I’ve always been fascinated by the way branching systems reveal similar structures and layouts throughout the universe. An x-ray of your lungs looks much like a tree and its roots, hanging upside down. A systems of bifurcating creeks, streams, and rivers looks a lot like a social network. I’ve heard the term “chreodic theory” applied to the study of bifurcating systems, though Wikipedia doesn’t have much on the topic, and points out that the study is more descriptive than predictive – interesting but not terribly useful. This image above shows a brain cell on the left, a few micrometers wide. On the right, a simulated view of how the universe grew and evolved. Full-size view.
Neuron Galaxy
Music: Matching Mole :: Instant Kitten
I clicked hoping to get a full-size view of the universe. Wondered how long it would take to load. Ah well.
Scott – The link to a full view of the universe is there, but I’m using a bandwidth throttling auto-detect on it. If you’re on anything less than an OC3 connection, you get the compressed version. Sorry.