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The pentagon and dodecahedron are also very interesting mathematically. Squares and triangles tile the plane, and have nice "round" number angles 90° and 60°. P

by kortex 5y ago

The pentagon and dodecahedron are also very interesting mathematically. Squares and triangles tile the plane, and have nice "round" number angles 90° and 60°. Pentagons don't tile and feature 108° angles. The diagonals of a convex regular pentagon are in the golden ratio to its sides. The inscribed pentagram has a very recursive feel for this reason, "tiling" (nesting) off to infinity.

anigbrowl 5y ago
I'd have to go looking for the paper now but this is fascinatingly true of some kinds of viral envelopes.
prox 5y ago
Weren’t the Pythagoreans complete number worshippers? Maybe they are related to them?
- dr_dshiv 5y ago
  Yes, like Max Tegmark, they believed the world was made of math. Where harmony means wholeness, they believed in harmonies in numbers (1+2+3+4=10), harmonies in numbers in space (geometry), harmonies in numbers in time (musical ratios) and harmonies in numbers in space and time (astronomy; harmonies of the spheres). They also conducted the first hypothesis driven experiment in western science when they cast bronze chimes with corresponding ratios of thickness (1:2, 2:3) to see if the pythagorean tuning of strings was a generalizable property. Plato extended pythagoreanism to make the world of math into the world of pure forms—a universal, immortal realm. He also continued the esoteric tradition of the pythagoreans, who had to keep their practices secret because they kept getting slaughtered. It's just the best history. Pythagoras was also gender inclusive—not only were there many female pythagorean philosophers, he also (according to aristoxenus) openly credited his moral doctrines to Themistoclea. For integrating science and spirituality at the start of western civ, pythagoreanism is pretty much the coolest.
  - prox 5y ago
    It’s interesting that such a “scientific” group was readily persecuted. Power fears knowledge it seems. However very interesting group! Wish they were still around :)

by kortex 5y ago

anigbrowl 5y ago

I'd have to go looking for the paper now but this is fascinatingly true of some kinds of viral envelopes.

prox 5y ago

Weren’t the Pythagoreans complete number worshippers? Maybe they are related to them?

dr_dshiv 5y ago
Yes, like Max Tegmark, they believed the world was made of math. Where harmony means wholeness, they believed in harmonies in numbers (1+2+3+4=10), harmonies in numbers in space (geometry), harmonies in numbers in time (musical ratios) and harmonies in numbers in space and time (astronomy; harmonies of the spheres). They also conducted the first hypothesis driven experiment in western science when they cast bronze chimes with corresponding ratios of thickness (1:2, 2:3) to see if the pythagorean tuning of strings was a generalizable property. Plato extended pythagoreanism to make the world of math into the world of pure forms—a universal, immortal realm. He also continued the esoteric tradition of the pythagoreans, who had to keep their practices secret because they kept getting slaughtered. It's just the best history. Pythagoras was also gender inclusive—not only were there many female pythagorean philosophers, he also (according to aristoxenus) openly credited his moral doctrines to Themistoclea. For integrating science and spirituality at the start of western civ, pythagoreanism is pretty much the coolest.
- prox 5y ago
  It’s interesting that such a “scientific” group was readily persecuted. Power fears knowledge it seems. However very interesting group! Wish they were still around :)