Flexagons and the Math Behind Twisted Paper

Discover the unusual math of twisted strips of paper

Flexagons are twisted strips of folded paper, which reveal their properties when flexed.

This online course will explain what flexagons are, their history and their naming conventions. You’ll find out how to create your own flexagons and be able to share them with our global community of learners.

You’ll also explore mathematical fields that provide tools to analyze flexagons, including topology and graph theory and learn about Möbius strips, Tuckermann diagrams and more.

This course is aimed at learners who enjoy being creative, solving puzzles, folding paper and revealing hidden mathematics. It will be especially useful for parents or teachers looking to inspire a love of math and do fun math activities with young people.

• Welcome to the world of flexagons!
• Who are we and what do we want?
• The tri-hexa-flexagon
• Non-cyclic flexagons
• Exploring flexagons
• More flexagons
• More cyclic flexagons
• The Magic square flexagon
• The math behind flexagons
• The Möbius strip
• Flexagon Nomenclature revisited
• Course Summary