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VERSION:2.0
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
PRODID:UW-Madison-Physics-Events
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SEQUENCE:0
UID:UW-Physics-Event-2966
DTSTART:20130219T180500Z
DURATION:PT1H0M0S
DTSTAMP:20260414T220027Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20130207T210139Z
LOCATION:4274 Chamberlin (Refreshments will be served)
SUMMARY:Thom's catastrophe theory and Zeeman's model of the stock mark
 et\, Chaos & Complex Systems Seminar\,  Joel Robbin\, UW Department of
  Mathematics
DESCRIPTION:Catastrophe theory is a method for describing the evolutio
 n of forms in nature. It was discovered by RenA`e Thom in the 1960aEur
 oTMs. Thom expounded the philosophy behind the theory in his 1972 book
  Structural stability and morphogenesis. Catastrophe theory is particu
 larly applicable where gradually changing forces produce sudden effect
 s. The applications of catastrophe theory in classical physics (or mor
 e generally in any subject governed by a aEuro~minimization principlea
 EuroTM) are noncontroversial and help us understand what diverse model
 s have in common. The applications of the theory in the social and bio
 logical sciences have met with some resistance. (I donaEuroTMt know if
  any workers in these areas have been influenced by ThomaEuroTMs ideas
 .) In this talk I will discuss three examples: ZeemanaEuroTMs toy (the
  aEurooecatastrophe machineaEuro)\, light caustics\, and ZeemanaEuroTM
 s explanation of stock market booms and busts.
\n
\nThe constantly evo
 lving slides for this talk are available on my website.
\n
URL:https://www.physics.wisc.edu/events/?id=2966
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