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The symbol of the Expo ’74 World’s Fair is one of the most intriguing geo metric figures ever discovered — a mathematical paradox you can hold in your hand. It is a ribbon with only one side. Impossible? , No. The figure is a Mobius strip, named for its discoverer, August Fer dinand Mobius, a 19th Century German mathematician and theoretical as tronomer. Mobius was a pioneer of the arcane science of topology, a branch of math ematics which deals with figures whose surface characteristics remain the same while their shapes change. The Mobius strip was picked as the symbol for Expo '74, whose theme is “Celebrating Tomorrow’s Fresh, New Environment,” because it “illustrates the unity of man and his natural sur roundings, earth, sky and water.’’ These represent a continuum, just as the Mobius strip does. Anyone can make a Mobius strip in a few seconds. Take a ribbon or Strip of paper and form a loop. Now flip either end over and glue the loop closed. You now have a Mobius strip, and it has only one side. To prove it, run the ribbon under a pen or pencil point, making a contin uous line. The line will soon meet it self, just as man inevitably meets him self in the consequence of his actions in the natural environment of which he is an inseparable part. That is what the Expo ° 74 World’s Fair is all about. A story of the lively fair in Spokane is featured in_ this week’s Weekender. World's Fair Spokane, USA May 4-Nov 3, 1974
Newspaper Details
Freeport Journal Standard
Freeport, Illinois, US
Sat, Jul 13, 1974
Page 11
Full Page
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