Karl Scherer

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Karl Scherer (born 1952) is a mathematician and a games inventor.

Karl Scherer was born in Traben-Trarbach, Germany. He studied mathematics and physics at the University of Kaiserslautern in Germany. He finished these studies with a doctorate (PhD) in mathematics in 1980.

In 1986 he emigrated to New Zealand. He worked as a software engineer in Germany (for SAP) and New Zealand (for Air New Zealand and AMS). Since 1990 he has fully dedicated his time to personal development as well as to recreational mathematics and the invention of games and puzzles.

He has invented a new type of wire-and-string puzzles, each consisting of a closed loop of wire and a closed loop of string. The challenge is to fully separate the string from the wire.

He has also created and published about 400 puzzles, games and tools in the form of computer programs based on the Zillions games development environment. All are available for free from his web site or from the Zillions web site. His emphasis is not only on creating interesting and inspiring games, tool and puzzles for all ages, but also on giving the user plenty of opportunities to create his/her own game setups and thus encouraging creativity.

Karl is a regular contributor to the Journal of Recreational Mathematics, and has created or solved many mathematical problems. Noteworthy examples include:

• He holds the current record (disputed — see talk page) for the longest sequence of forced moves in chess (being 18 half moves or 9 moves by either side);[1] (http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz/prchess1.html) JRM problem 493, 1976.
• He discovered (disputed — see talk page) a way to dissect an equilateral triangle into three similar polygons such that exactly two pieces have the same size; MAT I News, Vol 7(2).
• In 1979 Scherer proved (disputed — see talk page) that the L-game by Edward de Bono is a draw. The proof was published in the JRM.
• He solved the long outstanding problem asking for the minimal faultfree rectangular packing of the (1 x n) - polysquare. He proved that the 3n x (2n+1) rectangle allows the smallest faultfree packing; JRM, 1980.
• He discovered (disputed — see talk page) that a square can be dissected into half-dominoes (right triangles with sidelengths 1 and 2) of mutually different sizes ⁶.
• On the lighter side, he found (disputed — see talk page) the mathematical correct way how to dry a towel on a line without clothes pegs; JRM Vol 22(1), pp66-67, 1990.

He has written three books on geometrical puzzles and mathematical problems, mainly in the area of tilings. He has also written a German poetry book.

Scherer is a participant of the International Puzzle Party, a loose association of puzzle inventors, sellers and collectors.

In 1986 he built (disputed — see talk page) a mechanical Turing machine using metal and plastic construction sets, and some wood. The 1.5-meter-high machine uses the pulling of strings to read, move and write the data (which is represented using ball bearing balls). The machine is now exhibited in the entrance of the Department of Computer Science of the University of Heidelberg, Germany.

In 1999 Scherer invented (disputed — see talk page) a new type of maze, which he called area-mazes or a-mazes for short. Several applications of this new idea can be found amongst his Zillions games.

Since then Scherer has created and sold many computer graphics (fractals; based on mathematics) using the Fractint freeware software. He also produced a video and DVD from animated fractals with music by Jeff Clarkson.

Reference

Video/DVD

1. Karl Scherer : Infinite Relaxation, 2003. Animated fractal computer graphics; music by Jeff Clarkson.

Books

1. Karl Scherer : Wecker im Kopf, 2000. Poetry and philosophy in rhymes; 90% German, 10% English.
2. Karl Scherer : New Mosaics, 1997. The book focusses on alternating tilings and nowhere-neat tilings.
3. Karl Scherer : Nutts And Other Crackers, 1994. The book focusses on new problems of plane geometry.
4. Karl Scherer : A Puzzling Journey to the Reptiles And Related Animals, 1986. Written as a fiction story, this is the only book which investigates deeply into the realm of reptiles, irreptiles and puritiles.

Articles

1. Karl Scherer : A General Theorem On No-Touch Tilings of Squares And A General Theorem On Nowhere-Neat Tilings Of Squares, JRM Vol. 32(1) 1-13, 2003-2004.
2. Karl Scherer : L-game Is A Draw, JRM 1997.
3. Karl Scherer : The impossibility of a tessellation of the plane into equilateral triangles whose sidelengths are mutually different, one of them being minimal, Elemente der Mathematik, 1984.
4. Karl Scherer : Some new types of closure properties of the plane, American Mathematical Monthly, 1982 (?).
5. Karl Scherer : Minimal Faultfree Rectangles Packed With 1xn Polyominoes, JRM, 1980.
6. Karl Scherer : Dissecting a Square Into Similar Triangles, JRM, Vol 28(4), 1996-97, p307.
7. Many smaller articles, problems and solutions published in the JRM.

See also

• Category: Puzzles
• Category: Puzzle designers
• convex tilings
• mathematical puzzles
• mechanical puzzles
• puzzles
• string puzzles
• tetrads
• tilings
• tiling with squares : page contains several general theorems on tilings by Karl Scherer.
• wire-and-string puzzles

External links

• Official web site (http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz)