textile topology connection

[jinian]

Reading Here's Looking At Euclid by Alex Bellos, I came across this bit on Daina Taimina, she who famously crochets hyperbolic plane models (and may have been the first to do so knowingly and intentionally):

He explained to her that topologists have long known that when an octagon is drawn on the hyperbolic plane it can be folded in such a way as to resemble a pair of pants.... It looked like a very cute pair of woolen toddler's shorts.

Hey, I thought. Baby Surprise Jacket!