Joseph O'Rourke

Northampton, MA, USA

http://cs.smith.edu/~jorourke/

Professor & chair of Computer Science; Professor of Mathematics.

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Conway's lesser-known results

reference-request ho.history-overview asked Apr 12, 2020 at 1:50

mathoverflow.net

143 votes

Gaussian prime spirals

prime-numbers discrete-geometry asked Mar 16, 2012 at 22:26

mathoverflow.net

133 votes

Is the boundary $\partial S$ analogous to a derivative?

at.algebraic-topology gn.general-topology differential-topology ho.history-overview mathematics-education asked Nov 16, 2010 at 16:26

mathoverflow.net

119 votes

Rediscovery of lost mathematics

ho.history-overview big-list asked Jul 18, 2014 at 0:56

mathoverflow.net

101 votes

Have you solved problems in your sleep?

soft-question ho.history-overview big-list gm.general-mathematics asked Apr 27, 2014 at 0:19

mathoverflow.net

101 votes

Why are matrices ubiquitous but hypermatrices rare?

linear-algebra tensor soft-question asked Dec 2, 2010 at 13:21

mathoverflow.net

100 votes

Light rays bouncing in twisted tubes

mg.metric-geometry geometry ds.dynamical-systems billiards asked Jul 15, 2011 at 10:59

mathoverflow.net

86 votes

Parodies of abstruse mathematical writing

soft-question big-list mathematics-education mathematical-writing asked Mar 14, 2015 at 0:19

mathoverflow.net

86 votes

Light reflecting off Christmas-tree balls

mg.metric-geometry discrete-geometry convex-geometry euclidean-geometry asked Dec 22, 2010 at 12:59

mathoverflow.net

82 votes

Theorems that impeded progress

ho.history-overview big-picture asked Apr 4, 2019 at 23:30

mathoverflow.net

Top Answers

What is the smallest unknown natural number?

math.stackexchange.com

Examples of unexpected mathematical images

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An example of a beautiful proof that would be accessible at the high school level?

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Theorems demoted back to conjectures

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Interesting mathematical documentaries

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Gaussian prime spirals

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Fascinating moments: equivalent mathematical discoveries

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Mathematical conjectures on which applications depend

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Noteworthy, but not so famous conjectures resolved recent years

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Which polygons can be turned inside out by a smooth deformation?

mathoverflow.net

Visibility of vertices in polyhedra

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Distributing points evenly on a sphere

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Modern Mathematical Achievements Accessible to Undergraduates

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Short papers for undergraduate course on reading scholarly math

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Easy math proofs or visual examples to make high school students enthusiastic about math

math.stackexchange.com

Partitioning a polygon into convex parts

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What seemingly innocuous results in mathematics require advanced proofs?

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Taking "Zooming in on a point of a graph" seriously

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Are there any very hard unknots?

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Books on music theory intended for mathematicians

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How to get past the "mystique" of Maths

matheducators.stackexchange.com

Is there any easy way to understand the definition of Gaussian Curvature?

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Most intriguing mathematical epigraphs

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Interesting Applications of the Classical Stokes Theorem?

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John Nash's Mathematical Legacy

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Resources where I can find open problems in number theory along with their level of difficulty

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Why do we use $\varepsilon$ and $\delta$?

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Name of this famous question?

math.stackexchange.com

Intuition behind the ricci flow

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What are curves (generalized ellipses) with more than two focal points called and how do they look like?

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