Prime Knot: 8_16

thingiverse

The prime knot 8_16 is depicted in a tube of constant radius, tightened and displayed in both thin and thick versions. The reduced size in the thin version highlights crossings, while the full-scale thick version requires less support material during printing. To learn more about this knot, visit its Knot Atlas page at http://katlas.math.toronto.edu/wiki/8_16. For insights into tight knots and ropelength data, refer to Wikipedia and Jason Cantarella's website respectively. A movie of this prime knot tightening is available at http://www.jasoncantarella.com/movs. The knot shape was generated by RidgeRunner, a free software that minimizes knot length while preserving a tube around it. This program, developed by Jason Cantarella, can be downloaded from http://www.jasoncantarella.com/wordpress/software/ridgerunner/. Different shapes can be achieved by optimizing various functions rather than just knot length.