These two images are of Aloe polyphylla "Spiral Aloe" located in the Cambridge University Botanic Gardens. What I was particularly struck by is the way that the leaves have developed, which is, I believe, down to something called the "Fibonacci sequence". This is defined as "Every number in the sequence is generated by adding together the two previous numbers. So the next Fibonacci number is 13 + 21 = 34. They are the simplest example of a recursive sequence where each number is generated by an equation in the previous numbers in the sequence." (BBC Science Focus). This sequence is quite common in nature occurring in, amongst others; hurricanes, seashells, flower heads (think Helianthus annuus "Sunflowers"), and even galaxies.
I personally find the fact that this sequence occurs in nature on a regular basis, and in different forms absolutely fascinating. Why does this happen? What is the science behind it? I am sure there are people out there who could possibly answer these questions, and there is no doubt a wealth of well researched science to understand it, but I still find that it makes me stop and think.
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