On Growth and Form

"On Growth and Form" by D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson is a scientific exploration that connects the shapes of living things to math and physics. The book kicks off by arguing that we should use science to understand how creatures grow, instead of just saying it's "meant to be." It looks at how mathematical ideas can explain why animals and plants look the way they do, suggesting that their forms are really just the result of forces pushing and pulling on them. Thompson challenges old-fashioned ideas and gets ready to show how physics and biology are linked.