Owen Biesel
@owenbiesel.bsky.social
Math prof, dad, gardener, knitter, bike rider, community member, friendly introvert. he/him 🏳️🌈
Also on mastodon as @[email protected]
Also on mastodon as @[email protected]
Reposting with alt-text!
January 6, 2026 at 9:55 PM
Reposting with alt-text!
This expands out to
(y^3 + 2y^2 + 4/3 y + 8/27) - (2y^2 + 8/3 y + 8/9) + (y + 2/3) - 1
or
y^3 - 1/3 y - 25/27.
A quick Desmos check shows I got this simplification right.
29/🧵
(y^3 + 2y^2 + 4/3 y + 8/27) - (2y^2 + 8/3 y + 8/9) + (y + 2/3) - 1
or
y^3 - 1/3 y - 25/27.
A quick Desmos check shows I got this simplification right.
29/🧵
November 23, 2025 at 4:34 PM
This expands out to
(y^3 + 2y^2 + 4/3 y + 8/27) - (2y^2 + 8/3 y + 8/9) + (y + 2/3) - 1
or
y^3 - 1/3 y - 25/27.
A quick Desmos check shows I got this simplification right.
29/🧵
(y^3 + 2y^2 + 4/3 y + 8/27) - (2y^2 + 8/3 y + 8/9) + (y + 2/3) - 1
or
y^3 - 1/3 y - 25/27.
A quick Desmos check shows I got this simplification right.
29/🧵
Plotting this cubic polynomial on Desmos shows a single real root at about 1.75488, which is really close to the values I observed for f(N+1)/f(N), so I think I'm on the right track. Can I find a formula for this value?
(The other roots being complex will make diagonalizing extra fun!)
27/🧵
(The other roots being complex will make diagonalizing extra fun!)
27/🧵
November 23, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Plotting this cubic polynomial on Desmos shows a single real root at about 1.75488, which is really close to the values I observed for f(N+1)/f(N), so I think I'm on the right track. Can I find a formula for this value?
(The other roots being complex will make diagonalizing extra fun!)
27/🧵
(The other roots being complex will make diagonalizing extra fun!)
27/🧵
I like to use a spreadsheet for quick-and-dirty recurrence relations. I'll check the first interesting row by hand: e(4)=5, s(4)=3, and m(4)=4.
16/🧵
16/🧵
November 23, 2025 at 4:34 PM
I like to use a spreadsheet for quick-and-dirty recurrence relations. I'll check the first interesting row by hand: e(4)=5, s(4)=3, and m(4)=4.
16/🧵
16/🧵
This sunday is Sun Day: a pro-social, pro-solar day of actions around the world. I'll be going to a family-friendly E-bike / EV event I only just heard about today — you can find an event near you here!
www.sunday.earth/events
Hat tip: @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social 's latest newsletter!
www.sunday.earth/events
Hat tip: @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social 's latest newsletter!
September 17, 2025 at 11:04 AM
This sunday is Sun Day: a pro-social, pro-solar day of actions around the world. I'll be going to a family-friendly E-bike / EV event I only just heard about today — you can find an event near you here!
www.sunday.earth/events
Hat tip: @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social 's latest newsletter!
www.sunday.earth/events
Hat tip: @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social 's latest newsletter!
It was a good haul at the library this morning :)
September 6, 2025 at 3:52 PM
It was a good haul at the library this morning :)
Biked from work to my kid's school to pick her up for a swimming lesson across town. Here's my view of her school stuff, my bag of work stuff, and her wet towel drying in the milk crate zip-tied to the handlebars.
September 3, 2025 at 11:43 PM
Biked from work to my kid's school to pick her up for a swimming lesson across town. Here's my view of her school stuff, my bag of work stuff, and her wet towel drying in the milk crate zip-tied to the handlebars.
Here's a photo of me from when I visited Minneapolis earlier this summer. I happened to come across the same style bus shelter, and wearing the same shirt, as in my profile picture. Please pardon my facial expression; I seem to have gotten worse at selfies since 2022.
August 10, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Here's a photo of me from when I visited Minneapolis earlier this summer. I happened to come across the same style bus shelter, and wearing the same shirt, as in my profile picture. Please pardon my facial expression; I seem to have gotten worse at selfies since 2022.
I had a lot of fun trying to make a Venn* diagram with a kite-shaped region for kites, and a parallelogram-shaped region for parallelograms, and so on... It's a great exercise for people who feel like they "know this already"!
*Euler, I know
www.owenbiesel.com/2020/11/30/a...
*Euler, I know
www.owenbiesel.com/2020/11/30/a...
June 9, 2025 at 6:05 PM
I had a lot of fun trying to make a Venn* diagram with a kite-shaped region for kites, and a parallelogram-shaped region for parallelograms, and so on... It's a great exercise for people who feel like they "know this already"!
*Euler, I know
www.owenbiesel.com/2020/11/30/a...
*Euler, I know
www.owenbiesel.com/2020/11/30/a...
Here's one I saved — apologies, I can't remember the source:
June 4, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Here's one I saved — apologies, I can't remember the source:
Just cancelled Paramount+ for this reason!
The terms of cancellation say "You acknowledge and agree that cancellation of your subscription is your sole recourse if you have any dissatisfaction, issue or concern related to Paramount+, ..." Well okay then!
The terms of cancellation say "You acknowledge and agree that cancellation of your subscription is your sole recourse if you have any dissatisfaction, issue or concern related to Paramount+, ..." Well okay then!
May 20, 2025 at 2:13 AM
Just cancelled Paramount+ for this reason!
The terms of cancellation say "You acknowledge and agree that cancellation of your subscription is your sole recourse if you have any dissatisfaction, issue or concern related to Paramount+, ..." Well okay then!
The terms of cancellation say "You acknowledge and agree that cancellation of your subscription is your sole recourse if you have any dissatisfaction, issue or concern related to Paramount+, ..." Well okay then!
Uh, do we really fund pediatric medical research and presidential election campaigns out of the same pile of donations?
Definitely not the *biggest* US issue right now, but still: what??
Definitely not the *biggest* US issue right now, but still: what??
April 10, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Uh, do we really fund pediatric medical research and presidential election campaigns out of the same pile of donations?
Definitely not the *biggest* US issue right now, but still: what??
Definitely not the *biggest* US issue right now, but still: what??
Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system:
January 28, 2025 at 11:14 PM
Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system:
Here's a pictorial illustration I made the last time I saw this problem, showing the case 16 + 17 + 18 + 19 + 20 = 21 + 22 + 23 + 24:
November 19, 2024 at 5:04 PM
Here's a pictorial illustration I made the last time I saw this problem, showing the case 16 + 17 + 18 + 19 + 20 = 21 + 22 + 23 + 24:
Corvid question that's been bugging me: I often see cartoon depictions of crow-like birds with yellow beaks, as in the picture book and board game shown here. Are corvids like these common somewhere?
August 23, 2024 at 10:31 PM
Corvid question that's been bugging me: I often see cartoon depictions of crow-like birds with yellow beaks, as in the picture book and board game shown here. Are corvids like these common somewhere?