Some Assembly Required

Three Hundred Forty Fifth Post: Some Assembly Required

Today I was working on building my bench/picnic table and ran into a few problems. The boards were cut beautifully, exact match to the template. The problem occurred with the next step of drilling the holes. I checked and double checked there placement, but when I went to put the bolts in to join the two boards it didn’t line up. My solution was to pound the bolts in with a spare 2X4. It is hard to line up 4 hole on each board. The pounding worked on one joint, but to fix the other side I will have to make drill new holes by lining up the boards. Not the best solution, but you get a little respect for furniture from the store that has to be assembled. They have to get everything right from the instructions to the holes.

Another thing that comes with instructions and has to be assembled is a math problem. I did a quick description on the electric sine curve as an math problem application and put it on Constructor’s Corner yesterday. I know it sounds complicated, but like most the math on Constructor’s Corner the explanations are simple enough to follow along and learn something. People tend to get confused with pages of formulas. If math is put into words explaining what the author is trying to find or solve, it can be understood by anyone. Better yet is converting math to graphics. Again when you put math into graphics everyone can get an understanding of the concept without knowing complicated formulas. It is these graphics that bridge the gap between math and art. Admittedly, these graphics may at first sound more technical than an artistic expression. But art and math are two ways of thinking and explaining the World around us. In nature you do not see divisions among art and math. They are none. For instance music is an art, an expression. Does it make music any less fantastic by the fact that notes can be explained mathematically?

The thing that does differentiate math an art is the way a person goes about thinking and doing them. For example, math has a reputation for being about logic and analysis. Art is associated with creative thinking and passionate feelings. Admittedly, this is a significant difference. But if math and art coexist in nature should we not try to experience both worlds? Imagine the possibilities. For instance, the same person how designed the car’s engine could design it’s body style. It would just foster creativity. It is all about the passion, understanding, and enlightenment. Those things are simple ways to improve the World.