Abstract
It is very interesting to study the parallel story of soap bubbles and soap films in art and science. Noting that mathematicians in particular have been intrigued by their complex geometry, the author traces a short story of research in this area from the first experiments by Plateau in the late nineteenth century to more recent works. Looking for the connections with art and architecture, with a special look to the Olympic swimming stadium in Beijing built in 2008
It’s because I don’t do anything, I chatter a lot, you see, it’s already a month that I’ve got into the habit of talking a lot, sitting for days on end in a corner with my brain chasing after fancies. It is perhaps something serious? No, it’s nothing serious, They are soap bubbles, pure chimeras that attract my imagination. Fedor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment
A soap bubble is the most beautiful thing, and the most exquisite in nature ... I wonder how much it would take to buy a soap bubble if there was only one in the world. Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad
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Emmer, M. (2009). Soap films and soap bubbles: from Plateau to the olympic swimming pool in Beijing. In: Emmer, M., Quarteroni, A. (eds) Mathknow. MS&A, vol 3. Springer, Milano. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-1122-9_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-1122-9_8
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