This is a an animation of wave propagation mixed with reaction diffusion that I programmed in C++. I start by triggering a single red wave in the center, which sets the complex system in motion.
It works well as a metaphor for the creation of the universe because slight irregularities in the starting conditions allow unstable patterns to emerge (in this case, the trigger wave was ever so slightly off-center). By measuring the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB), physicists have discovered that the early universe was slightly irregular. This irregularity is what allows galaxies, stars, and planets to form. If instead it were completely uniform, it would have remained in a stable state and nothing would have emerged. Similarly, this animation starts out with very symmetrical, slow-moving patterns but as time goes on these become more chaotic and complex.
Drawing inspiration from animators such as Oskar Fischinger, I set this to a classical score that I think fits quite nicely. The piece is movement 15 of “Vingt regards sur l’enfant-Jésus” (Twenty Contemplations on the Infant Jesus) by Olivier Messiaen.
Music