![](https://jeffblackadar.github.io/fractal/examples_3_files/figure-html/unnamed-chunk-7-1.png)
I am a fan of fractals and recently I wanted to learn more about object-oriented programming in R using classes. Adam Spannbauer has an excellent tutorial using R6 classes and ggplot2 to create fractal trees and I adapted it for L-system line fractals found in Przemyslaw Prusinkiewicz and Aristid Lindenmayer’s book The Algorithmic Beauty of Plants.
An example of an L-system line fractal follows.
Imagine you are a turtle drawing a line according to instructions: + means turn to the right by 90 degrees. – means turn left 90 degrees. F means move forward a set distance. (Let’s assume it’s 100 pixels.)
So F-F-F-F would draw a square.
F also has a special role in that it replicates itself as a “generator”. If the generator for F is F-F+F+FF-F-F+F then the F-F-F-F would become F-F+F+FF-F-F+F-F-F+F+FF-F-F+F-F-F+F+FF-F-F+F-F-F+F+FF-F-F+F and be drawn like the shape below. Recursion is used to generate subsequent generations of the same repeating pattern which can be seen here.
![](https://jeffblackadar.github.io/fractal/examples_1_files/figure-html/unnamed-chunk-7-1.png)
Images of more fractals are on these pages. This project also allowed me to try Github pages and Binder. The repository for the code used is here: https://github.com/jeffblackadar/fractal.