building. In order to do this, mathematics is needed to work out such building factors
as angles, distances, shapes, and sizes.
How has mathbeen used historically in architecture?
Historically, there has been a great connection between architecture and mathemat-
ics. Ancient mathematicians were architects and vice versa, using their skills to build
pyramids, temples, aqueducts, cathedrals, and a range of other architectural struc-
tures we find beautiful and awesome today. For example, in ancient Greece and Rome,
architects were requiredto also be mathematicians. During medieval times, most
buildings and structures carried some symbolic reference to the church; the mathe-
matical end of architecture was almost forgotten during this time. By the European
Renaissance around 1400, a new kind of architecture developed that emphasized mass
and interior space to produce aesthetically pleasing “pictures” similar to those found
in paintings and sculptures. This led to an entirely new way of looking at architecture
and altered its connection to mathematics.
What is the golden ratio?
The golden ratio (also known as extreme and mean ratio, golden section, golden
mean, or divine proportion) is a number that has many interesting properties; it is
associated with the balance between symmetry and asymmetry used in art and design. 333
MATH IN ENGINEERING
What is the world’s longest suspension bridge?
T
en years after construction began, Japan’s Akashi Kaikyo Bridge—also known
as the Pearl Bridge—was finally opened on April 5, 1998. It is the longest sus-
pension bridge in the world, stretching 12,828 feet (3,910 meters) across the
Akashi Strait to link the city of Kobe with Awaji-shima Island. Its main span
length (or center section, which is the way “world’s longest” status is deter-
mined) reaches 6,532 feet (1,991 meters) between support columns. The span
length is almost a quarter mile longer than the previous record holder, the
StoreBaelt (Great Belt East Bridge) in Denmark, which also opened in 1998.
But this bridge may eventually lose its top-dog status. The Italian govern-
ment has approved plans to begin building what will be the longest suspension
bridge in the world between mainland Italy and Sicily. It will be quite an engi-
neering feat, with the main span stretching just over 10,827 feet (3,300 meters).
Interestingly enough, Japan and Italy are known to be tectonically active, with
both receiving more than their fair share of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes,
as well as, in Japan, tsunamis.