Fractals, plants, insects and orchards: Reflections on life with L-systems
Abstract
The challenge of recreating the fractal nature of the world within a computer and then revealing that world through computer graphics launched my career in computational plant science. I started using the mathematical formalism of Lindenmayer-systems to create pretty pictures of plants in Canada in the ‘80s, but it wasn’t until I came to do a post doc at UQ that I got involved in using virtual plants to help understand the ecology and physiology of plants through functional-structural plant modelling. From leaf shapes to branching processes, insect-plant interactions to orchard intensification, this talk will look back on the virtual worlds that have held my and my collaborators' interest for over 30 years.
Associate Professor Jim Hanan
A/Prof Hanan's major research theme is the development of mathematical, computer graphics and simulation approaches and techniques that facilitate the study of genetics, physiology, morphogenesis and ecology at the scale of cells, individual plants and insects and their components. These developments in computational biology are being used to increase our understanding of the dynamics of morphogenesis, and as a tool in applied research and education.
Contact: Associate Professor Jim Hanan, Principal Research Fellow, Centre for Horticultural Science, Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, Email: j.hanan@uq.edu.au
For any questions, please contact the QAAFI Science Seminar Committee.
About Science Seminars
Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation hosts science seminars across the disciplines of animal, horticulture, crop, food and nutritional sciences.
With a range of speakers from Australia and abroad, the series explores how high-impact science will significantly improve the competitiveness and sustainability of the tropical and sub-tropical food, fibre and agribusiness sectors.
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The Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation is a research institute at The University of Queensland supported by the Queensland Government via the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.