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north vs south

catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
edited April 2008 in A Moving Train
if there is no up in space, how do they know which is the northern hemisphere? and why is north up?
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  • normnorm Posts: 31,146
    who are "they"? ;)
  • catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
    cutback wrote:
    who are "they"? ;)

    you know... the they who tell us such things. probably some eurocentric man with too much time on his hands and delusions of white supremacy. i don't know, they dont tell me that much. :p:D
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  • TDMize15TDMize15 Posts: 166
    catefrances wrote:
    if there is no up in space, how do they know which is the northern hemisphere? and why is north up?

    The two poles have magnetic attractions... so we know that north is "up"... why they picked North as North instead of as South... I suppose that was arbitrary.
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  • RolandTD20KdrummerRolandTD20Kdrummer Posts: 13,066
    empty space has no orientation. Occupied space has gravity, and maps that are drawn on paper which have funny words like top bottom north south attached.

    or not...
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  • normnorm Posts: 31,146
    catefrances wrote:
    you know... the they who tell us such things. probably some eurocentric man with too much time on his hands and delusions of white supremacy. i don't know, they dont tell me that much. :p:D


    there ya go! since most maps from the beginning were made my people in the northern hemisphere, up was chosen for north since up can be thought of as a positive word :)
  • markymark550markymark550 Columbia, SC Posts: 5,174
    The magnetic attractions gives the Earth its polar opposites and also serve as the endpoints for its axis. Since a compass points to magnetic north, north is used as the reference point. The reason it's called north is because of the word's etymology. Translating the old words roughly means "to the left of the rising sun." So, if you're facing the rising sun (East), to your left is North.

    The metaphor "up" for north is a misnomer, but it most likely comes from how people look at maps. Since maps are usually drawn with the top border as the northernmost area, going "up" on the map would be going north. Technically, if you're going up, you aren't travelling in any cardinal direction relative to the Earth. You would just be travelling into open space.
  • normnorm Posts: 31,146
    http://youtube.com/watch?v=efjcrbNcW6s

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRtN4UK1wHk


    :D:D
  • Smellyman2Smellyman2 Posts: 689
    often wondered this too. I think it it is northern Hemisphere (where most humans lived and first maps made) bias that makes it the north.

    Aussies aren't any more down under than we are...
  • catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
    markymark550 wrote:
    The magnetic attractions gives the Earth its polar opposites and also serve as the endpoints for its axis. Since a compass points to magnetic north, north is used as the reference point. The reason it's called north is because of the word's etymology. Translating the old words roughly means "to the left of the rising sun." So, if you're facing the rising sun (East), to your left is North.

    The metaphor "up" for north is a misnomer, but it most likely comes from how people look at maps. Since maps are usually drawn with the top border as the northernmost area, going "up" on the map would be going north. Technically, if you're going up, you aren't travelling in any cardinal direction relative to the Earth. You would just be travelling into open space.


    thank you. :)
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    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • markymark550markymark550 Columbia, SC Posts: 5,174
    catefrances wrote:
    thank you. :)
    you're quite welcome :)

    sorry for the long, rambling response though :o
  • catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
    markymark550 wrote:
    you're quite welcome :)

    sorry for the long, rambling response though :o

    it was a comprehensive answer. you even answered questions i hadnt even asked... so it was good. :)
    hear my name
    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • AnonAnon Posts: 11,175
    happy to see this thread has nothing to do with pearl jam shows
  • CosmoCosmo Posts: 12,225
    If you are standing on the North Pole... Which way is West?
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  • brainofmebrainofme Posts: 231
    well, i guess the maps are drawn with the "north" north, because there is much more land on the northern hemisphere.

    i also heard that the magnetic field, which makes "north" and "south" changes from time to time, which would make north to south and vice versa.

    in school i always wondered why asia is on the right of the map, europe/africa in the middle and america on the left. but i guess people in america have america in the middle, right?
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  • tybirdtybird Posts: 17,388
    brainofme wrote:
    in school i always wondered why asia is on the right of the map, europe/africa in the middle and america on the left. but i guess people in america have america in the middle, right?
    Most projections (maps of the entire globe) begin at the international date line, thus Asia is on the right, and everything else is to the left.
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  • markymark550markymark550 Columbia, SC Posts: 5,174
    brainofme wrote:
    well, i guess the maps are drawn with the "north" north, because there is much more land on the northern hemisphere.

    i also heard that the magnetic field, which makes "north" and "south" changes from time to time, which would make north to south and vice versa.

    in school i always wondered why asia is on the right of the map, europe/africa in the middle and america on the left. but i guess people in america have america in the middle, right?
    Like I said before, maps are drawn referencing north because of how compasses always point north. If you don't know where you are, but have a compass and a map that is referenced by a cardinal direction, you should (relatively) be able to find your way to a destination. Using north on a map makes it easier to read and figure out your direction since you've already got an instrument that tells you which direction is north. The amount of land in northern vs southern hemisphere makes no difference.

    Following up on tybird's point, using the international date line as a starting point puts the intersection of the equator and the prime meridian at the exact center of the map. This also allows you to see the "4 quadrants" of the Earth much easier.
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