Math Fun
Simon finds the explanation on Brilliant.org incomplete, so he started a discussion about it on the Brilliant community page: https://brilliant.org/discussions/thread/games-of-chance-course-marble-problem/?ref_id=1570424
Category: Math Tricks
A Fun Fibonacci Puzzle
Here is a fun math trick! Simon and Neva have made a 8 x 8 cm square (with an area of 64 cm²) and cut it into four pieces, turning … Continue reading A Fun Fibonacci Puzzle
The Math Behind 2048
Simon shares his strategy to win a 2048 game. He has also worked out a general formula of what a maximum tile can be in any grid. For a 4 … Continue reading The Math Behind 2048
Topological trick in slow motion
Simon (and Neva as his assistant) experimenting with the topology of a paper strip, filming their (almost magical) tricks on a slow motion camera: Inspired by Tadashi Tokieda’s geometry and … Continue reading Topological trick in slow motion
Simon’s new optical illusion
You can play with Simon’s illusion in Geogebra online at: https://www.geogebra.org/m/aevtyumr
False Proofs: Can you figure out what’s wrong?
Simon shows three false proofs. Can you find the mistake in each proof? Simon reveals the answers to the first two. Try to give your answer to the third one. … Continue reading False Proofs: Can you figure out what’s wrong?
Simon’s Proof for the Hundred Board Trick
Simon learned a new math trick last night called Hundred Board. He came up with two ways to prove why the trick always works:
Simon turned 9!
– Simon, Mom and Dad arranged it quite nicely, to have your birthdat and our wedding anniversary on two consecutive days! – No, it was pure coincidence! – But what … Continue reading Simon turned 9!
The Leaning Tower of Lire
Also known as the Book-Stacking Problem. Simon had tried to build this tower at the Fries Museum where we visited a huge Escher exhibition (to the annoyance of the museum … Continue reading The Leaning Tower of Lire
The Pi Strip
Simon made a measuring tool to check the diameter of round objects: by wrapping the strip around them, he reads the Pi times the centimeters value, which basically gives him … Continue reading The Pi Strip
Math on the Beach
Simon doing math everywhere. And he showed me this beautiful trick of two rows adding up to equal numbers and their squares adding up to equal numbers. And the two … Continue reading Math on the Beach
Tricks with paperclips and Knot Theory
Simon is pretty obsessed with Knot Theory at the moment (a mathematical theory that is widely used in advanced biology and chemistry, for example in handling tangled DNA). He also … Continue reading Tricks with paperclips and Knot Theory
Geeks out of the box 