Catastrophe theory
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In mathematics, catastrophe theory is a branch of bifurcation theory in the study of dynamical systems; it is also a particular special case of more general singularity theory in geometry.
Swallowtail catastrophe surface
The edge of the rainbow is a fold catastrophe, and so it has a diffraction pattern described by the Airy function. This is generic and stable for any shape of the water droplet.
Christopher Zeeman
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Sir Erik Christopher Zeeman FRS was a British mathematician known for his work in geometric topology and singularity theory.
Catastrophe theory
…landslide. Catastrophe theory originated with the work of the French mathematician René Thom in the 1960s, and became very popular due to the efforts of Christopher Zeeman in the 1970s. It considers the special case where the long-run stable equilibrium can be identified as the minimum of a smooth, well-defined potential…
Zeeman (in foreground) in 1980
Zeeman at the Warwick Mathematics Institute in December 2009