Mathematics Colloquia and Seminars

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Description

Spatial self-organization occurs in many ecosystems and landscapes. In this talk, I will discuss mechanisms of pattern formation in two systems: Tiger-stripe redox patterns in upland soils and evenly spaced cypress depressions on a limestone landscape. In the first system, two sets of Turing instabilities give rise to the evenly spaced iron stripes in soils and temporal oscillations play an indispensable role. In the second system, competition among cypress depressions for water creates even spacing of circular weathered depressions across a vast landscape in South Florida. In both systems, plants play a critical role in forming the spatial patterning. Lastly, I discuss the implication of coupling landscape self-organization and biological evolution of plants.