

This shite is too funny not to share!

:rofl:


BuyingThyme - you're my hero! :toast:

[Stinky The Clown]

65. Do you REALIZE what this would do to the way toilets flush?????

We can't have toilet whirlpools all reversing at once. The earth would wobble ...... and we might all get constipated in the process.

[Greyskye]

66. see post #61

I don't think they would reverse, although the earth might in fact wobble. :evilgrin:

[EstimatedProphet]

68. You know what? Toast would land butter-side up when it falls! I'M IN!

That's a great idea!

But wait...wouldn't electricity be sucked out of our houses back to the power plants?

[Dukkha]

69. but would the toilets flush counterclockwise then?

[sniffa]

70. this is a briLLant idea

good Luck though, convincing the nutjobs who want to change it to east.

the "westies" are too miniscuLe in number to matter.

:eyes:

[conscious evolution]

71. My globe is upside down

with Antarctica on top.
Also,I don't stand on the ground I hang from it by my feet.

[lumberjack_jeff]

72. There you go! I'm south with that! n/t

[L. Coyote]

73. Are Republicans suffering from political bi-polar disorder? Is that your ???

Or is this just a test to see if we are susceptible to bloviating inanities?

[nealmhughes]

74. Go look at maps of Argentina from there or Australia or NZ. It is really freaky seeing S as "Up."

Actually, there is not a reason in the world why not, save our Eurocentric dead white men fetish that all good and true in the world came from Europe and a small portion of North Africa and a smidgen of Asia. :sarcasm:

Everyone knows that heaven is UP, and hell is Down, therefore, ipso facto, UP/North is good, South/Down bad. Duuh.

[Canuckistanian]

81. And in Siberia and Norway, north is "Down". Weird.

And I've even heard there's a place where North and South are the same direction.

It wasn't discovered for years, because explorer's compasses didn't work there.

[Bucky]

88. Heaven may be "up" but Margaritaville in back down south.

It's not a hard choice. And who needs 72 virgins anyway?

[lamp_shade]

75. I'm creeped out

Why on earth did I have the EXACT same thought only a few days ago. I'd never had that thought before in my life... and I'm old... but the whole concept occurred to me on the way to work the other morning. Spooky, indeed.

[uppityperson]

77. I know how to do it!

Everyone face west and jump into the air towards the west at the EXACT SAME MOMENT!!!!1
That should do something

[Recursion]

85. We used "upside down" maps in land nav sometimes

There are situations where they are more convenient. It's a bit disorienting, and with the right kind of projection it reminds you how frigging huge Brazil is, but other than that it's fine.

[krispos42]

89. East should be north

That's the way they used to have it in Europe. Becuase Eden was in the east, you see.

We'll have to take a pair of pliers and bend all of our compass needles, though. I predict a surge in plier sales.

[BuyingThyme]

91. That's silly.

[krispos42]

93. Naw, makes perfect sense.

We stop the earth spinning on the north-south axis, then start spinning it on an axis defined by 90ºE 0ºN and 90ºW and 0ºN.

The North Pole would be off the western coast of Sumatra, and the South Pole in the Galapagos Islands.

Hmmm, we might want rotate the Earth 90º to put Sumatra/Galapagos axis roughly perpendicular to Earth's orbital plane, or else we'll wind up having days and nights that are 182.5 days long. But other than that little issue, we'd be okay. And with Eden in the North, surely God would smile upon us once again!

:crazy:

[BuyingThyme]

94. I meant about bending the needles.

[krispos42]

95. oh

[BlooInBloo]

90. Oh. My. God.

[Radio_Lady]

92. K & R... I think the Aussies would approve, too.

After all NORTH is HOT and SOUTH is COLD right now, and water circulates in a clockwise direction, etc. etc.