Shapes. Nature’s Patterns: a Tapestry in Three Parts (in Russian)

This book is the first part of a trilogy exploring patterns in nature. In it, the author examines how natural forms are created and explains why similar structures are found under completely different conditions.

Patterns are found everywhere in nature—in the stream of clouds in the sky, the stripes of an angelfish and the petals of a flower. It’s remarkable, but this order creates itself—all the natural patterns we observe arise from self-organization. Scientists have discovered that in the basic structure and processes of nature, there is a tendency to form patterns, where a few simple motifs, when repeated according to simple rules, create an infinite variety of beautiful designs.

From soap bubbles to honeycombs, from delicate shells to the developing body parts of a complex organism like a human—patterns of growth emerge everywhere inevitably and spontaneously, driven by nothing more than basic physical forces.

The book helps us see the world around us in a new light, to recognize beauty and order even where we least expect it.