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Applications of Fibonacci numbers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 September 2016

M. H. Eggar*
Affiliation:
Department of Mathematics, Edinburgh University, EH9 3JZ

Extract

One card up the sleeve of many a teacher of mathematics involves the Fibonacci sequence 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34,…, in which each number is the sum of the preceding two. These numbers and the closely related golden ratio (√5 − 1):2 have intriguing geometric and algebraic properties and appear mysteriously in nature ([1], 160-172). The main purpose of this article, which stems from a recent talk to prizewinners in the Scottish schools’ problem competition, Mathematical Challenge, is to advertise some less widely known occurrences. A reader interested in further references to any part of this article is invited to contact the author, who himself is grateful to several colleagues.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Mathematical Association 1979

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References

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