To See the Universe in a Ruffle

Mathematicians and Artists Team Up to Recreate the Coral Reef 

By Sharon Lakey

Nancy Lewis dreams of a coral reef—right here in the Northeast Kingdom. In the dead of winter, when our color scheme consists of variations on gray, this sounds intriguing but farfetched. Not so. All it takes is a crochet hook, yarn dyed in the bright colors of the sea and a little math instruction. “Math?” you ask. Hyperbolic geometry, to be precise, but don’t run to the exits just yet. 

On a camping trip in 1997, Daina Taimina, a Latvian mathematician who was working at Cornell, discovered she could crochet a hyperbolic plane, something that had never been seen or felt in 3-D. This simple act shook the math world as it gave tactile expression to a geometry that challenges Euclidian concepts. In fact, hyperbolic geometry challenges former views of our universe. Under Euclidian concepts, our universe in flat and infinite; under hyperbolic concepts, it is round and finite. (See note at bottom of article.)  

It turns out that hyperbolic planes, the basic structure of the coral reef, have been crocheted for centuries. To an untrained math mind, though, they are seen as ruffles. Nancy, who grew up in Lewiston, Maine, was instructed in crochet by her grandmother, who was avid about it. In Danville, she points to a lovely potholder hanging on her refrigerator, a circular piece with plump red strawberries nestled in the center. “I made this from one of my grandmother’s patterns,” she said, thumbing through some paper patterns she has inherited. 

The patterns didn’t hold her interest for long, though. “I was curious about shapes,” she said. “I became fascinated in filling space with structure.” This curiosity made its way into fanciful creations that became strange crocheted shapes on top of hats, reminiscent of an undersea adventure. She was unknowingly creating hyperbolic planes. 

When Nancy moved into our area, she put a few of these hats on consignment at Uniquity in St. Johnsbury. The Wool Away shop is located at the back of the store and when owner Mariam Briggs saw them, she immediately connected them with a new fiber arts movement that was storming the country. She encouraged Nancy to submit some of her creations to the project, which she did through photos.

The project originated with ecology minded twin sisters in Los Angeles, Christine and Margaret Wertheim. They founded and are co-directors of The Institute For Figuring, which educates the public about figuring techniques using the underlying principals of physics. The plight of coral reefs was of particular concern for them and when they connected with Daina Taimina and her hyperbolic crochet models, they went into action. 

Inviting crochet artists to submit from all over the world, they created the Hyperbolic Crochet Reef in figures. This exhibition has toured museums and raised the consciousness of the reef in cities from west to east, including Los Angeles, Chicago and New York. Nancy’s pieces are included. “I don’t know where they are now, but I keep getting these postcards and brochures in the mail letting me know of new openings.” Her name is listed prominently among the contributors with a simple “Nancy Lewis (VT).” 

That’s all fine and good, to have her pieces out there traveling in style, but her dream is to bring this into the Northeast Kingdom. Enter Newcomb Greenleaf of St. Johnsbury, a math professor at Goddard College. “I retired once,” says Newcomb (from places like Columbia and Harvard), “but I’m back to it.” Besides teaching math, Newcomb also teaches Buddhist meditation, and that is how Nancy showed up in his life as a student. Chatting together one day, he found out about her hyperbolic crocheting and before long they had designed a workshop course at Goddard. 

Under his direction, Nancy created hyperbolic planes like Daina Taimina’s so he could explain to students the underlying math principles, then the group moves on to crocheting under Nancy’s direction. Nancy is pleased to say, “Everyone but Newcomb has been successful at it. It’s very freeing, because there is no set pattern.” 

Newcomb sighs, “My fingers won’t work like that; I think I’m too old.” But it is easy to see that he enjoys this teaming experience. “The work is so tactile,” he says, lifting a wormy looking figure that is lying on the Nancy’s kitchen counter. And indeed, it is so enchanting I had to scrunch it, too, and wondered aloud how difficult it was to create. 

“Not hard at all,” says Nancy, smiling. These are simple crochet models, and anyone can do them. She’s going to get her chance to prove it. Catamount Arts is offering a four-hour local workshop on March 28 to all comers who would like to learn the basics. The cost is $35. “People should come with a hat body,” says Nancy, showing an example of a simple ribbed tube. If you haven’t done your homework, you can purchase one from me for $5 at the workshop.”

Maybe a few people will get hooked. That is what she is hoping. “I would like for a group of us to work together to form our own collaborative coral reef. Right here. Do you think we could do it?” 

Notes--A simple and excellent description of hyperbolic geometry can be accessed at this address  http://theiff.org/oexhibits/oe1f.html 

Nancy’s website address is www.medusahats.com 

For more pictures and this article click here

The article was published in The North Star Monthly, March 2009

  

Firsthand Account of the Inauguration of President Obama

Gabi and Lauren hold The New York Post photo of the inauguration ceremony. The arrows represent where both of them were standing during the event. 

