Timeline for Which term is better for the so called "sphere packing"?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
8 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Dec 7, 2012 at 18:37 | comment | added | Yemon Choi | @Ben: if you think that is bad, I heard a talk by a mathematical physicist where he remarked that online searches for information on the hard-core model (of gases, in statistical mechanics) gave, erm, results of a different nature | |
| Dec 7, 2012 at 15:56 | comment | added | user21349 | I don't know if the OP is a native English speaker. To me, "ball packing" evokes associations that are distracting ... sort of like the junior high school giggles you get when you talk about Uranus. | |
| Dec 7, 2012 at 14:11 | comment | added | Henry Cohn | Certainly "ball packing" is a more logical name than "sphere packing" according to modern mathematical conventions, but "sphere packing" is traditional. It doesn't cause any serious confusion, and I prefer the sound of it (maybe just because I'm used to it). It's possible that the community will gradually drift towards "ball packing" over time, but I don't see movement in that direction; if it does happen, it is likely to be pretty slow, especially since there are advantages to using the same terminology as most other people. | |
| Dec 7, 2012 at 12:11 | comment | added | Tom Leinster | I don't think it's the world's most interesting question, but I also don't see why there are votes to close. It seems harmless enough. | |
| Dec 7, 2012 at 11:49 | comment | added | Goldstern | Best terminology: de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kugelpackung :-) | |
| Dec 7, 2012 at 11:20 | history | edited | Hao Chen | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| Dec 7, 2012 at 11:01 | history | edited | Hao Chen | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| Dec 7, 2012 at 10:52 | history | asked | Hao Chen | CC BY-SA 3.0 |