On the heterogeneity of reaction-diffusion generated pattern (Q1821713)

Several current reaction-diffusion mechanisms have been proposed as models for morphogenesis in the \textit{A. M. Turing} [Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B 237, 37-72 (1952)] sense. We introduce and exploit a quantity, we have termed heterogeneity, which allows us to elaborate the differences between the various models with regard to spatial pattern formation. It is shown that this quantity provides a concise view for the comparison of theoretical models with experimental observations. Two model mechanisms are treated explicitly both for linear and for biased diffusion.