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MMD > Archives > January 1997 > 1997.01.14 > 06Prev  Next


Re: The Moebius Roll
By Robbie Rhodes

Mr. Moebius demonstrated that an object of two dimensions can have but one surface.  To make a Moebius strip, cut a narrow strip of paper as for a child's headband, but make a half-twist before gluing the ends into a circle.  A pencil line may be drawn upon the entire surface without ever lifting the pencil, proving that it is only _one_ surface!

A three-dimension object with only one surface is the "Klein Bottle", and an approximation can be crafted by a skilled glass-blower.  It would look beautiful in Philippe's "Bottle-o-phone", but there might be a problem tuning it to proper pitch, since the inside and outside are the same!

    "Three jolly sailors from Tyne
       went to sea in a bottle by Klein.
     Since the sea was entirely inside the hull,
       the scenery seen was exceedingly dull."

The Link nickelodeon operated from an endless music roll.  When the nickels were collected and the music was changed, the operator would locate the splice to separate the end from the beginning of the roll, and then wind it carefully on a core for storage.  It's not likely that a "Moebius roll" was created in error, but certainly there were occasions when the (ordinary) endless roll was carelessly installed, such that the music played backwards, or reversed bass-to-treble, or both!

Robbie Rhodes


(Message sent Wed 15 Jan 1997, 02:41:14 GMT, from time zone GMT-0800.)

Key Words in Subject:  Moebius, Roll

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