# Catastrophe theory

﻿
Catastrophe theory

:"This article refers to the study of dynamical systems. For other meanings, see catastrophe."

In mathematics, catastrophe theory is a branch of bifurcation theory in the study of dynamical systems; it is also a particular special case of more general singularity theory in geometry.

Bifurcation theory studies and classifies phenomena characterized by sudden shifts in behavior arising from small changes in circumstances, analysing how the qualitative nature of equation solutions depends on the parameters that appear in the equation. This may lead to sudden and dramatic changes, for example the unpredictable timing and magnitude of a landslide.

Catastrophe theory, which originated with the work of the French mathematician René Thom in the 1960s, and became very popular due to the efforts of Christopher Zeeman in the 1970s, considers the special case where the long-run stable equilibrium can be identified with the minimum of a smooth, well-defined potential function (Lyapunov function).

Small changes in certain parameters of a nonlinear system can cause equilibria to appear or disappear, or to change from attracting to repelling and vice versa, leading to large and sudden changes of the behaviour of the system. However, examined in a larger parameter space, catastrophe theory reveals that such bifurcation points tend to occur as part of well-defined qualitative geometrical structures.

Elementary catastrophes

Catastrophe theory analyses "degenerate critical points" of the potential function — points where not just the first derivative, but one or more higher derivatives of the potential function are also zero. These are called the germs of the catastrophe geometries. The degeneracy of these critical points can be "unfolded" by expanding the potential function as a Taylor series in small perturbations of the parameters.

When the degenerate points are not merely accidental, but are structurally stable, the degenerate points exist as organising centres for particular geometric structures of lower degeneracy, with critical features in the parameter space around them. If the potential function depends on two or fewer active variables, and four (resp. five) or fewer active parameters, then there are only seven (resp. eleven) generic structures for these bifurcation geometries, with corresponding standard forms into which the Taylor series around the catastrophe germs can be transformed by diffeomorphism (a smooth transformation whose inverse is also smooth). These seven fundamental types are now presented, with the names that Thom gave them.

Potential functions of one active variable

Fold catastrophe

:$V = x^3 + ax,$

At negative values of "a", the potential has two extrema - one stable, and one unstable. If the parameter "a" is slowly increased, the system can follow the stable minimum point. But at "a=0" the stable and unstable extrema meet, and annihilate. This is the bifurcation point. At "a>0" there is no longer a stable solution. If a physical system is followed through a fold bifurcation, one therefore finds that as "a" reaches 0, the stability of the "a<0" solution is suddenly lost, and the system will make a sudden transition to a new, very different behaviour. This bifurcation value of the parameter "a" is sometimes called the tipping point.

= Cusp catastrophe = :$V = x^4 + ax^2 + bx ,$

 Outside the cusp locus of bifurcations (blue), for each point "(a,b)" in parameter space there is only one extremising value of "x". Inside the cusp, there are two different values of "x" giving local minima of "V(x)" for each "(a,b)", separated by a value of "x" giving a local maximum.

The cusp geometry is very common, when one explores what happens to a fold bifurcation if a second parameter, "b", is added to the control space. Varying the parameters, one finds that there is now a "curve" (blue) of points in "(a, b)" space where stability is lost, where the stable solution will suddenly jump to an alternate outcome.

But in a cusp geometry the bifurcation curve loops back on itself, giving a second branch where this alternate solution itself loses stability, and will make a jump back to the original solution set. By repeatedly increasing "b" and then decreasing it, one can therefore observe hysteresis loops, as the system alternately follows one solution, jumps to the other, follows the other back, then jumps back to the first.

However, this is only possible in the region of parameter space "a<0". As "a" is increased, the hysteresis loops become smaller and smaller, until above "a=0" they disappear altogether (the cusp catastrophe), and there is only one stable solution.

One can also consider what happens if one holds "b" constant and varies "a". In the symmetrical case "b=0", one observes a pitchfork bifurcation as "a" is reduced, with one stable solution suddenly splitting into two stable solutions and one unstable solution as the physical system passes to "a<0" through the cusp point "a=0, b=0" (an example of spontaneous symmetry breaking). Away from the cusp point, there is no sudden change in a physical solution being followed: when passing through the curve of fold bifurcations, all that happens is an alternate second solution becomes available.

