Printable PDF
Department of Mathematics,
University of California San Diego

****************************

Math 288 - Statistics

Anirban DasGupta

UCSD Visitor

Bode\'s Law and The Neptune Hole : Coincidence or Something More ?

Abstract:

A long time ago, astronomer Johann Bode noticed a remarkable regularity in the interplanetary spacings in our solar system. It is not just the regularity in the spacings, but the fact that a few planets previously unknown were discovered by using the Bode law. Is it a coincidence ? Is it a semi-physical law ? Or, could it just be that the mathematical formula characterzing the interplanetary spacings is embeddable in a parametric class of sequences that will give great fit to a lot of empirical sequences of small length ? (The suggestion has been made that it COULD be a sign from a creator too) We will present the story of Bode\'s law, the story of discovery of the planets, and the resultant mathematical questions, with some calculations, and many examples.

Host:

May 18, 2003

5:00 PM

AP&M 5829

****************************