The phrase `squaring the circle' generally denotes an impossible task. The original problem was one of three unsolved challenges in Greek geometry, along with trisecting an angle and duplicating a cube. The problem was to construct a square with area equal to that of a given circle, using only straightedge and compass. That's Maths … Continue reading Laczkovich Squares the Circle
Month: November 2020
Ireland’s Mapping Grid in Harmony with GPS
The earthly globe is spherical; more precisely, it is an oblate spheroid, like a ball slightly flattened at the poles. More precisely still, it is a triaxial ellipsoid that closely approximates a “geoid”, a surface of constant gravitational potential [TM199 or search for “thatsmaths” at irishtimes.com]. Mapping the Globe Positions on the globe are given by … Continue reading Ireland’s Mapping Grid in Harmony with GPS
Aleph, Beth, Continuum
Georg Cantor developed a remarkable theory of infinite sets. He was the first person to show that not all infinite sets are created equal. The number of elements in a set is indicated by its cardinality. Two sets with the same cardinal number are ``the same size''. For two finite sets, if there is a … Continue reading Aleph, Beth, Continuum
Weather Forecasts get Better and Better
Weather forecasts are getting better. Fifty years ago, predictions beyond one day ahead were of dubious utility. Now, forecasts out to a week ahead are generally reliable [TM198 or search for “thatsmaths” at irishtimes.com]. Careful measurements of forecast accuracy have shown that the range for a fixed level of skill has been increasing by one day every … Continue reading Weather Forecasts get Better and Better
ThatsMaths 