Fractal Applet Demonstrations

The Koch Curve
This applet demonstrates the Koch curve, as well as a situation in which a recursive method is more easily implemented than a loop. Among the most remarkable features of the Koch curve, is the length, which becomes increasingly larger, as the number of iterations of the recursive method increases. In fact, the Koch curve acquires infinite length after an infinite amount of iterations: an infinite length in a finite and bounded plane. The source code is also available and open source: FractalRecursion.java

The Mandelbrot Set

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This applet demonstrates the Mandelbrot set, a colorful fractal of infinite detail and interesting shapes. To view the entire set at once, center the window at x = 0 and y = 0, and set the zoom factor to 10. As you set the zoom factor smaller, the window zooms in MORE, allowing you to view as much detail as you wish. Try zooming in by pressing the + button and zooming out by pressing the - button, and notice that the text fields are also updated when you do this! To try to zoom in at a particular spot, first adjust x and y until the red cross-hairs are centered at that spot. To change the level of detail to which the picture is generated, adjust the resolution, bigger meaning more detail. Try going from small resolution to large. Notice that when it is very small, the picture is almost black, and when it is really large, some of the black spots become colorful, while others remain currently black. This applet also demonstrates some of the colorful possibilities available in the java.awt package. This class is reliant on another subclass called pixel. The source code is available and open source: Pixel.java MandelbrotImageSet.java