Today, while doing chores, I listened to a book on tape from the library called, “How the Universe got its Spots.” (This is a link to the Amazon book, because I couldn’t link to the book on tape for some reason.) The gifted young cosmologist Janna Levin sets out to determine the size of the universe, along the way providing an intimate look at the … Continue reading On Motherhood, Physics and Relativity
In 2007, a computer “solved” checkers—that is, went through every possible move to determine the optimal game. The number of possible moves in a chess game is dizzying, more than the number of atoms in the universe; no current computer can “solve” chess. via The Prince’s Gambit – The New Yorker. (Bold highlight mine) Two weeks ago, my dad and mom came up to … Continue reading The Brain Sport of Chess
Once again, I will start by saying I didn’t always love Math. I struggled with it, and couldn’t figure out how I would ever need it in a life of creative pursuit. Then I had children. Those children are creators in their own rights – with structure and form and spatial relationships. My kids build and design and Math is going to be something they … Continue reading Astounded by all the Kissing in Math
Gears are at the heart of so many things around here. Scott is building a race car for the Drag Strip that is around the corner from our house. Both boys like to build motorcycles and bikes, and finger bikes, and scooters and anything else with wheels, really. I can see them going into fields like engineering or design or drafting. They are artists. Anything … Continue reading Gears, Math and Contrary
Ah – the glories of learning off the computer! Could there be a more exhilarating way to see in a quick moment all the geometric wonders involved in those wonderful Cathedral windows of old? (Perhaps it is because I have learned to love Math so very much, that this is so astounding to me!) This week for our Art Day on Wednesday, we looked at … Continue reading Rose Window Geometry
Tonight it dawned on me what I’m trying to accomplish by doing Science Night with my kids, as well as all the other fun things we do. I am attracted to every shiny object in the world of Science, Art, Math, Dance, Design, Engineering, or Thought. And so I bounce from new idea to new idea, and try to stuff my kids’ heads with wild and … Continue reading Physics and Rollercoasters
Whatever you may believe about the formations of crop circles, whether they are made by pranksters or by some other means; to put any time into studying them, proves they are not easy to dismiss as silliness. In the book, Sacred Geometry, by Stephen Skinner, the author shares that most crop circles are based entirely on Euclidean geometry. A quick Google search of the phrase crop … Continue reading Bird’s Eye View, Crop Circles and What Aliens Must Think of Us
We get pretty excited over math night at our house. I know this is unusual. It hasn’t always been my most favorite thing in the world. In fact, I think I am like so many people who are either intimidated by math, bored by it, or just confused. Here’s the thing. My boys dig architecture, and building things. They have engineering and technology in their … Continue reading Excitement over Math Night and Getting to Play Games!
