The game
of ideas
for thinkers,
educators,
parents.
See a video page by page of the most delightful ABC3D pop-up book ever. Created by Marion Bataille, published by Roaring Brook Press (2008), it's more for grownups than for kids, a work of art. The video's lively sound track is the Boswell Sisters' "Roll on, Mississippi, roll on." —Enjoy!All Gifted Children is Esther Andrews' mission to help parents develop their children's genius and their maximum potential. A former school principal with 26 years of experience developing children's intelligence, Esther has filled her website with a wealth of resources, and through her articles, Ezine, Ebooks and live, online seminars she shares her knowledge and philosophy. Minds are our most precious resource. Esther's methods nurture them from the youngest age.
Animusic is the brainchild of Wayne Lytle, aided by Dave Crognale's digital artistry, and it defies description. You have to experience it in all its spell-binding brilliance. Animated music — the instruments move and perform with witty choreography. Imagine Rube Goldberg, Dr. Seuss, Cirque du Soleil, da Vinci and Mozart rolled all into one. They've produced 2 DVDs to date, with 7 and 8 tracks of all original music. The MIDI software they use for music-driven animation, "algorithmically synchronized," is their own and a geek's paradise. Each track is a creative and technical masterpiece. Their website is being rebuilt from scratch. In the meanwhile, you can buy their DVDs on Amazon.
Go see, go buy them for yourself and all your friends. It's a one-of-a-kind treat.
Art Matrix Fractals has an awesome collection of fractal images. We bought their videotape of fractals in motion with musical soundtrack and watch it often — soothing and hypnotic, like meditation. This great website is the work of Homer Wilson Smith and Jane Elizabeth Staller, with an assist from Cornell National Supercomputer Facility. It gives the definitive explanation of a hot new science, in easy yet mind-stretching and eye-opening language. For example, "A fractal is a colored image that mathematically models how well things survive in their environments." Probably the most famous fractal is the Mandelbrot set, shown above.
The Atlas Society, founded by David Kelley, Ph.D., has a noble goal: to help create a new culture in our society, a culture that affirms the core Objectivist values of reason, individualism, freedom, and achievement, and the entrepreneurial spirit. Objectivism, the philosophy of Ayn Rand, is the foundation for TAS's cultural agenda. Ayn Rand's insights about human knowledge, moral values, individual rights, the role of art in human life, and many other topics give Objectivism a unique perspective on cultural issues. 
TAS is non-profit and accepts no government funding. Its support comes entirely from seminars, books, tapes, publications, education programs, and through private contributions and memberships. Visit the Objectivist Store (click the logo at right) for a closer look at this intellectual powerhouse. TAS also sponsors theoretical research in philosophy and related fields, and advocacy programs seeking to influence the course of debate and public opinion. For the Society's 25th Anniversary in 2015, Kate designed them a special 25 Books puzzle challenge.Barbecue Joe is the eclectic homepage of Joe Marasco, businessman, inventor, humorist, physicist, renaissance man and catalyst. His interests range from Archimedes to software development, from puzzle solving to conflict resolution, from heraldry to nomography, from medical diagnostic testing to electric bicycles, from the tenor saxophone to a monograph and video analyzing all the solutions of the Tricolor Stomachion. Joe writes with wit, wisdom and clarity on even the most abstruse subjects. Take a peek at the website of this cyclone of creative energy. He's the reason we now make Archimedes' Square.
Bayesian Reasoning is a passion for Joe Marasco (see Barbecue Joe, above). As a physicist/mathematician and problem-solver, Joe deals a great deal with making decisions and handling uncertainty. He has now produced a splendid tutorial you can see on YouTube in three parts. Each part is about 20 minutes. Here's a preview. Joe explains in a calm and understandable way some of the deepest intricacies of how humans make decisions and how to improve that process. Give us feedback when you've viewed them, and share if you like them.
