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New methods for estimating fractal dimensions of coastlines

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Date Issued:
1998
Summary:
A coastline is an example of a statistically self-similar fractal. A standard characterization walks a ruler of fixed size along the coast and estimates fractal dimension from the power-law relationship between length and ruler size. Multiple intersection can lead to ambiguity in choosing the next step. The standard method always chooses the first intersection along the curve. Variations were developed to choose intersections which highlight geographic properties. The land method measures accessibility to the coast from land at each size while the water method probes water access. Measurements on sections of the East and West Coasts of the United States typically showed the land length exceeding water. Jumps in water length as step size decreased were often caused by narrow rivers or bays which have few corresponding land features. Simple recursive constructions were inadequate to model this asymmetry.
Title: New methods for estimating fractal dimensions of coastlines.
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Name(s): Klotzbach, Jonathan David
Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor
Voss, Richard, Thesis advisor
Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Department of Mathematical Sciences
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Issuance: monographic
Date Issued: 1998
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, FL
Physical Form: application/pdf
Extent: 61 p.
Language(s): English
Summary: A coastline is an example of a statistically self-similar fractal. A standard characterization walks a ruler of fixed size along the coast and estimates fractal dimension from the power-law relationship between length and ruler size. Multiple intersection can lead to ambiguity in choosing the next step. The standard method always chooses the first intersection along the curve. Variations were developed to choose intersections which highlight geographic properties. The land method measures accessibility to the coast from land at each size while the water method probes water access. Measurements on sections of the East and West Coasts of the United States typically showed the land length exceeding water. Jumps in water length as step size decreased were often caused by narrow rivers or bays which have few corresponding land features. Simple recursive constructions were inadequate to model this asymmetry.
Identifier: 9780591778090 (isbn), 15545 (digitool), FADT15545 (IID), fau:12306 (fedora)
Degree granted: Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1998.
Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
Note(s): Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Subject(s): Fractals
Boundaries
Coasts
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/15545
Sublocation: Digital Library
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.