Mathematics: Snowflake By Haese

Introduction One of the most captivating paradoxes in mathematics is the Koch Snowflake, a fractal curve first described by Swedish mathematician Helge von Koch in 1904. In the context of Haese Mathematics (particularly for IB Diploma Analysis & Approaches SL/HL), the snowflake serves as a perfect case study for geometric sequences , limits to infinity , and the surprising behaviour of infinite series . Construction: The Iterative Process We begin with an equilateral triangle of side length ( a_0 ). This is Stage 0.

Using the sum of a geometric series with ratio ( r = \frac{4}{9} < 1 ), as ( n \to \infty ): [ A_{\infty} = A_0 \left[ 1 + \frac{1}{3} \times \frac{1}{1 - \frac{4}{9}} \right] = A_0 \left[ 1 + \frac{1}{3} \times \frac{9}{5} \right] = A_0 \left[ 1 + \frac{3}{5} \right] = \frac{8}{5} A_0 ] snowflake by haese mathematics

Repeat the process: take every straight line segment, divide it into three equal parts, and replace the middle third with two segments of that length. Introduction One of the most captivating paradoxes in