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[[Image:SsFb.gif|A computer generated image of a leaf.|right|thumb]]

[[Image:Fractal.jpg|The delicate tracery of a computer-generated fractal|right|thumb|250px]]

A '''fractal''' is a design which contains in detail a shape which looks like the whole.

A '''fractal''' is a mathematically generated [[design]] whose details resemble the original fractal, a property known as self-similarity. A fractal is produced with mathematical equations that undergo iteration or are recursive in form. The two leading computer programs for creating fractals are UltraFractal and [[Apophysis]].

The fractal nature of some plants has convinced many people that God must have designed the natural world (see [[fern]]s).{{fact}} The leaves of a fern are shaped very much like the frond.  

The fractal nature of some plants has convinced many people that God must have designed the natural world (see [[fern]]s). The leaves of a fern are shaped very much like the frond. Evolutionary biologists have yet to propose a satisfactory explanation for the spontaneous appearance of complex patterns in living organisms. They cannot adequately explain the evolutionary advantage of an endlessly repeating [[pattern]] and how it comes about from elementary biological or chemical processes.

*Fractals were first named and described by Benoit Mandelbrot, a mathematician at Yale University. He calls fractals the "geometry of nature." [http://www.wsu.edu/DrUniverse/fractal.html]

*Fractals have been studied by mathematicians for over a century. The name was coined by [[Benoit Mandelbrot]], a mathematician at [[Yale University]]. He calls fractals the "geometry of nature." <ref>http://www.wsu.edu/DrUniverse/fractal.html</ref>

Damien Jones wrote:

Damien Jones wrote:

*A fractal is a shape that, when you look at a small part of it, has a similar (but not necessarily identical) appearance to the full shape. Take, for example, a rocky mountain. From a distance, you can see how rocky it is; up close, the surface is very similar. Little rocks have a similar bumpy surface to big rocks and to the overall mountain. [http://www.fractalus.com/info/layman.htm]

*A fractal is a shape that, when you look at a small part of it, has a similar (but not necessarily identical) appearance to the full shape. Take, for example, a rocky mountain. From a distance, you can see how rocky it is; up close, the surface is very similar. Little rocks have a similar bumpy surface to big rocks and to the overall mountain.<ref>http://www.fractalus.com/info/layman.htm</ref>

==External links==

==External links==

*[http://www.creativitysoftware.com/fractals-images/pages-hs/fern-fronds.htm Fractal fronds]

*[http://www.creativitysoftware.com/fractals-images/pages-hs/fern-fronds.htm Fractal fronds]

*[http://www.fractalus.com/info/layman.htm Fractals, in Layman's Terms]

*[http://www.fractalus.com/info/layman.htm Fractals, in Layman's Terms]