FractalFoundation.org http://fractalfoundation.org Fractal Blog - a chaotic exploration of science and education Tue, 07 May 2013 22:58:35 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 en hourly 1 Fractal Electronica - A Benefit on May 11 http://fractalfoundation.org/2013/04/fractal-electronica-a-benefit-on-may-11/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2013/04/fractal-electronica-a-benefit-on-may-11/#comments Tue, 23 Apr 2013 21:46:31 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1859 maizemaze

Join the Fractal Foundation and Rio Grande Farms for a fractastic evening on Saturday May 11 featuring fulldome fractals set to great electronic music. And local beer! It’s a benefit show for the the Rio Grande Farm’s Maize Maze later this summer… which will be a giant fractal!

Buy Tickets Now

]]> http://fractalfoundation.org/2013/04/fractal-electronica-a-benefit-on-may-11/feed/ Enter the Fractal Challenge! - April 1 http://fractalfoundation.org/2013/03/enter-the-fractal-challenge-by-april-1/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2013/03/enter-the-fractal-challenge-by-april-1/#comments Sat, 30 Mar 2013 21:28:49 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1845 Students in the Greater Albuquerque Area - please enter the 4th Annual Fractal Challenge!

Simply download the free “Xaos” software, make a beautiful fractal and send it to us. The deadline is April 1’st (no fooling!)

See the full Submission Guidelines.

Winning fractals will be featured in the First Friday Fractal planetarium shows, and may be reproduced on the sides of building as gigantic public artworks!

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]]> http://fractalfoundation.org/2013/03/enter-the-fractal-challenge-by-april-1/feed/ “Encompass” - a Free Fractal Event, March 1 http://fractalfoundation.org/2013/02/encompass-a-free-fractal-event-march-1/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2013/02/encompass-a-free-fractal-event-march-1/#comments Tue, 19 Feb 2013 22:48:39 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1826 fractalflowerballs1
Please join us on Friday March 1st from 6-8PM for a free family-friendly fractal event at the Harwood Art Center in Albuquerque.

Our Fractal Ambassadors will be leading hands-on Fractivities, including making collaborative fractal triangles, 3D sculptures, and fractal paper cutouts. Student-made digital fractal artwork will be on display, including some of the winners of the Albuquerque Fractal Challenge. There will also be interactive computer-generated fractal projections, and participants will be able to zoom in and create never-ending fractal patterns using simple algebraic equations. The activities are fun for all ages, and showcase the interconnections between science, math and art.

Additionally, there will be many other artistic happenings at the Harwood that evening, so come out and have a great time!

Many thanks to our volunteer Fractal Ambassadors, Escuela del Sol, the Harwood Art Center, and the City of Albuquerque’s Urban Enhancement Trust Fund for helping make this event possible!
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]]> http://fractalfoundation.org/2013/02/encompass-a-free-fractal-event-march-1/feed/ Learn about Fractals at the Fractal Institute for Teachers and Ambassadors http://fractalfoundation.org/2012/11/fractal-institute-for-teachers/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2012/11/fractal-institute-for-teachers/#comments Thu, 15 Nov 2012 22:32:10 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1613 [Stay tuned to learn when we announce the dates for our next Fractal Training program!]

Would you like to learn how to use the beauty of fractals to inspire interest in learning? Whether you’re a teacher looking to excite your students, or someone who would like to volunteer as a fractal ambassador to help us teach the world about fractals, we want to teach you how to teach fractals!

Register now for our next professional development workshop for teachers and ambassadors, the Fractal Institute.

We will be holding a half-day workshops on Saturday, January 5th, 2013, from 1-5PM.

The workshops will take place in Albuquerque at the Balloon Museum (just off Alameda, west of I-25).

These workshops are FREE, and have been developed with support from the Albuquerque Community Foundation, the McCune Charitable Foundation, and the NM Public Education Department.

Participants will receive a DVD containing fractal videos, lessons, slides and activities; and a T-shirt. You will also learn about ongoing opportunities for fractal outreach in the community.

To register for the Fractal Ambassador training, please send an email to “Volunteers (at) FractalFoundation.org”, and we’ll be glad to send you more information.

Thanks, and we hope to see lots of great teachers and volunteer ambassadors there!

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]]> http://fractalfoundation.org/2012/11/fractal-institute-for-teachers/feed/ The Butterfly Effect: a Fractal-Inspired Art Expo! http://fractalfoundation.org/2012/01/the-butterfly-effect-a-fractal-inspired-art-expo/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2012/01/the-butterfly-effect-a-fractal-inspired-art-expo/#comments Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:26:58 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1727 Thanks everyone who attended, participated, and especially volunteered at the Butterfly Effect event! Over 750 people came to the Harwood Art Center in ABQ, and celebrated fractals, creativity, and the power of small changes to make big impacts.

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Some highlights included:

  • “Iterations” a fractal art show of Escuela del Students
  • Interactive hands-on fractal making activities - learn to make fractals!
  • Live music by the Swamp Cooler Magnets, including live fractal video projection

    • This event was jointly produced by the Fractal Foundation, the Harwood Art Center, and Escuela del Sol Montessori School. Best of all - the event was absolutely FREE, thanks to generous support from Albuquerque’s Urban Enhancement Trust Fund and Albuquerque Community Foundation.

