Benoit B.  Mandelbrot  (20 November 1924 – 14 October 2010) was a Polish-born, French and American mathematician. He is recognized for his contribution to the field of fractal geometry, which included coining the word "fractal" as well as for developing a "theory of roughness" and "self-similarity" in nature. He later discovered the Mandelbrot set of intricate, never-ending fractal shapes, named in his honor.