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from the the-simple-answer-is-that-there-isn't-a-simple-solution dept.
The problems of gerrymandering are manifold, often debated and lamented. Now, a group of computational geometers from Tufts, MIT and others are working the problem from different fronts. From https://sites.tufts.edu/gerrymandr/
The Metric Geometry and Gerrymandering Group (MGGG) is a small Boston-based team of mathematicians launched by Moon Duchin of Tufts University. Our mission is to study applications of geometry and computing to U.S. redistricting. We believe that gerrymandering of all kinds is a fundamental threat to our democracy.
Our goals are:
- to pursue cutting-edge research in the practically relevant applications of geometry, topology, and computing to the redistricting problem;
- to foster collaboration with researchers in statistics, supercomputing, law, political science, and other fields;
- to facilitate direct civic engagement by training scholars from a variety of quantitative backgrounds to serve as expert witnesses and consultants in redistricting cases;
- to educate the public, both through direct outreach and by helping college and high school teachers incorporate units on voting, gerrymandering, and civil rights into the mathematics curriculum;
- to build a diverse community of mathematically inclined people around the country and give them the knowledge and the tools to hold map-drawers accountable when 2020 comes around.
And from https://sites.tufts.edu/gerrymandr/get-involved/
We are assembling a team of mathematicians, lawyers, statisticians, and active citizens of all stripes to work on practical metrics and solutions for gerrymandering in advance of the 2020 U.S. Census. If you're interested in joining our community, please fill out our Skills and Interest Inventory form.
For anyone that wants to get up to speed on this complex and important topic, https://sites.tufts.edu/gerrymandr/resources/ is a page of links to a variety of related papers and articles.
SN discussed the math of the gerrymander back in 2014,
https://soylentnews.org/article.pl?sid=14/12/27/1148245
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Thursday July 05 2018, @04:56PM
If an uninhabited geographical feature (river, large lake) is used as part of the boundary, it counts as a single line, on both sides of that line.
The people who rely on government handouts and refuse to work should be kicked out of congress.