Mind-Blowing Geometry

Ready to have your mind blown? The image you’re seeing is 100% real, and the square in the picture was drawn using an actual geometry compass. That’s right! Even though this scene looks like something coming straight out of an M. C. Escher painting, it’s possible to use a compass to make a perfect square.

Geometry compasses are most commonly used for drawing circles, but they’re also great for drawing arcs. Arcs help define the vertices of a perfect square, determining the exact point at which the lines in a square should intersect.