BibliOdyssey is the achievement of an Autralian blogger who goes only by the name PK. His blog is an exquisite compilation of information on books, science, illustrations, history, Visual Materia Obscura, eclectic bookart, and this gem of a page he posted November 19, 2008: "Five Centuries of Board Games". The illustrations and historical notes came from the British Museum and cover the games of many countries. PK is a treasure, an archivist of human culture. Browse with joy.
Alex Boxer and his collaborator, Justace Clutter, have produced a fabulous concept map of Book 1 of Euclid's Elements—it's a thing of beauty that illustrates graphically Euclid's progress of reasoning from just a few simple assumptions that led to the Pythagorean Theorem. Kate first met these young scholars at the 2015 Bridges Conference and was immediately smitten by the elegance and brilliance of the concept map and determined to have it reproduced poster-size. If you don't get to read Euclid's book, at least read this article.
Brain Pickings in their own words "is a human-powered discovery engine for interestingness, culling and curating cross-disciplinary curiosity-quenchers, and separating the signal from the noise to bring you things you didn’t know you were interested in until you are." The site is the brainchild of Maria Popova and will provide you with an eclectic and always stimulating repertoire of intellectual nourishment. Visit frequently and let yourself be surprised.
Brain Snacks by Dr. Karl Albrecht is "a collection of peculiar ideas, curious questions, oddball observations, pithy quotations, factoids, lame jokes, quirky definitions, mysteries, weird news stories, rants, witticisms and nitwitticisms, strange speculations, and other stuff you didn’t know you didn’t know." The phenomenal intellectual capacity of this author will excite your mind in ways you may never have experienced before. Check out his whole website and his Karl Albrecht international site.
The Brainwaves® Center on Cape Cod is co-directed by Allen D. Bragdon and David Gamon, PhD. Allen D. Bragdon is the Founding Editor of Games magazine, author and a puzzle columnist. Dr. David Gamon is a researcher, author and teacher in the cognitive sciences. The Center provides training and targeted mental exercises in six zones of practical intelligence — memory and concentration; appropriate emotional response; executive planning; effective social interaction; language and computations skills; creative spatial and constructional functions. Their well-designed website shares knowledge in the applied value of research in the cognitive sciences. They also publish and sell books and a newsletter.
The Bridges Organization was founded in 1998 by Reza Sarhangi (1952-2016) in Kansas. Its annual conference has traveled to cities in North America and Europe, and has attracted participants from over thirty countries. 
The conference features invited speakers, full and short paper presentations, educational workshops, a juried art exhibition, a mathematical poetry reading, and a short movie festival. It bridges the fields of mathematics, music, art, architecture, education, and culture. It was an enormous shock when its brilliant founder, Reza Sarhangi, passed away suddenly in 2016. He and his inspiration will never be forgotten.
Jim Bumgardner is a one-man idea factory — programmer, self-declared hacker, blogger, author, creator of software toys and graphics, music composer, designer of the Palace avatar chat system, winner of numerous awards, and tech instructor. Now he's doing cool stuff for Yahoo! while still creating thousands of puzzles, such as Sudoku and Kakuro, for online and print magazines, and hundreds of awesome new software toys a year. Among his websites are the new KrazyDad.com, the historical jbum.com, and the playful coverpop.com. See also his special Two Not Touch puzzle in the New York Times. He both sells and gives away his software and consults on tech matters. He's also a dad. How can one guy do all this? On top of that, he likes kaleidoscopes, one of our favorite things.
Caranza is the stage name of Patric Hale, a phenomenal Meistersinger who has achieved both tenor and baritone mastery of 12 genres of music in 7 languages, with moving emotional sensitivity and blow-you-away power of delivery. He has a repertoire of over 400 recorded songs, available on over 25 CDs, ranging from Elvis, Sinatra, Tom Jones and Billy Joel to Broadway tunes, German songs, and Italian and German opera. Caranza (a combination of Caruso and Lanza) has performed all over Europe and the U.S., from concert halls to intimate private settings. Here is a rare informal video captured at a private party and links to four audios. Order his CDs in our showcase of the Caranza Collection and enrich every day of your life.
