Talk:Polyhex (mathematics)

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[edit] Polyhex vs. Polycomb

The use of the term "polyhex" has always bothered me somewhat. I've always used "polycomb", and heard it from multiple sources as well. (Nothing referencable I'm afraid. I wish I had more official source to back this up.) At any rate, the main argument against the term "polyhex" is that "hex" is typically used as a prefix, not a suffix. (Eg. Hexomino, Hexiamond) Using "hex" as a suffix can lead to the ridiculous-sounding "hexahex", what I have termed "hexacomb" in the image I just uploaded. Furthermore, "hex" is almost never used as a suffix in any terminology I can think of. I'm pretty sure it's grammatically incorrect to do so. I'd like to propose that this page be moved to "polycomb". Does anybody have opinions on this? Lurlock 21:21, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Polyhex is sourceable. I don't know of sources for polycomb with this meaning; Google scholar finds a lot of papers with a completely unrelated meaning. Unless you can source it, I don't think it should be used. —David Eppstein 21:30, 10 May 2007 (UTC)
I haven't heard "polycomb" used for this either. "Polyhex" is the term I've seen most commonly used in the literature, and can be traced at least as far as Martin Gardner's column ("The polyhex and the polyabolo: polygonal jigsaw puzzle pieces", Scientific American, June 1967, volume 216 number 6, pp 124-132) where he attributes it to David Klarner. The variant spelling "polyhexe" is used by Grunbaum and Shephard in Tilings and Patterns. "Hexagonal animal" and "hexagonal polyomino" are sometimes used. HAKMEM says "hexafrobs" but I haven't seen that elsewhere so I don't think it's worth mentioning. Joseph Myers 22:03, 10 May 2007 (UTC)
I wish I still had the book on these I had when I was a kid - that's where I heard the term. It was years ago, however, and I'd be hard-pressed to remember the title. I think I'd have to take issue with this Gardner fellow, because the use of "hex" as a suffix is just something that's not generally done. Might be worth mentioning in the article somewhere, however. "Frobs" does seem a bit ridiculous - I can't think of any etymological connection between "frob" and "hexagon", so it seems to be just a bit whimsical. "Hexagonal Polyomino" seems like a nice compromise, though it's a bit wordy. (Plus it leads to inconsistancy, since polyomino and polyiamond each have one-word names.) I don't know, I just think if you're going to discuss things mathematical (even if it's recreational mathematics), you should try to have some sort of consistancy. It's no big deal, I guess. It just bugged me a bit to see this word used in a seemingly incorrect manner. Lurlock 22:50, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

While we're discussing terminology, the other terms I've seen used for these things are "benzenoid system" or "benzenoid graph". Probably should be mentioned in the article... As for "not generally done", as far as I can tell it is generally done within the study of polyhexes. Our duty here is to report the terminology as it is, not as we would wish it to be. —David Eppstein 23:17, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

I suppose. Still - "Hexahex"? Just seems wrong, but I guess that's the way it is... Lurlock 00:04, 12 May 2007 (UTC)