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Patterns of Life - for iPod/iPhone

The Open University

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.

  • 1 minute 18.28 seconds
    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.
    26 November 2014, 3:22 pm
  • Transcript -- Edward Lorenz and Chaos Theory
    Transcript -- 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.
    26 November 2014, 3:22 pm
  • 1 minute 25.6 seconds
    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…
    26 November 2014, 3:16 pm
  • Transcript -- Alan Turing and Morphogenesis
    Transcript -- What makes tigers striped and cheetahs spotty? World War II code-breaker and father of computing, Alan Turing, has a simple explanation…
    26 November 2014, 3:16 pm
  • 1 minute 24.68 seconds
    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.
    26 November 2014, 3:09 pm
  • Transcript -- Warren Weaver and Complexity Theory
    Transcript -- 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.
    26 November 2014, 3:09 pm
  • 1 minute 7.08 seconds
    D’Arcy Thompson, Structuralism and the Shape of Life
    If evolution is all about random mutations, why do the same patterns keep cropping up in the natural world? Coincidence? Not according to parrot-wielding eccentric, Sir D’Arcy Thompson. He realised that living things grow according to the laws of physics as well as genetics.
    26 November 2014, 3:00 pm
  • Transcript -- D’Arcy Thompson, Structuralism and the Shape of Life
    Transcript -- If evolution is all about random mutations, why do the same patterns keep cropping up in the natural world? Coincidence? Not according to parrot-wielding eccentric, Sir D’Arcy Thompson. He realised that living things grow according to the laws of physics as well as genetics.
    26 November 2014, 3:00 pm
  • 1 minute 29.68 seconds
    Charles Darwin and Game Theory
    If evolution’s all about survival, why do peacocks have such huge, extravagant tails? This problem preyed on Charles Darwin’s mind. Luckily, in the 1970s, a hip bunch of mathematicians called game theorists came along with an explanation that would have put his mind at rest.
    26 November 2014, 2:38 pm
  • Transcript -- Charles Darwin and Game Theory
    Transcript -- If evolution’s all about survival, why do peacocks have such huge, extravagant tails? This problem preyed on Charles Darwin’s mind. Luckily, in the 1970s, a hip bunch of mathematicians called game theorists came along with an explanation that would have put his mind at rest.
    26 November 2014, 2:38 pm
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