Octo

This is one of the many pieces of public art in Milton Keynes. It looks like a figure of eight but it’s not simply that. It was created by Wendy Taylor in 1980 and is based on the Möbius Strip. The Möbius strip or Möbius band is a surface with only one side and only one boundary.


It's easy to make one. Take a strip of paper, twist it once and join the ends. The strip has only one side and one edge which you can see if you put a pencil down on the strip and turn the strip under the pencil until the pencil line returns to its starting place. The pencil line will appear on both sides of the strip, which means, in effect, that it has only one side. The Möbius strip was named after August Möbius in 1885. I used to make them with students when I was teaching maths.


Question - Why did the chicken cross the Mobius strip?

Answer - To get to the same side!!!!

That always got a laugh………… well at least a polite titter!!