Borromean rings
The Borromean rings are a special arrangement of exactly three (flexible, non-flat) rings, mathematically speaking, an interlocking with three components, for which the property applies: If one of the rings is removed, the other two are also free. That is, the rings are not intertwined in pairs, even though all three taken together are inseparably intertwined. This property was formulated and investigated by the mathematician Hermann Brunn .
They got their name from the Italian Borromean family , who had the rings in their family coat of arms and who wore them as buttons on their uniforms .
Because of the Brunnian quality, the rings were and are in many cultures around the world as a symbol of networking or strength through unity. Often the rings are depicted with three flat circles; but such a shape is geometrically impossible.
Molecular Borromean rings were synthesized by Fraser Stoddart and colleagues.
See also
literature
- Peter Cromwell, Elisabetta Beltrami, Marta Rampichini: The Borromean Rings , Mathematical Intelligencer, 1998, No. 1, p. 53
- Charles Livingston: Knot theory for beginners , 1995, Vieweg-Verlag, Braunschweig / Wiesbaden, ISBN 3-528-06660-1
