Page 22 RAIN November/December 1984 . Figure 7. A Headache · ~ · Reuealed lumber Figure 9. Basket Pattern imaginary triangle Figure 8. The floor Design edges Figure 1 o. Parallelogram-Based Figure 11. Joists Figure 12. Flooring Floor Design: Girders winter's day, and I was seated at my desk, daydreaming. Sitting atop the desk was a woven basket made of inch-wide strips of banana leaves. The strips went in three different directions, and as I stared spacily at the basket, I began to see hexagonal shapes in its weave (see Figure 9). As I focused my gaze, I noticed that each hexagonal shape was produced by three parallelogramshaped segn~en ts of the strips. I knew at once that I had been presented with the key to a truly elegant solution to the problem. There would be no need for the triangles of my youthful folly. More importantly, by comparison with the standard procedure shown in Figure 1, the parallelogram technique could use joists that were all of the same length. In addition, by respecting the unique structural characteristics of the hexagon, this technique would require less lumber than even the standard procedure. To refine the discovery into its simplest form, shown in Figures 10 to 12, took several tries. Once the design had been perfected, I became eager for summer's arrival: The new design was an ideal excuse to build a hexagonal gazebo. Now the completed gazebo sits nestled against a hillside, its curved spire lofting skyward alongside the fir trees that surround it. Its floor went together quickly and with minimal effort, attesting to my progress beyond the beginner's stage. And the gazebo's roof, curving up among the evergreens? Ah, but that's another story. DD Richard Conviser lives in Eagle Bridge (New York), plays the violin , was trained as a sociologist, and is fascinated by hexagons.
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