When did you last really take a close look at nature? You probably walk past elements of nature every day. Trees and other plants are everywhere - even in the heart of a city. However, we often take them for granted and don’t pay them much attention, let alone really look at them closely. When did you last stop and take some time to notice the structure of a tree, the shape of a fern’s frond or the patterns of the veins on a leaf?
Patterns are everywhere in nature. Patterns vary from rhythmic patterns (such as day and night, lunar cycles, tides ebbing and flowing and the seasons), to markings on plants and animals (for example a variegated leaf, or the beautiful wings of a butterfly), to the patterns in the structure of elements of nature itself.
Fractal patterns are especially fascinating. These are a pattern that repeat at different scales to make complex, captivating patterns. Examples of fractal patterns in nature can be seen in a fern frond, a trunk of a tree dividing into a branch which divides into increasingly smaller branches (this can also be seen in rivers), the spiral of shells, a snowflake, or my personal favourite, Romanesco broccoli with its mesmerising spirals within spirals.
It has been found that fractal patterns are not only fascinating when you actually stop to notice and look at them, but they have been shown to sooth us. The aesthetically pleasing patterns can significantly reduce stress when people gaze at them for a while. Why would this be? One theory is that our vision has evolved to understand fractals. Humanity has evolved in nature (we are after all just one small part of the complex web of life on earth), and so we naturally feel soothed by being surrounded by the natural patterns we evolved in. Now that we largely live apart from nature in our angular boxes we call home, in the sea of other angular boxes we call a town or city, we have less contact with these amazing patterns, which is unsettling.
Next time you are out walking, or in a park or garden, why not try to look for some fractal patterns? Look closely at the veins on a leaf, the shape of a fern frond, or look at the structure of the trees and see what other patterns you can identify. Where else can you see fractal patterns? When you find one, try to see the repeated pattern at different scales within. Enjoy your fractal forages!
‘Think not of what you see, but what it took to produce what you see.’ - Benoit Mandelbrot
‘Patterns can be seen as a form of communication. They speak to us on a subconscious level, guiding our thoughts and actions. By paying attention to the patterns around us, we can tap into this hidden language and unlock new insights.’ – Deepak Chopra
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