The

Divine Proportion

Geometry has two great treasures: one is the Theorem of Pythagoras; the
other, the division of a line into extreme and mean ratio. The first we may compare
to a measure of gold; the second we may name a precious jewel.
Johannes Kepler

It may be hard to imagine what commonality can link the properties found in
a variety of places ranging amongst the seemingly unrelated shapes of galaxies,
mollusk shells, the human face, DNA structures, the art of Leonardo Da Vinci, and
even stock market analysis. The thread that bonds all of these, as well as countless
other occurrences, together is actually a curious mathematical relationship
represented by the Greek letter phi, commonly referred to as The Golden Ratio, or
simply, the irrational number 1.6180339887 . While the proportion known as, the
Golden Ratio, has always existed in the physical universe, and subsequently in
mathematics, it is unknown exactly when it was first discovered and applied by
mankind. It is practical to assume that perhaps it has been discovered and
rediscovered throughout the course of history; which would support why it goes
under several names. In this paper, we will examine the first clear definition of what
would later be coined The Golden Ratio, how that proportion is connected to the
famous Fibonacci Sequence, as well as some interesting occurrences of the ratio in
history, art, and nature.
This irrational constant was given the name The Golden Ratio by the
Greeks. The term phi is said to acknowledge the Greek sculptor Phidias, a 5th
century BC sculptor and mathematician of ancient Greece, who studied the ratio and
also created sculptures for the Parthenon and Olympus. But, it wasnt until the
1900s that the American mathematician Mark Barr used the Greek letter phi to

represent the proportion. By that time it was already known by the honor bearing
names of the Golden Mean, Golden Section, Golden Ratio, as well as the Divine
Proportion.
The Golden Ratio, which I will interchangeably refer to as phi, is a constant,
or fixed number. It belongs to a short list of numbers so unique and eluding that
they will never cease to amaze scholars; of these numbers the most recognizable is
the constant many of us were introduced to in our grade school geometry lessons: pi
(). Pi is obtained via the ratio of the circumference of any circle to its diameter.
The value of pi, 3.14159 has fascinated many generations of mathematicians.
Even though it was defined originally in geometry, pi appears very frequently and
unexpectedly in the calculation of probabilities(Livio, 2). Today, pis place in
geometry is unarguably essential for easily identifiable reasons. Why then is phi,
which is in many regards much more fascinating, so much less known? Well,
perhaps because its occurrences appear in such vast arenas that it has intrigued not
only great mathematical minds such as Pythagoras, Leonardo of Pisa, Johannes
Kepler, and Roger Penrose, all who dedicated ceaseless hours studying this simple
ratio and its properties, but has also intrigued biologists, artists, musicians,
historians, architects, psychologists, and even mystics who have contemplated its
existence and appeal. It is probably fair to say that the Golden Ratio has inspired
thinkers of all disciplines like no other number in the history of mathematics (Livio,
6).
Amid the ratios many names is the Divine Proportion, first published in
Italy during the sixteenth century. In mathematics, the term proportion is used to

denote a relationship such as: sixteen is to four as twelve is to three. Among the
many great mathematicians who have been fascinated by the constant is the
founder of geometry as a formalized deductive system, Euclid of Alexandria (Livio,
3). While Euclids contributions to mathematics and its applications escape the
breadth of this topic, it is worthy to mention that in 1923, the poet Edna St. Vincent
Millay wrote a poem entitled, Euclid Alone Has Looked on Beauty Bare, a fitting
side note when speaking of a number that is often associated with visual aesthetics.
In Euclids Elements which was written around 300 BC, he defined a proportion
based on a simple division of a line into what he called its extreme and mean ratio.
In his words, A straight line is said to have been cut in extreme and mean ratio
when, as the whole line is to the greater segment, so is the greater to the lesser. In
other words, if a line segment AB is cut at point C, then the length of AC to that of CB
is the same as the ratio of AB to AC. Perhaps even Euclid, who defined this ratio for
some purely geometrical purposes, could not have guessed that this number would
later provide so many minds with feelings of pure and utter astonishment as they
discovered it throughout science and nature.
The Fibonacci sequence provides another way to derive the ratio
mathematically. The series is very simple. Start with 0 and add 1 to get 1. Then
repeat the process of adding the last two numbers in the series to determine the
subsequent one: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, et cetera. This pattern
is similarly found in the diagonals of Pascals Triangle. Its relationship to the Golden
Ratio is found by dividing each number by the one before it. The further you go in
the series, the closer the result will get to Phi. Eventually as you go further into the

series youll find that 233 144 = 1.61805, a very close approximation of phi;
which in other words is actually the limit of the ratio of consecutive Fibonacci
numbers.
There are many other interesting ways to derive phi. For example, take a
chain of three equal circles and inscribe them within a semicircle. The ratio of the
radius of the semicircle to the diameter of the small circles is the golden ratio, .
Another more classical shape, the golden rectangle,
which can be easily constructed from a unit square,
has the dimensions of 1: . By removing the unit
square, one is left with the rectangle 1 : 1,
which is similar to the original rectangle. From this
we get, 1: = 1: ( 1) which is nicely reduced to
! 1 = 0. Solving this equation for phi will
result in two solutions, (1 5)/2, the positive
being exactly phi, the negative equaling phis
negative reciprocal. If we continue to take the
obtained rectangle to form a new golden rectangle
in the same way, a line can be drawn that will form
a golden spiral, also known as the Fibonacci Spiral.
While the numerous ways that the number can be derived is interesting on
its own, the true phenomena associated with Golden Ratio, stems from the fact that
it has an almost uncanny way of appearing where it is least expected. For example,
plants can grow new cells in spirals, as is seen in the pattern of seeds in the center of

