“If Satan plays miniature golf, this is his favorite hole. A ball struck at A, in any direction, will never find the hole at B — even if it bounces forever.
The idea arose in the 1950s, when Ernst Straus wondered whether a room lined with mirrors would always be illuminated completely by a single match.
Straus’ question went unanswered until 1995, when George Tokarsky found a 26-sided room with a “dark” spot; two years later D. Castro offered the 24-sided improvement above. If a candle is placed at A, and you’re standing at B, you won’t see its reflection anywhere around you — even though you’re surrounded by mirrors.”
mathematically, yes. In real life, imperfections in the ball, wind drag and wear on the course would ensure that the ball would not avoid the hole forever.
yeah it’s a mathematical thought experiment
it would be much easier to build an impossible minigolf hole in real life, you could just put a wall between the two holes
that’s not the point
depending on how much upward force you put on the ball though you could get it over the wallyes you could also pick the ball up and walk over to the other whole and put it in
well yes but that`s cheating. Also you can make a golf ball curve when you hit it so this isn`t impossible even with perfect conditions.it is a mathematical thought experiment about reflection
the original subject was light from a match, but a golf ball is much easier to visualize
you can’t put a spin on light or hit it over a wall
the minigolf part is just a simplification
It worries me that someone is trying to use logic to win an argument about a hypothetical mathematical concept by pointing out the flaws in its legitimacy as a minigolf course
It also worries me that they would consider picking up the ball as cheating but would allow building a wall between the two holes that is impossible to overcome as a fair addition to a minigolf hole
(via itsvondell)
