but the numbers keep on circling me
By Todd Stadler · Tuesday, May 29, 2001 5:59pm
Julia sent me a really interesting issue of Science News recently. The main article concerned packing circles within other circles, a topic that piqued my interest as it was a recent mathematical discovery, yet simple enough for most algebra students to comprehend.
The topic also has some really cool images associated with it, bordering on abstract art. Such infinite geometry is beautiful.
Once in the mood to appreciate math, I couldn't stop poking around, following links from one .edu page to the next. One page had a few mathematical puzzles listed as "surprising results". The first of them, an apparent paradox involving infinite exponents, is interesting. A few of the riddles are confusing. The last one, whose answer is here, really annoys me. Apparently math people are too busy studying algebraic topology (or ice skating) to realize that rubber doesn't move like this.
