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The Algorithmic Beauty of Sea Shells /

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The patterns on the shells of tropical sea snails are not only compellingly beautiful but also tell a tale of biological development. The decorative patterns are records of their own genesis, which follows laws like those of dune formation or the spread of a flu epidemic. Hans Meinhardt has analyzed...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Meinhardt, Hans
Corporate Author: SpringerLink (Online service)
Format: eBook
Language:English
Published: Berlin, Heidelberg : Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 2003.
Edition:Third edition.
Series:Virtual laboratory.
Subjects:
Computer science.
Computer simulation.
Computer graphics.
Life sciences.
Biology > Data processing.
Electronic books.
Online Access:Connect to the full text of this electronic book
Table of Contents:
  • Shell patterns as dynamic systems
  • Pattern formation
  • Oscillation and travelling waves
  • Superposition of stable and periodic patterns
  • Meshwork of oblique lines and staggered dots
  • Branch initiation by global control
  • The big problem: two or more time-dependent patterns
  • Triangles
  • Parallel lines with tongues
  • Shell models in three dimensions
  • The computer program
  • Appendix: Pattern formation in the development of higher-level organisms.