Students Construct Three-Dimensional Object in Math Class

Students of the MA248 Mathematics Technology Lab took a break from the computers for a construction project. Using plastic strapping and rivets, they created a spherical piece of a minimal surface. The three-dimensional object, based on the cubic lattice, was described by Hermann Schwarz in the 1880s as an example of a surface that minimizes area. Professor Brian Hopkins participated in the first “barn raising” of this object with its designer, George Hart of SUNY Stony Brook, recently at a conference in Atlanta dedicated to Martin Gardner. After completing the project, students had fun rolling the object down the incline in front of the library, giving a dynamic display of its structure and symmetries.