Philip Carter and his co-author, Ken Russell, offer a great variety of IQ tests, quizzes, surveys, puzzles and ponderings, with shades of Lewis Carroll's Alice and the Cheshire Cat. Then check out their second book, More Psychometric Testing
The Center for Creative Emergence, founded and directed by Michelle James, has developed an awesome collection of inspiring, highly effective processes for helping individuals and businesses to create what comes next. It was during one of Michelle's mind trips that Kate created the adorable and very popular Bear Hugs that Kadon makes. Also check out Michelle's always lively Facebook page.
The Center for Ludic Synergy sees all of Life as a game, and exists to discover and promote positive and salvific life games, and to further the study of transfinite games and metagames. The site is the work of Ron Hale-Evans.
Chasing the Moment is the hypnotic CGI art of Swedish genius Andreas Wannerstedt, a peerless graphic designer. This series of animated machinery looks so real, you won't want to believe it's not physical reality. What imagination and superb execution. Check out Andreas' full website for his other career achievements, Andreas Wannerstedt.se
Cut the Knot, or Interactive Mathematics Miscellany and Puzzles, is a fabulous place for mathematicians, parents, teachers, students. It overflows with resources, interactive features, philosophy, and a radiant love of mathematics. There is a 12-year collection of discussions, columns, games and puzzles. The creative genius behind all this treasure is Alexander Bogomolny. Be sure to read his Manifesto. David Dalrymple gives a TED talk on a new type of mathematics evolving in the study of neuroscience. Mental patterns keep getting more and more complex. Neural networks in living brains are a new and fertile area of study as technology advances to allow looking into that inner space. Oh, yes, and David grew up on Kadon games and puzzles since he was a little kid. See also his blog.
The Worlds of David Darling cover the Cosmos from A-Z, with daily updates on space and science news, and several books by this awesomely prolific British astronomer/author that represent science writing at its best. His online encyclopedias of Astrobiology, Astronomy, and Spacefight and Alternative Energy and Sustainable Living are beautifully organized for quick access to any topic. Other books tackle concepts like gravity and teleportation and make great additions to any bookworm's library. Zen Physics, Soul Search, and Deep Time you can read free online. David Darling is a find and a treasure.
RichardDawkins.net is the official website of evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, author of The Selfish Gene, The Blind Watchmaker, Enemies of Reason, The Extended Phenotype, and other excellent volumes of science writing. The site is "a clear-thinking oasis" and the home of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science. There is a wealth of articles, books and videos; a forum, resources, store and events calendar; archives and support for activists. Dawkins is the most visible, outspoken and articulate champion of logic, science and reason in the world today. He writes with clarity, style, elegance and persuasion. Here is the motherlode of rational ideas. Treat yourself to a breath of fresh air.The DHMO Organization, is a dedicated group warning of the hazards of dihydrogen monoxide, a controversial and potentially lethal substance about which there seems to be a wide-spread cover-up conspiracy. Thomas P. Way, Ph.D., is the founder and director of research. The site presents extensive reports and exposés with the same scholarly sobriety, with links to major environmentalist groups. The fine print includes this note: "Content veracity not implied." Translated into 16 languages. Read and enjoy.
The Digital Cuttlefish, on FreeThoughtBlogs, runs the gamut of poetry, verse, doggerel, poignant philosophical observations, blasphemy and social commentary. If freethinking is your comfort zone, visit here regularly.Digital Eel was created in 2001 by Rich Carlson, Iikka Keranen and Phosphorus. It defies description, being an eclectic, frenetic collection of their original games and music. Also check out their list of great literature with links to online reading, The Dusty Bookshelf.
The Elements, the classic Tom Lehrer performance from 1955, can be heard online at YouTube with hilarious accompanying graphics. Lehrer plays Sir Arthur Sullivan's "Major General" tune from The Pirates of Penzance with his signature keyboard verve. Here's a slightly different recording with Lehrer's comments and even funnier graphics.
