Architecture, Nature & Conclusion

1 Mathematics in
Architecture
2
Mathematics
in Nature
Nurul Khairunnisa Morni

08B0534
Mathematics in Architecture
Architecture has in the past done

great things for geometry.
Together with the need to measure
the land they lived on, it was
people's need to build their
buildings that caused them to first
investigate the theory of form and shape. But today,
4500 years after the great pyramids were built in
Egypt, what can mathematics do for architecture?
For thousand of years mathematics

has been an invaluable tool for
design and construction.
Here is a partial list of some

mathematical concepts which have
been used in architecture over the
centuries:
Phytogorean theorem
Pyramids squares, rectangles
Prisms Parallelograms
Golden rectangle Circles, semi-circles
Optical illusions Spheres, hemisphere
Cubes Polygons
Polyhedra Angles
Geodestic dome Symmetry
Triangles Parbolic curves
Catenary curves
The design of a structure is influenced

by its surroundings, by the availability
and type of materials and by the
imagination and resource upon which
architect can draw.
Historical architecture
℘ Pyramids of Egypt, Mexico and the Yucatan

℘ Machu Picchu
℘ Pathenon
℘ Ancient theater at Epidaurus

℘ Roman architects
℘ Architects of the Byzantine

℘ Architects of Gothic cathedrals

℘ Renaissance
Temple of Athena Parthenos

In the construction of the Temple of Athena

Parthenos, Pythagorean ideas of ratios of small
numbers were used.
The length of the Temple is 69.5 m, its width is

30.88m and the height at the cornice is 13.72 m. To a
fairly high degree of accuracy this means that the
ratio width : length = 4 : 9 while also the ratio height :
width = 4 : 9. Berger took the greatest common
denominator of these measurements to arrive at the
ratios
height : width : length = 16 : 36 : 81

which gives a basic module of length 0.858 m
Then the length of the Temple is 92 modules, its width

is 62 modules and its height is 42 modules. The module
length is used throughout, for example the overall
height of the Temple is 21 modules, and the columns
are 12 modules high. The naos, which in Greek temples
is the inner area containing the statue of the god, is
21.44 m wide and 48.3 m long which again is in the
ratio 4 : 9. Berger notes the amazing fact that the
columns are 1.905 m in diameter and the distance
between their axes is 4.293 m, again the ratio of 4 : 9
is being used.
Modern architecture
With the discovery of new building materials,

new mathematical ideas were adopted and used to
maximize the potential of these materials.
Using wide range of available building materials

architects have been able to design virtually any
shape.
Modern architecture
The geodestic
structures of
Buckminster Fuller
Formation of the
hyperbolic paraboloid
The Gherkin
There are three main features

that make it stand out from
most other sky-scrapers: it's
round rather than square, it
bulges in the middle and tapers
to a thin end towards the top,
and it's based on a spiralling
design. All these could easily be
taken as purely aesthetic
features, yet they all cater to
specific constraints.
The London City Hall
As with the Gherkin, the shape

was not only chosen for its looks,
but also to maximise energy
efficiency. One way of doing this
is to minimise the surface area of
the building, so that unwanted
heat loss or gain can be
prevented. As the mathematicians
amongst you will know, of all solid
shapes, the sphere has the least
surface area compared to volume.
This is why the London City Hall
has a near-spherical shape.
• Architecture is an evolving field.

Architects study, refine, enhance, reuse
ideas form the past as well as create new
ones. In the final analysis, an architect is
free to imagine any design as long as the
mathematics and materials exist to support
the structure.
Mathematics in Nature
There is no branch of mathematics, however

abstract, which may not someday be applied to
phenomena of the real world – Lobachevsky
Ever look at…

a leaf and wonder why it could be divided
exactly in half?
the spiral growth pattern of a certain shells?
of the growth pattern if hair on a human

head?
 Nature abounds with examples of

mathematical concepts.
Orb spider’s web
 Mathematical ideas that appear in the

web are – radii, chords, parallel segments,
triangles, congruent corresponding angles,
the logarithmic spiral, the catenary curve
and the transcendental number .
Tortoise shell
 The mathematics of triple junction,

