Shapes: Nature's patterns: a tapestry in three parts, Part 1OUP Oxford, 12 de març 2009 - 320 pàgines Patterns are everywhere in nature - in the ranks of clouds in the sky, the stripes of an angelfish, the arrangement of petals in flowers. Where does this order and regularity come from? It creates itself. The patterns we see come from self-organization. Whether living or non-living, scientists have found that there is a pattern-forming tendency inherent in the basic structure and processes of nature, so that from a few simple themes, and the repetition of simple rules, endless beautiful variations can arise. Part of a trilogy of books exploring the science of patterns in nature, acclaimed science writer Philip Ball here looks at how shapes form. From soap bubbles to honeycombs, delicate shell patterns, and even the developing body parts of a complex animal like ourselves, he uncovers patterns in growth and form in all corners of the natural world, explains how these patterns are self-made, and why similar shapes and structures may be found in very different settings, orchestrated by nothing more than simple physical forces. This book will make you look at the world with fresh eyes, seeing order and form even in the places you'd least expect. |
Continguts
1 | |
Lessons of the Beehive Building with Bubbles | 33 |
Making Waves Stripes in a Test Tube | 103 |
Written on the Body Hiding Warning and Mimicking | 151 |
Rhythms of the Wild Crystal Communities | 200 |
How Does Your Garden Grow? The Mathematics of a Daisy | 226 |
Altres edicions - Mostra-ho tot
Frases i termes més freqüents
activator activator-inhibitor angle animal autocatalytic auxin bands biological biologists body butterfly BZ mixture BZ reaction called cells chemical reactions chemical waves coccolithophores colour complex concentration create curvature cycle D’Arcy D'Arcy Thompson diffusion Distal-less droplets embryo energy equilibrium Ernst Haeckel evolutionary example excitable medium Fibonacci numbers foam foxes genes genetic geometric golden angle grow Growth and Form Haeckel hexagonal honeycomb images kind Liesegang liquid logarithmic spiral look Lotka malonic acid mathematical mechanism Meinhardt membranes meristem microscopic mineral minimal surfaces molecules morphogen morphogenesis nature numbers organisms oscillations parasitoids patches pattern formation Photo phyllotaxis physical pigmentation plant population predators prey primordia produced protein rabbits radiolarians reaction-diffusion regular Science scientists seems seen shape shell showed simple soap films solution space species spiral waves spontaneously spots stem stripes surface tension surfactants switches symmetry tion tissue travelling waves Turing structures Turing's University wavefront wing zebra