The Beauty of Fractals: Images of Complex Dynamical Systems

In 1953 I realized that the straight line leads to the downfall of mankind. But the straight line has become an absolute tyranny. The straight line is something cowardly drawn with a rule, without thought or feeling; it is the line which does not exist in nature. And that line is the rotten foundation of our doomed civilization. Even if there are places where it is recognized that this line is rapidly leading to perdition, its course continues to be plot­ ted . . . Any design undertaken with the straight line will be stillborn. Today we are witnessing the triumph of rationalist knowhow and yet, at the same time, we find ourselves confronted with emptiness. An esthetic void, des­ ert of uniformity, criminal sterility, loss of creative power. Even creativity is prefabricated. We have become impotent. We are no longer able to create. That is our real illiteracy. Friedensreich Hundertwasser Fractals are all around us, in the shape of a mountain range or in the windings of a coast line. Like cloud formations and flickering fires some fractals under­ go never-ending changes while others, like trees or our own vascular systems, retain the structure they acquired in their development. To non-scientists it may seem odd that such familiar things have recently become the focus of in­ tense research. But familiarity is not enough to ensure that scientists have the tools for an adequate understanding.

"..a rare and extraordinary book...anyone who has ever explored the intricate folds of the Mandelbrot set will want this book and will be delighted by it...above all, a celebration of fractal forms and as such it works superbly...buy this book and enjoy it" Personal Computer World
"A literally wonder-ful book!" Physikalische Blätter