Miks, our super kind host not only promoted the show in Riga three nights ago, but then drove us to Tallin and back, and then put us up for another night so we could see some of the city before our flight back.
There was a very specific Riga souvenir I thought I might try and track down for my friend Becky, but it seems that it's just too elusive a prize. You see, there's a certain Latvian mathematician named Daina Taimina who discovered that she could better teach theories of hyperbolic space using crocheted models. Crochet as method is extremely sculptural as you're essentially building a form out of a series of knots. By exponentially increasing stitches, you can hypothetically recreate a hyperbolic space. Oh my, I can go on and on. Instead, you should look here for some stellar examples and here to learn more!
Now, where was I? Oh yeah. I found out that Professor Taimina hasn't actually taught in Latvia for quite a while. She did write a couple books and I was looking for either her original text book or a short essay she apparently wrote on geometry and aesthetics- fascinating stuff, for sure. Sorry I can't birthday surprise you with a nerdy treat, Becky. I haven't completely given up, though.
A trip to the university not in our cards (people actually answer phones when you call Riga University), it was time for some good old fashioned sight-seeing.
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