ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I want to thank here a great number of people who have helped and encouraged me during all this time that I have been working on The FOZ Magic Square, The FOZUDOKUS and The Mathe-Magic Presentation The Wizard of FOZ, so they will see the light of day and can be recognised for its deserved merit and that the world can marvel to its singular magic that is telling us:
Although it seems that way… it is not chaos what we see… there is a hidden order.

In the first place I wish to acknowledge and thank my father´s contribution, Manuel Pomares Pastor, who when I was a child taught me the Magic Squares… awakening in me my interest in numbers and Mathematic Curiosities.

Also I wish to thank my wife, Dolores Bustamante Oroza, who during all this time I have been working  on The FOZ Magic Square, she has been very patient with me, as I have spent many hours (maybe far too many…) doing this work.

Tono, the Principal of the Martinez Otero School, who helped me a lot in what it was my first public presentation, also Juan the Principal of El Pilar School and all the nuns and teachers from this school for their support. Celestino and Maria Cruz, both Principals of the other two schools in FOZ, where I did three presentations.

I wish to thank ALL the children from these schools where I have done the presentations, for the enthusiasm they have shown, expressing a double surprise… first the surprise to see how “I guessed the cards” and after, the surprise of seeing that they, themselves could “guess” the cards.  This shows the positive value of The FOZ Magic Square and that Magic can be contagious…
Pili Lopez, The Culture Technician of the FOZ Town Hall, who has facilitated and supported  me in everything I have asked to do these Mathe-Magic Presentations
Santiago, who made a wooden square with two magic squares in black and white, to show the children the difference between a traditional magic square and The FOZ Magic Square.
The retired fisherman of “Chabola number 2” in the FOZ harbour, with whom I have practised first, before going public.

And I also thank all the other people who during this time have listened to me and have encouraged me to continue forward… particularly Manolo Sanchez who during the first days of the development of The FOZ Magic Square witnessed the difficulty I had at first when trying to transpose The FOZ Magic Square into the traditional Spanish deck of 48 cards to make the FOZUDOKUS (at first I could only make the Magic Squares with only two suits). Manolo encouraged me to continue working on this problem and finally one day, my hard work and perseverance paid off and I made three different Magic Squares with all the cards of the same deck, using in each Magic Square the four different suits, without repeating any colour or suit, the same as in the FOZ Magic Square.

I also wish to show my gratitude to Susito Vila, who from the very beginning supported me in this project so the Children of FOZ could also become Magicians and do Mathe-Magic. Susito also is my Magic Assistant during the Mathe-Magic show and he is a great cheer leader, his natural sympathy and happy good mood is contagious and helps to maintain the attention of the children, so his positive collaboration is valued and very much appreciated.

Thanks also to Chieko Miyatake, my Japanese friend who has design and keeps this webpage, helping in the promotion of The FOZ Magic Square, The FOZUDOKUS and the Mathe-Magic Presentation The Wizard of FOZ.
Also, his husband, Tomohiro Akasaka, a professional photographer who has collaborated with the editing of some of the photos in these pages.

Thank also to Pepe Peino, Matias, Claudia and Maria, who interviewed me, allowing me to talk in their radio program “Parolando” in Radio Valodouro. This Program is transmitted every Thursday at 19:30 and several interesting actual topics are discussed, that enrich the knowledge of the listeners. It is for this reason that I am grateful for this interview that allowed the promotion of this webpage and The FOZ Magic Square.

There is also something else that helps a lot for this Magic Square to be well known: On the front of my house in FOZ, (where this Magic Square was born), there is The FOZ Magic Square, made with coloured tiles so it can be seen by all passers-by and they can marvel at it and search on the Internet for more information, if so they wish, because on top of the Magic Square, also with tiles there is this sign, (in black and white): Cuadrado Mágico de FOZ .com
For this reason I wish to express my gratitude to Mª Rosario González from “Ceramica del Sur” in Andalucia
http://www.ceramicadelsur.com/index.php?id=6
for her design (following my instructions) of these coloured numbers tiles, that are made with a special technique known as the “dried-string technique”, that enhances the beauty of the numbers that come out stronger and more brilliant, making the border as if they were engraved in stone.
And I cannot finish this page without showing my most sincere gratitude for the artistic work of Oscar Rodriguez González, as it was him who with conscientious attention to detail and much love and care, one by one, he placed these numbered coloured tiles in their correct position, making this spectacular mosaic, The FOZ Magic Square. His work is very well finished (see photograph) and it calls the attention of everyone that passes by the Rua do Porto (Porto road), specially it brings the admiration of the tourists in the summer that see this for the first time, and many of them take photos, that no doubt will help even further to promote the FOZ Magic Square to even more people.

As I´m writing this a year has passed, and when I look at the coloured magnets still on my fridge door, I can reflect and think that many things has been done, but I´m sure that this is only the beginning and with the help of other people, the promotion of The FOZ Magic Square, The FOZUDOKUS and The Mathe-Magic Presentation The Wizard of FOZ is now unstoppable.

Please help me to promote this webpage,
cuadradomagicodefoz.com
by passing it among all your contacts so they can download from this webpage the Excel file “FOZUDOKU”.
If someone wants to publish something about The FOZ Magic Square of The FOZUDOKUS, they are welcome to do so as long as they acknowledge that the information comes from this web page, thus helping in its promotion.

Antonio Pomares Olivares


28 de Julio de 2013

 

Since I wrote this page, I returned to London where I have also done four Presentations of The Mathe-Magic “Wizard of FOZ” in Ravenstone School. In all these Presentations Viviana Bustamante has taken part, who is only 10 years old and has memorized all 48 movements of the cards. Increasing the amazing magic effect showing how magic can be done with numbers. To tell you the truth the show was done by her and I only participated in a supervisory capacity. So I am eternally grateful to Vivi for her collaboration in this project.
Her work and dedication has made it possible that this Magic Show not only helps to promote the FOZ Magic Square but also has put FOZ in the Spanish map, for the knowledge of her colleagues and teachers in her school.
Well done Vivi!!
Thank you very much

28th March 2014