The track, called Flatline, followed a flood of tweets the Georgia-born rapper sent out to his 2.3 million followers about how the earth couldn’t possibly be round, siting examples such as the fact that he could see the skyline of a city which was 16 miles away.
“The cities in the background are approx. 16miles apart… where is the curve ? please explain this,” he wrote.
The rapper continued his rant by posting screenshots from a conspiracy textbook, one of which said that because the New York City skyline was clearly visible from a park 60 miles away, the earth was flat, concluding the skyline should be hidden behind 170 feet of curved Earth.
Tyson was quick to respond, saying, “Earth’s curve indeed blocks 150 (not 170) ft of Manhattan. But most buildings in midtown are waaay taller than that.”
@bobatl Earth's curve indeed blocks 150 (not 170) ft of Manhattan. But most buildings in midtown are waaay taller than that.
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) January 25, 2016
The astrophysicist went on to rebut a few of the rapper’s tweets, before finally saying, “Duude — to be clear: Being five centuries regressed in your reasoning doesn’t mean we all can’t still like your music.”
@bobatl Duude — to be clear: Being five centuries regressed in your reasoning doesn’t mean we all can’t still like your music
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) January 25, 2016
In what is ultimately a terrifying inside look at the state of science education in America, B.o.B. was able to drum up a modicum of support for his regressive thinking, retweeting numerous people who agreed with him on the subject before releasing his diss track.
Flatline, which clocks in at about three-and-a-half minutes is a veritable hive of conspiracy theories, for example, “Use your common sense/Why is NASA part of the Department of Defense.” In the track, B.o.B. even uses a sample of a Degrasse Tyson speech to attempt to support his claim, using an excerpt in which Tyson is explaining why the earth is slightly thicker at the equator (because it spins), to make it seem like Tyson is saying the Earth is flat.
There’s no telling when or if real science will get through to the rapper. For now, we await his explanation of further scientific subjects. Perhaps he’ll tackle evolution next?
See below for more of the pair’s back-and-forth twitter debate. Those who want to read more can check out the rapper’s full twitter feed.
@bobatl Polaris is gone by 1.5 deg S. Latitude. You’ve never been south of Earth’s Equator, or if so, you've never looked up.
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) January 25, 2016
@bobatl Flat Earth is a problem only when people in charge think that way. No law stops you from regressively basking in it.
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) January 25, 2016
https://twitter.com/bobatl/status/691777721811255297
current situation pic.twitter.com/b2ZmDvUErH
— B.o.B +1 404-236-6129 (@bobatl) January 25, 2016
