RE: [asa] (what's a fact?) Brilliant article by Dawkins

Gordon B. said:
" Newton's laws don't favor one physical body over another. If the universe
consisted of only two bodies, it would be just as true that A orbits B as
it would be that B orbits A."

But the universe doesn't consist of only two, and so it does make a difference. Let me know if you want me to dig up the previous ASA discussion quote from George Murphy where he says the geocentric model fails at certain points, even considering general relativity. The reason why it fails is because it is not reality.

...Bernie

-----Original Message-----
From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu] On Behalf Of gordon brown
Sent: Friday, August 28, 2009 7:56 PM
To: asa@calvin.edu
Subject: RE: [asa] (what's a fact?) Brilliant article by Dawkins

On Fri, 28 Aug 2009, Dehler, Bernie wrote:

> Also- how could heliocentricity ever be wrong? Earth and planets in our solar system don't orbit the sun? May as well say you don't really have two legs; as it can be observed directly now, why argue?
>

Newton's laws don't favor one physical body over another. If the universe
consisted of only two bodies, it would be just as true that A orbits B as
it would be that B orbits A. (Here we are discussing orbiting, not
rotating.) Our picture of the motion of objects in the solar system is
simplest if we make the largest object the center.

Gordon Brown (ASA member)

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Received on Thu Sep 3 15:22:24 2009