The Mandelbrot Set

No, this is not a picture of a beetle, but a picture of the mathematical concept of the MandelBrot Set, named after Benoit Mandelbrot.

It has the property that no matter how much you zoom into it, it looks either the same or similar, all the way up to infinite magnification.

Click HERE to try it!

The origin of this "set" of "points" is beyond the scope of this blog, but suffice it to say, it is plotted from a recurrence relation on the complex plane.

In ordinary language, a "recurrence relation" means that a math formula is fed it's own answers over and over again, and each result is plotted on paper. It's a bit like a snake swallowing it's own tail.

"Complex" refers to the type of plotting needed, as it only works with special numbers called "Complex Numbers".

"Plane" simply means a flat piece of paper!

The different colors represent how near the numbers come to the black area, like contours on a map.

Fool around with the link, it's fun!