Wednesday, January 30, 2008

The Algorithmic Beauty of Plants

The Algorithmic Beauty of Plants by P. Prusinkiewicz and A. Lindenmayer:

"Lindenmayer systems — or L-systems for short — were conceived as a mathematical theory of plant development [82]. Originally, they did not include enough detail to allow for comprehensive modeling of higher plants. The emphasis was on plant topology, that is, the neighborhood relations between cells or larger plant modules. Their geometric aspects were beyond the scope of the theory. Subsequently, several geometric interpretations of L-systems were proposed with a view to turning them into a versatile tool for plant modeling. Throughout this book, an interpretation based on turtle geometry is used [109]. Basic notions related to L-system theory and their turtle interpretation are presented below."

Visit the link to download a free PDF version of the book.

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