Fractals and Chaos in Geology and Geophysics

ISBN-13: 9780521567336 / Angielski / Miękka / 1997 / 416 str.

Donald L. Turcotte

Opis

Now in a greatly expanded second edition, this book relates fractals and chaos to a variety of geological and geophysical applications and introduces the fundamental concepts of fractal geometry and chaotic dynamics. In this new edition, Turcotte expands coverage of self-organized criticality and includes statistics and time series to provide a broad background for the reader. Topics include drainage networks and erosion, floods, earthquakes, mineral and petroleum resources, fragmentation, mantle convection, and magnetic field generation. The author introduces all concepts at the lowest possible level of mathematics consistent with their understanding, so that the reader requires only a background in basic physics and mathematics. He includes problems for the reader to solve. This book will appeal to a broad range of readers interested in complex natural phenomena.

Recenzje

'… a good point of entry for those practising earth scientists who wish to acquaint themselves with fractals and chaos prior to reading more specialised literature.' Journal of Sedimentary Research

Spis treści

Preface; Preface to the second edition; 1. Scale invariance; 2. Definition of a fractal set; 3. Fragmentation; 4. Seismicity and tectonics; 5. Ore grade and tonnage; 6. Fractal clustering; 7. Self-affine fractals; 8. Geomorphology; 9. Dynamical systems; 10. Logistic map; 11. Slider-block models; 12. Lorenz equations; 13. Is mantle convection chaotic?; 14. Rikitake dynamo; 15. Renormalization group method; 16. Self-organized criticality; 17. Where do we stand?; References; Appendix A: glossary of terms; Appendix B: units and symbols; Answers to selected problems; Index.