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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