but I shall let him learn to fly on his own. |
Page 2
Because it takes a bit of science... ...and a bit of mathematics. It’s really very simple...and
we just might feel
just a bit silly when we
realize just how simple... it is!
Science is an art of not seeming silly...
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Page 3
There are thirteen bricks,1 X 2 X 4 units to a side.
There are three rods,1 X 1 X 3 units to a side. There is one big square block, 2 X 2 X 2 units to a side. There is one flat square block 1 X 2 X 2 units to a side. The box is 5 X 5 X 5 units to a side. Is the box big enough to hold those 18 blocks? The box is 125 little
cubes big.
It is big enough! A little secret:
There are many ways to fit
the blocks in the box.
But there’s a little rule
you must follow. It’s a mathematical rule. A simple mathematical
rule. Ask yourself: how many little blocks does it take to fill the
bottom layer of the box?
You know, of course, the
answer is: And the next layer takes
the same number. And the next… And the next… Turn the box on its side, and that layer also takes the same number. And the next layer up.
And the next. In fact there are fifteen different layers that each
take that number of little cubes.
But how can you get an odd
number of little cubes in a layer with those blocks when almost all of
them will add an even number of little cubes to any layer?
The sum of even numbers is always an even number. |
Page 4
That’s why magicians can fool us.
so.. Be the magician! Learn
some good tricks of our own!
Get skilled at some science.
...grown.
Then keep going.
Where
is the Platinum Plover Egg?
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