A famous suggestion is that the cusp catastrophe can be used to model the behaviour of a stressed dog, which may respond by becoming cowed or becoming angry. The suggestion is that at moderate stress ("a>0"), the dog will exhibit a smooth transition of response from cowed to angry, depending on how it is provoked. But higher stress levels correspond to moving to the region ("a<0"). Then, if the dog starts cowed, it will remain cowed as it is irritated more and more, until it reaches the 'fold' point, when it will suddenly, discontinuously snap through to angry mode. Once in 'angry' mode, it will remain angry, even if the direct irritation parameter is considerably reduced.

Another application example is for the outer sphere electron transfer frequently encountered in chemical and biological systems (Xu, F. Application of catastrophe theory to the ∆G to -∆G relationship in electron transfer reactions. Zeitschrift für Physikalische Chemie Neue Folge 166, 79-91 (1990)).

Fold bifurcations and the cusp geometry are by far the most important practical consequences of catastrophe theory. They are patterns which reoccur again and again in physics, engineering and mathematical modelling.They are the only way we currently have of detecting black holes and the dark matter of the universe, via the phenomenon of gravitational lensing producing multiple images of distant pulsars.

The remaining simple catastrophe geometries are very specialised in comparison, and presented here only for curiosity value.

Swallowtail catastrophe

:$V = x^5 + ax^3 + bx^2 + cx ,$

The control parameter space is three dimensional. The bifurcation set in parameter space is made up of three surfaces of fold bifurcations, which meet in two lines of cusp bifurcations, which in turn meet at a single swallowtail bifurcation point.

As the parameters go through the surface of fold bifurcations, one minimum and one maximum of the potential function disappear. At the cusp bifurcations, two minima and one maximum are replaced by one minimum; beyond them the fold bifurcations disappear. At the swallowtail point, two minima and two maxima all meet at a single value of "x". For values of "a>0", beyond the swallowtail, there is either one maximum-minimum pair, or none at all, depending on the values of "b" and "c". Two of the surfaces of fold bifurcations, and the two lines of cusp bifurcations where they meet for "a<0", therefore disappear at the swallowtail point, to be replaced with only a single surface of fold bifurcations remaining. Salvador Dalí's last painting, "The Swallow's Tail", was based on this catastrophe.

Butterfly catastrophe

:$V = x^6 + ax^4 + bx^3 + cx^2 + dx ,$

Depending on the parameter values, the potential function may have three, two, or one different local minima, separated by the loci of fold bifurcations. At the butterfly point, the different 3-surfaces of fold bifurcations, the 2-surfaces of cusp bifurcations, and the lines of swallowtail bifurcations all meet up and disappear, leaving a single cusp structure remaining when "a>0"

Potential functions of two active variables

Umbilic catastrophes are examples of corank 2 catastrophes. They can be observed in optics in the focal surfaces created by light reflecting off a surface in three dimensions and are intimately connected with the geometry of nearly spherical surfaces.Thom proposed that the Hyperbolic umbilic catastrophe modeled the breaking of a wave and the elliptical umbilic modeled the creation of hair like structures.

Hyperbolic umbilic catastrophe

:$V = x^3 + y^3 + axy + bx + cy ,$

= Elliptic umbilic catastrophe = :$V = x^3/3 - xy^2 + a\left(x^2+y^2\right) + bx + cy ,$

= Parabolic umbilic catastrophe = :$V = x^2y + y^4 + ax^2 + by^2 + cx + dy ,$

Arnold's notation

Vladimir Arnol'd gave the catastrophes the ADE classification, due to a deep connection with simple Lie groups.
*"A"0 - a non singular point: $V = x$.
*"A"1 - a local extrema, either a stable minimum or unstable maximum $V = pm x^2 + a x$.
*"A"2 - the fold
*"A"3 - the cusp
*"A"4 - the swallowtail
*"A"5 - the butterfly
*"A"k - an infinite sequence of one variable forms $V=x^\left\{k+1\right\}+cdots$
*"D"4- - the elliptical umbilic
*"D"4+ - the hyperbolic umbilic
*"D"5 - the parabolic umbilic
*"D"k - an infinite sequence of further umbilic forms
*"E"6 - the symbolic umbilic $V = x^3+y^4+a x y^2 +bxy+cx+dy+ey^2$
*"E"7
*"E"8There are objects in singularity theory which correspond to most of the other simple Lie groups.