View Gabi's photo album

View Lauren's photo album

By Sharon Lakey

On the morning of the swearing in of the 44th President of the United States, Danville senior Gabi Potts arose at 2:30 a.m. from her bed in the Marriott Conference Center in Washington D.C.  At 4:30 she arrived at Union Station. She felt safe, but intimidated by the four Secret Service agents standing there with their assault rifles. At 5:30, she walked to a designated Silver Gate on 3rd street and presented her ticket. 

Once inside the Mall Standing Area, she was nearly knocked over by Jesse Jackson, who was bustling to the ABC broadcasting booth. At 6:30 she had made her way to the front, near the right side of the Reflecting Pool. She elected to stand against a concrete barricade where she felt protected from the pressure of the crowd that was already beginning to flow into the area. During that walk she had tripped, skinned her knee, and lost and recovered a shoe. 

At 5:30 a.m., Danville freshman Lauren Peterson arose from her bed at the Best Western in Tysons Corner, Virginia. At 6:30 she boarded a shuttle bus with other students in her group and was brought into the city. They were dropped at a point near the National Museum of the American Indian. After going through a security checkpoint at the Museum, similar to what airline passengers are sent through, they attended a hot chocolate reception. 

But, as the time neared for the ceremony, her group of five decided they wanted to go into the crowd. Once more they cleared security and worked their way toward one of the Silver Gates. Having no tickets, they waited near the fence, surprisingly close to where Gabi was waiting. Lauren  remembers  feeling a strong sense of anxiety about what could happen; all the show of force in Washington made that possibility obvious. She could see where Barack Obama was standing, but the large crowd made actual viewing of the event impossible. Wanting to see and hear the ceremony, her group returned to the Museum to watch it on the Jumbo Tron. 

Gabi felt a frightening surge in the crowd behind her as the ceremony neared. The fence and lack of tickets were no longer an impediment; the people simply moved forward, and the fence was gone. But she stood her ground, one of two million who were there to personally witness the swearing in of America’s first African-American President. “I could see his silhouette from that distance, his hand raised for the oath,” she said.

Lauren remembers that moment as one of silence, a stopping, a collective holding of the breath. “A perfect moment,” she said. “All of our history of division was behind us, and we were looking into the future. And there was hope.”

Gabi describes the sound that followed after his hand dropped. “People cried and screamed. Words like, ‘finally’ and ‘yes we can’ and ‘thank you.’ It was a passionate and natural outpouring of emotion that rose all around me.”

“We felt like one family, not separated,” said Lauren. 

The moment that had brought people of all ages and colors to the White House was over quickly. Gabi remembers that many turned after the oath and began crossing back over the lawns, not even staying to hear President Obama’s speech. They had come for one reason--to watch with their own eyes the defining instant when America became truly a land of opportunity for all.

The girls arrived in Washington on January 17, Lauren by air and Gabi by land, to participate in the activities planned by each of their respective student groups. Gabi’s group, The Presidential Classroom consisting of 350 students, was housed in the city; Lauren’s group, The National Young Leaders Student Conference consisting of 7,300 students, was housed outside the city. 

Gabi’s agenda included student caucuses, tours to Mount Vernon, the Jefferson Memorial and the Pentagon Memorial, which honors the 184 dead from 9/11. It also included speaking appearances by two well-known men: Dr. Ed Smith and former President Clinton. “For three days we were surrounded by Secret Service agents and didn’t even know it,” she said. “It was all in preparation for President Clinton.” After the inauguration, a celebratory ball helped her group relax and enjoy each other’s company in lovely clothes and a feeling of multicultural good will.

Lauren’s agenda was different from Gabi’s. “There was less time in the classroom,” she said. There was more touring: the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial and the Capital Building. A trip down the Potomac on a dinner cruise was an outstanding moment for her. “I guess we must have been a terrorist risk, because the boat was crawling with guards,” she said. Her speakers included such luminaries as Colin Powell, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and former Vice President Al Gore. On the Lincoln Memorial steps she saw a performance that included Stevie Wonder, U2, Garth Brooks, Sheryl Crow, Bruce Bringstein, WILL.I.AM, Usher and Beyonce. Her celebratory ball was held at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum where she enjoyed dinner and was treated to a performance by Daughtry.

Both girls were thoroughly entertained by The Capital Steps, a group who bills themselves as  “the Washington-based troupe of Congressional staffers turned songwriters. We put the MOCK in Democracy.”  “I bought all three of their CDs,” said Gabi with a mischievous smile. 

They returned from their trip by car on Friday, driven by Lauren’s mother. It was a long 10-hour trek that inched them along the clogged highways and bridges that President Obama speaks of in his plan to rebuild America’s infrastructure. 

There was the usual letdown from the shining moment they experienced firsthand, but the trip gave them time to unwind and reflect on their experiences. “A huge hurdle has been overcome,” said Gabi. “There’s a lot of pressure on him. I worry about that.”

This story was published in The North Star Monthly, February 2009