Benoit Mandelbrot, mathematician who developed fractal geometry, dies at 85

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Benoit Mandelbrot, 85, a well-known mathematician who was largely responsible for developing the field of fractal geometry, died of pancreatic cancer Thursday in Cambridge, Mass., according to his wife, Aliette.

The Polish-born French mathematician founded the field of fractal geometry, the first broad attempt to quantitatively investigate the notion of roughness. He was interested in the development and application of fractals, which he also showed could be used elsewhere in nature.

For years, he worked for IBM in New York. Later he became the Sterling Professor Emeritus of Mathematical Sciences at Yale University.

-- Associated Press