hexagonal tiling and calculus.
 The comb’s walls are made up of cells which
are about 1/80 of an inch thick, yet can support
30 times their own weight.
 A honeycomb of about 14.5’’ x 8.8’’ can hold

more than 5 pounds of honey, while it only
requires about 1.5 ounces of wax to construct.
 The bees form the hexagonal prisms in three

rhombic sections and the walls of the cell meet
at exactly 1200 angles.
 The comb is built vertically downward and the

bees use parts of their bodies as measuring
instrument. Their heads act as plummets.
 Honeybee has a “compass”

 Bees’ orientation is influenced by the
Earth’s magnetic field.
 Bees can detect small fluctuations in the
Earth’s magnetic field.
 This is why the bees occupying a new location

simultaneously begin to build the hive in
different parts of the new area without any bee
directing them.
 All the bees orient their new comb in the

same direction as their old hive.
Communication
 Bees communicate the direction of the food

and the distance by transmitting codes in a form
of a “dance”.
 The orientation of the dance in relation to the

sun gives the direction of the food, while the
duration of the dance indicates the distance.
Communication
 Honeybees “know” that the shortest distance

between two point is a straight line. – BEELINE
 The honeybee gets its mathematical training

via its genetic codes.
Flock of birds
Ever wonder why a flock of birds in flight as

they swooped through the air don’t collide?
 Heppner F.H. established 4 simple rules based

on avian behaviour and used triangles for birds
on why flock of birds don’t collide:
3.Birds are attached to a focal point or roost.

4.Birds are attached to each other.
5.Birds want to maintain a fixed velocity.
6.Flight paths are altered by random occurences
such as a gust of wind.
 As Galileo mentioned. “… the universe stands
continually open to our gaze, but it cannot be
understood unless one first learns to comprehend
the language and interpret the characters in which
it is written. It is written in the language of
mathematics, and its characters are triangles,
circles and other geometric figures, without which
it is humanly impossible to understand a single word
of it… “
 Mathematics is not just about learning the basic
four operations or counting numbers but it is more
than that.
 It evolves in the world around us in almost every

fields / subjects / professions in this world.
 Mathematics is so powerful that from the day it

was first used until today it is still considered as
one of the fundamental subjects and fields.
MATHEMATICS IN…
 Everyday life
 Art & design
 Architecture
 Nature
 Cooking
 Psychology
 Sports
 Medicine

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1 Mathematics in

Nurul Khairunnisa Morni

Architecture has in the past done

For thousand of years mathematics

Here is a partial list of some

The design of a structure is influenced

℘ Pyramids of Egypt, Mexico and the Yucatan

℘ Ancient theater at Epidaurus

℘ Architects of the Byzantine

℘ Architects of Gothic cathedrals

Temple of Athena Parthenos

In the construction of the Temple of Athena

The length of the Temple is 69.5 m, its width is

height : width : length = 16 : 36 : 81

Then the length of the Temple is 92 modules, its width

With the discovery of new building materials,

Using wide range of available building materials

There are three main features

As with the Gherkin, the shape

• Architecture is an evolving field.

There is no branch of mathematics, however

Ever look at…

the spiral growth pattern of a certain shells?

of the growth pattern if hair on a human

 Nature abounds with examples of

Orb spider’s web

 Mathematical ideas that appear in the

 The mathematics of triple junction,

 A honeycomb of about 14.5’’ x 8.8’’ can hold

 The bees form the hexagonal prisms in three

 The comb is built vertically downward and the

 Honeybee has a “compass”

 This is why the bees occupying a new location

 All the bees orient their new comb in the

 Bees communicate the direction of the food

 The orientation of the dance in relation to the

 Honeybees “know” that the shortest distance

 The honeybee gets its mathematical training

Ever wonder why a flock of birds in flight as

 Heppner F.H. established 4 simple rules based

3.Birds are attached to a focal point or roost.

 It evolves in the world around us in almost every

 Mathematics is so powerful that from the day it

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