The Ubiquity of Phi in Human Culture & the Natural World
John Carroll University Carroll Collected Masters Essays Master's Theses and Essays 2020 THE UBIQUITY OF PHI IN HUMAN CULTURE & THE NATURAL WORLD Jennifer Bressler Follow this and additional works at: https://collected.jcu.edu/mastersessays Part of the Mathematics Commons THE UBIQUITY OF PHI IN HUMAN CULTURE & THE NATURAL WORLD An Essay Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies College of Arts & Sciences of John Carroll University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Master of Arts By Jennifer L. Bressler 2020 Table of Contents I. Introduction…………………………………………………………………………. 2 II. The Early Greeks…………………………………………………………………… 4 III. Algebraic Properties of the Golden Ratio………………………………………….. 11 IV. The Golden Rectangle…………………………………………………….……….. 20 V. Architecture & Design……………………………………………………………… 22 VI. Art………………………………………………………………………………….. 30 VII. Music……………………………………………………………………………….. 38 VIII. The Natural World………………………………………………………………….. 43 IX. Human Anatomy…………………………………………………………………… 52 X. Geometry…………………………………………………………………………… 56 XI. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………65 1 I. INTRODUCTION What do rabbit breeding, tornadoes, the Chambered Nautilus, a pentagram, the rhythm of a heartbeat, apple seeds, the shape of a credit card, a pinecone, the human ear, DaVinci’s Last Supper, the structure of DNA, a light switch cover, and the structure of galaxies all have in common? Each relates to an extraordinary ratio that is highly efficient in nature, profoundly attractive to the human eye, and some claim, even divinely inspired. This special ratio is referred to as the “Golden Ratio” and is also known as the divine proportion, golden section, and golden mean. The Golden Ratio has a constant numeric value called “phi” (pronounced “FEE,” or “FI”) which is thought to be the most beautiful and astounding of all numbers.
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