Nature's patterns : a tapestry in three parts / Philip Ball.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ball, Philip, 1962-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Pattern formation (Biology).

Pattern formation (Physical sciences).

Chaotic behavior in systems.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (308 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates) : illustrations (some color)

Edition:

1st ed.

Other Title:

Shapes

Place of Publication:

Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2009.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

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? As Philip Ball reveals in Nature's Patterns: A Tapestry in Three Parts, this order creates itself. The patterns we see come from self-organization. Indeed, scientists have found that there is a pattern-forming tendency inherent in the basic structure and processes of nature, whether living or non-living, so that from a few simple themes, and the repetition of simple rules, endless beautiful variations can arise.

Contents:

The shapes of things : pattern and form

Lessons of the beehive : building with bubbles

Making waves : stripes in a test tube

Written on the body : hiding, warning, and mimicking

Rhythms of the wild : crustal communities

How does your garden grow? : the mathematics of a daisy

Unfolding the embryo : the formation of body plans.

Notes:

"Nature's patterns is a trilogy composed of Shapes, Flow, and Branches."

Includes bibliographical references ([295]-301) and index.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

0-19-161985-X

1-282-19937-4

0-19-152873-0

OCLC:

778339696