Monthly Archives: February 2009
Wrong number
Is it just me, or does it happen to everyone? When I try to correct someone else’s arithmetic, I can count on making an error of my own. For instance: I was reviewing William Goldbloom Bloch’s clever and provocative book … Continue reading
Posted in computing, mathematics
14 Comments
Math, fonts, and HTML
In the latest issue of American Scientist I write about the awkward and ugly business of trying to present mathematical typography on the web. All the while I was writing the column, I had constantly in mind the uncomfortable knowledge … Continue reading
Posted in computing, mathematics
17 Comments
Distant shores
Before I put my toys away, here are two more views of continental divides. First, a broader look at North America, seeing it as more than a bicoastal continent. The southernmost incursion of the Arctic watershed is in the Red … Continue reading
Posted in computing
11 Comments
If I had a hammer
Since I’m a bit-player rather than a bit-worker, I generally stick to toy-sized problems. However, in recent weeks I’ve been fooling around with multimegabyte elevation maps, and I’ve had trouble scaling up. What I’ve found most challenging is not writing … Continue reading
Posted in computing
15 Comments
Long division
I’ve been dividing the continent again. Back in the summer of 2000, on a coast-to-coast car trip, I began wondering about the Great Divide, the line that traces the spine of North America, separating the Atlantic and Pacific watersheds. How … Continue reading
Posted in books, computing
23 Comments