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  1. Mathematical theory developed by Rene Thom in
  2. 1972, in which he showed that the growth of
  3. an organism proceeds by a series of gradual
  4. changes that are triggered by, and in turn
  5. trigger, large-scale changes or
  6. `catastrophic' jumps. It also has
  7. applications in engineering - for example,
  8. the gradual strain on the structure of a
  9. bridge that can eventually result in a sudden
  10. collapse - and has been extended to economic
  11. and psychological events.
  12.