Gömböc Unveiling

Do you know what a gömböc is? Do you want to see one in person?

The gömböc is an object that always comes to rest in the same position, having only one stable point of equilibrium. Its existence was theorized in 1995 by Russian mathematician Vladimir Arnold. The most well-known solution was proven in 2006 by Hungarian scientists Gábor Domokos and Péter Várkonyi.

In November 2019, Dr. Domokos approached the University of Regina Library about donating a gömböc with a unique serial number to the University of Regina. Since 2007, uniquely-numbered gömböc models have been gifted to esteemed individuals and institutions around the world. In receiving the gömböc numbered 1911, the University of Regina will become the second institution in Canada to house a unique gömböc (joining the University of Toronto)!

The gömböc is a tangible proof of mathematical theory, made material through the ingenuity of modern science. The gömböc has attracted attention in the fields of engineering, geology, biology, and even in the fine arts.

Join us to see this object in person during Pi Day celebrations on Friday, March 13, 2020 at 1:00 in the RIC Atrium. Refreshments provided!

Don’t forget to stay after the unveiling of the gömböc to witness the pie-eating contest, and enjoy some free pie courtesy of the Mathematics, Actuarial Science, and Statistics Student Society (MASS).

*Facts about gömböc taken from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%B6mb%C3%B6c