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A string of numbers. They can mean something, or nothing. They can guide us to patterns in nature, or drive a mathematician to the brink of his or her sanity.
Eleanor Wood's "Fibonacci" is a story that even non-mathematicians can appreciate. It tells of the sting of failure, and the exhilarating atmosphere of success. |
"One sample of DNA. One chance to prove herself and silence her peers." - Eleanor R. Wood, "Fibonacci"
One sample of DNA.
One chance to prove herself and silence her peers.
Two viable ammonites eventually swim in their tank, juvenile and tiny. Their spiralled shells may be imperfect Golden Ratios, but their erstwhile association with Fibonacci’s sequence drew her to them as a child. The addition of the sequence’s last number to its predecessor to generate the next, converging on an identical ratio between each one, creates a logarithmic beauty she finds soothing.
Three mass extinctions occurred before the ammonites succumbed to the fourth. With the planet on the brink of another, she’s certain these animals hold the ...
Continue reading at Flash Fiction Online
One chance to prove herself and silence her peers.
Two viable ammonites eventually swim in their tank, juvenile and tiny. Their spiralled shells may be imperfect Golden Ratios, but their erstwhile association with Fibonacci’s sequence drew her to them as a child. The addition of the sequence’s last number to its predecessor to generate the next, converging on an identical ratio between each one, creates a logarithmic beauty she finds soothing.
Three mass extinctions occurred before the ammonites succumbed to the fourth. With the planet on the brink of another, she’s certain these animals hold the ...
Continue reading at Flash Fiction Online
Ponder this
What is the role of the Fibonacci series in the story? The author can pick any combination of numbers to frame it, but why did she chose these specific numbers?
There have been fringe research on reviving extinct species. What do you think are the consequences of bringing them back? Would it be alright to bring only those that had died due to human actions? What about something from aeons ago? Why, why not?
Discuss
Mathematical patterns are ubiquitous in nature, and much of it we had taken for granted. Are there other patterns that are available around us? Non-Fibonacci patterns, that is.
Further readings
Fibonacci sequence, the central theme of the story.
Ammonites, a long-extinct species of shellfish.
"Species Revival: Should We Bring Back Extinct Animals?", an article from the National Geographic on the ethics of de-extinction.
