FIBONACCI SEQUENCE IN NATURE
In mathematics, the Fibonacci numbers, commonly denoted Fn, form a sequence , called the Fibonacci sequence, such that each number is the sum of the two preceding ones, starting from 0 and 1.
Fibonacci numbers are named after the Italian mathematician Leonardo of Pisa, later known as Fibonacci. In his 1202 book Liber Abaci, Fibonacci introduced the sequence to Western European mathematics, although the sequence had been described earlier in Indian mathematics, as early as 200 BC in work by Pingala on enumerating possible patterns of Sanskrit poetry formed from syllables of two lengths.
The Fibonacci sequence can be observed in a stunning variety of phenomena in nature. When you sit in a garden and look around, you can easily recognize several natural designs. You see buzzing around flowers neatly arranged petals, trees whose trunks are surrounded by pinecones with their distinctly patterned bracts, and maybe a little snail with a spirally shelled house on its back.
The Golden Ratio models nature's way of packing things in the most effective and energy efficient way. In the case of the sunflower head, and many other species, their arrangement represents the ideal packing of the seeds; there is no crowding in the centre and no scarcity on the edges of the head. Similarly by having a certain number of petals at a certain angle to each other, the flower ensures that each leaf receives an abundant amount of sunlight, it reflects the conclusion of evolution over million of years, that for a particular species, this is the optimal arrangement of things. The Fibonacci sequence is just one simple example of the resilient and preserving quality of nature.
As we continue to scourge for mathematical patterns in our natural world, our understanding of our universe expands, and the beauty of nature becomes clearer to our human eyes.
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