Consciousness Raising

6th of July, 2008

6 Comments ↓

I’m half way through The God Delusion. Much of the beginning is dedicated to arguing how naive belief in God is. Not necessarily deliberately turning a blind eye to evidence against a God (which many still do) but genuine, indoctrinated belief of God in the children of religious parents for example. People that aren’t aware there’s alternative theories or that they’re even capable of considering other ideas. Consciousness raising is a technique for opening minds to the alternatives. I love Dawkins’ example.

Why is North up?

World Map With North as Down

There’s no reason it needs be.

6 Comments

  1. While I highly disagree with Dawkins (and I suppose, in the same turn, you), I would like to thank you for the map, because it made me curious enough to spend 3 or 4 hours reading wikipedia about magnetism, compasses, maps, polarity, etc.

    Highly interesting things - I suggest reading up on it as well as world history before making grand conclusions that there isn’t any reason why north should be north.

    Made by Daniel Nicolas who has a website — http://www.wakingideas.com

  2. But to make things simple here is the best page:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North

    Made by Daniel Nicolas who has a website — http://www.wakingideas.com

  3. I don’t know what your argument is that North should be “up” but I guess it has something to do with this from the Wikipedia article you linked to:

    The visible rotation of the night sky about the visible celestial pole provides a vivid metaphor of that direction corresponding to up.

    Let’s do some more consciousness raising. Perhaps people looking up from earth is not necessarily looking up at all but down into the space that hangs below. There is no correct answer because there is no orientation in space.

    I’m not saying that just as many maps and globes should be drawn “upside down”. I’m pointing out that there’s no reason North needs to be up.

    Made by Jim who has a website — http://valhallaisland.com

  4. In basic directional terms, north means up because everyone agrees that north is “up”.

    It’s a simple matter of communication history. If everyone who was anyone had been from the southern hemisphere and got together and made maps and decided which way was which, then things would be different.

    At the moment of inception of these ideas, north didn’t need to be “up” but once people agreed that it was going to be, it needed to be.

    As an international community, you couldn’t have some people calling one thing north and another group of people calling something south. Much in the same way everyone uses the same time system - people agree to use the same system of methodology for communicating. Before there wasn’t a need, but now there is.

    Made by Daniel Nicolas who has a website — http://www.wakingideas.com

  5. At the moment of inception of these ideas, north didn’t need to be “up” but once people agreed that it was going to be, it needed to be.

    I couldn’t agree more. Again, I’m not saying we should change maps, standards make sense. I’m saying exactly what you are, that there’s no reason beyond “that’s just how it’s always been done” that North is up.

    It’s about opening your mind to other possibilities. Just because something is a certain way doesn’t mean it has to be.

    Made by Jim Whimpey who has a website — http://valhallaisland.com

  6. “Perhaps people looking up from earth is not necessarily looking up at all but down into the space that hangs below.”

    You appear to be trying to confuse two different things.

    Perspective based on the knowledge that you exist on a spherical mass in space does not change your indicators of north and south on a 2D map.

    Made by Daniel Nicolas who has a website — http://www.wakingideas.com

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