Turning a Sphere Inside Out opens with a discussion of the problem of turning a sphere inside out by passing the surface through itself without making any holes or creases. Mathematicians believed that the problem was insoluble until 1958 when Stephen Smale proved otherwise. However, no one could visualize the motion, called a regular homotopy. The homotopy in this film was developed by Bernard Morin, a blind mathematician. It is illustrated with a sequence of chicken-wire models, built by Charles Pugh, showing the crucial stages in the motion. Mathematicians Nelson L. Max, Stephen Smale, and Charles Pugh, and physicist Judith Bregmann provide the commentary. The film closes with several different sequences of computer animation revealing the continuous motion of the sphere. Supplemental information and images are available by clicking here.
Rezensionen / Stimmen
"This re-issued video [originally produced in 1976] is a treasured time capsule that shows three brilliant scientists making the intriguing concept of sphere inversion understandable to the general public. The carefully crafted modeling sequence brings to life this abstract concept which is almost impossible to explain and visualize using only text and static pictures. - Carlo H. Sequin, U.C. Berkeley"
Sprache
Verlagsort
Verlagsgruppe
Zielgruppe
Für höhere Schule und Studium
Spieldauer
ISBN-13
978-1-56881-218-2 (9781568812182)
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Schweitzer Klassifikation
Nelson Max is Professor of Applied Science at the University of California, Davis and a Computer Scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. He has worked in Japan for 3 and a half years as co-director of two Omnimax (hemisphere screen) stereo films for international expositions, showing the molecular basis of life. His computer animation has won numerous awards.
