Lecture 37 · Mathematics

A deck meets a quadratic map

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What you will learn

Define and distinguish real quadratic critical orbits, exact periodicity, superstability and boundedness.

Before this lecture

In this lecture

An outline of the lecture, scene by scene, with the statements that appear on screen. It follows the draft script, so details may change in production.

  1. Introduce fixed-parameter iteration

    • x₀ = 0; xₖ₊₁ = xₖ² + c
    • c stays fixed
  2. Read a cobweb correctly

    • Vertical: evaluate f
    • Horizontal: output becomes input
  3. Define exact return and polynomial indexing

    • Exact period = first positive return
    • deg Pₖ = 2^(k−1)
  4. Compute small critical cycles

    • c*³ + 2c*² + c* + 1 = 0
  5. Explain superstable

    • (fⁿ)'(0) = product of orbit derivatives = 0
  6. Prove the real bounded range's inclusion

    • Real bounded parameters: −2 ≤ c ≤ 1/4
    • β = (1 + √(1−4c))/2
  7. Separate numerical and exact evidence

    • Near return ≠ exact return
    • Bounded so far ≠ proved bounded
  8. Play and retrieve

    • Bounded / critical periodic / eventually periodic

Companion interactive

Planned

Predict iterates and classify exact versus numerical behavior.

The interactive for this lecture is being built and will appear here.

Notes

Written notes for this lecture will appear here.

Sources

How these sources were used
  • Persi Diaconis and Ron Graham, Magical Mathematics: Iteration and critical-cycle connection. Corrects the printed positive-parameter boundedness range and polynomial-degree indexing; no full dynamical correspondence proof claimed.