mathematics

John Edmark

John Edmark is a mathematics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand John Edmark rather than just read about it. In short: John Edmark (born 1965) is an American designer, sculptor, and professor at Stanford University. Many of his art works take on a mathematical approach and application.

Key takeaways

John Edmark belongs to mathematics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect John Edmark to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of John Edmark from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

John Edmark (born 1965) is an American designer, sculptor, and professor at Stanford University. Many of his art works take on a mathematical approach and application.

Education and career Edmark graduated from Columbia University with a Bachelor of Science and later a Master of Science degree in Computer Science. He then received a second Master of Science degree in Product Design at Stanford University. Throughout his life, he has acquired supplemental knowledge on architecture, art, and animation that can be reflected in his artwork. His curiosities in mathematics — specifically spiral geometry — have also played a large influence on his art. Edmark worked at Bell Labs for a few years researching computer graphics and virtual environments. However, he cites that he preferred to create physical, tangible objects rather than virtual objects, which ultimately inspired him to create sculptures. Currently, Edmark is a professor at Stanford University, where he lectures on topics such as design, art history, and mechanical engineering. Edmark has also since created commissioned artwork for the Exploratorium, San Jose Museum of Art, Phaeno Science Center, and Swiss Science Center Technorama.

Works Edmark has been praised for his mathematical approach to art. One of his main goals is to strike curiosity and wonder in the observers. Much of his work is constructed based on intricate mathematical processes, as he describes his sculptures as “instruments that amplify our awareness of the sometimes tenuous relationship between facts and perception." One of his main focuses is on spiraling sculptures that create a blooming effect when spun and placed under a strobe light, similar to how zoetropes function. These "bloom" sculptures utilize mathematical patterns such as phyllotactic spirals and symmetry, which are both a part of spiral geometry. His blooms, in particular, are inspired by mathematical processes occurring in nature, such as with pinecones and artichokes. The petals of his "bloom" sculptures are placed 137.5° (golden angle) apart — based on properties from the golden ratio and the Fibonacci Sequence — in order to create the spiral effect when spun. His sculptures are 3D printed and are composed mostly of plywood, polypropylene, and brass. Edmark also creates animations based on these structures through taking a picture every 137.5° rotation. Other than his blooms, many of his sculptures are based on similar idea of spirals. For example, he has created a helicone, which is a wooden model replicating DNA strands that can be rotated by 68.75°. His ''Fibonacci Tiling'' (2016) is a set of tiles that have pieces of similar shapes, but each tile is different in size. The illusion of the sculpture spinning is created when pieces are added quickly.

References

External links John Edmark's profile at Stanford John Edmark's personal page John Edmark's Instructable page

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with John Edmark

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what John Edmark claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In mathematics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to John Edmark before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about John Edmark ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of John Edmark

In research: John Edmark appears in mathematics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses John Edmark in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: John Edmark is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1965 births, American male sculptors, American mathematicians, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for John Edmark outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study John Edmark in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what John Edmark means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain John Edmark out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is John Edmark in simple terms?

John Edmark (born 1965) is an American designer, sculptor, and professor at Stanford University. Many of his art works take on a mathematical approach and application.

Why does John Edmark matter?

Because it connects several mathematics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study John Edmark?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on John Edmark.