The Atlantic
The mathematician Jordan Ellenberg discusses gerrymandering, bad COVID-19 projections, and how geometry explains the world.
About the author: Derek Thompson is a staff writer at
The Atlantic, where he writes about economics, technology, and the media. He is the author of
Hit Makersand the host of the podcast
So you’re walking down the street carrying a hot slice of pizza on a paper plate. The tip of the slice is so heavy with cheese and sauce that it’s drooping toward the ground. How do you solve this problem?
Naturally, you fold the pizza lengthwise, New York–style. But why does warping the pizza by turning the crust ends toward each other keep the molten cheese at the pizza tip from falling on the street? The answer is geometry.