answersLogoWhite

0

Fractals

"Fractals are mathematical constructions of fractal geometry, a relatively new geometric form only discovered/defined in the 1970's by Benoit Mandelbrot who actually coined the term ""fractal"". Previously considered mathematical ""monsters"" fractals were largely ignored by mathematicians as they behaved in ways that were difficult to describe/define, in particular they were ""monster"" curves that were non-differentiable. Benoit Mandelbrot deliberately got a job at IBM in the 1970's so he could gain access to the computing power necessary to study these objects in more detail and since his initial studies Fractal Geometry has become part of every branch of science and given rise to the increasingly popular Fractal Art medium.

203 Questions

When were fractals first studied?

They were first studied in the 17th century by Leibniz.

How do fractals and chaos theory relate to music?

After a year of intensive music theory classes every weekday at 9 AM, hopefully I can explain it to you with the extent of my knowledge.

This is how it works fractally.

The piano is an accurate diatonic and chromatic representation of tones, so I will use it as an example in my next sentence. Music is a series of chords being followed by other chords with common tones. If you look at a piano and play a C Major triad for example (CEG), then the next chord sounds better if it either contains both common tones of C major triad C and E (making an A minor triad ACE); and E and G (making an E minor triad EBG), or contains at least 1 common tone - like the F major chord FAC and the G major chord GBD. As a result, there are always 4 possibilities for which chords to move to next from tonic in your key (that is the fractal part).

To elaborate, let me explain how this relates to roman numeral analysis. You use roman numerals to label scale degrees (basically do, re, mi) if you want to stay in key (which is an important part of how chords are supposed to work). The point is to divide the triads into scale degrees using roman numerals (I know its confusing, bear with me). Let my example explain it for you. Firstly, remember that a capital roman numeral means that it is a major triad and that a lower case roman numeral means it's minor. (LOOK AT A PIANO ONLINE FOR THIS PART) In the key of C Major (looking at ONLY white keys) roman numeral I would be the triad CEG, ii would be DFA, iii EBG, IV FAC, V GBD, and so on.

And that's only the tip of the ice berg!

Feel free to ask any questions.

How are fractals related to the Chaos Theory?

"Chaos theory" seems to be one of those misnomers that smell much more of Greek paganism than rational physics. It is safe to say that "chaos theory" was the last thing that Johannes Kepler needed in order to simplify astronomy for high-school students.

Chaos theory (in my opinion) is more appropriately called a theory of equilibrium. The "order in chaos" comes out of some interference pattern that bring an impressive amount of determinism to seemingly disorderly systems. Fractals stand for series of re-iterated operations that approach the equilibria of chaos theory.

Perhaps the universe still does, in a sense, have a mind of its own - but that would not make it any less rational. If anything, having a mind of its own would probably make it morerational.

If you would like to see physics that possibly smells a lot more like Kepler, Newton, and Occam, I recommend the physics site that I have been developing - along with one other site that gave me my inspiration. I especially recommend the papers where I cover fractals.

I say all these things as a theoretician who really believes he has answers - but must bypass standard explanations.

How do you animate fractals on Apophysis 2.02?

Press the "Run Script" button.. looks like a green "Play" button.. alternatively, F9.

Is light Fractal?

Light per se is not fractal, but I have done work as a theoretician that indicates that photons can interfere with one another to form fractal patterns. See the links for further information on my own investigations. I hope I have been a real help.

(The first answer someone posted was "not spatial but fractal." I am not sure what he meant, but I include this answer here out of respect for the original contributor.)

Are kaleidoscope images fractals?

No. Fractals are geometric shapes which include high calculations. I'm not even able to do the first part of it.

What are fractals used for?

Fractals are commonly used for digitally modeling irregular patterns and structures in nature. They are also very useful for image compression, producing an enlarged picture with no pixilation.

Who was the first person to get computers to make complex fractals?

The first person was the French-American mathematician, Dr Benoit Mandelbrot.

How do you draw fractal art?

Here are a couple of sites that might help you:

http://fineartamerica.com/drawings/tag/how+to+draw+fractalhttp://www.fractalarts.com/ASF/Download.htmlhttp://www.donarcher.com/index.asp

What is a fractal pattern?

It is a shape that can be split into two parts and is one of those hipnotising patterns

How many fractals are there?

IN what?????????????? a cell? an organism? an eyelash? a leaf? it all depends. in each of these there are tens of hundreds of thousands of millions etc. be more specific, then maybe we can answer your question. your welcome, the fractal twins (Julie and Catherine)

What is a fractal maze?

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.astrolog.org/labyrnth/maze/fractal.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.astrolog.org/labyrnth/algrithm.htm&usg=__iHGZHvdLrs3xst49pNZyPrlwf7E=&h=513&w=513&sz=16&hl=en&start=4&um=1&tbnid=aWXIuk_zIRbOOM:&tbnh=131&tbnw=131&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dfractal%2Bmaze%2Bdefinition%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1W1DNUS_en%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1 Have a look

What are some real life things that are fractal like?

The Inside of a shell of a nautilus (sea snail)

Th branches on a plant/tree divide out at each node using the golden number 1 : 1.615...

Who discovered fractals?

Benoît B. Mandelbrot[ is a French mathematician, best known as the father of fractal geometry