a vibrant sunflower. When you look at the head of a sunflower, you will notice
clockwise as well as counterclockwise spiral patterns formed by the growing florets.
Each new cell is formed after a physical turn; this ensures that the cells arent
formed in a straight line. The exact angle of the turn is pivotal, as the spirals must
form something round that will hold together with no gaps. The number of these
spirals usually depends on the size of the sunflower. Most commonly there are
thirty-four spirals going one way and fifty-five the other, but sunflowers with ratios
of numbers of spirals of 89/55, 144/89, and even 233/144 have been seen
(Livio, 112) Of course, all of these ratios are of adjacent Fibonacci numbers. It turns
out that many plants, like the sunflower, have determined the precise angle needed
to ensure perfect spiral formation. It is the equivalent of 0.61803... rotations, or
222.4922... degrees, or about 222.5 (The Golden Ratio: Phi 1618). In the other
direction it is about 137.5, or what is called the "Golden Angle". Remarkably, the
Golden Angle is also the precise turn taken by the petals of the beautifully
symmetric arrangement of a rose.
Aside from its appearances in the spiral formations of plants, the golden
spiral can also be found in the systems of stars we call island galaxies. Like our own
Milky Way galaxy, these galaxies exhibit the golden proportion in their spiral arms governed by gravity. It isnt hard to wonder why the last chapter of Mario Livios
The Golden Ratio is entitled, Is God a Mathematician?.
Phi is also well known simply because of it is aesthetically pleasing nature. It
has long been known that certain shapes breathe and flow better than others.
Shapes mean proportions (Bejan & Zane, 223). The Golden Ratio is all around us,

subconsciously and consciously etched in the way we build our realities. The
shapes that we see in the design of books, paintings, and edifices are approximated
by a rectangle shaped such that its L/H is equal to the golden ratio, or 3:2 (Bejan
& Zane, 223). Just think of the shape of a photograph, or even the layout of the
paragraphs you are reading on this page. According to
Bejan, even the horizontal shape of our field of
vision can be approximated by superimposing the
binocular area of our vision within a rectangle of
golden proportions (228). A modern example of how
our technology reflects the properties of phi is the
evolution of the television screen. Older computer and
TV screens had ratios close to 1:33. Our newer modern screens however have
morphed these proportions to more pleasing values closer to proportions of the
golden ratio.
Interestingly, three of the most famous Renaissance painters, the German
Albrecht Diirer, and the Italians Piero della Francesca and Leonardo da Vinci, all
made remarkable contributions to the field of mathematics. Not shockingly then is it
that the mathematical investigations of all three painters were related to the Golden
Ratio. Da Vinci created the illustrations for the book De Divina Proportione (The
Divine Proportion) by Luca Pacioli. It was written around 1497 and first published
in 1509. In the book, Pacioli writes of mathematical and artistic proportion,
especially the mathematics of the golden ratio and its application in art and
architecture. Some geometric solids, including dodecahedrons and icosahedrons,

have innate golden ratios in their dimensions and spatial positions of their
intersecting lines. Even Salvador Dalis celebrated 1955 painting, "Sacrament of the
Last Supper," where the table is located under a huge dodecahedron, has overall
dimensions that are in Golden Ratio to each other.
In conclusion, the Golden Ratio is something that exists due to the human
invention of geometry; a discipline created to help us understand the mathematical
proportions of the world around us. Yet, mathematics is the child of logic, which is
why it is always consistent with the physical world we exist in. It reminds me of the
question about the tree falling in the forest with no witnesses. Did it fall? If we never
gave phi a name or accepted the existence of irrational numbers, would its
properties that endure amongst living creatures, nature, and man-made
constructions still be true? Perhaps the commonality between an apples star and
the spiral of a hurricane would have been discovered via other methods. Either way,
its existence as we have defined it, coupled with its immeasurable occurrences, are
simply amazing and will undoubtedly inspire awe until the end of time.

The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the
source of all true art and science.
Einstein, Albert

References

1.
Livio, Mario. The Golden Ratio: The Story of Phi, the World's Most
Astonishing Number. New York: Broadway, 2002. Print.
2.
Bejan, Adrian, and J. Peder Zane. Design in Nature: How the
Constructal Law Governs Evolution in Biology, Physics, Technology,
and Social Organization. New York: Doubleday, 2012. Print.
3.
Bogomolny, A. "Golden Ratio in Geometry." Golden Ratio in
Geometry. Interactive Mathematics Miscellany and Puzzles, n.d.
Web. 1 Dec. 2015. http://www.cut-the
knot.org/do_you_know/GoldenRatio.shtml
4.
The Golden Ratio: Phi 1618. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.
<http://www.goldennumber.net/>.