Three rings (planar circles) are "linked" together, but you'll notice that none is directly linked with another.

• The red ring is "behind" the yellow.
• The yellow ring is "behind" the blue.
• The blue ring is "behind" the red.

Still, while none is intertwined with another, it is impossible to pull them apart.
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Is this a paradox?

Can this really be built?

If the rings were oblong instead of circular, you could link them in 3-D so that each link (instead of ring) fits inside the next.  Try it with three paper clips.

There are some 3-D wood puzzles that look like the wood pieces are linked, but of courseone of the wood pices slips, allowing the puzzle to be taken apart/put together.

As far as the possibility of the linked rings (or linked links), it is very possible to build such a thing, but it would have to be manufactured in the linked state--you couldn't put solid, unlinked rings in the configuration shown in the picture.

Posted by Erik on 2004-06-01 17:07:19