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Humans have known the Earth is round for more than two thousand years, but there are somehow some people alive today who insist that it is not actually the case. None of those “Flat Earthers” have been able to provide any concrete evidence to support that claim, but they’ll be able to gain some assets from a massive company if they manage to procure any thanks to an offer from its CEO.
The ancient Greeks are widely credited with being the first people to come to the conclusion that the planet we call home is a sphere as opposed to a flat expanse. Pythagoras floated that idea around 600 B.C., and Aristotle and Archimedes were among the notable names who actually provided some concrete evidence to support the claim.
Ferdinand Magellan was the first person to essentially prove those theories were correct when he circumnavigated the globe in the 1500s, and we were eventually treated to some incontrovertible evidence when we developed the technology that made it possible to take pictures of a decidedly round Earth from outer space.
However, there are still more than a few contrarians who would lead you to believe the Earth is flat, and they’ve been given the chance to add a piece of an apparel company to their portfolio if they’re somehow able to back up that claim.
The CEO of Columbia Sportswear has offered to give away the company’s assets to any “Flat Earther” who can provide photographic evidence of the edge of the planet
The notion of a round Earth was not universally accepted after the Greeks made a breakthrough, as plenty of other civilizations around what is firmly a globe spent centuries continuing to push the Flat Earth theory before finally coming around to the truth.
An Englishman named Samuel Rowbotham is largely responsible for reigniting the one-sided “debate” midway through the 19th century when he penned a book that asserted the Earth is flat and surrounded by a massive wall of ice, which tends to be the prevailing theory among the Flat Earthers who continue to support it today.
A number of those conspiracy theorists have conducted ill-fated experiments that have shockingly only led to them being proven wrong.
That includes one guy who flew to Antarctica last year before admitting his beliefs had been debunked, and if you’re looking for a fantastic dose of schadenfreude, this clip from the documentary Behind the Curve will probably scratch that itch.
At this point, it’s clear that attempting to prove the Earth is flat is the ultimate fool’s errand. I’m not sure anyone who’s actively trying to do that needs any extra incentive, but they’ve gotten some courtesy of Columbia Sportswear CEO Tim Boyle, who has pledged to give the company’s assets away to anyone who can provide definitive evidence.
The proof must come in the form of evidence capturing “a visible, physical end to the planet Earth” that provides a glimpse at things including an “infinite sheer drop, abyssal void, [and] clouds cascading into infinity.” Columbia probably doesn’t need to hedge its bets, but it appears it has engaged in a little bit of trickery by forming an LLC known as “The Company” that would limit any potential (and wildly unlikely) losses to $100,000.
I wish all the Flat Earthers out there the best of luck, because they’re certainly going to need it.