A splash of colors

Flowers taken in Baguio City

Gathering for Gardner

I will be on field work starting tomorrow afternoon til Sunday, so I'm making my weekend post today.

So what's the title about? Mr. Martin Gardner is an American mathematician and science writer with specialization in recreational mathematics (I'm quoting this from wikipedia). Recreational Mathematics? Mathematics for fun? Sounds impossible, but he is quite a popular guy in the field of puzzles and illusions. Simply magical. Well... don't worry if you haven't heard his name before. It's my first time too.

Which brings me back to more than a decade ago when I visited Disneyland in Anaheim, California. We trooped early to the side of the lake to get good seats for the fireworks show that Disney is so popular for. But it was hours still before the show and while my companions sat comfortably, I decided to venture on my own. I chanced upon the Haunted Mansion and since it was the nearest attraction to the lake, decided to take the ride. I was with a small group when we entered the lobby of the mansion. As we waited for the main door to open, the lights suddenly went off! Overhead, the windows flashed from the lightning outside and it would momentarily illuminate the dome, on the center of which hung a man, very much dead with ropes on his neck! Strangers though we were, we huddled together and each time the lightning struck, it seemed the dome was coming down on us! After what seemed like a long time, the lights got restored, the dead guy's gone, and the dome is waaay up there.

We were then ushered to a door which leads to a narrow, circular staircase. By the wall are a row of frames with portraits of turn-of-the-century dudes. At first glance, there's nothing really peculiar about them, until you look at them while you walk. Their heads are moving and looking right at you as you descend the staircase! I looked at my companions and they, too, were seeing the same illusion! How can that be? The same photo staring at each and every one of us?

Now how they did that has been a mystery to me. The hanging man and lightning trick is somewhat easier to explain, but the photos with their bulging eyes gazing at you? Finally, after over a decade, I know the answer!

The dragon (pictured above) was made in celebration of a gathering for Gardner, hence the title on the pedestal (duh). The dragon is a visual illusion. When you look at the dinosaur and move about, the dinosaur's head would seem to move and gaze back at you! There's a video (in wmv format) in the site showing how the dragon ought to work.

And as an additional treat, a template of the dragon (pdf format, with instructions) is freely downloadable from the website!

I had printed one for myself last week but I had a huge error in the construction. The head is supposed to be concave. I'll make another one over the weekend and make it work this time.

Visit this site today!
http://www.grand-illusions.com/opticalillusions/dragon_illusion/

There are a lot of other puzzles there as well for your amusement and amazement.

So until next week, have fun with the dragon, and have a magical weekend ahead!

Photo credit: Grand Illusions

Panagbenga's final weekend: Street fair

After the street dancing and float parade comes a week-long street fair, where Session Road is closed from vehicular traffic and booths are set-up offering a wide spectrum of goodies! Trinkets, food trip, bric-a-bracs, plants, and more food!

My wife, baby Jo-Lo and I dropped by last Saturday afternoon to savour the sights and sounds of the final days of Panagbenga 2007.

There were pockets of landscaped areas that look real nice, and makes you think that with a bit of imagination, you can really do a nice garden theme on such a small space.
This reminded me of Boracay, where you can get a henna tattoo by the beach.

There were also protrait-scketching booths. This one asked for a small donation, whatever amount is ok with you... another booth beside this charged for a fixed amount. P150.00, I think.
Here's one of the nicer food places in the fair.
Lots of nice things can be bought from the fair. Aside from Baguio / Benguet items, there were also booths from other places such as Vigan and Marinduque offering native delicacies and craft.
The Flower Club was demonstrating flower arrangement that afternoon. There were arrangements with vegetables and fruits in them too. Interesting.

Old friend and Jo-Lo's godfather Leo had a booth as well, with nice trinkets and accessories.As the night crawled in, we settled into a small food stall for a quick bite before calling it a night. There were still lots of people around. There was a concert too, but we couldn't stay. Perhaps when Jo-Lo's older.