Greek Philosophers and Patterns in Nature

Greek Philosophers and Patterns in Nature

• Greek philosophers studied patterns to explain order in nature, including growth patterns in plants and animals.
• They found that simple equations could explain spiral growth patterns.

Morphogenesis and Pattern Formation

• Predictions were made about mechanisms of morphogenesis, including patterns of spots and stripes.

The Work of a Belgian Physicist

• A Belgian physicist studied soap films, leading to the concept of minimal surface.

Geometry and Marine Organisms

• Paintings of marine organisms were used to emphasize geometric patterns.

Adopted Patterns

• Eight patterns were adopted: scattered, fractured, mosaic, spiral, naturalistic drift, radial, dendritic, and serpentine.

Fractals and Plant Growth

• The mathematics of fractals can create plant growth patterns.

The Spread of Hindu-Arabic Numerals

• The spread of Hindu-Arabic numerals (0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8…), also known as Fibonacci numbers, was facilitated.

Plane Mirror

• A plane mirror produces an image the same size as the object, appearing to be behind the mirror.

Types of Patterns

• Patterns can be visible and consist of contexts, spirals, symmetries, mosaics, stripes, spots, and more.