A new fractal analysis of London’s dense network of streets and intersections reveals that a green belt meant to encourage migration to the suburbs had the opposite effect. The city has just became denser. People really seem to love urban living, especially in a thriving city like London. The work could shed light on how modern cities evolve, and help guide future urban growth policies.
Fractal patterns are self-similar across many different scales, such that if you zoomed in on part of a fractal image, that smaller piece would look like the larger one. Such patterns are useful mathematical tools for describing certain complex structures, like how blood vessels branch out, networks of brain cells, and rivers and coastlines. They’re also useful for analyzing city streets.
via Gizmodo
Image: Philip Chidell/Shutterstock
