A Farm in Kansas is the Purported Site of 100s of Crimes and Tragedies Due To Human Error

Irony sent in this bizarre story.

Fusion-

As any geography nerd knows, the precise center of the United States is in northern Kansas, near the Nebraska border. Technically, the latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates of the center spot are 39°50′N 98°35′W. In digital maps, that number is an ugly one: 39.8333333,-98.585522. So back in 2002, when MaxMind was first choosing the default point on its digital map for the center of the U.S., it decided to clean up the measurements and go with a simpler, nearby latitude and longitude: 38°N 97°W or 38.0000,-97.0000.

As a result, for the last 14 years, every time MaxMind’s database has been queried about the location of an IP address in the United States it can’t identify, it has spit out the default location of a spot two hours away from the geographic center of the country. This happens a lot: 5,000 companies rely on MaxMind’s IP mapping information, and in all, there are now over 600 million IP addresses associated with that default coordinate. If any of those IP addresses are used by a scammer, or a computer thief, or a suicidal person contacting a help line, MaxMind’s database places them at the same spot: 38.0000,-97.0000.

So all sorts of law enforcement agencies have been showing up at this farm to investigate a cornucopia of crimes and potential tragedy-

stolen cars, fraud related to tax returns and bitcoin, stolen credit cards, suicide calls, private investigators, stolen social media accounts, fund raising events, and numerous other events.

James Arnold (the farm owner)has even been “reported as holding girls at the residence for the purpose of making pornographic films.”

The Arnolds are suing.

Addendum: Something was bothering me about what I wrote above, so I checked a USGS booklet. Those coordinates I gave were probably for an offset monument that has information about the actual point in a different location. But it’s a little more complicated than that.
You could navigate to the marker with the coordinates I gave. But here’s what USGS said about it in 1964:

From: Geographic centers of the United States. USGS 1964

There is no generally accepted definition
of geographic center, and no completely satisfactory
method for determining it. Because of
this, there may be as many geographic centers
of a State or country as there are definitions
of the term. The geographic center of an area
may be defined as the center of gravity of the
surface, or that point on which the surface of
the area would balance if it were a plane of
uniform thickness.
No marked or monumented point has been
established by any government agency as the
geographic center of either the 50 States, the
conterminous United States, or the North American
Continent. However, a monument was erected
in Lebanon, Kansas, by a group of citizens who
hired engineers to determine the position of
the “geographic center” of the United States.
Meades Ranch triangulation station, about
12 miles north of Lucas, Kansas, is sometimes
confused with the geographic center of the
United States. This triangulation station is
the reference point for all property lines
and city, county, State, and international
boundaries on the North American Continent
that are tied to the national triangulation
networks of the United States, Canada, Mexico,
and Central America.

The actual point probably shifted a bit when they adjusted to NAD83 datum from NAD27.

And it’s Meades Ranch, not Meads. About one sixth of the earth’s surface was geodetically referenced using the Meades Ranch triangulation station. Very important point.

I’ve been trying to edit this comment down to a reasonable size for over an hour, lol. I’m putting my own self to sleep.
can of worms 😉

16 Comments on A Farm in Kansas is the Purported Site of 100s of Crimes and Tragedies Due To Human Error

Corona Saturday, 13 August 2016, 20:37 at 8:37 pm

Location location location!

And coffee is for closers.
Oil Field Trash Saturday, 13 August 2016, 21:04 at 9:04 pm

New Math. On Meth.
JohnS Saturday, 13 August 2016, 21:05 at 9:05 pm

It’s not a bug, it’s a feature!
Unruly refugee Saturday, 13 August 2016, 21:14 at 9:14 pm

Their coordinates are off by almost a half mile. The true point is closer to:
39.82818°, -98.57950°

The geodetic center of the U.S. prior to NAD83 data was at Meads Ranch in Kansas, one of the most significant survey points in the world.
It was such an important survey and cartography marker that they buried two bronze markers in case something happened to the first one.

