- See also: Symmetry in biology
Symmetry is a property that certain geometrical objects have. If the objects are symmetric, this means that the object appears the same (to be mirrored or reflected) along an axis. This axis has to cross the shape through the middle.
The precise notions of symmetry have various measures and operational definitions. For example, symmetry may be observed
- with respect to the passage of time;
- as a spatial relationship;
- through transformations such as rotation;
- through other kinds of transformations;
- as an aspect of scientific models, language, music and even knowledge itself.
References[change | change source]
- For example, operations such as moving across a regularly patterned tile floor or rotating an eight-sided vase, or in the way music is played.
- See, e.g., Mainzer, Klaus (2005). Symmetry and complexity: the spirit and beauty of nonlinear science. World Scientific. .
- Symmetric objects can be material, such as a person, crystal, quilt, floor tiles, or molecule, or it can be an abstract structure such as a mathematical equation or a series of tones (music).
Further reading[change | change source]
- Stewart, Ian (2007). Why beauty is truth: the history of symmetry. Basic Books.
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