Source : WordNet®

fractal
     n : (mathematics) a geometric pattern that is repeated at every
         scale and so cannot be represented by classical geometry

Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

fractal
     
         A fractal is a rough or fragmented
        geometric shape that can be subdivided in parts, each of which
        is (at least approximately) a smaller copy of the whole.
        Fractals are generally self-similar (bits look like the whole)
        and independent of scale (they look similar, no matter how
        close you zoom in).
     
        Many mathematical structures are fractals; e.g. {Sierpinski
        triangle}, {Koch snowflake}, {Peano curve}, {Mandelbrot set}
        and {Lorenz attractor}.  Fractals also describe many
        real-world objects that do not have simple geometric shapes,
        such as clouds, mountains, turbulence, and coastlines.
     
        {Benoit Mandelbrot}, the discoverer of the {Mandelbrot set},
        coined the term "fractal" in 1975 from the Latin fractus or
        "to break".  He defines a fractal as a set for which the
        {Hausdorff Besicovich dimension} strictly exceeds the
        {topological dimension}.  However, he is not satisfied with
        this definition as it excludes sets one would consider
        fractals.
     
        {sci.fractals FAQ
        (ftp://src.doc.ic.ac.uk/usenet/usenet-by-group/sci.fractals/)}.
     
        See also {fractal compression}, {fractal dimension}, {Iterated
        Function System}.
     
        {Usenet} newsgroups: {news:sci.fractals},
        {news:alt.binaries.pictures.fractals}, {news:comp.graphics}.
     
        ["The Fractal Geometry of Nature", Benoit Mandelbrot].
     
        [Are there non-self-similar fractals?]
     
        (1997-07-02)