In his How Much Does the Earth Weigh? Marshall Brain writes that a person jumping into a tunnel drilled through Earth’s diameter would reach the antipode in 42 minutes. * That fall would involve accelerating toward the center and then decelerating toward the other end of the tunnel, with Earth’s gravitational forces in control. Antipodes are sites on opposite sides of Earth. **
The antipode of Taiwan, for example, is Paraguay; for Miami, Florida, it’s ocean water west of Australia. The coterminous United States all have antipodes in the Indian and Southern Oceans. Only the most northern tip of Alaska has an antipodal landfall on Antarctica’s coast. So, falling from New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles means falling through a tunnel that ends in water, not land. One can’t, as the expression goes in many states, dig straight through Earth to end up in China. The antipodes of China lie in South America and the Pacific west of Chile.
Forty-two minutes would be a quick trip if it were possible. Of course, the fall would send a person into the heat of Earth’s interior, which, if you don’t know, is about the same as the surface of the Sun. So, no one, not even Elon Musk, is going to build a tunnel through the planet from antipode to antipode. Some shortcuts are not just hard, they are impossible.
Falling through the Earth Tunnel provides a number of analogies. And this is where you get to write this essay. Pick the topic and its antithetical poles: Politics, religion, philosophy, behavior, or generational differences. I assume you can think of other topics that have polar opposites, such as debilitating addiction and wellness.
Now, having chosen a topic and identified its poles, ask yourself how one gets from one side to the other side without burning up in the middle of the process. Often, the direct approach, the shortcut, is injurious to those who would jump into the hole. To reach an understanding with someone who holds an antithetical position requires a journey on the circumference and not through the diameter. Psychotherapists understand the efficacy of the longer term process, thus their advice to attend multiple sessions.
Want to convince someone that you have a valid position even though it is antithetical? Take the circuitous route. Yes, it takes longer than 42 minutes, but the trip to agreement is less hazardous and frustrating.
*Brain, Marshall. 2001. New York. MJF Books.
** See https://engaging-data.com/antipodes-map/ for your antipode. Accessed February 16, 2002.
The antipode of Taiwan, for example, is Paraguay; for Miami, Florida, it’s ocean water west of Australia. The coterminous United States all have antipodes in the Indian and Southern Oceans. Only the most northern tip of Alaska has an antipodal landfall on Antarctica’s coast. So, falling from New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles means falling through a tunnel that ends in water, not land. One can’t, as the expression goes in many states, dig straight through Earth to end up in China. The antipodes of China lie in South America and the Pacific west of Chile.
Forty-two minutes would be a quick trip if it were possible. Of course, the fall would send a person into the heat of Earth’s interior, which, if you don’t know, is about the same as the surface of the Sun. So, no one, not even Elon Musk, is going to build a tunnel through the planet from antipode to antipode. Some shortcuts are not just hard, they are impossible.
Falling through the Earth Tunnel provides a number of analogies. And this is where you get to write this essay. Pick the topic and its antithetical poles: Politics, religion, philosophy, behavior, or generational differences. I assume you can think of other topics that have polar opposites, such as debilitating addiction and wellness.
Now, having chosen a topic and identified its poles, ask yourself how one gets from one side to the other side without burning up in the middle of the process. Often, the direct approach, the shortcut, is injurious to those who would jump into the hole. To reach an understanding with someone who holds an antithetical position requires a journey on the circumference and not through the diameter. Psychotherapists understand the efficacy of the longer term process, thus their advice to attend multiple sessions.
Want to convince someone that you have a valid position even though it is antithetical? Take the circuitous route. Yes, it takes longer than 42 minutes, but the trip to agreement is less hazardous and frustrating.
*Brain, Marshall. 2001. New York. MJF Books.
** See https://engaging-data.com/antipodes-map/ for your antipode. Accessed February 16, 2002.
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