Customer Reviews

The Algorithmic Beauty of Sea Shells

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I came across this book at the Rhode Island School of Design library. As an artist I found it surprising that what I had considered to be just a beautiful pattern was actually an imprint of the pressure and movement of the waves upon the seashell. This insight was very thought provoking for me. Perhaps to biologists this is a normal and natural thing - but for an artist this kind of scientific approach with beautifully illustrated pages is a deeply moving experience. This book will definitely make you think twice about the objects that you take for granted - whether it's visually or scientifically. I strongly recommend this book for those who like intellectual challenges and who like to look at the world with fresh new eyes.

I've been collecting shells for many years but i never thought of the complexity and perfection of their patterns! This book describes in a simple way the mechanisms that produce the surface decorations of shells. It takes reader in a fascinating trip in a world of algorithmic shapes and colors!

This book describes, using a computer, The geometry involved in the building of seashells and in particular the surface features. It shows the how and why of surface decorations found on several species of Mollusks. This is probably the only book to treat this subject and do so extensively expertly and comprahensively.

This book is beautiful in its design and illustrations. More, it shows how the natural, semi-random, form of cowries can be modeled by, and generated from, mathematical equations (which are included in the book.) The original edition of the book included a diskette with computer programs to perform the modeling. In these days of the Internet, that's not necessary, but I'm absolutely certain (though without knowing) that you can download that material from Springer Verlag's website. So you can grow your own seashell in your computer.

As Max Beerbohm said, "For those who like this sort of thing, this is the sort of thing they like [very much!]"