English Children at the Gateway School enjoying a fractal zoom.

The Fractal Foundation delivered its first educational presentation in the UK, at the Gateway School in Great Missenden, England. About 160 enthusiastic, but extremely well-mannered, 4th and 5th year students enjoyed a beautiful introduction to fractals in science, math and art. Several elementary teachers attended the lecture as well. The response of the English audience was every bit as positive as the American audiences we are accustomed to; people everywhere love fractals!

Only two days after the presentation, Christine Phillips, the teacher who helped coordinate the visit, reported that many of the students were extremely excited by the fractals, and many had download the software. Indeed, they’d already created many digital fractal artworks using the free XaoS program, Altogether they’d also created over 54 fractal triangles, which we look forward to including in the 2011 Fractal Trianglethon.

Algebraic fractals made by 4th and 5th year students at the Gateway School.

After this auspicious overseas debut, look for the Fractal Foundation to continue to expand our international outreach programs. Already, we’ve received interest from teachers in Australia, Canada, and Brazil, and we hope to be able to bring our programs to these countries as well.

27 fractal triangles made by English students - a contribution to the Fractal Trianglethon.

Just a side comment, for those who wonder why European students routinely outperform American students in math and science achievement: Note that the English students are still in school at the end of June - a month after US students have left for vacation!

On April 28th the Fractal Foundation visited Mariano Lake Community School - a remote elementary school in the Navajo Nation northeast of Gallup NM - to share the excitement of fractals with students, teachers and parents. Over 100 people attended the Family Science Night to learn about the connections between science, math and art.

The presentation showcased the relationship between the patterns of math and nature, and the audience was equally delighted by the beauty of algebraic fractals like the Mandelbrot Set and the natural fractals all around them, like trees, flowers and canyons.

The landscape around Mariano Lake, NM, is covered with particularly dramatic branching fractals, and the presentation included a Google Earth zoom into the local landscape. One of the themes of our fractal presentation is how the same patterns occur throughout nature in all sorts of different systems; in this case, the canyons of New Mexico appear similar to lightning bolts, tree roots, or blood vessels.

A glimpse of the landscape just northwest of Mariano Lake, NM, from Google Earth.

One of the most important factors contributing to student achievement in science and math is the support of the parents. It is for this reason that we at the Fractal Foundation particularly enjoy presenting at family math or science nights, so that the entire family can become engaged and support the students in their education.

Over the past 7 years, the Fractal Foundation has taught fractals to over 30,000 children and 20,000 adults all over New Mexico. We are particularly interested in reaching under-served communities, and are eager to inspire more Native American students with the exciting applications of math and science.

Elementary students and their families enjoying a zoom into the Mandelbrot Set.

]]> http://fractalfoundation.org/2010/04/fractals-on-the-navajo-reservation/feed/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2010/03/fractal-trianglethon-a-giant-success/ http://fractalfoundation.org/2010/03/fractal-trianglethon-a-giant-success/#comments Wed, 24 Mar 2010 23:32:19 +0000 FractalMan http://fractalfoundation.org/?p=1123
The Fractal Foundation constructed the world’s largest fractal triangle on March 14, 2010 (PI-Day) in the Albuquerque Convention Center. Over 40 volunteers helped build the giant triangle and celebrate math, art, and the amazing wonder of fractals. The giant triangle was assembled out of 2187 individual triangles made by children from all over the world.
While 2187 is the number required to assemble a 7th order fractal triangle, 96 feet on a side, so many students had participated that there were enough to keep building, and altogether the pattern was extended to include 4036 triangles.

See a timelapse video of the assembly, which took place over almost 2 hours:

We are continuing the project, and next year we intend  to break our own record by assembling an 8th order fractal triangle, 196 feet on a side, comprised of 6561 individual triangles.

We need more triangles, so Please Participate!

Ruby, a student volunteer, handed out packs of 27 triangles to the assemblers.