Warren Fahy is an awesomely creative writer. His debut novel, Fragment, published by Random House, became an instant bestseller and will soon be a major motion picture. See its scary trailer. Its sequel, Pandemonium, is an even more powerful heartstopper, a wild thrill-ride through strange ecosystems found in secluded places on our very own Earth. Warren is brilliant and prolific, his books finely crafted, and we look forward eagerly to his next releases. Find him on Amazon. We're proud to present Warren's children's stories on this Gamepuzzles website. If you want to help keep him creating, become his patron on Patreon.
Adrian Fisher is the world's foremost maze designer, working in every conceivable medium from cornfields to hedges, water streams to inflatables, mirrors to pavings. His company based in Dorset, England, has set six Guinness world records, won twelve design and export awards, and created over 400 mazes in 23 countries, visited by over 30 million visitors since 1979. His innovative clay pavings are works of art as well as challenging entertainment. We particularly like this small, intimate tiling in the courtyard of his home, using squares and a special 7-sided shape Adrian pioneered that was fitted together like a puzzle. He has a new website under construction.
Fun Books "for a lifetime of learning fun" is the family enterprise of Billy and Nancy Greer and their two kids, based right in our neighborhood in Pasadena, MD. They offer a huge and carefully chosen catalog of books particularly aimed at homeschoolers and families. They have a beautiful, intelligent philosophy, and their excellent website makes online shopping fun, easy, and secure. You'll enjoy its gentle humor and its well-rounded range of subjects. They still print an occasional paper catalog that comes free with any online order, or you can order just the catalog for $1. The books are not only for children but for all life-long learners. Contact Billy or Nancy through their website or by email.Jacob Hornberger's Future of Freedom Foundation brings together the greatest thinkers and speakers on Libertarianism, and the talks and articles are now collected and available for all who value our country's founding principles, individual rights and liberty: "Explore Freedom". Join the dialogue, understand the issues. Subscribe to their journal and weekly updates.
Golden Number is an amazing site, created by Gary Meisner, dedicated to phi, also called the Golden Ratio, Golden Section or Golden Mean. It is an endless decimal, like pi, beginning with 1.618... and occurs throughout nature. It appears even in our Penrose tiles. Its properties have been studied since the ancient Greeks. Browse Gary's site and feel the wonder.
Mark Hurst's Good Experience Live is held annually in New York, with live, interactive events that emphasize providing participants a good experience in the arts, science, commerce, life. Exciting speakers and urban happenings make this a unique series of experiences.
Mark's philosophy of "creative good", that puts customers' good experiences as the priority in the creation of products and services, is most admirable. Check out his blog, newsletter, books, and podcasts.
David Goodger is a most interesting fellow with fascinating ideas and is also an avid polyform puzzler. On his web blog he shares some of the adventures of meeting with like minds at a Gathering for Gardner and his talk there. He has profound philosophical insights.
George Hart creates the most awesome geometric sculptures, from tiny to gigantic—mathematical yet organic. Made in a variety of media, including paper, wood, plastic, metal, and assemblages of common household objects, these abstract forms invite the viewer to partake of the geometric aesthetic. George also designs puzzles, authors books, and is a research professor in the computer sciences department of Stony Brook University. His website is an eclectic excursion into the fun and joy of a lively mind.Garnet Hertz, Ph.D., is Canada Research Chair in Design and Media Arts and Associate Professor in the Faculty of Design and Dynamic Media at Emily Carr University. As a student, he had built a Cockroach-Controlled Mobile Robot. News of this came to us as a small item in the June 2, 2005, Embedded Muse newsletter, courtesy of The Ganssle Group, who busy themselves perfecting the art of building embedded systems. Talk about bugs in the program. This embedded application uses a Giant Madagascan Hissing Cockroach atop a kind of trackball. As the roach walks, the ball turns and the apparatus rolls around. Read full details and watch a video of the roach in action. Dr. Hertz has posted his profound reasons for pursuing this project at his own expense. The sheer ingenuity and simplicity of the device get our applause. And, oh yes, the roaches are family pets.
