Comments on: Penrose’s Patent and the Battle of the Tissue Tiles (Contains Mathematics)

By: Daniel Wyllie

Daniel Wyllie — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:51:30 +0000

Hi Carl.
Now take a look at this boardgame
called Cir*kis.
Curiously, the designer doesn’t
say a single word about Penrose.
How smart (or not)…

http://www.winning-moves.com/974AC834972648769F406DE95E835622.asp?ccb_key=FE7D7E17EC58488B82A501337290458B

By: Carl Morris

Carl Morris — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 14:42:42 +0000

Thanks all.

Sam, Emperor’s New Mind has been on my to-read list for years. It’s kind of daunting. I guess you have to start on the first page and work from there!

Ian, I knew about the existence of the Islamic art but after a quick search I was surprised by the similarities. It’s frustrating that they didn’t write down their understanding of the maths to go along with the designs! Or at least, we no longer have it. All the same, I’m pretty sure Penrose made a unique breakthrough by using only two tiles. I guess the US Patent Office saw fit to award the patent to the Penrose tilings without considering the earlier work to be a prior art – which the court later upheld. But I haven’t delved into their process to see if they even considered the work of the Islamic guys. I wonder if there are any other treasures out there ripe for rediscovery. Haven’t read that book, sounds interesting..

Rhys, diolch ond cadwch ar y pwnc! Dw i’n amateb trwy ebost yn union.

By: Rhys

Rhys — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 16:45:02 +0000

S’mai Carl,

Dim i’w wneud a geometreg, ‘mond eisiau diolch am ddanfon y ddolen ataf am Trydan drwy delicious (dyna beth oedd ‘rhwydweithio cymdeithasol in action!). Yn anffodus galla i ddim mynychu’r cyfarfod cyntaf yn Juno Lounge – mae gan rhai ohonom ni waith 9-5 diflas :-(

Darllenais dy sylw are Metastwnsh ble soniais am dy fwriad i greu fideos o phodlediadau Cymraeg.

“Bydda i postio fideos gyda syniadau DIY, lefel mynediad am y person ifanc/dechrauwr.”

Mae’n swnio’n ddiddorol – sut fath o DIY oedd gyda ti mewn golwg, gosod silff yn y tŷ bach, neu rhyweth ychydig mwy geeky fel sut i ddechrau blog/golygu erthygl ar Wicipedia? Dw i ddim yn berson ‘techy’ ofnadyw (nac yn pync nac yn secsi!) ond os wyt ti eisiau help, gyda rhywbeth fel sgriptio er enghraifft, rho floedd, byddwn i wrth fy modd yn helpu.

Gwelais fideo reit da o Wlad y Basg, ble mae disgyblion ysgol cynradd Basgeg yn gwneud parodi o’r hysbyseb ‘I’m a PC’ – ond eu bod nhw’n dangos yr holl feddalwedd rhydd (sydd ar gael yn y Fasgeg fel yn y Gymraeg) y maen nhw’n eu defnyddio.

By: Ian Green

Ian Green — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 22:38:24 +0000

Hi Carl,

Interesting stuff.
But I think you’ll find, if you dig a little deeper, is that a lot of this geometry is derived from Islamic art and mathematics.
I’m not sure why I know this but I think it was in a novel by Russel Hoban – Pilgermann I think?

Ta
Ian

By: Sam

Sam — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 21:39:39 +0000

Roger Penrose is a true genius! It’s a charming story when a mathematician invents something like a breakthrough geometrical pattern. Mathematicians across the world must have bubbled with excitement at the time. The rest of the world would probably have been asking why? We have a Penrose book at home called the Emperor’s New Mind. It’s a chunky beauty all about artificial intelligence, computers and the physics. That work was breakthrough stuff too! I wish so much to read it, but it will mean devoting a lot of brain power time!