1. An idealized, static, 3-D concept that refers only to the upper cross-section or layer of a surface
which, hypothetically, does not encroach upon a third dimension.
The word flat implicitly invokes two locations as references. It alludes to a perfectly smooth surface that is
perfectly parallel with the line of sight. However, neither of these criteria can be used to define the
adjective flat because both are proofs.
The 2-D counterpart of flat is plane. For the purposes of Science, ideal planes such as triangles and
circles are not flat. In Science, only surfaces can be said to be flat.
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Copyright © by Nila Gaede 2008