From the book MATH TALK: Mathematical Ideas in Poems for Two Voices by Theoni Pappas. Copyright © 1994. Electronically reproduced by permission of Wide World Publishing/Tetra, P.O. Box 476, San Carlos, California * tel: (415) 593-2839.
This poem in voices is meant to be read aloud. Lines on the same horizontal are meant to be read simultaneously.
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They call us fractals. |
They call us monsters. | ||
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a rather new |
We're young, mathematical idea. | ||
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They thought us useless discoveries. |
freaks, | ||
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know to the contrary. |
Now mathematicians know to the contrary. | ||
| Fractals are |
the geometry of nature. | ||
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Snowflakes, ferns, |
trees | ||
| clouds, | dragons. | ||
| You name it |
we can describe it. | ||
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We're fractals- geometric. |
We're fractals- random. | ||
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No matter how small details remains the same. |
No matter how strange we can formulate it. | ||
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Fractals the universe. |
Fractals can paint the universe. | ||
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