Gravity Is Optional is a unique, no-frills anthology of physics experiments for the sheer fun of it, virtually like magic. Robert Clemenzi is the moving force and genius behind these explorations and the author of instructions for science experiments you can do at home. The variety of topics will enchant you, and a wealth of references will open whole new horizons of knowledge. This is the finest way to learn.
Home Educators Resource Directory is a fabulous, user-friendly site filled with worldwide comprehensive resources for the home educator. Developed by Mindy Lively, a home-schooling mother herself, when she found a need for an easy-to-access resource. They also publish the HERD News, a free monthly e-newsletter with great articles to help the novice or experienced home educator. See our own homeschoolers' specials offered on their educational freebies page.
Honda in the UK created the most unusual commercial in automotive history. They dismantled two custom-built Accords to set up a brilliant and witty puzzle that's lightyears beyond falling dominoes. The two-minute video reportedly cost $6 million to make and over 600 takes to get it right. It's for real, no camera tricks. It used to run on Honda-UK's website but cannot now be found there nor at other sites that featured it from time to time but evidently could not sustain the huge download drain. A clear, well-sized version was last seen on AlbinoBlackSheep. Should it disappear from there, too, we present it here as a public service, and as a tribute to the incomparable ingenuity and perseverance of the human intellect: Watch the Cog. You'll need RealPlayer or similar video player to run it. The resolution is not high, so keep the view screen fairly small.
Honda—Illusions is in the spirit of Honda's other creative masterpieces of advertising, showing a series of mind-spinning illusions of cars suspended, driving through pillars, shrinking people, and a wonderful message at the end about how to do the impossible. Catchy background music, too. They even show you, in a different video, how they did it.
The Inner Life of the Cell is the classic animation by XVIVO for Harvard's BioVisions of microbiological processes. Astonishing, lyrically beautiful look into what makes life work and how the tiniest building blocks in each of our 100 trillion cells go about their business of keeping us alive. XVIVO's David Bolinsky gives the story behind this video on TEDTalks... scientific animation in the name of truth and beauty. Awesome. See also Drew Berry's TED Talk on animating unseeable biology.
The Institute For Figuring is an organization dedicated to the poetic and aesthetic dimensions of science, mathematics and the technical arts. Based in Los Angeles, the IFF presents exhibits, lectures and workshops on the many figurative aspects of physics and math. Its director, Margaret Wertheim, is passionate about developing the human mind through interactive play. From the physics of snowflakes and the hyperbolic geometry of sea slugs, to the mathematics of paper folding, the tiling patterns of Islamic mosaics and graphical models of the human mind, the Institute takes as its purview a complex ecology of figuring. Its most visually striking crown jewel is an entire crocheted coral reef showing nature's uses of hyperbolic curves. Must see!
The International Society for Philosophical Enquiry is the world's oldest 99.9% organization, founded in 1974. The only criterion for admission is a score on any standard psychometric test of intelligence at the 99.9th percentile. It is a global non-profit society with members dedicated to using their giftedness to help one another and to help humankind, finding solutions and reaching the highest levels of self-enlightenment and achievement. ISPE welcomes all ideologies, races, religions, and creeds, embracing freedom of thought, tolerance, and democracy. ISPE has a program of personal advancement through 7 levels of achievement. To join, apply to take the test or submit qualifying scores from other standardized tests. Contact the Director of Admissions at admissions@thethousand.com. ISPE distinguished quarterly journal, Telicom, encompasses the entire spectrum of intellectual and inspiring contributions of the membership. If you'd enjoy this stimulating community, do look into applying, and mention you read about ISPE here.
IranianMovies.com has a great selection of Persian music and cinema, many with English subtitles, by Persian artists living in and outside of Iran, especially Googoosh. The music is hauntingly beautiful, passionately performed by artists steeped in a deep and ancient culture. Much of the work has been published despite the fundamentalist regime, as artistic freedom will not be stifled. Worth checking out.
Stephen Kinzer gave a talk at a conference in 2008 on "Regime Change: Promise and Peril." In 6 videos, total 52 minutes, this author speaks with truth and clarity. This side of the story is too seldom heard. Kinzer is an American author and newspaper reporter, a veteran New York Times correspondent who has reported from more than fifty countries on five continents.
