W&M Featured Events
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William & Mary
[PAST EVENT] Mathematics Colloquium
October 19, 2012
2pm - 3pm
Without benet of the machinery of modern uid mechanics or the methods of coordinate geometry, the great Greek/Sicilian mathematician Archimedes worked out the basic principles of boat stability. The case of a paraboloid of revolution is a famous result (250 BC). We examine much simpler boats using high school geometry, trigonometry and algebra to obtain some counter-intuitive results.