A sample triangle, showing how much detail the students put into many of the fractals.

Children assembled fractal tetrahedrons, taking the project to the next dimension

Children from the Camberwell Grammar School in Victoria, Australia. While most of the 4036 triangles in the Trianglethon were made by students in New Mexico, many triangles came from much further.

Gigantic thanks to all who participated: the dozens of volunteers who helped build the giant triangle, and especially to the thousands of children who each contributed a triangle!
And much gratitude to the Albuquerque Convention Center, for generously providing their ballrooms for the event. We look forward to returning next year in the even larger exhibit hall!

Congratulations and thanks, to our Participating Schools:

ALBUQUERQUE:
Annunciation
Apache Elementary
Bandelier Elementary
Bellehaven Elementary
Christ Lutheran
Corrales Elementary
Comanche Elementary
Dennis Chavez Elementary
Double Eagle Elementary
Eastern Hills Christian Academy
Ernie Pyle Middle School
Escuela del Sol Montessori
Governor Bent Elementary
Harrison Middle School
Hodgin Elementary
Inez Elementary
Lavaland Elementary
Lowell Elementary
Mission Avenue Elementary
Monte Vista Elementary
Montezuma Elementary
North Valley Academy
Petroglyph Elementary
San Antonito Elementary
SevenBar Elementary
Sunset Mesa Elementary
Sunset View Elementary
Sierra Vista Elementary
Susie Rayos Marmon Elementary
SY Jackson Elementary
Tierra Antigua Elementary
Valley High School
Vision Quest Alternative
Zuni Elementary

RIO RANCHO:
Cielo Azul Elementary
Enchanted Hills Elementary
Martin Luther King
Sandia Vista
NEW MEXICO:
Acoma - Sky City Elementary
Bosque Farms Elementary
Carlsbad - Alta Vista MS
Edgewood Elementary
Placitas Elementary
Ramah HS
Roswell - Mountain View MS
Santa Rosa MS
Silver City, Harrison Schmidt ES

THE WORLD:
Lyle School, Minnesota,
Camberwell Junior School
Canterbury, Australia

Have we forgotten anyone? Please let us know!

Congratulations to all the winners!

Olivea R, a 6th grade student in front of her winning fractal.

Jazimine R, receiving her trophy and award certificate.

Congratulations, Lauren L!

Daniel G, receiving his award.

Congratulations to Calvinlena T!

Rachel W, a winner from the prior year being recognized as well.

Come visit the ABQ Convention Center to see all 8 winning fractals!

Fractal Challenge Winner Lauren Lopez' winning artwork, on the side of the Harwood Art Center.

In addition, the students of the affiliated Escuela del Sol were given a fractal presentation inside the building, and then they eagerly made fractal triangles and tetrahedrons.

Dr. Jonathan Wolfe, lecturing to senior elementary students.

Escuela students, eagerly assembling a 4th order fractal tetrahedron.

Image: Roushan/Yazdani Research Group

Mathematicians and physicists have known for some time that the equations that govern the magnetic phase-transition of metals will produce fractal patterns when iterated in a computer. But until now, nobody had ever seen actual fractal patterns at the nanoscale before. Now, in a serendipitous discovery, “fractal puddles” have been observed in the magnetization of semiconductors, and the discovery may lay the foundation for the emerging area of “spintronic” devices.
Read more:
Princeton University announcement
PhysicsWorld
Science Magazine (original peer-reviewed paper, full article requires $)

Incidentally, an equation that describes magnetic phase transitions (an ising model) is shown below, and when iterated in the complex plane, this equation produces beautiful fractal patterns… which include little Mandelbrot Set replicas!

The so-called "Magnet Fractal". The image on the right is a detail from within the tiny cyan box of the original image on the left.

Please email “Volunteers (at) FractalFoundation.org” to sign up for a shift!