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    Why are we calling it the Butterfly Effect?

    The fundamental lesson of Chaos Theory is that small changes early on can lead to big differences over time — just as the flapping of a butterfly’s wings may help lead to a hurricane many years later. This is a powerful, inspiring and optimistic lesson for us. How can we make a difference in the world, when any one of us is only one seven-billionth of humanity? We are able to because of the interconnectedness of the complex systems we live in. Any one of us does indeed have the power to make a profound impact that ripples outward and touches everything.

    This is why are producing The Butterfly Effect - an annual event embodying creative possibility for people of all ages - overlapping the exhibits of established, successful and emerging adult artists with those of Escuela del Sol Elementary students’ fractal-inspired artwork. This is why  will provide hands-on experiences making fractals and fractal art for all who attend. This is why we mix science, math, and art, to create unexpected, beautiful, and world-changing ideas. And this is why, on the same night, The Harwood Studio Artists open their collective doors to the public. Come. See where and how art happens.

    We are organizing this dynamic and multi-generational event to inspire our audiences, artists, and students alike - offering insights in to the wonders and potentials of creative paths. It takes time, patience, and even a certain amount of faith to know that the things we embrace today will shape the world many years from now; this the inspirational lesson that the butterfly can teach us all.

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    ]]>     http://fractalfoundation.org/2012/01/the-butterfly-effect-a-fractal-inspired-art-expo/feed/     Fractal Fest - So Much Fun, We’ll Do it Again! http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/11/fractal-fest-november-12th/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/11/fractal-fest-november-12th/#comments Thu, 03 Nov 2011 06:41:46 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1702 Thanks everyone who came out for a night of Family Fractal Fun at the…

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    ]]>     http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/11/fractal-fest-november-12th/feed/     Sign up to Volunteer http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/08/sign-up-to-volunteer/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/08/sign-up-to-volunteer/#comments Thu, 18 Aug 2011 03:19:11 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1654

    ]]>     http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/08/sign-up-to-volunteer/feed/     Fractals at TEDx http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/07/fractals-at-tedx/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/07/fractals-at-tedx/#comments Thu, 21 Jul 2011 17:14:28 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1618 We are delighted and honored to have been invited to participate at both TEDxABQ in New Mexico, and TEDxBITSGoa in India.

    See the video of “Fractals that Make Us” at TEDxABQ:

    Following this very popular presentation at last year’s TEDxABQ event, we’re very excited to have a presence again at the upcoming TEDxABQ event on 9/10/11. We’ll be hosting a table, sharing the mind-expanding beauty of fractals with the conference attendees. Hope to see you there!

    Also, please see the video of “Fractals: the Gateway to Transformation” at TEDxBITSGoa in India, on Feb 6, 2011.

    ]]>     http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/07/fractals-at-tedx/feed/     Fractals Rock! Now On Its Own Evening http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/07/fractals-rock-now-on-its-own-evening/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/07/fractals-rock-now-on-its-own-evening/#comments Wed, 20 Jul 2011 19:09:57 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1640 fractalsrockuc512

    We are very pleased to present the exciting “Fractals Rock!” program at the NM Museum of Natural History Planetarium. This show features all zooms with music and is highly engaging and dramatic. Less talk, more Fractals Rock!

    There are 3 shows on the THIRD Friday of each month, at 6, 7 and 8 PM.

    Buy Tickets Now for Fractals Rock November 18th

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    The award-winning First Friday Fractals will continue on its regular night, with 3 shows on the First Friday of the month.

    Buy Tickets Now for ‘First Friday Fractals’ on December 2nd

    ]]>     http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/07/fractals-rock-now-on-its-own-evening/feed/     Fractal Trianglethon - around the World! http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/04/fractal-trianglethon-around-the-world/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2011/04/fractal-trianglethon-around-the-world/#comments Tue, 05 Apr 2011 05:07:51 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1572 The 2011 Fractal Trianglethon is almost upon as (April 10th) and hundreds and hundreds of fractals keep pouring in from all over the world! Just today, we received a batch of 729 (that’s 3^6) triangles that had been made by students from McKinley Middle School (IS259) in Brooklyn New York. The students assembled it in their gym, and the story made the local paper.

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    Students from Brooklyn New York, in their piece of the Fractal Trianglethon.

    Besides New York, we’ve been receiving fractals from all over the country, including California, Delaware, Georgia, Ohio, Minnesota and Ohio. The whole world is participating too! Fractals have been coming in from Canada, England, Australia and India as well.

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    Students in Goa, India, making fractals for the Trianglethon.

    We’re so excited to assemble 6561 individual fractal artworks into a giant one, 192′ wide. Thanks everyone, everywhere, for contributing!

    Next year, to break our record and build the next bigger one, we’ll need 3 times as many triangles, or 19683. And we have to find an indoor space big enough to hold a triangle 384′ wide. (Anyone know the owners of the Houston Astrodome?… :)

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