The Klingon Language Institute is a scholarly non-profit organization for bringing together individuals interested in the study of Klingon linguistics and culture, and for providing a forum for discussion and the exchange of ideas. Klingon is a fictional language based in the Star Trek phenomenon and invented by a linguist, Dr. Marc Okrand, for Paramount Studios. Its sounds draw on the guttural and tonal qualities of many human languages, and its grammar and syntax are a fascinating case of conceptual integration, of the fact that we speak as we think, and think as we feel.
Jacquie Lawson creates the most stylish, delightful and classy e-cards on the Web, the work of a single artist, painstakingly crafted, originally with Flash and then converted to HTML5 as Flash lost support. Each mini-movie sparkles with wit, imagination, heart, and consummate artistry. Experience even one, and it's love at first sight. A small annual membership fee lets you see and send any of her collection (421 little gems as of April 2018). What a find!Learning Props has unique educational resources developed by Bev Schumacher that can be used by classrooms, homeschoolers and caring parents to give pre-kindergarten kids quality activities and parent/child involvement. Bev's kits are designed for lending around, to save families money.
Richard C. Levy is a foremost game inventors' agent. He has entry to all the big companies, and if he sells your idea, it has a great chance to become a hit. He also creates games and writes books. If you're a game designer, contact Richard for an honest opinion of your latest brainstorm. He lives in Maryland. His latest book is The Toy and Game Inventor's Handbook. It's the straight scoop, and his co-author is industry insider Ron Weingartner, who knows more about the toy and game business than just about anyone, having reviewed thousands of games in his 35 years with Milton Bradley and Hasbro.
Looney Labs back in 2004 took a courageous step on principle. They produced a "Stoner" version (now sold out) of their popular card game, Fluxx. Why? "...to help accelerate the conversation in the US about ending the hurtful war on drugs. We are proud to have published this game, and hope you will read our message and join us in trying to make the world a better place." Andy Looney, a long-time activist for drug peace, has written well-reasoned, thought-provoking articles and reports supporting this case. You can read them on their website. See also all their other brilliantly innovative games if you're not already a dedicated fan. In 2009, for their 20th anniversary, Kadon presented them with a special industry award, the Gamepuzzles Originality, Perseverance and Leadership salute.
In Mastering Happiness, Joel F. Wade, Ph.D., presents ideas and practices for a more fulfilled and effective life both emotionally and intellectually. Joel is a coach, a dynamic public speaker, and the rarest of healers, a philosopher building on positive core values such as: "Your life is precious; make the most of it! ... Work is an opportunity to do what has meaning for you; to bring your full powers of mind and ambition to create value in the world. ..." What a concept! Get his free newsletter, The Virtue of Happiness Action E-zine.Tom Matrullo has one of the best weblogs around. His expanse of subjects, values, vocabulary, intelligence and insights makes each reading a welcome intellectual jolt. Tom also links to many of the other great "bloggers". Some of the world's top-rate writing can be found here.
The National Institute for Play was founded by Dr. Stuart Brown. Their mission is to "unlock the human potential through play in all stages of life, using science to discover all that play has to teach us about transforming our world." We can only wonder why it took so long to get formal and scientific research going on this most basic of living and learning behaviors. This organization is fostered by passionate practitioners who are developing human play as a recognized discipline in the scientific community. For all that, they could lighten up a bit. The website is heavy reading but well deserving of support.Clifford Pickover has a most amazing site, crammed with references to every aspect and nuance of mankind's ever-searching intellect, from mathematics to puzzles to philosophy, from art to cosmic questions to consciousness. Dr. Pickover is the author of many books on all these wide-ranging subjects, as well. You can check them out on this huge creative adventure.
