Homochiral Tetrahedra Like to Make Balls!

Jake with Homochiral Balls

 

That’s the big news from my first week in residence at the IFF (Well, the first big news, anyway).  Maybe not necessarily surprising, but still pretty exciting nonetheless!

I’ve been working with twisted tetrahedra in 3-D arrays for some time now, but always in arrangements that alternate between left-handed and right-handed orientations.  I call those hetero- (different) -chiral (handed) arrays and I’ve been really, really into them.  They make pretty straight lines in twelve different directions, and when I fit them together they feel fulfilled.  (Seriously, I don’t even think I’m projecting here, as I can say clearly and distinctly, that I also feel fulfilled)  And, heterochiral arrays of tetrahedra make a space filler (infinite 3d tiling of space): tetrahedra and truncated tetrahedra. So, there’s that as well (which is basically infinity).  But, I was never really interested in working with homo- (same) -chiral (handed) tetrahedral arrays until last week when I started making shapes here in the IFF Space.  I guess I was saving it for something special.  It turns out that homochiral tetrahedra are absolutely amazing when they are joined!  You just have to give them the space and support to do their own thing, which turns out to be: curve!  How about that!

So, now I’ve got a partially stellated icosadodecahedron (20 triangles/tetrahedra and 12 pentagons; pictured on the left, in blue and yellow), as well as a partially stellated truncated pentakisdodecahedron (At least, I think that’s what it is . . . 60 triangles/tetrahedra, 12 pentagons, and 20 hexagons; on the right in black and white) But wait! There’s more! The partially stellated icosadodecahedral array is also a space filler, as the stellations are in fact tetrahedra on the faces of a regular icosadodecahedron.  Boom! Again with the infinity! I have a sneaking suspicion that the partially stellated truncated pentakisdodecahedron has space filling potential too, but we’ll just have to see about that.

I’m so looking forward to sharing all this, and more, at the space filling workshop we’re having this weekend! It’s such an exciting time to be with tetrahedra.

I’m so happy to be here.

-Jake Dotson