Patterns in nature: How the zebra got its stripes (CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation)
(WorldNews Asia)

(Source: CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) They`re black and white, and patterned all over. But how? Image: iStock.com/Freder If you head out into nature and look around you, you`ll see stripy skin, spotted fur, mottled shells, spiraling leaves and other living patterns. But where do these complex patterns come from? It turns out there are hidden chemical reactions behind nature`s art. Sixty-five years ago, a mathematician named Alan Turing was pondering this problem. He came up with a mathematical solution that can form spots or stripes with just two chemicals. Inside Alan`s imaginary organism, cells are making two chemicals known as activator and...