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Re: 11-gon
Posted:
Oct 23, 1994 8:34 PM
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An elderly acquaintance of mine who recently celebrated his 100th
birthday used the phrase "lexicographical heteromorphs" for these
linguistic abominations that use mixed roots. Undecagon and duodecagon
are such in that they unite Latin prefixes with Greek suffices.
A subsequent reply correctly gives hendecagon for 11 sides and dodecagon
for 12. Also the Susan B. Anthony $1 coin for the U.S. was in the shape
of a regular hendecagon. These still exist, but are rarely seen in
circulation.
Since the 13-gon, 14-gon, 18-gon, 19-gon are not constructable with
compass and straight edge, other than for linguistic curiosity, why would
one want to name them? However, what name does one give to the 24-gon,
the 48-gon, and the 96-gon; those polygons which were useful in the early
approximations of PI?
Michael Keyton
St. Mark's School of Texas
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