‘Phi’-losophy Of Mathematics

Did you know you can measure the beauty of almost anything? The human face, a rose, pyramids, or even the Taj Mahal, the beauty of all these things is associated with a number, “a golden ratio”. This golden ratio, also known by the Greek letter Phi, is found in almost every other biological or non-biological thing.

Mathematically speaking, the golden ratio is almost equivalent to 1.618. You will encounter this ratio in almost everything without even realizing it. This ratio creates beauty in everything. Beauty does not lie in the eyes of the beholder but is created by this magic ratio.

Let us explore some exciting application of this ratio in our day-to-day life:

· Flowers: One of the prettiest and the most common decorative items is a flower. The petals of almost all flowers are arranged in a way that they twist at exactly 1.618 degrees. This creates an eye-catchy view of the flower and makes it more appealing. Also, the ratio of the petals between each layer will equal the golden ratio. This also applies to the leaf arrangement, where the spacing of the leaves is maintained in this ratio.

· Human Body: Measure the length of your whole body and now measure the length of your lower body starting from your navel. Divide these two numbers. What did you get? The magic number 1.618! Your body has more than 300 such types of golden ratios.

· Architecture: The golden ratio is being used in many ancient and modern architecture to create monumental buildings and structures. The pillars of a building, the width, and the height are maintained in this ratio to give a pleasing appearance. Some popular structures that have used this ratio include the Taj Mahal, The Pyramids of Giza, Notre Dame and The Parthenon amongst others.

The consistent presence of the Golden Ratio in all of nature amazes and leaves the world in awe. The composition of anything needs to be in the right proportion to create an aesthetically pleasing structure. The golden ratio in Mathematics helps you create this composition and is widely used by various graphic designers, architects and artists all over the world.

Sana Khan

Guest Author The author is Master Teacher at Vedantu