Poetry with Mathematics
is the marvelous blog of JoAnne Growney, featuring poetry celebrating mathematics concepts from all over the world. JoAnne describes her mission like this: "Mathematical language can heighten the imagery of a poem; mathematical structure can deepen its effect. Feast here on an international menu of poems made rich by mathematical ingredients." Explore her fabulous collection of talents, and make regular visits to her blog a part of your digital delights. Then check out her own remarkable writings in her website.Powers of 10 — Florida State University has put up a very interesting slide show on their site. (You need Java to view it, downloadable from their site.) The show begins as a view of the Milky Way Galaxy, viewed from a distance of 10 million light years, and then zooms in towards Earth in powers of ten of distance... 10 million, to one million, to 100,000 light years, and so on, until it finally reaches a large oak tree leaf. But that's not all, it zooms into the leaf until it reaches down to the level of the quarks viewed at 100 attometers. This is a fantastic representation of how magnificent the Universe is, and how vastly infinite it is both at the macroscopic and the microscopic level. Here is a lyrically beautiful video on a similar theme from 2012 by Europa Technologies (12MB) with musical background (opens in new window). To exit from it, close its window.
Project Renaissance is not about puzzles as such but about the grandest puzzle of them all, the human mind. Project Renaissance encompasses the work of Win Wenger, Ph.D., author of numerous books on increasing one's mental capabilities, problem-solving, conflict resolution, improved methods for inventing, creating, visualizing, learning, and more. This site is a compendium of fascinating ideas, and it links to other researchers in the fields of cognitive science, self-improvement and related subjects. You can read many of Dr. Wenger's articles, methods and discussions online.
The Pythagorean Theorem—Crown Jewel of Mathematics is a gem of a book by John C. Sparks. You can see it online and download it free from Scribd. Includes poetry, puzzles, and even a nod to Archimedes' Square, the Stomachion. Written with style and enthusiasm and love, it's in electronic form for your digital library. Treat yourself to this historical treasure.
The fabulous graphics of Scale of the Universe let you move in and out of every part of the macro and micro of existence, to the farthest reaches of the Cosmos (160 billion lightyears across), with annotations explaining the size and contents of all you encounter. It inspired this poem by Kate. The genius of twins Mike and Cary Huang has also made all the rest of their amazing site a cool place to hang out.
The SNAP Foundation has pioneered and sponsors math fairs and workshops where the students themselves organize the activities. SNAP stands for Student-centered, Non-competitive, All-inclusive, and Problem-based. The students solve the puzzles on their own, transform them into an appropriate setting, prepare the artwork and the displays, and present the puzzles to the visitors. The students are experts about the puzzles, and they act as facilitators to help the visitors solve them. Check out SNAP's resources and presentations, and recommend them to the teachers at any school you know. It's a fantastic way for kids to learn and become excited about math.
Sozra has an elegant, award-winning site imbued with the spirit of this beautiful and creative couple. John and Debby Sosnowsky design and make jewelry together, and John composes music, four CDs published to date. He does most of the instruments and the mixing. We own all four, soothing to the soul, uplifting and cerebral. The style is not quite New Age, because John's originality sets it apart, but a kinship exists. If your computer has audio capability, you can listen to samples from the CD right on Sozra's website. John also paints, creating awesome abstract geometric mosaic effects, bold and harmonious. See them on their website.
Starfall is a terrific site for kids from kindergarten to second grade to learn to read. Founded by Steve Schutz and his wife, poet Susan Polis, who also founded the popular on-line greeting card company, Blue Mountain. The Polis-Schutz family is passionate about making the world a better place. The free online program was put together by a talented team of artists, teachers, and computer animators. There are many fun stories to read in ascending levels, with charming graphics, and using a kind of phonics to connect the visual letters with their spoken sounds. They also have special materials for teachers and parents. Worth visiting many times, and bring the kids.
Superliminal is Melinda Green's website "dedicated to the beautiful fractional part of the mind that rises above the sea of consciousness." Art, science, education, puzzles, games, quotes, investing, free source code, wit, humor, pop culture...here is an original mind that is a force to be reckoned with. See a four-dimensional analog of Rubik's Cube, the MagicCube4D. Try reading upside down typing, or play a "groovy" Tetris applet. And see a gallery of gorgeous tilings.
