"Felix Klein discovered in the 1870s that the simple equation x[superscript 3]y + y[superscript 3]z + z[superscript 3]x = 0 (in complex projective coordinates) describes a surface having many remarkable properties, including 336-fold symmetry - the maximum possible for any surface of this genus. Since then this object has come up in different guises in several areas of mathematics." "The mathematical sculptor Helaman Ferguson has tried to distill some of the beauty and remarkable properties of this surface in the form of a sculpture that he entitled The Eightfold Way, permanently installed at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley." "This volume seeks to explore the rich tangle of properties and theories surrounding this object, as well as its esthetic aspects."--Jacket.
For young readers
Book data: Open Library