- traxex@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish11 hours
One of my first arguments on here was over what constitutes a continent. I feel vindicated.
10 hoursThere’s anywhere between 2 and 7:
- Afroeurasia (inc australia , antartica counts as an ocean)
- Americas
or
- Europe
- Asia
- Africa
- North America
- South America
- Oceania
- Antartic
- Quilotoa@lemmy.caEnglish9 hours
Why is antarctica considered an ocean? It’s a land mass. Granted, the vast majority of it is covered in ice, but it is still above sea level.
There’s no way Australia counts as the same continent as Afroeurasia, and Antarctica is a landmass (unlike the Arctic ice). 4 continents minimum.
- boonhet@sopuli.xyzEnglish11 hours
“Australia and Oceania” here, in the first of two models I’ll elaborate on.
We were taught two different models
First one translates basically as “divisions of the world”
- Europe
- Asia
- Africa
- Antarctica
- Australia and Oceania
- Americas
The other one translates more directly as “continents”
- Eurasia
- Africa
- Antarctica
- Australia
- North America
- South America
But those are of course not the only models, just the ones taught in school where I’m from.
- stupidcasey@lemmy.worldEnglish17 hours
In the great words of Atlas Pro after going into excruciating detail on why no answer is more correct He said:
So gow many continents are there?
“Obviously six”
No further clarification was given.
- technocrit@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish18 hours
It’s wild how much “basic science” is just some pale bro’s wacky idea.
- BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.todayEnglish20 hours
Europe isn’t a continent, it’s a political entity. A continent is geographic. EurAsia is a continent.
- Draedron@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish19 hours
Lol no. The european union is the political entity. Europe is a continent. Asia is a continent. If you want to talk about both of them together you can say eurasia but they are not one continent.
- invertedspear@lemmy.zipEnglish17 hours
What delineates Europe from Asia that shouldn’t also delineate India from Asia?
Not trying to be argumentative, curious. I’ve always heard of India as a subcontinent, and when explained why it seems like Europe fits the same description.
- 11 hours
Large mountain ranges (the Urals for Europe-Asia and the Himalayas for India-rest-of-Asia).
- BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.todayEnglish17 hours
They are one continuous landmass. A continent is one continuous landmass. You can’t split a single landmass and call it two separate continents.
- BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.todayEnglish15 hours
There are going to be little isthmuses connecting landmasses, but that doesn’t make them combined. Africa is technically connected to both Europe and Asia, but nobody is suggesting that they be combined with Europe and Asia. Europe and Asia are literally the same landmass, with just a border between them.
Even the Middle East probably has a better claim on being a Continent than Europe.
Besides, the Panama Canal essentially makes North And South America separated by water.
Aren’t Europe and Asia on the same techtonic plate? Isn’t that also the reason India is considered a subcontinent because it is on a different techtonic plate?
- mrlemmyhimself@lemmy.worldEnglish13 hours
Iceland is between two tectonic plates, and that rule would separate the Somali plate from the rest of Africa, make the Caribbean its own continent, etc
- homura1650@lemmy.worldEnglish15 hours
North and South America are joined by a thin strip of land that serves as the continent border. Africa and Eurasia are joined by a thin strip that serves as a continent barrier. Europe and Asia have no natural border between them.
- Etterra@discuss.onlineEnglish24 hours
There’s between 3 and 500. Since it’s statistically unlikely that the correct number would be at either extreme, the most likely correct number of continents would be somewhere around 250, with a margin of error of approximately 245.
