To see some interesting patterns, check out. I know you have seen these patterns before. The word “tessellate” is derived from the Ionic version of the Greek word “tesseres,” which in English means “four.” The first tilings were made from square tiles. Here is a definition of tessellation from .Ī tessellation is created when a shape is repeated over and over again covering a plane without any gaps or overlaps.Īnother word for a tessellation is tilting.Ī dictionary * will tell you that the word “tessellate” means to form or arrange small squares in a checkered or mosaic pattern. He explained that the class learned about tessellation to do the work. One young man stood in the hall with many colorful pieces of paper with design on them. The students had an evening where they displayed art, science, math and engineering projects from their efforts this year. Many quilt patterns, however, date all the way back to patterns found in Roman floor mosaics.I heard it at a middle school of all things. Quilting technique involves a thorough understanding of tessellations, and quilters work hard to come up with their own tessellating designs. They are often applied as grid patterns in the design of oriental rugs. You can find tessellations in many different forms of art and graphic design. Escher made many discoveries similar to those made in x-ray crystallography. In fact, in working with tessellating shapes and incorporating their patterns into his work, M.C. Escher have used the intriguing optical effect of tessellations to create a surreal mood. A branch of science known as x-ray crystallography studies the repeating arrangements of identical objects in nature, sort of a natural form of tessellation. Tessellating patterns cut across many different disciplines. He worked on the problem of creating a set of shapes that would tile a surface without a repeating pattern, called quasi-symmetry. In the present day, Oxford mathematician Sir Roger Penrose has devoted much time to the study of recreational mathematics and tessellations. In 1619, Johannes Kepler published the first formal study of tessellations. In fact, the nature of mosaic art naturally gives rise to some tessellating patterns. Sumerian wall decorations, an early form of mosaic dating from about 4000 B.C., contain examples of tessellations. Tessellation patterns are very old, and are found in many cultures around the world. For example, the "Fish n' Chicks" animation below shows how you can alter a square to create an irregular shape that tessellates a surface. Tessellations made from regular polygons (equilateral triangles, squares, and hexagons) are usually referred to as tilings however, tessellations can be made from many irregular shapes as well. Semi-regular tessellations, on the other hand, use a combination of different regular polygons, such as the pattern above, and you can typically see examples of these patterns in the tilework of bathroom and kitchen floors. You can find examples of these on chess- or checkerboards. Patterns using only one regular polygon to completely cover a surface are called regular tessellations. Circles, for instance, would not create a tessellation by themselves, because any arrangement of circles would leave gaps or overlaps.ĭespite the limitations on the types of shapes that can form this intriguing pattern, there are many varieties of tessellations. Not all shapes, however, can fit snugly together. There are usually no gaps or overlaps in patterns of octagons and squares they "fit" perfectly together, much like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Geometry formally defines a tessellation as an arrangement of repeating shapes which leaves no spaces or overlaps between its pieces.
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