10 episodes
Patterns of Life - for iPod/iPhone The Open University
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- Education
Everywhere you look in nature you will find patterns. From the seeds in the flower under your nose to the flock of swallows overhead some patterns keep occurring again and again.
The essence of mathematics is a series of simple rules that produce complex consequences. And nowhere are these complex consequences more apparent than in the natural world.
This collection will look at 5 mathematical theories that were inspired by nature. It will look at the origin of the theory, its impact on research at the time and its continuing relevance.
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- video
Edward Lorenz and Chaos Theory
Why can’t we get a good weather forecast? Meteorologist Edward Lorenz tried to predict the weather but in the end all he discovered were chaotic systems, leading him to declare long term weather forecasting is utterly impossible.
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Transcript -- Edward Lorenz and Chaos Theory
Why can’t we get a good weather forecast? Meteorologist Edward Lorenz tried to predict the weather but in the end all he discovered were chaotic systems, leading him to declare long term weather forecasting is utterly impossible.
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- video
Alan Turing and Morphogenesis
What makes tigers striped and cheetahs spotty? World War II code-breaker and father of computing, Alan Turing, has a simple explanation…
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Transcript -- Alan Turing and Morphogenesis
What makes tigers striped and cheetahs spotty? World War II code-breaker and father of computing, Alan Turing, has a simple explanation…
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- video
Warren Weaver and Complexity Theory
In 1948, Warren Weaver identified what he called complex systems. These are systems where individual parts act independently of each other, while still following a set of simple rules.
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Transcript -- Warren Weaver and Complexity Theory
In 1948, Warren Weaver identified what he called complex systems. These are systems where individual parts act independently of each other, while still following a set of simple rules.
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