James Tanton, Ph.D., has produced a treasure trove of books, essays, course material, puzzles, and connections to all things mathematical. He has a unique way of offering "an uncluttered and joyous approach to school mathematics, with resources for teachers and students". The sheer volume of his output feels overwhelming, so visit frequently and browse voraciously. Check out his resumé— it's dazzling in volume and diversity.
Chris Anderson's TED TALKS brings together once a year in California a remarkable group of people, all tops in their fields. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design. These are presentations by the most brilliant, amazing, and passionate individuals, on topics of great importance to humanity and the world, in the present and the future. Attending in person costs thousands of dollars. Thousands of talks are now online for free. See the many themes and topics and be prepared to be astonished, elated, informed, delighted and challenged. Awesome does not begin to describe them. And they are no longer than 18 minutes—capsules of wisdom.
David Bailey's World of Tessellations is a sumptuous presentation of the art of tiling, with scholarly essays on art and Escher and recreational mathematics, and an exquisite collection of David's own designs. Be prepared to be enchanted. From Kepler to Escher to Penrose, the art of tessellation is well documented. David is from Grimsby, England. You can contact him through his website.
The Underground Grammarian is Richard Mitchell's legacy, a brilliantly subversive language-lover's newsletter self-published between 1977 and 1991, exposing the foibles and foolishness of alleged writers and extolling the wonders of the English language. Now free to the world, along with all of Mitchell's books. Mitchell was a once-in-a-lifetime genius, an elegantly Menckenesque author whose every turn of phrase lingers in the mind, bearing conceptual riches and musical harmonies. Treat yourself often.
The UpToTen Kids website is a fun place to learn on-line, with over a thousand educational games and activities for children aged up to ten years old, even animated ways to create music. A safe and cheery place to play and learn where your child will feel right at home, right away. Take a look at their search engine page for an overview. Over 700 games are in the free site, plus hundreds more in the ad-free Premium section by subscription.
Weight Zone Factor is Jay Wiener's irreverent, hilarious and totally sensible blog on dieting, health, fitness, weight loss and common-sense life styles. His easy-to-read 2016 book, The 16-Word Diet: A Survival Guide for Dieters, sums up all his wisdom and experience (he himself lost 100 pounds—in weight, not at poker), and debunks all the diet myths and fads surrounding us. Subscribe to his blog for a weekly dose of humor and life-preserving facts.
Wikipedia is an ever-growing, open-content, online collection of all of human knowledge. It accepts free content, and every entry is subject to correction. 
The system that runs this gargantuan human enterprise includes self-healing properties. It has been growing since 2001 and is superbly organized, with over 11 million articles already stockpiled (as of 2008). It's the encyclopedia to go to first for anything you may want to know about. It's free, and free of ads. Please donate to support this global treasure.World Question Center, over a period of 20 years, presented over 100 questions by the world's most respected and brilliant thinkers about the nature and future of human life and consciousness. Answers are not given. Read and ponder. This feature is part of Edge, a collection of the thoughts and ideas of today's "Third Culture" intellectuals—scientists and writers, Internet philosophers and visionaries, members of The Reality Club. Founded by John Brockman.
Yehuda is the fine blog of Yehuda Berlinger of Israel, a programmer and geek since the age of 8. He writes profoundly on gaming, technology, philosophy and life. Be sure to check his entry for June 1, 2010, on competition and failure (scroll down).
Zentangle is the inspired artform and creativity tool of Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. It's a non-verbal language of patterns and proportions which opens doors to insights that seemed locked before. Creating Zentangles opens those doors, not because they were locked, but because those doors swing on non-verbal hinges. Says Rick, "When I create a Zentangle I enter a meditative state and my intuition flows free. I get inspirations, ideas and answers unhindered by expectations or worries." Rick and Maria believe that life is an art form and that Zentangle is a perfect metaphor for deliberate artistry in life. Explore their website and learn how you can use this wonderful and uplifting discovery.
