Bifurcation Definition and 56 Threads

When determining the stability of the equilibria (or, critical points) for our bifurcation diagrams, we have been shown to use phase line diagrams. I understand that if the function is moving away from the equilibria on either side than it is unstable, and i know that if the function is...

I know what Bifurcation Theory is. but What is Perturbation theory? is it similar to bifurcation theory?

I've been reading Wald's book on GR as well as his article "Thermodynamics of Black Holes" in Living Reviews in Relativity about the definitions of mass and energy in GR and the concepts of entropy and temperature of black holes. I keep coming across the words "bifurcation surface" and...

"Bifurcation Points. In many physical problems some observable quantity, such as a velocity, waveform, or chemical reaction, depends on a parameter describing the physical state. As this parameter is increased, a critical value is reached at which the velocity, or waveform, or reaction suddenly...

Could some explain or point me to somewhere explains what a Bifurcation Diagram is and how to draw one given a non-linear function. Got an exam today and nobody knows what one is. If it has already been 2 hours after I've posted this don't worry, I'll be heading off to the exam hehe. Thanks if...

Under what conditions might a star bifurcate?