Year: 2022

SNOWFLAKES AND GLACIERS. "In regular ice, like you have in your freezer -- hexagonal type 1, the formation of water molecules is not as open as in snow. It's more tightly packed, as if you folded a flat hexagon in a weird way. And joined those together in a tighter formation. This structure is more dense and stronger than a snowflake structure." http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/11/15/804812/- View in LinkedIn

EXPLANATION. "It's strength comes from a simple, sound architectural formation, based on the angles of the oxygen nucleus. It also comes from the change to univalent bonds that occurs when water freezes. When these bonds are formed, water molecules are pushed out of the way so the structure has room to form. And the crystalized structure of all ice is more open than the arrangement of liquid water. This is why water has the unusual property of expanding by about 10 percent when it freezes." http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/11/15/804812/- View in LinkedIn

SIMILAR SHAPES. "What synchronizes the growth of the six arms? Nothing. The six arms of a snow crystal all grow independently, as described in the previous section. But since they grow under the same randomly changing conditions, all six end up with similar shapes." https://lnkd.in/dhNbMdR View in LinkedIn

RARE SYMMETRY. "If you think this is hard to swallow, let me assure you that the vast majority of snow crystals are not very symmetrical. Don't be fooled by the pictures -- irregular crystals (see the Guide to Snowflakes) are by far the most common type. If you don't believe me, just take a look for yourself next time it snows. Near-perfect, symmetrical snow crystals are fun to look at, but they are not common." https://lnkd.in/dhNbMdR View in LinkedIn

HALF TRUTH. "Snow crystals usually aren’t completely symmetrical. Instead, they are quite irregular and lumpy, full of conglomerations and corrections. The hexagonal crystal structure holds up in all cases, but the sort of perfect fractal sculpture you’ve been led to believe defines a snowflake? It’s a half-truth, at best." https://lnkd.in/dTbpCSB View in LinkedIn

COMPLEMENTARY SHAPES. "Very cold? We get columns. Cold and high humidity? Dendrites. Cold and medium humidity? Sectored plates. Still, none of this explains how two separate arms can form complementary patterns." Nice graph of temperature vs form. http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/post/72704847892/youve-watched-this-weeks-video-on-the-science View in LinkedIn

TILING SHAPES. "Fibonacci snowflakes are somehow related to the Fibonacci fractals. They also form a subclass of tiles used for tiling the plane." https://lnkd.in/desvnVq View in LinkedIn

ON SNOWFLAKES AND VIRUS GEOMETRY, a ride on the wild side. Take a pinch of salt for this journey. https://lnkd.in/deFn7Te View in LinkedIn

SERIOUS SNOWFLAKE MATHEMATICS. How Kepler's "nothing" could demand such deep thinking to solve. Take a block of ice for this journey. https://lnkd.in/d6pKQyK View in LinkedIn

THE NOTHING TREATISE ON A SNOWFLAKE. "Lacking the necessary funds to buy an appropriate Christmas gift for a friend, Kepler decided to write the essay on the snowflake. After all, he asked rhetorically, what do astronomers and mathematicians "who have Nothing and receive Nothing" have to give, but Nothing?" http://www.keplersdiscovery.com/SixCornered.html View in LinkedIn