"Developer Project Information" Russell Towle
- To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
- Subject: [mg20675] "Developer Project Information" Russell Towle
- From: Russell Towle <rustybel at foothill.net>
- Date: Sun, 7 Nov 1999 02:10:09 -0500
- Sender: owner-wri-mathgroup at wolfram.com
Title: Regular Polytopes Author: Russell Towle Format: Mathematica 4.0 notebook "Polytope" is the general term for the sequence point, segment, polygon, polyhedron. Of all the infinitude of polytopes which exist in n-dimensional Euclidean spaces we may select those with the most symmetry. This somewhat difficult subject is set forth in H.S.M. Coxeter's modern classic, "Regular Polytopes" (Dover, 1973). It seems to me that what is needed, to bring these wondrous and cheerful denizens of higher space down to earth, is graphics, and whenever possible, animation. In my Mathematica notebook, the sixteen regular polytopes in four dimensions are constructed, along with another twelve polytopes of lesser symmetry. Plane and solid projections are formed, as are solid sections. Hidden-detail-removed projections of the convex 4-polytopes into a 3-space are also constructed. By this means one obtains a larger polyhedron (the orthogonal solid shadow) made of smaller polyhedra fitting together perfectly. The notebook is large and demands a degree of active participation upon the part of the user. It is available at http://www.mathsource.com/Content/WhatsNew/0210-643. Russell Towle Box 141 Dutch Flat, CA 95714 (530) 389-2872