This lecture was recorded by Alain Goriely on 13th February 2026 at Bernard’s Inn Hall, London

Alain Goriely is a mathematician with broad interests in mathematical methods, mechanics, sciences, and engineering. He is well known for his contributions to dynamical systems, mathematical biology, as well as fundamental and applied mechanics. He is particularly well known for the development of a mathematical theory of biological growth, culminating with his seminal monograph The Mathematics on Mechanics of Biological Growth (2017).

He received his PhD from the University of Brussels in 1994 where he became a lecturer. In 1996, he joined the University of Arizona where he established a research group within the renowned Program of Applied Mathematics. In 2010, he joined the University of Oxford as the inaugural Statutory Professor of Mathematical Modelling and fellow of St. Catherine’s College. He is currently the Director of the Oxford Centre for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.

The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/she-sells

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The Shape of Shells: She Sells Self-Similar Spiral Seashells on the Seashore - Professor Alain Goriely

Gresham College Lectures

The Shape of Shells: She Sells Self-Similar Spiral Seashells on the Seashore - Professor Alain Goriely