FEAR OF A ROUND PLANET (ZOOM ONLY)

Please join us when we partner with Americans United for Separation of Church and State Orange County, and our special guest, Glenn Branch, presents Fear of a Round Planet. Glenn has been at the National Center for Science Education (NCSE) since 1999, serving as deputy director since 2002. He received the Evolution Education Award for 2020 from the National Association of Biology Teachers. NCSE works with teachers, parents, scientists, and concerned citizens at the local, state, and national levels to ensure that topics including evolution and climate change are taught accurately, honestly, and confidently.

When Charles K. Johnson, the president of the International Flat Earth Research Society, died in 2001, he seemed, at the time, to be the last apostle of his unusual creed. Twenty-four years on, however, the flat earth is alive and well, especially, but not exclusively, on the internet. Glenn will sketch the history of the flat-earth movement, from its source in the ancient Near East through its coalescence in Victorian Britain to its modern rebirth on the Internet, and discuss current scholarly research on the prevalence, causes, and consequences of modern flat-earthery.

While not all flat-earthers are religious, there is a significant overlap between belief in a flat earth and strong religious convictions, with some individuals interpreting religious texts to support the idea of a flat earth, particularly within certain Christian denominations where literal interpretations of scripture are prevalent; this is often linked to a distrust of mainstream science and a belief in a grand conspiracy to hide the truth about the earth's shape. Glenn’s talk should clear up these misconceptions!

This event will be ZOOM ONLY on Saturday, January 18th at 3:30pm. Please use this link:
Zoom Registration: https://www.mobilize.us/au/event/745920/