The Algorithmic Beauty of Sea Shells
The patterns on the shells of tropical sea snails are not only compellingly beautiful but also tell a tale of biological development. The decorative patterns are records of their own genesis, which follows laws like those of dune formation or the spread o
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Hans Meinhardt
The Algorithmic Beauty of Sea Shells Fourth Edition
With Contributions and Images by Przemyslaw Prusinkiewicz and Deborah R. Fowler With 148 Illustrations, 134 in Color, and CD-ROM
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Hans Meinhardt Max-Planck-Institute for Developmental Biology Spemannstr. 35 72076 Tübingen Germany [email protected] Series Editor Przemyslaw Prusinkiewicz
ISSN 1431-939X ISBN 978-3-540-92141-7 e-ISBN 978-3-540-92142-4 DOI 10.1007/978-3-540-92142-4 Springer Dordrecht Heidelberg London New York Library of Congress Control Number: 2009926970 c Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 1995, 1998, 2003, 2009 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilm or in any other way, and storage in data banks. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the German Copyright Law of September 9, 1965, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Violations are liable to prosecution under the German Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. Springer-Verlag or the author make no warranty of representation, either express or implied with respect to this CD-ROM or book, including their quality, merchantability, or fitness for a particular purpose. In no event will Springer-Verlag or the author be liable for direct, indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of the use or inability to use the CD-ROM or book, even if Springer-Verlag or the author have been advised of the possibility of such damages. Cover design: deblik, Berlin Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer+Business Media (www.springer.com)
It has turned out to be impossible . . . to get at the meaning of these marks . . . They refuse themselves to our understanding, and will, painfully enough, continue to do so. But when I say refuse, that is merely the negative of reveal - and that Nature painted these ciphers, to which we lack the key, merely for ornament on the shell of her creature, nobody can persuade me. Ornament and meaning always run alongside each other; the old writings too served for both ornament and communication. Nobody can tell me that there is nothing to communicate here. That it is an inaccessible communication, to plunge into this contradiction, is also a pleasure. Thomas Mann, Doctor Faustus, III. Chapter: Jonathan Leverkühn contemplating a pattern on a New Caledonien sea shell. After the translation from the German by H. T. LowePorter, Penguin Books.
Preface
The pigment patterns on tropical shells are of great beauty and diversity. Their mixture of regularity and irregularity is fas
