This book provides the reader with an elementary introduction to chaos and fractals, suitable for students with a background in elementary algebra, without assuming prior coursework in calculus or physics. It introduces the key phenomena of chaos - aperiodicity, sensitive dependence on initial conditions, bifurcations - via simple iterated functions. Fractals are introduced as self-similar geometric objects and analyzed with the self-similarity and box-counting dimensions. After a brief discussion of power laws, subsequent chapters explore Julia Sets and the Mandelbrot Set. The last part of the book examines two-dimensional dynamical systems, strange attractors, cellular automata, and chaotic differential equations. The book is richly illustrated and includes over 200 end-of-chapter exercises. A flexible format and a clear and succinct writing style make it a good choice for introductory courses in chaos and fractals.
ISBN: | 9780199566433 |
Publication date: | 9th August 2012 |
Author: | David P. (Department od Physics and Mathematics, College of the Atlantic, Bar Harbor, Maine, USA) Feldman |
Publisher: | Oxford University Press |
Format: | Hardback |
Pagination: | 432 pages |
Genres: |
Chaos theory Fractal geometry Mathematical physics Statistical physics |