[Dialogue] Social process triangles

[Tim Wegner]

Jim asked:

> This is likely an old timer question. I was involved in working on
> the social process triangles from January of 1971. Who knows 
> anything of their prior history?

I am quite sure I am not answering Jim's question the way Jim wanted 
it answered, but who says I'm limited by what Jim wants in answering 
Jim's question! <grin!>

The "Social Process Triangle" takes the form of a  fractal called a 
Sierpinski Triangle.  The Sierpinski triangle (also with the original 
orthography Sierpi´nski), also called the Sierpinski gasket or the 
Sierpinski Sieve, is a fractal and attractive fixed set named after 
the Polish mathematician Waclaw Sierpi´nski who described it in 1915.

See WIkipedia: 

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Sierpinski_triangle

I'd be curious to know if any of the folks who originated the Social 
Process Triangle were aware of the geometric origins. I'm guessing 
not.  They certainly weren't aware of the fractal nature of the 
Sierpinski triangle, since Benoit Mandelbrot didn't coin the word 
"fractal" until 1975, even if SIerpinski described his triangle in 
1915.

Tim