Volume 57
, Issue 1

2021

Dear Readers, I hope that you are well, wherever you are, and welcome to this issue of Parabola!

At first sight, the Euler spiral map projection does not appear very practical. This article shows, however, how the Euler spiral map projection can be used to compress meteorological data.

Based on your personal understanding, off the top of your head: what would a proof of the Riemann Hypothesis do to internet security? Don’t look it up. Just consider how you would generally answer this based on what you may have read or heard.

Pedestrians have been known to cause vibrations on bridges from the forces exerted by their footsteps as they cross it. This article explains the mathematics underlying this phenomenon.

In the last issue of Parabola, Randell Heyman showed that $c_n = (1 + \sqrt{2})^2 + (1-\sqrt{2})^n$ for each natural number $n$.

Here are two questions regarding cyclists in velodromes.
Can you find clear solutions for these?

Q1647 A monk visits $t$ temples and burns a number of incense sticks, the same number at each temple. The temples are located on different islands in a magic lake and he visits them by boat. The lake doubles the number of sticks he holds each time he reaches an island.