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Article: Fractal past, fractal future. (fractal research of the past and future)(75th Anniversary Supplement)
- Article from:
- Science News
- Article date:
- March 1, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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On a clear, brisk morning, a child marvels at the frilled intricacy of frost splayed across a sunlit windowpane. In the laboratory, a scientist peers at the minutely branched structure of a cluster of gold particles.
A character in Tom Stoppard's 1993 play Arcadia asks, "If there is an equation for a curve like a bell, there must be an equation for one like a bluebell, and if a bluebell, why not a rose?" If you asked a mathematician how to characterize the shape of a flower or Jack Frost's handiwork or metallic sprays, the answer would probably refer to forms called fractals.
Fractals have invaded the popular imagination. Calendars, computer screens, and ...