Fractal Growth Phenomena

Rating:
Summary: Scientific applications focus
Review: A good combination of the theory of fractals along with its application in several diverse fields, like percolation clusters. Vicsek covers the familiar geometric objects like Julia sets and Sierpinski gaskets. The book is not focused on the fancy computer graphics applications. Instead, it looks at scientific phenomena like a hierarchical network of resistors and how a distribution of voltage drops shows multifractal scaling.

He gives extensive coverage of cluster growth models and how these square with various observations and simulations.

Very understandable to both theorists and experimentalists. Made more useful by lengthy lists of references at the end of each chapter, to journal papers.

Rating:
Summary: Fractals in natural sciences
Review: Written by an author from a scientific background, this survey of the field of fractal growth starts with its appearance in carbon black deposits, and then backtracks to explain the mathematics and concepts behind fractal growth. It then goes forward again to discuss fractal growth in other naturally occuring systems.