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Mathematical Association of America The American Mathematical Monthly

This document discusses solutions to the problem of folding congruent equilateral triangles into a tetrahedron with no open edges. It was determined that: 1) The minimum number of triangles needed is seven. 2) There are two configurations of seven triangles that can be folded into a closed tetrahedron - one forms a five-triangle trapezoid with additional triangles extending from the bases, and the other forms a similar trapezoid with triangles extending from the shorter base and middle of the longer base.

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111 views

Mathematical Association of America The American Mathematical Monthly

This document discusses solutions to the problem of folding congruent equilateral triangles into a tetrahedron with no open edges. It was determined that: 1) The minimum number of triangles needed is seven. 2) There are two configurations of seven triangles that can be folded into a closed tetrahedron - one forms a five-triangle trapezoid with additional triangles extending from the bases, and the other forms a similar trapezoid with triangles extending from the shorter base and middle of the longer base.

Uploaded by

Allan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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E913

Author(s): C. S. Ogilvy, S. T. Thompson, A. Sisk and J. H. Braun


Source: The American Mathematical Monthly, Vol. 58, No. 1 (Jan., 1951), pp. 38-39
Published by: Mathematical Association of America
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1951] ELEMENTARY PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS 39

Most of the solutions were trigonometrical in nature. Pennell established the


following generalization: A triangle ABC has a vertex angle C<600. The base
angle A = C+60?. Points M and N are taken on A C and BC such that angle
ABM=90?-3C/2 and angle BAN=30?+C. Then angle BMN=30?. When
C= 200 this reduces to the given problem.
Trigg pointed out that the problem has appeared in School Science and
Mathematics, April 1939, p. 379. It was earlier proposed by E. M. Langley in
Mathematical Gazette, XI (1922-3), p. 173. In the same volume, p. 321, a number
of solutions can be found.
Professor Umbugio wrote that he was afraid to tackle the problem, because
913 has 13 for the last two digits. Also, the sum of the digits is equal to 13, and
the sum of the squares of the digits is 91, which is divisible by 13.

Folding Tetrahedra

E 914 [1950, 260]. Proposed by C. W. Trigg, Los Angeles City College

It is desired to arrange congruent equilateral triangles, with at least one side


of each triangle coinciding with a side of another triangle, in a plane configura-
tion which can be folded along the common sides into a tetrahedron with no
open edges. (An open edge is one through which there is straight line access to
the centroid of the solid figure.)
(1) What is the smallest number of triangles necessary?
(2) How many distinct configurations containing this smallest number may
be folded into a closed tetrahedron?

Solution by the Proposer. (1) Let the edges issuing from one vertex of a regular
tetrahedron be a, b, c and let d be the other edge of the face common to b and c.
In order to free one face and unfold it into the plane of the base, two edges, say
a and b, must be cut. The one additional cut necessary to destroy the fourth
trihedral angle and permit all faces to be folded into the plane of the base may
be made either (a) along c, so that the faces unfold into an equilateral triangle
with sides 2a, 2b, 2c; or (b) along d, so that the faces unfold into a parallelogram
with sides 2a, b, 2d, b. When either of these figures is folded back into a tetra-
hedron, the three cut edges must be covered. This will require three triangles
properly arranged in addition to the four face triangles. Thus the smallest num-
ber of triangles necessary in the configuration is seven.
(2) We indicate the two sides of the triangles along a cut edge by the same
letter as the edge. The three additional triangles may be added to the unfolded
equilateral triangle in the following ways:
(a) A properly oriented group of three attached to a to form a five-triangle
trapezoid from which a triangle extends from the shorter base and another
extends from the opposite end of the longer base. (Configuration A)
(b) A group of two attached to a and one attached to the adjacent b to form
a five-triangle trapezoid from which a triangle extends from the shorter base
and another from the middle of the longer base. (Configuration B)

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