Is creating fractals as hard as mastering quantum-science? Should an aspiring fractal artist have a PhD in Mathematics before messing with the intricate interface of a fractal application?
Can I try, dad?
So, as you might know by now, I am currently obsessed with fractals. My typical evening is spent with tweaking the numbers & variables & variations & palettes & details of various fractals. Just the other day, my 9-year-old daughter was observing me doing what might seem like witchcraft to her eyes, but she showed no fear and approached asking me to allow her do some “photos” herself.
I shooed her, trying to explain that she can’t grasp yet the notions of iterations, feedbacks, transitions, camera angles, etc. She only stayed away for some hours though, and the next day, she was again beside me watching my fractal experiments. Finally, she asked again, and I thought what the heck, let her try some!
In JWildFire, each pixel of the original image goes through a series of variations, again and again, in many iterations until the final output is created. Each variation can be coarsely controlled by transforming the corresponding triangle, as can be seen in the screenshots; for fine adjustments you have to dig deeper, though.
Each triangle controls one of the four variations
So, for a 9-year-old kid it is easy to just move the triangle around, rotate and scale it. I showed her how to create new variations or change the existing ones, and how to assign base colors to them. That was enough, she started playing with the fractals and here are some of her creations. Soon, her brother (aged 7) joined her and had a go too! I insisted on naming each fractal themselves, in fact I made it sound like it was a requirement, so I could see how their imagination was working...
Her fractals
His fractals
Fractally Education
I generally don’t discourage my children from anything related to computers, if they show interest in something I try to let them experience it. They play with shapes in Word and write small paragraphs. They play Hearthstone (in solo mode) and create their own custom cards. Of course, I still subtly monitor what they do, I do not let them totally alone at the PC (guess it is time to get some Parental Control software, right?).
I was impressed with what they accomplished with JWildFire, just after a few minutes of playing with the controls. Also, it was impressive to see how quickly they learned their way in the application, changing the tabs and lists to find what they wanted and remembering the combinations that worked in their previous tries.
With fractals, the advantage for kids is two-fold in my opinion:
- They can let their creativity run wild, there are no limits to what they can design, and even create things on-the-spot without previously thinking about and designing them. Fractals are so dynamic, you open new doors with each small change you apply.
- They get an indirect exposure to mathematics, in a fun way.
After they have some hands-on experience with fractals, it might be easier to explain to them some concepts like iterations, formulas, planar coordinates, etc. This seems important, as there is a constant belief that kids hate maths because it is difficult to understand; the way I see it, they hate maths because they can’t apply most of them in their lives. So, when they have enjoyed creating images with fractals, it should be easier to realize what the underlying numbers mean.
Same goes with many other things aside fractals, as for example with a card-game like Hearthstone: they can make simple strategies and sharpen their calculation skills, while having fun. And, of course, Robotics is a proven educational tool.
In the end, I am happy to see them bother with something that is NOT FACEBOOK!
Thanks for reading, comments and your own personal experiences are welcome below.