* broken symmetry
* tipping point
* phase transition
* domino effect
* snowball effect
* butterfly effect
* spontaneous symmetry breaking
* chaos theory

References

* Arnol'd, Vladimir Igorevich. Catastrophe Theory, 3rd ed. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1992.
*Castrigiano, Domenico P. L. and Hayes, Sandra A. Catastrophe Theory, 2nd ed. Boulder: Westview, 2004. ISBN 0-8133-4126-4
*Gilmore, Robert. Catastrophe Theory for Scientists and Engineers. New York: Dover, 1993.
*Petters, Arlie O., Levine, Harold and Wambsganss, Joachim. Singularity Theory and Gravitational Lensing. Boston: Birkhauser, 2001. ISBN 0-8176-3668-4
*Postle, Denis. Catastrophe Theory – Predict and avoid personal disasters. Fontana Paperbacks, 1980. ISBN 0-00-635559-5
*Poston, T. and Stewart, Ian. Catastrophe: Theory and Its Applications. New York: Dover, 1998. ISBN 0-486-69271-X.
*Sanns, Werner. Catastrophe Theory with Mathematica: A Geometric Approach. Germany: DAV, 2000.
*Saunders, Peter Timothy. An Introduction to Catastrophe Theory. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1980.
* Thom, René. Structural Stability and Morphogenesis: An Outline of a General Theory of Models. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1989. ISBN 0-201-09419-3.
*Thompson, J. Michael T. Instabilities and Catastrophes in Science and Engineering. New York: Wiley, 1982.
*Woodcock, Alexander Edward Richard and Davis, Monte. Catastrophe Theory. New York: E. P. Dutton, 1978. ISBN 0525078126.

* [http://www.exploratorium.edu/complexity/CompLexicon/catastrophe.html CompLexicon: Catastrophe Theory]

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

### Look at other dictionaries:

• catastrophe theory — Math. a theory, based on topology, for studying discontinuous processes and the mathematical models that describe them. [1970 75] * * * Branch of mathematics (considered a branch of geometry) that explores how gradual changes to a system produce… …   Universalium

• catastrophe theory — noun : mathematical theory and conjecture concerned with the use of topology to explain events (as an earthquake or a stock market crash) characterized by major abrupt changes * * * caˈtastrophe theory 7 [catastrophe theory] noun uncountable ( …   Useful english dictionary

• catastrophe theory — noun Date: 1971 mathematical theory and conjecture that uses topology to explain events (as an earthquake or a stock market crash) characterized by major abrupt changes …   New Collegiate Dictionary

• catastrophe theory — noun The branch of mathematics dealing with dynamical systems which can undergo abrupt irreversible qualitative changes due to a tiny change in parameters …   Wiktionary

• catastrophe theory — noun a branch of mathematics concerned with systems displaying abrupt discontinuous change …   English new terms dictionary

• Toba catastrophe theory — According to the Toba catastrophe theory, 70,000 to 75,000 years ago a supervolcanic event at Lake Toba, on Sumatra, reduced the world s human population to 10,000 or even a mere 1,000 breeding pairs, creating a bottleneck in human evolution. The …   Wikipedia

• Catastrophe modeling — This article refers to the use of computers to estimate losses caused by disasters. For other meanings of the word catastrophe, including catastrophe theory in mathematics, see catastrophe (disambiguation). Catastrophe modeling (also known as cat …   Wikipedia

• Catastrophe — A catastrophe is a disaster, a horrible event.It may also refer to:*Catastrophe (drama), the climax and resolution of a plot in ancient Greek drama and poems * Catastrophe (play), a 1982 short play by Samuel Beckett *Catastrophe modeling, in… …   Wikipedia

• Theory — The word theory has many distinct meanings in different fields of knowledge, depending on their methodologies and the context of discussion.In science a theory is a testable model of the manner of interaction of a set of natural phenomena,… …   Wikipedia

• catastrophe — catastrophic /kat euh strof ik/, catastrophical, catastrophal, adj. catastrophically, adv. /keuh tas treuh fee/, n. 1. a sudden and widespread disaster: the catastrophe of war. 2. any misfortune, mishap, or failure; fiasco: The play was so poor… …   Universalium