Hot. Especially here in California, and of course in Hawaii, where I live. Summer often means high air conditioning use and rolling brownouts.
Here’s a bit from the book about using “swarm logic” to manage cooling needs:
Bees are also key subjects of research on swarm logic, whereby the behavior of a large group of individuals— like a collective of bees, ants, slime molds, or even the […]
As a recent transplant to Hawaii (I believe the term is “haole”) who has a deep appreciation of the richness and grace of this environment, I was pleased to read that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric […]
Clearly, the field of robotics is reaping the benefits of bio-inspiration. In some of my Facebook posts, we’ve seen robotic tunnel diggers and a moth in a robot driving a car. (Truly an unexpected use for robots …)
But here’s a video showing Harvard’s Ambulatory […]
Across the bay from where I live in the Bay area is a strange structure, sometimes called “the world’s safest house.” Designed by architect Eugene Tsui, this peculiar-looking and very sturdy […]
More from Vi Hart on spirals, Phi, and how plants use math …
Sieta Beckwith, currently living in Melbourne (but formerly from my hometown of Perth) provided this lovely spiral image and will receive a signed copy of The Shark’s Paintbrush as thanks!
When she posted it on Facebook, Sieta said,
This is a cactus-type plant that I saw […]
Another of Mathematician Vi Hart’s pieces on spirals (and plants). It’s clear from her video that Ms Hart would understand the young Jay Harman’s aversion to traditional classroom teaching!
y now, I think we’ve well established the fact that I have had a live-long fascination with spiral geometries, in particular the equiangular spiral. So, now you can contribute to that fascination by sharing your original spiral photos! Our favorite shots get a signed copy of The Shark’s Paintbrush, and I’ll highlight your photo on this site.
First, what do I […]
Mathematician Vi Hart appears to share my fascination with spirals, and made this charming video to help others become just as interested as we both are! Brainpickings calls this piece “doodletastic” and I quite agree — I am in favor of anyone who makes maths fun!
Another nibble from the book …
It was November 1985, and a pitch- black, steamy night in the Java Sea. En route to Singapore from Australia, our fifty- foot sailboat should have been lit up by at least the tricolor navigation light at the top of her mast. Instead, the night before we had been hit by lightning, which shorted out all the boat’s electrical systems. […]