Fractal geometry is the geometry of the natural world. It mirrors the uneven but real shapes of nature, the world as we actually experience it, unlike the idealised forms of Euclidean geometry. We see fractals everywhere. Indeed, we are fractal! Using computers, fractal geometry can make precise models of physical structures - from ferns, arteries and brains to galaxies. Fractal geometry is a new language. Once you are able to speak it, you can describe the shape of a cloud as precisely as an architect can describe a house.
This book, the ideal guide to fractal literacy, traces the development of this revolutionary new discipline from Zeno to calculus, set theory and the first maverick mathematicians who set the stage for the genius of fractal geometry.