News
Harvard Quietly Resolves Anti-Palestinian Discrimination Complaint With Ed. Department
News
Following Dining Hall Crowds, Harvard College Won’t Say Whether It Tracked Wintersession Move-Ins
News
Harvard Outsources Program to Identify Descendants of Those Enslaved by University Affiliates, Lays Off Internal Staff
News
Harvard Medical School Cancels Class Session With Gazan Patients, Calling It One-Sided
News
Garber Privately Tells Faculty That Harvard Must Rethink Messaging After GOP Victory
To the Editors of the CRIMSON:
With reference to the story in Tuesday's CRIMSON about population and the mass of the earth, a little arithmetic checking seems in order. The mass of the earth is approximately 6x1024 kilograms. Assuming that the average mass of a human being is 50 kilograms (110 lbs.), then 35 billion people would have a mass of 1.75x1012 kilograms. This differs from the mass of the earth by a factor of 3x1012.
I hope this error arose from a misquote, for it surely must be hoped that the scientists at the Harvard Center of Population Studies don't usually make mistakes on this order (3x1012) every day. Michael Whinihan '67
Want to keep up with breaking news? Subscribe to our email newsletter.