morphogenesis – work in progress

Finally, we have some progress to share on something we’ve been working on for a long time! This project focuses on the differential growth of surfaces and was inspired by Mahadevan‘s research into the development of leaves and flowers. It is a thin shell simulation that models surfaces growing at variable rates. Complex, ruffled forms emerge from simple initial surfaces as they grow preferentially along their edges.

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  1. elplatt

    That’s beautiful! What prevents collisions?

    1. Jesse Louis-Rosenberg

      We have a simple collision detection system running where each vertex is a sphere that bumps into the other vertices. The collision response is modeled as a stiff spring. The mesh adaptively subdivides so the density of vertices on the surface stays fairly constant.

  2. Mikko

    What program is used to generate these patterns?

    1. Margaret Swanson

      We created these using our own Floraform software. You can read more about Floraform on our website here: http://n-e-r-v-o-u-s.com/projects/sets/floraform/