Related papers: On Dividing a Rectangle
We consider the problem of testing, for a given set of planar regions $\cal R$ and an integer $k$, whether there exists a convex shape whose boundary intersects at least $k$ regions of $\cal R$. We provide a polynomial time algorithm for…
In 1994, Martin Gardner stated a set of questions concerning the dissection of a square or an equilateral triangle in three similar parts. Meanwhile, Gardner's questions have been generalized and some of them are already solved. In the…
A rectangular partition is the partition of an (axis-aligned) rectangle into interior-disjoint rectangles. We ask whether a rectangular partition permits a "nice" drawing of its dual, that is, a straight-line embedding of it such that each…
We explore an instance of the question of partitioning a polygon into pieces, each of which is as ``circular'' as possible, in the sense of having an aspect ratio close to 1. The aspect ratio of a polygon is the ratio of the diameters of…
What is the smallest number of pieces that you can cut an n-sided regular polygon into so that the pieces can be rearranged to form a rectangle? Call it r(n). The rectangle may have any proportions you wish, as long as it is a rectangle.…
Motivated by a question of Erd\"{o}s and inquiries by Beeson and Laczkovich, we explore the possible $N$ for which a triangle $T$ can tile into $N$ congruent copies of a triangle $R$. The \emph{reptile} cases (where $T$ is similar to $R$)…
The open problem of whether or not every pair of equal-area polygons has a hinged dissection is discussed.
A triangulation of a punctured or pinched surface is irreducible if no edge can be shrunk without producing multiple edges or changing the topological type of the surface. The finiteness of the set of (non-isomorphic) irreducible…
This paper attacks the following problem. We are given a large number $N$ of rectangles in the plane, each with horizontal and vertical sides, and also a number $r<N$. The given list of $N$ rectangles may contain duplicates. The problem is…
We develop the basic and new tools for classifying non-side-to-side tilings of the sphere by congruent triangles. Then we prove that, if the triangle has any irrational angle in degree, such tilings are: a sequence of 1-parameter families…
Given a rectangle $R$ with area $A$ and a set of areas $L=\{A_1,...,A_n\}$ with $\sum_{i=1}^n A_i = A$, we consider the problem of partitioning $R$ into $n$ sub-regions $R_1,...,R_n$ with areas $A_1,...,A_n$ in a way that the total…
Starting with any nondegenerate triangle we can use a well defined interior point of the triangle to subdivide it into six smaller triangles. We can repeat this process with each new triangle, and continue doing so over and over. We show…
Taking up the challenge McConnell laid down at the end of his proof of the law of cosines, we give a completely visual dissection proof of this theorem, which applies to any triangle. In order to avoid the trigonometric expressions of…
This article has been written for an educational magazine whose target audience consists of students and teachers of mathematics in universities, colleges and schools. It concerns a notion of duality between rectangles. A proof is given…
Nandakumar asked whether there is a tiling of the plane by pairwise non-congruent triangles of equal area and equal perimeter. Here a weaker result is obtained: there is a tiling of the plane by pairwise non-congruent triangles of equal…
We investigate the problem of partitioning a rectilinear polygon $P$ with $n$ vertices and no holes % with no holes into rectangles using disjoint line segments drawn inside $P$ under two optimality criteria. In the minimum ink partition,…
Starting from any given rational-sided, right triangle, for example the $(3,4,5)$-triangle with area $6$, we use Euclidean geometry to show that there are infinitely many other rational-sided, right triangles of the same area. We show…
We study when an arrangement of axis-aligned rectangles can be transformed into an arrangement of axis-aligned squares in $\mathbb{R}^2$ while preserving its structure. We found a counterexample to the conjecture of J. Klawitter, M.…
Given a trapezoid dissected into triangles, the area of any triangle determined by either diagonal of the trapezoid is integral over the ring generated by the areas of the triangles in the dissection. Given a parallelogram dissected into…
We briefly introduce several problems: (1) a generalization of the convex fair partition conjecture, (2) on non-trivial invariants among polyhedrons that can be formed from the same set of face polygons, (3) two questions on assembling…