Meads Ranch Coordinates:
39.224208, -98.542160

Yes, I’m real picky with points that are supposed to be in a certain place. My son and I navigated to the swamp in Arkansas where the Louisiana Purchase survey started — the Initial Point. We would have been really pissed if it had been a half mile off, but we walked right up to it using a Garmin eTrex.
🙂
willysgoatgruff Saturday, 13 August 2016, 21:16 at 9:16 pm

I’m 7.2 miles east of there and 4.5 miles south of there and I’ve got 5 goats….what would I need the teenage girls for?…
Thirdtwin Saturday, 13 August 2016, 21:22 at 9:22 pm

He should sell to Jamaat al Fuqra. Without disclosing the little computer technicality, of course.
Thirdtwin Saturday, 13 August 2016, 21:24 at 9:24 pm

Like a good neighbor, The state is there at the farm.
bison guy Saturday, 13 August 2016, 21:40 at 9:40 pm

Willysgoatgruff – I’m about 60 miles SW of there.

howdy neighbor
willysgoatgruff Saturday, 13 August 2016, 21:44 at 9:44 pm

Bison guy….howdy backatch
a….where can I buy decent beef?….
marleenna1959 Saturday, 13 August 2016, 22:21 at 10:21 pm

The default coordinates would be more fitting at that center of crime, the Clinton compound.
Sturge the Hungry Saturday, 13 August 2016, 23:06 at 11:06 pm

where can I buy decent beef?….

In NY, of course. Farmers, ranchers, and fishermen all know that the best of what they have goes for sale in the highest paying places. It is NEVER available where it’s farmed/raised/caught.
Sturge the Picky Saturday, 13 August 2016, 23:08 at 11:08 pm

Also… I still say there should be TWO spaces after a period. Partly because I’m a bit of a pedant, partly because I’m married.
bison guy Saturday, 13 August 2016, 23:17 at 11:17 pm

Wiiygoatsgruff – I’d think any local grocery store with a meat cutter. I have heard good things about the locker plant in Kensington. Wholes, halves, quarters of beef and pork.
Unruly refugee Sunday, 14 August 2016, 3:55 at 3:55 am

Addendum: Something was bothering me about what I wrote above, so I checked a USGS booklet. Those coordinates I gave were probably for an offset monument that has information about the actual point in a different location. But it’s a little more complicated than that.
You could navigate to the marker with the coordinates I gave. But here’s what USGS said about it in 1964:

From: Geographic centers of the United States. USGS 1964

There is no generally accepted definition
of geographic center, and no completely satisfactory
method for determining it. Because of
this, there may be as many geographic centers
of a State or country as there are definitions
of the term. The geographic center of an area
may be defined as the center of gravity of the
surface, or that point on which the surface of
the area would balance if it were a plane of
uniform thickness.
No marked or monumented point has been
established by any government agency as the
geographic center of either the 50 States, the
conterminous United States, or the North American
Continent. However, a monument was erected
in Lebanon, Kansas, by a group of citizens who
hired engineers to determine the position of
the “geographic center” of the United States.
Meades Ranch triangulation station, about
12 miles north of Lucas, Kansas, is sometimes
confused with the geographic center of the
United States. This triangulation station is
the reference point for all property lines
and city, county, State, and international
boundaries on the North American Continent
that are tied to the national triangulation
networks of the United States, Canada, Mexico,
and Central America.

The actual point probably shifted a bit when they adjusted to NAD83 datum from NAD27.

And it’s Meades Ranch, not Meads. About one sixth of the earth’s surface was geodetically referenced using the Meades Ranch triangulation station. Very important point.

I’ve been trying to edit this comment down to a reasonable size for over an hour, lol. I’m putting my own self to sleep.
can of worms 😉
Vietvet Sunday, 14 August 2016, 7:48 at 7:48 am

They should rename the spot “Anus Mundi”.

And put it on all the online maps and GPS devices, too.

🙂
willysgoatgruff Sunday, 14 August 2016, 16:00 at 4:00 pm

Bison guy…I’ve been to Kennsington and they do have better beef and pork, but for god sakes they are proud of their product. The crap they sell in the local grocery stores ain’t even ‘choice’, it’s a lesser grade. Within a 30 mile radius of me, I know there have to be 100,000 cattle and the beef sucks at the stores….My biggest disappointment with Kansas. And NO lamb either….