Uploaded June 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
“Gridlocked: Geometry under the Manhattan Metric” featuring MOST Fellow Maddie Weinstein
Euclidean geometry assumes that the shortest path between two points is a straight line — but New Yorkers know that sometimes buildings get in the way. Join us to explore geometry under the “Manhattan metric,” where travel is restricted to a grid and four is the equivalent of pi. We will start with playful examples about a dog named Pumpkin Pi and his gridlocked companion Pumpkin Four, and end with an application to the 1854 cholera outbreak in London, a seminal event in the field of epidemiology.
MOST provides opportunities for students to explore engaging math with dynamic, early-career female mathematicians. To learn more about MOST, visit momath.org/most. This program is funded by Simons Foundation International and administered by the Simons Foundation’s Science, Society & Culture division.
“Gridlocked: Geometry under the Manhattan Metric” featuring MOST Fellow Maddie Weinstein
Euclidean geometry assumes that the shortest path between two points is a straight line — but New Yorkers know that sometimes buildings get in the way. Join us to explore geometry under the “Manhattan metric,” where travel is restricted to a grid and four is the equivalent of pi. We will start with playful examples about a dog named Pumpkin Pi and his gridlocked companion Pumpkin Four, and end with an application to the 1854 cholera outbreak in London, a seminal event in the field of epidemiology.
MOST provides opportunities for students to explore engaging math with dynamic, early-career female mathematicians. To learn more about MOST, visit momath.org/most. This program is funded by Simons Foundation International and administered by the Simons Foundation’s Science, Society & Culture division.
