Chef Kin Jing Mark demonstrates how to make super-thin noodles and helps introduce the principle of halving in this clip from the PBS miniseries The Ring of Truth: An Inquiry Into How We Know What We Know – Atoms (1987). MIT astrophysicist and professor Philip Morrison narrates:
If atoms exist in patterns in space, we should somehow be able to measure their size. We approach the division of matter by the attractive process of halving, and halving, and halving it again… Twelve foldings produced 4,096 fine noodles, and if Chef Mark could have stretched the dough 30 more times, the noodles would have reached atomic thickness.
The Ring of Truth was written by Morrison and his wife, noted art and science educator Phylis Morrison. You might also recognize Philip’s voice from Charles and Ray Eames’ Powers of Ten.
Watch molten gold transform into gold leaf, another clip from the series, and don’t miss the Eames’ Mathematica film 2ⁿ (1961), which demonstrates the exponential growth of numbers raised to powers.
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