Patterns, Number in the Nature and the World

Mathematics in the Modern World

Batangas State University
The National Engineering University
College of Engineering, Architecture and Fine Arts
BS Industrial Engineering

Original Presentation by : Professor Nerissa E. Blanco, B.Sc.

First Semester, A.Y. 2022-2023

Objectives

➢ To understand the mathematics of the modern world.

➢ To develop one’s understanding about patterns;
➢ To identify different patterns in nature;
➢ To recognize different symmetries in nature; and
➢To explain the presence of Fibonacci numbers in nature.

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 Mathematics
is a/an ???

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 study of
patterns

art Mathematics language

is a/an ……

set of problem– process of

solving tools thinking

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Definition
The mathematics in our world is rooted in patterns. Patterns are all around
us. Finding and understanding patterns give us great power to play like god. With patterns,
we can discover and understand new things; we learn to predict and ultimately control the
future for our own advantage.

A pattern is a structure, form, or design that is regular, consistent, or recurring. Patterns can
be found in nature, in human-made designs, or in abstract ideas. They occur in different
contexts and various forms. Because patterns are repetitive and duplicative, their underlying
structure regularities can be modelled mathematically. In general sense, any regularity that
can be explained mathematically is a pattern. Thus, an investigation of nature’s patterns is
an investigation of nature’s numbers. This means that the relationships can be observed,
that logical connections can be established, that generalizations can be inferred, that future
events can be predicted, and that control can possibly be possible.

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Kinds of Pattern
Patterns of Visuals. Visual patterns are often unpredictable, never
quite repeatable, and often contain fractals.
Patterns of Flow. The flow of liquids provides an inexhaustible supply of
nature’s patterns.
Patterns of Movement. In the human walk, the feet strike the ground in a
regular rhythm: the left-right-left-right-left rhythm.
Patterns of Rhythm. Rhythm is conceivably the most basic pattern in nature.
Patterns of Texture. A texture is a quality of a certain object that we sense
through touch. It exists as a literal surface that we can feel, see, and imagine.
Geometric Patterns. A geometric pattern is a kind of pattern which consists of
a series of shapes that are typically repeated.

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Symmetries
Reflection symmetry, sometimes called line symmetry or mirror
symmetry, captures symmetries when the left half of a pattern is the same
as the right half.
Rotations, also known as rotational symmetry, captures symmetries when
it still looks the same after some rotation (of less than one full turn). The
degree of rotational symmetry of an object is recognized by the number of
distinct orientations in which it looks the same for each rotation.

Translations. This is another type of symmetry. Translational symmetry

exists in patterns that we see in nature and in man-made objects.
Translations acquire symmetries when units are repeated and turn out
having identical figures.

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Examples of Symmetry in Nature

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Fibonacci
In describing the amazing variety of phenomena in nature we stumble to
discover the existence of Fibonacci numbers. It turns out that the Fibonacci numbers
appear from the smallest up to the biggest objects in the natural world. This
presence of Fibonacci numbers in nature, which was once existed realm
mathematician’s curiously, is considered as one of the biggest mysteries why the
some patterns in nature is Fibonacci. But one thing is definitely made certain, and
that what seemed solely mathematical is also natural.

Apart from the counts of flower petals, the Fibonacci also occurs in nautilus shells
with a logarithmic spiral growth . Multiple Fibonacci spirals are also present in
pineapples and red cabbages. The patterns are all consistent and natural.

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