Pattern Recognition

Ive been wondering what it is that I enjoy so much when I look at a nice view.
I seem to be a bit more effected by this than most of my friends, and the effect is in a good many things that I do:

These days I generally am much happier to sit in the mountains with a good view rather than run around bagging summits or "getting more vertical" when back-country skiing.

I will happily sit out a back country ski run to be able to just enjoy the view in peace and quiet.

I can sit and watch waves at the beach or wind in long grass for literally hours.

I also did not buy a house till I found one with a nice view (though the cost is of course much higher).

What is it that I am looking for?...

Well, I think it is patterns!

Now we can all recognize simple patterns, and I think we all feel some sort of pleasure in a pattern - It may be as simple as a tile pattern on the floor, or perhaps even the clean plates all lined up in the dishwasher. Likewise, we recognize patterns in nature, from the repeating fractals of a fern leaf to the wind formed ripples in the sand at the beach.

There is something intrinsic about patterns that we connect to but I think it goes much deeper than just a surface visual satisfaction.

As I said, I'm sure all of us can recognize and appreciate the simple patterns we see in nature, but I also think we are responding to the same thing when we look at more complex scenes. For example, I think most of us would agree that we find looking at a "Japanese style" garden is a very pleasing experience. Likewise, there are plenty of examples of architecture that are not rigidly formal and symmetrical that most of us would agree are very pleasing to the eye (and of course plenty of examples too that we find hideous!).
But what is it that we are seeing?
I think other people might argue with the word pattern, but I think we would agree that there is a sense of harmony and balance that we are seeing.

And that's the key I think. It is "Balance" that we are seeing.

And I think that it is that same sense of balance that I see in the waves and the wind and the mountains and the forest etc. Its all about balance!

But what is it that is balanced?

As I said, I think it is far deeper than the visual effect.
I think in fact that it is the balance of interactions between natural laws! And I think that there is something really deep down inside of us that connects with this balance and we recognize it at a very primitive level.

In the simple example of patterns in the sand, the laws interacting are Gravity, fluid dynamics and structural statics (for the engineers out there). And because there are only two or three laws interacting, the patterns are relatively simple and easily seen.
In the more complex situations, there are literally dozens of different "forces" balancing each other out and the pattern is harder to see as such but we still detect the balance.
This explains to me why I like those mountain views and why I am far happier in a natural environment than in a man made one.

Man of course can balance forces in a very complex and effective fashion as can be seen by the amazing machines and structures that we build. But it is a mechanical and rigid balance that we achieve, not the fluid and dynamic and automatic balance that is achieved by nature - and I think I detect that deep down.

But why do I like some natural scenes more than others?Well, I think its like those ripples in the sand... While the forces involved are always there and are always automatically balancing each other out, the ripples that we see are only there sometimes, when conditions are right. So it is with the natural scenes; I only sense the balance when it is expressed "strongly". Of course as I get better at detecting the balance I can see it in more things and I get the enjoyment from a wider variety of scenes.

And why do I like this persons appearance more than that person? They are both just as "natural" so why the difference?
Well, it turns out that that is balance too. Studies have shown (though I cant quote the papers!) that "beauty" is largely statistical "averageness" in bodily/facial proportions. So we have a genetic predisposition to like physical proportions that are not out of the ordinary (ie balanced) and of course we have some of our own socially/culturally acquired preferences superimposed on the genetic model as well.

So, there it is. I think when I like the look of something, it is the natural balance that I'm seeing!

Perhaps I should date a gymnast :)