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Hello Wayne,

I dont know it by name but this sounds suspiciously like something I did, or was shown, maybe in 8 th grade math....  Does it have something to do with tossing a tooth pick on a hardwood floor with the narrow strips of wood, and counting how many times it lands crossing a board edge?  I think the tooth pick has to be equal in length to the width of a floor board, and somehow PI came into play as a ratio of crossing vs non crossing landings...but that was a Loooong time ago, and I may be way off...

All the best,

Pat Barthelow   (916) 315-9271; [log in to unmask]

Jamesburg Moonbounce Team

http://www.jamesburgdish.org

http://www.greatdanepro.com/Blue%20Bueaty/index.htm





> Date: Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:53:28 -0700
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Speaking of Math (and Probability) Has Anyone ...
> To: [log in to unmask]
> 
> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
> *****************************************************************************
> 
> ... ever built an exhibit that demonstrates the Buffon* Needle Problem? 
> It would be relatively easy to make, and has a very interesting result. 
> It also would be highly interactive, because it requires throwing a 
> needle onto something like a checkerboard. Of course, this could be 
> simulated on a computer, but it wouldn't be nearly as much fun. In fact, 
> one could collect lots of data over days, weeks, and months to see how 
> close one gets to the "number".
> 
> I'm being a little coy about what all this does, but if anyone who reads 
> this wants to know, I'll happily provide the answer. Anyone familiar 
> with the problem would certainly know what the problem provides as an 
> answer, and why one even throws a needle in such a fashion.
> 
> * There's a subtle and ironic bit of "statistical" association to 
> Buffon. He was a genius; however, one of his offspring was far from it. 
> It's an apt example, I suppose, of regression--an often used concept in 
> statistics. The height and intelligence of offspring tends toward the 
> average.
> 
> -- 
> 
>            Wayne Watson (Watson Adventures, Prop., Nevada City, CA)
> 
>              (121.015 Deg. W, 39.262 Deg. N) GMT-8 hr std. time)
>               Obz Site:  39° 15' 7" N, 121° 2' 32" W, 2700 feet
>             
>                  "Science is what we do, when we don't know 
>                   what we are doing" -- Alvaro de Rujula
>             
>                     Web Page: <www.speckledwithstars.net/>
> 
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