Photo: ‘Romanesco Broccoli’ by Lori L. Stalteri
FRACTAL
Generate infinite complexity
Fractals – fractus – are patterns formed from chaotic equations and contain self-similar patterns of complexity increasing with magnification. They are a perfect balance between order and chaos. If you divide a fractal pattern into parts you get a nearly identical reduced-size copy of the whole. This mathematical beauty of fractals is that infinite complexity is formed with relatively simple equations. By iterating or repeating fractal-generating equations many times, random outputs create beautiful patterns that are unique, yet recognizable, such as Romanesco broccoli and peacock feathers for example.