Hey How I Tile
So in the division between mathematicians and statisticians, I still firmly place myself in the “statistician” camp, as I feel that I could discuss several statistical topics at a graduate+ level (especially things like regression, SEM, multivariate analysis in general, etc.), but I cannot say the same thing about math.
With that in mind, I enjoy the idea of tessellation to the fullest extent of my understanding of it – which is not that deep.
So when I heard this, I got really excited!
An “einstein” is an aperiodic monotile, which means that it is a single shape tiles the plane but does so without a repeating pattern. Apparently a true one has never been found before this. Check out the link above for a better description than I can give, or watch this interview with one of the co-discoverers, Craig Kaplan.
Cool!
TWSB: “Space Debris”
Today NASA is celebrating 30th anniversary of the first space shuttle launch. How? By announcing the final resting places of four retired spacecrafts: Enterprise, Discovery, Endeavor, and Atlantis.
Apparently there’s been quite a lot of vying over who gets the retired shuttles—21 official proposals were submitted to NASA, some with petitions 150,000 signatures strong behind them, others with plans to construct dedicated buildings to house the shuttles.
In the end, though, NASA administrator Charles Bolden announced that the Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum, a wing of the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, the California Science Center, and the Kennedy Space Center won out for the Enterprise, Discovery, Endeavor, and Atlantis, respectively.
Smaller shuttle artifacts, like fuselage trainers and commander seats, are being offered to various other museums, according to NASA. And those museums may be better off financially when it all comes down to it—the four winning spaces will have to find room and money to house these 170,000 pound, 122 feet long giants.
Totally worth it though, right? I’d definitely hang with a shuttle if I got the chance.
Eigenblogger 