UK Nonlinear News, Sept. 1995

Chaos and Self Organisation in Nature

Thursday 16 November 1995: The Royal Society of Edinburgh

The Wolfson Theatre, Royal Society of Edinburgh, 22-24 George Street

Organisers

Professor R.G. Harrison, FRSE (Convener) (Dept of Physics, Heriot-Watt University)
Professor R.T. Last, FRSE (Programme Convener, Royal Society of Edinburgh)
Professor D.F. Parker, FRSE (Dept of Maths and Statistics, University of Edinburgh)

Foreword

Chaos is persistent instability; it is inextricably woven into the fabric of our life, to our environment and to our culture, paradoxically co-existing with order, harmony and symmetry. It is one of the most exciting and challenging areas of science to develop in the last two or so decades bringing together abstract mathematics and one of the most important research tools today, the computer. Its implications are being felt across all disciplines.

Chaos theory presents a universe that, in obeying the fundamental physical laws, is deterministic, but with a predisposition for disorder, complexity and unpredictability. Its abstract geometrical form reveals through computer graphs the inordinate capacity for self organisation in nature, the simplest of model descriptions producing repetitive lifelike patterns whose exquisite substructure characterises the nature of chaos, indicating when predictability breaks down. It is a theory which couples the classical concept of determinism (the embodiment of Newton's physics whereby the future is uniquely determined by the past) with probability theory and through this reveals surprisingly new perspectives of the universal nature of order, uncertainty and complexity.

The aim of the one day meeting is to overview, through invited presentations from eminent scientists, some of the remarkable developments that have occurred in this new discipline over the last decade. The scope of the meeting is from classical chaos to concepts of quantum chaos, from control of chaos to pattern formation and pattern recognition, from optics to arithmetic and from boats to the solar system.

Programme

0900 Registration

0930 Welcome
Dr T.L.Johnston FRSE, President, The Royal Society of Edinburgh

0935 Introduction
Prof R.G. Harrison FRSE, Department of Physics, Heriot-Watt

Chair: Prof D.F.Parker FRSE, Dept of Maths & Statistics, University of Edinburgh

0945 Synergetics: From Pattern Formation to Pattern Recognition
Professor H. Haken, Institut fur Theoretische Physik und Synergetik, Universitat Stuttgart, Germany

1030 Coffee

1100 An Introduction to Chaotic Dynamics: Applications in Mechanics and Ships' Capsize
Prof J.M.T. Thompson, Centre for Nonlinear Dynamics and its Applications, University College London

1145 Unpredictable Clockwork: Chaos in the Solar System
Dr C.D. Murray, Astronomy Unit, Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London

1230 Lunch

Chair: Prof R.G. Harrison FRSE

1345 Chaos, Quantum Mechanics and Arithmetic
Prof M. Berry FRS, H.H.Wills Physics Laboratory, University of Bristol

1430 Patterns, Chaos and Complexity in Optics
Prof W.J. Firth FRSE, Department of Physics and Applied Physics, University of Strathclyde

1515 Tea

1545 The Art of Subtle Persuasion: Controlling Chaos in Nonlinear Systems
Prof R. Roy, School of Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, USA

Chair: Prof E.R. Pike FRS, Department of Physics, Kings College London

1630 General Discussion

1700 Close of Meeting

 8<---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Registration

                  Chaos and Self Organisation in Nature

           Full registration is GBP 40 (FRSE: #27, Students #15)

Please return the completed form as soon as possible, and not later than 31st
October 1995, to 
   `Chaos and Self Organisation in Nature', 
    The Royal Society of Edinburgh, 22-24 George Street,Edinburgh EH2 2PQ 
    (Tel: 0131-225 6057, Fax: 0131-225 6277).

I wish to attend the above symposium which will be held in the Wolfson Theatre,
The Royal Society of Edinburgh, on Thursday 16th November 1995.

I enclose a cheque for #      to cover the cost of admission to the symposium,
coffee, lunch and tea. (Cheques should be made payable to the Royal Society of
Edinburgh) 

(Block Capitals please) 

NAME AND TITLE

...............................................................................
ADDRESS TO WHICH TICKETS SHOULD BE SENT



...............................................................................
NAME AND ADDRESS OF ORGANISATION IF DIFFERENT FROM ABOVE



...............................................................................
NAME TO APPEAR ON BADGE 

...............................................................................
SUPERVISORS SIGNATURES (for registered students)

...............................................................................
ANY SPECIAL DIETARY REQUIREMENTS (eg vegetarian)

...............................................................................

<< Move to UK Nonlinear News Issue Two index page

uk-nonl@ucl.ac.uk 15 Sept. 1995