fractal

fractal
fractal 1975, from Fr. fractal, from L. fractus "interrupted, irregular," lit. "broken," pp. of frangere "to break" (see FRACTION (Cf. fraction)). Coined by French mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot in "Les Objets Fractals."
Many important spatial patterns of Nature are either irregular or fragmented to such an extreme degree that ... classical geometry ... is hardly of any help in describing their form. ... I hope to show that it is possible in many cases to remedy this absence of geometric representation by using a family of shapes I propose to call fractals -- or fractal sets. [Mandelbrot, "Fractals," 1977]

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • fractal — fractal, ale [ fraktal ] adj. et n. f. • 1975; dér. sav. du lat. fractus « brisé » ♦ Didact. Objet fractal : objet mathématique servant à décrire des objets de la nature dont les formes découpées laissent apparaître à des échelles d observation… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • fractal — FRACTÁL, Ă, fractáli, e, s.m. şi adj. (Se spune despre o) Curbă sau formă foarte neregulată pentru care orice parte aleasă în mod convenabil devine similară ca formă cu o alta mai mare sau mai mică în momentul în care cea dintâi este mărită,… …   Dicționar Român

  • fractal — adj. 2 g. 1.  [Matemática] Diz se de objetos matemáticos cuja forma é irregular e fragmentada: Objeto fractal; geometria fractal. • s. f. 2.  [Matemática] Conjunto geométrico ou objeto natural cujas partes têm a mesma estrutura (irregular e… …   Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa

  • fractal — (Del fr. fractal, voz inventada por el matemático francés B. Mandelbrot en 1975, y este del lat. fractus, quebrado). m. Fís. y Mat. Figura plana o espacial, compuesta de infinitos elementos, que tiene la propiedad de que su aspecto y distribución …   Diccionario de la lengua española

  • Fractal —   [engl.], Fraktal …   Universal-Lexikon

  • fractal —  Fractal  Фрактал   Бесконечная самоподобная геометрическая фигура, каждый фрагмент которой повторяется при уменьшении масштаба. Фракталами также называют самоподобные множества нецелой размерности. Самоподобное множество множество, которое можно …   Толковый англо-русский словарь по нанотехнологии. - М.

  • fractal — ☆ fractal [frak′təl ] n. [< L fractus (see FRACTUS) + AL] Geom. an extremely irregular line or surface formed of an infinite number of similarly irregular sections: fractals have fractional dimension between one and two, or between two and… …   English World dictionary

  • Fractal — A fractal is generally a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be split into parts, each of which is (at least approximately) a reduced size copy of the whole, [cite book last = Mandelbrot first = B.B. title = The Fractal Geometry of… …   Wikipedia

  • Fractal — Este artículo o sección sobre matemáticas necesita ser wikificado con un formato acorde a las convenciones de estilo. Por favor, edítalo para que las cumpla. Mientras tanto, no elimines este aviso puesto el 16 de octubre de 2010. También puedes… …   Wikipedia Español

  • fractal — /frak tl/, n. Math., Physics. a geometrical or physical structure having an irregular or fragmented shape at all scales of measurement between a greatest and smallest scale such that certain mathematical or physical properties of the structure,… …   Universalium

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