Timeline:

• Shift 1: 8:30AM-12 noon: We build the giant Fractal!
• Shift 2: 12 noon - 3:00 PM:  We open the hall to the public at noon
• Shift 3: 3:00 - 6:00 PM:  Celebration and Clean up.

At 3:14 PM, we will officially certify the World Record, and take a group photo with as many kids as we can squeeze into the fractal.

At 3:30 we will move to the atrium and unveil the new student winners of the Albuquerque Fractal Challenge and present their awards.

At 5:00 we start cleaning up the fractal triangles.

The date of the World Record event, March 14th is mathematically significant. It’s known as Pi-day, and is celebrated all over the world by math-lovers. Even more appropriately, it is the birthday of Waclaw Sierpinski, the inventor of this fantastic triangle. What better birthday present than to have thousands of children build the world’s largest Sierpinski Triangle!

Many thanks to the Albuquerque Convention Center for generously donating the ballroom for this event!

Children from the MESA club in Carlsbad NM displaying their contributions to the Trianglethon. Shown here are ~81 triangles. The giant Fractal Triangle will contain 27 times more triangles!

One of the Fractal Challenge winners, on TV.

The host, Byron Morton, even travels to Downtown ABQ to film Rachel Washington’s amazing gigantic public art fractal. Many thanks to Byron, KOAT Channel 7, and Intel for sponsoring “Research Rocks!”

Watch the Video here.

Please make a tax-deductible DONATION to support science, math and art education.

Any donations received before midnight MST 12/31 will be tax-deductible for 2009.

THANKS!

And now, a look back at 2009:

• Over the course of the year, we taught ~6000 children and 2500 adults about the beauty of math and science, through fractals. All told, since 2003, we’ve taught over 27,000 kids and 17,000 adults. That’s a lot of excited, inspired, motivated people!
• We sold out all 36 First Friday Fractal planetarium shows (Now 131 total!) There were many reports of people buying ’scalped’ tickets at up to $20. Not that we encourage this, but it’s a testament to the show’s success and the public’s love of fractals.
• We installed the first downtown building wrap - a vision over 5 years in the making, thanks to a grant from Albuquerque’s Urban Enhancement Trust Fund. We also featured the winning student fractals from the Albuquerque Fractal Challenge on 20 billboards, thanks to the fantastic support from Clear Channel Outdoor. And look for more fractal billboards, and building wraps, soon!
• We received a $6540 Albuquerque Community Foundation grant - their third year of generously supporting our outreach efforts to teach fractals in local schools.
• We received a $5000 grant from Xilinx, for the second year in a row, to comprehensively teach the students, teachers and parents at Apache Elementary about fractals. We’re proud to be connected to this school, and this company.
• We received a $25,000 Summer Institute grant from the Public Education Department, which will help us teach 40 Albuquerque teachers science and math lessons, skills and projects, they can bring to their classes, using fractals. We can’t teach all the kids fractals ourselves, but by teaching the teachers, we have a chance to make a giant impact.
• We received $1000 grant from Sandia Labs /  Lockheed Martin - a great first partnership with a major local supporter of science and math education.
• We licensed fulldome fractal content to two planetariums (in Illinois and Pennsylvania), the first time we’ve played our super-successful fulldome fractals anywhere outside NM. We’ve established a content distributor partnership with Spitz Planetariums to help grow this business and spread fractals around the world.
• We had a two week outdoor fractal art installation at the NM State Fair, seen by over 500,000 visitors, and a booth where 24 wonderful volunteers taught fractals to thousands of children.
• We were featured on KOAT Channel 7 (thanks to Intel), in Albuquerque the Magazine, Around 505, New Mexico Journeys, and the Rio Grande Sun.
• We launched a facebook fanpage in our first foray into social networking, and have gained over 1100 fans since April. It’s a great forum for people to share their ideas about - and their love of - fractals.

This has indeed been a whirlwind year of growth and fractal activity. Thanks for your support in helping us reach ever more people with the beauty of math and science. Look for more about our future vision coming up.

And for now…