The Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences at Reed College invites you to a public lecture by Prof. Harry L. Swinney, Sid Richardson Foundation Regents Chair of Physics and Director of the Center for Nonlinear Dynamics at the University of Texas at Austin. Prof. Swinney is one of the pioneering figures in the study of chaos theory and his lab has played a leading role in the study of nonlinear dynamics over the past 40 years. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and his work has been recognized with numerous awards, including the Moser Prize, the Richardson Medal, and the Boltzmann Medal.

From spatial patterns like the stripes on a zebra to temporal patterns like the rhythmic beating of the heart, patterns are ubiquitous in nature. Understanding how these patterns emerge is one of science’s most enduring mysteries. In this lecture, aimed at a general audience, Prof. Swinney will discuss how ordered patterns emerge as systems are driven away from thermodynamic equilibrium. While no general theory of pattern formation currently exists, new analysis techniques, experiments, and computational methods can provide general insights into pattern formation in a diversity of physical, chemical, and biological systems.

Spontaneous pattern formation in bacterial colonies

Sponsored by the Office of the Dean of the Faculty at Reed College.