A mathematician figures out the best way to jam an extra star onto the American flag. How would you do it?
13 Stripes and 51 Stars
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13 Stripes and 51 Stars
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Re: 13 Stripes and 51 Stars
#2uhm "The United States Army Institute of Heraldry has plans for flags with up to 56 stars"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_Institute_of...
http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/
Re: 13 Stripes and 51 Stars
#3I like the Brazilian solution of positioning the stars on the flag as they appear in the sky.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Brazil
I was a bit disappointed when the Brazilian soccer squad won their fifth world title and didn't put the stars in a Southern Cross formation on their uniform.
Re: 13 Stripes and 51 Stars
#4So, what did we do when we had 29 states?
Re: 13 Stripes and 51 Stars
#5So, what did we do when we had 29 states?
Answer Here: http://www.ushistory.org/betsy/flagfact.html
Neither one are patterns he put into the algorithm.
Re: 13 Stripes and 51 Stars
#6Different, but I really like the proposed circular formation for 51 stars. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/US_...
Of course if we adopted it, some right-wingers would say it means were going commie, or something like it.
Re: 13 Stripes and 51 Stars
#7Sad that Puerto Rico might become a state before DC
Re: 13 Stripes and 51 Stars
#8I wonder why there are no valid patterns for 87 stars?
Re: 13 Stripes and 51 Stars
#9Sad that Puerto Rico might become a state before DC
Why does DC need to become a state?
Re: 13 Stripes and 51 Stars
#10Sad that Puerto Rico might become a state before DC
Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution provides for a federal district (distinct from the states) to serve as the seat of government.
The location of the federal district was a result of a compromise between Hamilton, Madison, and Jefferson. The U.S. capital city was New York at the time. Jefferson didn't want the federal government controlled by one of the largest Northern states. So he struck a bargain with Hamilton, agreeing to support Hamilton's plan for the federal government to assume the states' debts in exchange for the creation of a federal district apart from the power of any one of the states of the union (and further south).
You can read more about the reasons for removing the capital from state territory here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Residence_Act
(Full disclosure: I wouldn't mind Eleanor Holmes Norton getting a vote in the House, but I would be against DC having senators.)