(tye)Re3: Packaging Algorithm

[tye]

I suggest you do a search for "sphere packing problem" and see the variety of problems that fall under this category. I ran into several before hitting the "kissing number" problem for idential spheres in different numbers of dimensions that you seem to think is the only one.

From what I read, the original problem was popularized by Kepler when he guessed how tightly you could pack identical spheres in 3 dimensions. This one was recently solved (by proving the "obvious").

        - tye (but my friends call me "Tye")

[extremely]

I'm aware of them. And in a way, you are correct, the kissing spheres is a subset of the regular vs. irregular tightest packing series of questions. As I recall (and it has been years) Solving the kissing problem in "n" dimensions leads to solutions to the regular packing density question.

And this has now officially gone completely off-topic and gotten rude so that's it for me on this topic.

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