An important aspect in modeling natural forms is an element of chaos. This is relatively hard to achieve when working with computers. This problem is remedied by the concept of gradient noise, or specifically Perlin noise. Perlin noise is a set of x, y, and z values that provide an organic gradient over time. Perlin noise is most commonly used to generate terrain as it models erosion and the natural curves on land very well. However, Perlin’s noise can be used for any simulation needing a little organic variety. I have personally used this function for my freshman year project simulating grass blowing in the wind. The natural variation of the wind strength was provided by the Perlin noise function. The addition of Perlin noise into a simulation can take it from unrealistic to surprisingly convincing.
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